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Welcome to our regular Friday links round-up. Plenty to get through this week, so without further ado:

As always, if you see any online articles, reviews or interviews that feature an Orbit author, please feel free to drop us a line and let us know! We’ll happily name-check your website or blog with a heads-up credit in return (please remember to provide us with a link…)

According to our content-management system (and we have no reason to believe that it would lie to us) this is the 300th post to go out on the Orbit website since we launched it back in March last year.

To celebrate, we thought we’d take the opportunity to consult with our traffic analytics software and run off a list of our Top 30 content items to-date. Looks like you folks really like your extracts! Well, we hear you, and we’ll make sure we keep them coming.

We’d also love to hear which articles you, our readers, have particularly enjoyed. Any hidden gems or more recent pieces that didn’t quite make the Top 30, for instance? Please feel free to use the comments below to let us know what sort of content you’d like to see more of (or less of - we can take it!) on the site.

And now, without further ado, here are those Top 30 items since March 2007:

1. Read an extract from Matter by Iain M Banks
2. Read an extract from Winterbirth by Brian Ruckley
3. Read an extract from Once Bitten, Twice Shy by Jennifer Rardin
4. Read an extract from Saturn’s Children by Charles Stross
5. Priestess of the Write: An Interview with Trudi Canavan
6. Read an extract from The Electric Church by Jeff Somers
7. Read an extract from The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski
8. The Wheel of Time Continues to Turn
9. Announcement of Robert Jordan’s passing
10. Read an extract from Black Ships by Jo Graham
11. Read an extract from Debatable Space by Philip Palmer
12. Read an extract from Empress by Karen Miller
13. Read an extract from The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller
14. Orbit announces plans to expand in the US and UK
15. Mike Carey on camera
16. Introducing The Last Wish
17. Tom Holt Talks Time Travel
18. The Escapement arrives
19. Read an extract from The Devil’s Right Hand by Lilith Saintcrow
20. Introducing Matter
21. Urban Fantasy come true
22. Orbit acquires Red-Headed Stepchild by Jaye Wells
23. Just another day at the office… IN HELL!
24. Standing Out or Fitting In? Tim Holman on Orbit cover art
25. The bestselling debut of 2007 - The Innocent Mage by Karen Miller
26. Devi Pillai reports from World Fantasy 2007
27. Orbit in Australia
28. Fiona MacIntosh’s video-intro for Odalisque
29. Orbit acquires two more books in Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files series
30. Best Summer SF Reads in The Times

We’ve just re-launched the UK website of mega-bestselling author Stephenie Meyer, whose Twilight saga is published in the UK by Orbit’s sister-imprint, Atom.

It looks a lot like this:

The fourth book of the saga, Breaking Dawn, will be published in the UK on August 4th and there are launch-day events taking place right across the UK - see this news item on the site for details of events taking place at bookstores in your area.

Iain [M] Banks enjoyed providing answers for his first email Q&A session so much that he’s asked us to set up another one right away.

And so, without further ado, we hereby call for all you Banks-fans and readers to send in your questions for Iain. Visit the official Iain Banks website for more information, general guidelines etc.

Over at FantasyBookCritic, blogger Robert Thompson has posted a hugely complimentary review of the second of Mike Carey’s Felix Castor novels, Vicious Circle, which we published back in 2006 (and have since followed up with volume three in the series, Dead Men’s Boots).

Robert says:

“Vicious Circle … makes a strong case for being one of the top urban fantasy novels released this year. Simply put, I think Mike Carey is one of the most exciting new authors in supernatural fiction today and I can’t recommend the Felix Castor series enough.”

He’s also added an email interview conducted with Mike, which includes an update on a number of writing projects (including a fifth Felix Castor novel), the progress on a couple of film projects, his many comics-related interests, and what Mike sees as the future of fiction in printed form.

Check out the full review an interview at FantasyBookCritic.blogspot.com.

We’ve just posted the write-up of the first email Q&A session with Iain [M] Banks, over at his official website, www.iain-banks.net.

