Author Archive

Cover Launch: TRANSLATION STATE by Ann Leckie, plus new editions of The Imperial Radch trilogy and PROVENANCE

2023 will mark ten years since Ancillary Justice published and changed the sci-fi landscape. It will also be the year that Ann Leckie’s brand-new novel, Translation State (US | UK), hits shelves in June 2023.

Take a look at the stunning cover for Translation State, catch the synopsis down below, and take a peek at our new editions of Ancillary Justice (US | UK), Ancillary Sword (US | UK), Ancillary Mercy (US | UK), and Provenance (US | UK), coming May 2023! You can also check out an exclusive first chapter excerpt of Translation State over at io9.

Translation State by Ann Leckie

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto

The mystery of a missing translator sets three lives on a collision course that will have a ripple effect across the stars in this powerful new novel by award-winning author Ann Leckie. 

Qven was created to be a Presger translator. The pride of their Clade, they always had a clear path before them: learn human ways, and eventually, make a match and serve as an intermediary between the dangerous alien Presger and the human worlds. The realization that they might want something else isn’t “optimal behavior.” I’s the type of behavior that results in elimination.

But Qven rebels. And in doing so, their path collides with those of two others. Enae, a reluctant diplomat whose dead grandmaman has left hir an impossible task as an inheritance: hunting down a fugitive who has been missing for over 200 years. And Reet, an adopted mechanic who is increasingly desperate to learn about his genetic roots—or anything that might explain why he operates so differently from those around him.

As a Conclave of the various species approaches—and the long-standing treaty between the humans and the Presger is on the line—the decisions of all three will have ripple effects across the stars.

Masterfully merging space adventure and mystery, and a poignant exploration about relationships and belonging, Translation State is a triumphant new standalone story set in Leckie’s celebrated Imperial Radch universe.

 

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto

Acquisition Announcement: A FLAME IN THE NORTH by Lilith Saintcrow

Orbit is thrilled to announce we’ve acquired an exciting new series from New York Times bestselling author Lilith Saintcrow!

Journey into a world of awakened myth and malevolent creatures, unearthed destiny and fractured oaths, in A Flame in the North, the start of an epic Norse-inspired trilogy.

Read on for a bit more about what you can expect!

The Black Land is a spent myth, and these are modern times. At least, so says Solveig’s father, and his father before him. After Solveig’s brother accidentally kills a northern lord’s son, she is sent north as weregild (part hostage, part honored guest) for a year and a day. As a volva—a wisewoman—and even rarer, an elementalist, Sol isn’t quite upset at the notion of travel, for she has her shieldmaiden, Arn, and a fair share of magic to see her through the journey.

Yet she soon learns the Black Land is no myth and has merely been dormant for a few short mortal generations, biding its time. Upon its iron throne sits the Great Enemy, and trapped in his crown are two jewels of surpassing power, wrought by the Elder in the morning of the world. The third jewel, wrested free at great cost, is a prize beyond reckoning—but it cannot be used except by an elementalist. Solveig is the key to this special weapon, and the remaining Elder, not to mention the men in service to them, will stop at nothing to control it. And her.

Far from home, with only her shieldmaiden and her own wits to rely upon, Solveig must master power beyond her imagination. The Black Land looms, its armies and fell creatures ready to burst forth and cover the world in darkness, unless Solveig can find the courage to stop it.

Make sure to snag A Flame in the North when it lands in bookstores in Winter 2024.

Orbit US senior editor Nivia Evans acquired World rights from Lucienne Diver at the Knight Agency.

Acquisition Announcement: THE BLACK HUNGER by Nicholas Pullen

Orbit is thrilled to have acquired The Black Hunger from debut author Nicholas Pullen, a spine-tingling and sprawling gothic journey into the heart of horror, perfect for fans of The Historian and The Terror.

Orbit UK Commissioning Editor Nadia Saward bought World English rights in two novels from Natasha Mihell at The Rights Factory, with Senior Editor Bradley Englert acquiring for Orbit US. Publication is planned for Autumn 2024.

A photo of Nicholas Pullen wearing a pink shirt and grey blazer

John Sackville will soon be dead. Shadows writhe in the corners of his London cell and the gnawing hunger is growing impossible to ignore. 

They will say he’s gone insane, but John knows he must write his last testament before it is too late.
 
It is a story steeped in history and myth, a journey from occult ruins in Scotland, to the barren wilderness of Russia where otherworldly creatures stalk the night, ending in the icy peaks of Tibet and Mongolia, where an ancient evil stirs. . .

Praise for The Black Hunger:

‘A terrifying gothic journey to the place where the very cruellest, hungriest creatures hide in the snow, and wear our faces. This is a magisterial debut’ Michael Rowe, author of Wild Fell

Acquiring editor Nadia Saward said: ‘Nicholas Pullen has crafted a gothic masterpiece that is at once an unsettling, sinister horror and a heartrending romance with a blistering end that still has me reeling. I can’t wait to terrify and bring readers to tears with The Black Hunger.’

Author Nicholas Pullen said: ‘In Orbit, The Black Hunger has found the perfect home, and in Nadia Saward and Bradley Englert it has found its perfect editors. I couldn’t be more excited to work with both Nadia and Bradley, and am profoundly grateful to Orbit for bringing The Black Hunger to the world. Here we go!’

Agent Natasha Mihell said: ‘The first time The Black Hunger gave me nightmares, I knew I had found something, and someone, special. Pullen’s erudite blend of the historical and the horrifying creates an enticingly rich, cosmically dark tale, shimmering with queer splendour. Captivating, adrenaline-inducing, and constructed with industrious care, The Black Hunger is one of those books you feel smarter for having read, and one that promises to linger in your mind long after you’ve finished reading it. An exceptional harnessing of madness—and one wild ride.’

