Archive for Orbit UK

Wallpaper: The Black Prism by BRENT WEEKS

The wallpaper all you Brent Weeks fans have been asking for is finally here, ready to take over your assorted computers, phones, portable-media-devices, facebook page, chat icons… ok I’m getting carried away. I’ve got the standard wallpaper sizes up for 99% of you to download, but if there’s a certain resolution/size you need that’s not there let me know in the comments, I’ll make it for you special.

Richard Jones did a great job with the in-your-face image of one of the awesome and unpredictable characters from the book.

The Black Prism has all the twists and turns readers have come to expect from Brent Weeks, along with a huge  cast of characters whose reversals of fortunes and motivations will keep you guessing right up until the last page. Download links after the jump. Enjoy!

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Mystery Cover Outtake 8.7.10

Truly a cover designer’s work is never done…a sunny hot saturday spent in the studio of fabulous photographer Laura Hanifin working on a top secret book cover for next season…I’ll just have to let you keep guessing which one until the final cover is released! Just wanted to share for your viewing – and squirming – pleasure. Now if only I could share the stink. Yuck.

A Wild Light Bookcast

To celebrate the release of A Wild Light (UK | ANZ) , the third of the Hunter Kiss novels, I’m taking readers into my home while I discuss Maxine Kiss and the troubles facing her in her latest adventure. Dark times are coming for my favorite heroine, but with stubbornness and love, will she find her way free of the shadows?

You can also read a free extract here.

Welcome to Hell

I’ve got this book out. It’s called Death Most Definite (UK | US | AUS),  and it’s about Death and it’s set in Brisbane and Hell. That’s Brisbane, Australia (not Brisbane, North Dakota, which Wikipedia informs me is a ghost town, so it would have been kind of appropriate).

Most of you have an idea of where the Hell is, but, probably, not so many would know about Brisbane.

So here’s what you need to know.

It’s Australia’s third most populous city.

The outer eastern suburbs rub up against the coast, the inner suburbs cluster around Mt Coot-tha (a low mountain, really more of a hill, that I can see from my window as I type this). And all through it the Brisbane River winds– a tributary of the River Styx, but then all rivers are. (more…)

A different kind of fantasy heroine: the pregnant, short-sighted scholar…

Firstly, so far so good. Stormlord Rising has been selling well in US, an indication that readers of The Last Stormlord want to know what happens next. I have my first Amazon reviews, and — as I am totally into watching Amazon ratings because I’m ridiculously pathetic — I am delighted that they are 5 stars; as are the ratings over at Barnes&Noble. (Yeah, I look at those too. Didn’t I just say I’m pathetic?)

So, for those of you haven’t read it yet, what’s Stormlord Rising all about?

It continues the story of Terelle and Shale/Jasper, as Terelle is caught up in the coercion of waterpainter magic and Shale is trapped by his nemesis, Taquar. Book 1 ended with a siege and a war, you may remember. Stormlord Rising also ends with a war and a battle — although a very different sort of battle employing a great deal more water magic.

But in many ways, this is Ryka Feldspar’s story. In many ways it is also (I hope) a touching love story, although not a romance…

Imagine this: you are a privileged woman aged about 29 or so, newly married and expecting your first child, when your entire world is turned upside down. You see your husband fall in a battle, and have good reason to think he is dead. Your side loses the battle, your home and family are destroyed, your whole life has vanished into the maws of your enemies. You see and experience unspeakable things. (more…)

World Con bloggery and more

It’s been a while since I posted on the Orbit blog. Running three separate websites of my own has kinda sapped my blogging energies. However, Aussie Con 4 is just around the corner, and down here we’re very excited to be getting the opportunity to meet visiting Orbit-ites Charlie Stross, Kate Elliot, Mira Grant, Gail Carriger, Helen Lowe, and of course Kim Stanley Robinson.

So … I’m delighted to say that Mira Grant has guest blogged at my main site on pseudonyms and things. Charlie Stross has promised me a post when he’s finished eating “yesterday’s stone cold vomit” (*Facebook reference on edits). And I’m about to email Gail, Kate and Helen (fell free to beat me to it gals!) in the hope that they’ll also drop by and say hello.

And while you’re floating around my blog enjoying Mira Grant’s post, you can back track to Jon Courtenay Grimwood ruminating articulately about repeating yourself in your writing.

Stay shiny, y’all.

Marianne de Pierres

Philip Palmer’s music corner

For a while now, Philip Palmer has been asking various SF/F luminaries what their choice for best science fiction or fantasy song is. I, for one, have been constantly surprised by the never-ending back-catalog of SFF-themed songs. This week, Philip returns to the well with Brian Ruckley who called our attentions to the inestimable Queen a few months back.

My personal pick has already been taken by TV and film producer Archie Tait: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots by the Flaming Lips

He’s pestered more than a few Orbit authors for answers including

Mike Carey

Mike Cobley

Jesse Bullington

Jon Courtenay Grimwood

Nicole Peeler

Jennifer Rardin

Lilith Saintcrow

Pop over to his site (http://www.philippalmer.net) to get the full list and check back every week for more awesome SFF musical action.

FEED is a Killer Thriller!

NPR ran a listener contest to determine the best 100 thriller novels of all time and we are absolutely delighted to announce that our own Mira Grant made it on the list at a very respectable #74! When your competition is Stephen King, Dashiell Hammett, and Stieg Larsson, #74 is killer indeed…

Check out the full list here!

And pop over to congratulate Mira on her twitter feed: @MiraGrant (aka @seananmcguire)

The Terminal State – the readers speak out

Out this month is the gun-blazing, throat-slitting, hover-riding, brain-augmenting THE TERMINAL STATE (UK/ US/ ANZ), the fourth book in Jeff Somers’ near-future thriller series, the Avery Cates sequence.

To celebrate its release, you might remember that Jeff Somers ran a competition to give his readers the chance to act out the roles of their favourite characters, by providing voiceovers for several videos based on the book. Jeff obviously managed to get people’s creative juices flowing, and received some highly inspired entries. The winners have now been chosen and they are the following: 

Canny Orel – read by Ben Linford

Wa Belling – read by Tyrel Devlin from Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

The Poet – read by Jeffrey Lamar from Chandler, Arizona

Mara – read by Patty Blount from Framingville, New York

The videos, with readers’ voices added, are now up on the site right here: www.theterminalstate.com (roll over the images to find the hidden footage).

If you haven’t checked out the Avery Cates novels and want to find out why SFX has called them ‘brash, brutal, [and] brilliant’, and the Guardian ‘an exhilarating example of powerful and entertaining storytelling’ then you can read an extract from the first book here.