In case you missed the announcement first time around, we invited readers of this site and www.iain-banks.net to submit their questions for Iain - ideally something other than the usual sort of thing he tends to be asked at readings and convention appearances all the time - and then we selected a half-dozen question to put to Iain.

So, if you’d like to know which Culture character Iain would choose to write a novella on, or whether Iain would ever write a science-fiction novel that wasn’t filled with war and violence, or even which parts of Scotland Iain recommends for a visitor who’s also a fan of his books, then www.iain-banks.net is the place to head to next.

Ken MacLeod is the subject of the latest podcast interview at www.scifidimensions.com.

The discussion ranges across a number of subjects, including Ken’s new novel, The Night Sessions, which we’re publishing in the UK next month, and his previous title, The Execution Channel, which we published in paperback back in March.

Interviewer John C Snider also discusses with Ken how it feels to be nominated for awards, his current thematic interest in writing near-future speculation with an alternate-history twist, Heim theory, Ken’s politics (and how his views affect his writing), new media, blogging, how The Night Sessions was (partly) inspired by a U2 video, and much more.

Download the full 40-minute podcast file by visiting www.scifidimensions.com.

Welcome to this week’s round-up of links of interest featuring Orbit authors that we’ve found (or have been sent in to us) over the course of the past seven days or so:

If you see any online articles, reviews or interviews that feature an Orbit author, please feel free to drop us a line and let us know! We’ll happily name-check your website or blog with a heads-up credit in return (please remember to provide us with a link…)

Former military intelligence officer turned military-sf writer Robert Buettner is the subject of the 47th Adventures in SciFi Publishing podcast.

The first three volumes in Robert’s Jason Wander series are out now from Orbit US and will all be published by Orbit UK in August:

• #1 - Orphanage [US / UK]
• #2 - Orphan’s Destiny [US / UK]
• #3 - Orphan’s Journey [US / UK]

I’ve just finished Orphanage myself and I thought it was a cracking, high-octane read that will definitely appeal to fans of Allan Cole & Chris Bunch’s Sten series, but don’t just take my word for it: check out these two recent reviews of Orphan’s Journey at bookreviewsandmore and sffworld.

Over at www.sfsite.com one of the bestselling fantasy authors of the past 30 years, Terry Brooks, has been interviewed by top UK fan-journo, Sandy Auden.

Sandy talks to Terry about the genesis of the Genesis of Shannara series - Armageddon’s Children and The Elves of Cintra - and how he planned the books to act as a bridge between his Word and the Void series and the long-running and hugely popular Shannara epic.

Terry goes into quite a bit of intriguing detail (warning: a few potential spoilers!) that fans of the series will love, and reveals the key importance of one particular character, who will become the focus of Genesis of Shannara volume three, The Gypsy Morph, which we’re publishing in the UK in September.

Check it out at www.sfsite.com.

Marie Brennan pops in over at Whatever, John Scalzi’s blog, to talk about her novel, Midnight Never Come, and the Big Idea behind it:

What would faeries be doing while English history is trundling along? Of course, that automatically implies something: that the fae aren’t static, timeless creatures. They have a history, too, and it reflects, contrasts with, or otherwise interestingly comments on what humans are doing.

Fittingly, then, the first thing I came up with was Invidiana: Elizabeth’s dark mirror. Being a faerie, she’s all about immortal beauty; Elizabeth tried desperately to create an unchanging image of herself as the beautiful Virgin Queen, even as she aged and her teeth went bad and smallpox left its scars. Elizabeth never married; Invidiana is the most loveless creature you can imagine. And both of them, of course, are reigning queens of England. I originally just implied a metaphysical link between them, but in the book it’s explicit: when Elizabeth was imprisoned in the Tower during Mary’s reign, she made a secret deal with Invidiana, that they would help each other out.

Read the full piece here and pick up Midnight Never Come at all good booksellers today!

Okay, okay… so there was this retired succubus and this model-47 femmebot… no, wait, that’s not how it goes. Alright, I’ve got it: a retired succubus and a trenchcoat-wearing wizard walk into a Chicago bar and… no, that’s not right, either.

But seriously, folks, Freya Nakamichi, star of the new Charles Stross novel Saturn’s Children, and the one and only Harry Dresden, loved the world over by fans of Jim Butcher’s Dresden Files series, are the subjects of the latest couple of author Jackie Kessler’s Cat and Muse interviews.

In this ongoing series, fictional character Jezebel the former demon interviews fellow fictional characters about their lives, loves, longings and, in Freya’s case, fashion nightmares. Jezebel also chatted to Lune, of Marie Brennan’s Midnight Never Come fame, not so long ago. Check them all out, well worth a tea-break read!

Welcome to the latest weekly round up of links of interest featuring Orbit authors; various item that we’ve found online (or have been sent in to us) over the course of the past week:

As always, if you see any online articles, reviews or interviews that feature an Orbit author, please feel free to drop us a line and let us know! We’ll happily name-check your website or blog with a heads-up credit in return (please remember to provide us with a link…)

The latest special issue of the UK’s bestselling SF & Fantasy magazine, SFX takes an in-depth look at SF and Fantasy Books, and is packed full of Orbit (and Atom) author action:

• - The best bits from 13 years of SFX interviews with Iain M Banks.
• - Tom Holt lauds Isaac Asimov’s Foundation as a “bona fide SF masterpiece”.
• - Dave Golder talks to Stephenie Meyer about the phenomenal success of her Twilight series and the forthcoming movie adaptation.
• - Nine Orbit authors (Brian Ruckley, Karen Miller, Philip Palmer, Jo Graham, Sean Williams, Kelley Armstrong, Mike Carey, Charles Stross and Ken MacLeod) reveal their literary inspirations in a ‘Write On…’ feature article.
• - Charles Stross, Jennifer Rardin, Lilith Saintcrow, Jennifer Fallon, Elizabeth Moon, R. Scott Bakker and Jeff Somers each answer ten quick-fire interview questions.
• - Lots of Orbit-published authors feature in the ‘SFX Top 100 SF & Fantasy Authors of All Time’ poll results: Charles Stross (97), Ken MacLeod (94), Jacqueline Carey (85), J.V. Jones (82), Terry Brooks (61), Jennifer Fallon (58), Jim Butcher (43), Tad Williams (42), Trudi Canavan (40), Orson Scott Card (36), Arthur C. Clarke (18), Robert Jordan (17), David Gemmell (12) and Iain M Banks (7). Well done to all, and thanks to everyone who voted!

On-sale now from all good newsagents (or available to order online from the SFX website) priced £5.99, the ‘zine also comes with a free audiobook sampler that includes extracts from Matter by Iain M Banks and Stephenie Meyer’s The Host.

In the past couple of weeks we’ve seen a flurry of reviews of Lilith Saintcrow’s brand new novel, Night Shift [US | UK], the first in a new series starring kick-ass demon-hunter Jill Kismet.

Writing for the My Favourite Books blog, Liz was particularly impressed with the strength of Lilith’s new protagonist:

“Lilith has again created a vibrant, strong, female heroine who keeps you running behind her in a breathless charge against forces you just know you would never be able to walk away from completely unscathed.”

Graeme, of Graeme’s Fantasy Book Review fame enjoyed Lilith’s moody and atmospheric prose:

“I like what she is setting up; it’s very atmospheric (in a noir kind of way) and dark. Just the right kind of vibe for the story being told. The good news is that Saintcrow makes sure that her scene-setting doesn’t get in the way of telling a fast paced and gritty tale.”

Over at the Midwest Book Review site (not the easiest to navigate, but stick with it) Terrilyn Fleming highlights the noir-cinematic feel of Lilith’s writing:

“Lyrical language and movie-worthy fight scenes are staples in Saintcrow’s novels, and this one is no exception. In Night Shift, Saincrow’s usual beautiful language is complemented with almost Chandleresque noir phrases … Her fight scenes contain blood spatters that hang in the air and a billowing coat that snap out parachute-like when Kismet jumps from roofs. The scenes are so well painted it is like reading a graphic novel.”

And whilst Amanda at www.lovevampires.com bemoans the lack of proper vamps in Jill Kismet’s world, she was still suitably impressed enough to conclude:

“Night Shift powers readers through an action packed nightscape of bloody death - usually dispensed by our heroine Jill. In my view Night Shift makes for more engaging reading than the Dante Valentine books but I think that readers will have to make up their own minds. Certainly if you have enjoyed the earlier [series] I can’t see you being disappointed by Night Shift.”

You can sample the first part of the book for yourself by reading an extract from Night Shift here, read Lilith’s intro to the book in our recent In Their Own Words item and can find out much more about the author, her new series and her previous books, over at her official website: www.lilithsaintcrow.com.

Over at his Fantasy Book Critic blog, Robert has posted the longest and most detailed interview we’ve seen to-date with Marie Brennan, author of Midnight Never Come [UK/US].

Robert and Marie discuss the origins of the story, the differences between Midnight Never Come and some of the other Elizabethan Faerie titles currently being published, here next novel And Ashes Lie (scheduled for publication in 2009), her earlier books (which we’re reissuing in the US this summer), her short fiction writing, her academic background in anthrolopogy and folklore and more.

Great stuff, well worth a read if you’re a fan of Marie’s first Onyx Court book already, or are at all curious about the background to the series.

Author Jeff Somers put together a great little trailer for his latest novel, THE DIGITAL PLAGUE.

If you’re in New York, make sure to save the date on August 20th to see Jeff at the Fantastic Fiction reading series.

Welcome to our latest round-up of links of interest featuring Orbit authors. We’ve got a bumper selection this week, all new content that we’ve found (or has been sent in to us) over the course of the past week:

If you see any online articles, reviews or interviews that feature an Orbit author, please feel free to drop us a line and let us know! We’ll happily name-check your website or blog with a heads-up credit in return (please remember to provide us with a link…)

Patricia says:

Blood Bound is the second of my series about Mercy Thompson, a coyote-shapeshifter VW mechanic who lives in a world where werewolves and vampires hunt the night. Moon Called, the first book, introduced the werewolves. Blood Bound focuses on the vampires. Mercy owes one of them a favor and it’s time to pay-up – but the cost turns out to be more than either of them expected.

One of the things I most love about urban fantasy is that the monsters can really be monsters. I didn’t want my vampires to be just people with fangs – they had to (forgive the pun) have a bite to them.

Blood Bound - book two of Patricia Briggs’ Mercy Thompson series is out now in paperback in the UK.

You can find our more about Patricia and her writing over at her official website, www.patriciabriggs.com.

Midnight on Monday was the cut-off point for entries to our Midnight Never Come prize quiz competition and Tuesday saw a flurry of activity as the overall winner and runners-up were selected (by means of our polyhedral plastic random number generating system) from amongst the fantastic volume of correct entries we received.

Thank you very much indeed to everyone who took part, and we do hope you enjoyed puzzling out the answers. All the winners were contacted earlier this week, so I’m afraid if you haven’t heard from us by now, then your luck wasn’t in… at least, not this time - do keep your eye out for more Orbit competitions in the future.

The overall winner - who will soon be enjoying a $500 spending spree with their book retailer of choice, as well as receiving a signed copy of Marie Brennan’s Midnight Never Come - is:

Carmen R from Columbus, Georgia

And the ten runners-up, who will be receiving a signed copy of Midnight Never Come, are (in approximate order of distance from Orbit’s London HQ):

- Ian S from Dunstable, Bedfordshire
- Linda R from Mildenhall, Suffolk
- Susie A from Alsager, Cheshire
- Bill T from Huyton, Merseyside
- Brian S from Beverley, East Yorkshire
- Kathleen G from Haddon Heights, New Jersey
- Charlene C from Hymera, Indiana
- Mary W from Chicago, Illinois
- Kristy G from Orem, Utah
- Dawn L from Redwood City, California

Many congratulations to our overall winner and runners-up, and we do hope you all thoroughly enjoy reading Midnight Never Come!