US editor Bradly Englert said: ‘Great horror makes you care for the characters. The best kind of horror makes you love the characters and then haunts you as all of the terrifying events unfold. Nicholas Pullen has achieved both in The Black Hunger. It’s the kind of gothic horror that pulls you into the world of its characters before letting loose with full-tilt terror. As a diehard fan of horror, this is a novel that I love and one that readers are going to be obsessed with.’

About the author: Nicholas Pullen was born and raised in Toronto, and educated at Oxford and McGill. A writer since early childhood, Nicholas now fashions stories out of shadows, madness, and historical truths. Outside of writing, his professional life has been spent working toward Truth and Reconciliation in the Canadian Public Service, as a treaty negotiator with Indigenous Peoples. He speaks fluent French, is an enthusiastic amateur of the guitar and mandolin, and to relax, enjoys scuba diving on shipwrecks in Georgian Bay. Nicholas is a Canada Council for the Arts Grant Recipient and his short fiction has appeared in the Toronto Star (Famous Blue), the Copperfield Review (Hellulandsaga), and Anti-Heroin Chic (Relapse/Grindr). The Black Hunger is his first novel.

You can find Nicholas on Twitter at @thenajpullen, go say hello!

 

Cover Launch: MACHINE VENDETTA by Alastair Reynolds

Take a look at the stunning cover for Machine Vendetta (US) by Alastair Reynolds and catch the synopsis below!

Machine Vendetta by Alastair Reynolds

Cover Design by Alexia Mazis

From the king of modern space opera comes a new adventure in the Prefect Dreyfus series—Machine Vendetta is a thrilling tale of deadly conspiracies and old enemies that refuse to die. 

Panoply is a small, efficient police force, dedicated to maintaining the rule of democracy among the ten thousand disparate city-states orbiting the planet Yellowstone.

Ingvar Tench was one of Panoply’s most experienced operatives. So why did she walk alone and unarmed into a habitat with a vicious grudge against her organization?

As his colleagues pick up the pieces following her death, Prefect Tom Dreyfus must face his conscience. Four years ago, when an investigation linked to one of his most dangerous adversaries got a little too personal, Dreyfus arranged for Tench to continue the inquiry by proxy. In using her, did Dreyfus also put her in the line of fire? And what does Tench’s attack tell him about an enemy he had hoped was dormant?

Cover Launch: THE BLIGHTED STARS by Megan E. O’Keefe

The Blighted Stars (US | UK) is the first installment in The Devoured Worlds, Megan E. O’Keefe’s brand new science fiction trilogy beginning May 2023. Take a look at the stunning cover and catch the synopsis below!

The Blighted Stars by Megan E. O'Keefe

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto; Cover Illustration by Jaime Jones

When a spy is stranded on a dead planet with her mortal enemy, she must first figure out how to survive before she can uncover the conspiracy that landed them there. This first book in a new epic space opera trilogy by award-winning author Megan E. O’Keefe is perfect for fans of Children of Time, Semiosis, and Ancillary Justice.

She’s a revolutionary. Humanity is running out of options. Habitable planets are being destroyed as quickly as they’re found and Naira Sharp thinks she knows the reason why. The all-powerful Mercator family has been controlling the exploration of the universe for decades, and exploiting any materials they find along the way under the guise of helping humanity’s expansion. But Naira knows the truth, and she plans to bring the whole family down from the inside.

He’s the heir to the dynasty. Tarquin Mercator never wanted to run a galaxy-spanning business empire. He just wanted to study rocks and read books. But Tarquin’s father has tasked him with monitoring the settlement of a new planet, and he doesn’t really have a choice in the matter.

Disguised as Tarquin’s new bodyguard, Naira plans to destroy the settlement ship before they make land. But neither of them expects to end up stranded on a dead planet. To survive and keep her secret, Naira will have to join forces with the man she’s sworn to hate. And together they will uncover a plot that’s bigger than both of them.

Cover Launch: THE JASAD HEIR by Sara Hashem

The Jasad Heir (US | UK) is Sara Hashem’s debut fantasy coming July 2023. Take a look at the stunning cover and catch the synopsis down below! You can also check out an exclusive first chapter excerpt over at io9.

The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio; Cover Art by Mike Heath/Magnus Creative

In this Egyptian-inspired debut fantasy, a fugitive queen strikes a deadly bargain with her greatest enemy and finds herself embroiled in a complex game that could resurrect her scorched kingdom or leave it in ashes forever.

At ten years old, the Heir of Jasad fled a massacre that takes her entire family. At fifteen, she buried her first body. At twenty, the clock is ticking on Sylvia’s third attempt at home. Nizahl’s armies have laid waste to Jasad and banned magic across the four remaining kingdoms. Fortunately, Sylvia’s magic is as good at playing dead as she is.

When the Nizahl Heir tracks a group of Jasadis to Sylvia’s village, the quiet life she’s crafted unravels. Calculating and cold, Arin’s tactical brilliance is surpassed only by his hatred for magic. When a mistake exposes Sylvia’s magic, Arin offers her an escape: compete as Nizahl’s Champion in the Alcalah tournament and win immunity from persecution.

To win the deadly Alcalah, Sylvia must work with Arin to free her trapped magic, all while staying a step ahead of his efforts to uncover her identity. But as the two grow closer, Sylvia realizes winning her freedom means destroying any chance of reuniting Jasad under her banner. The scorched kingdom is rising again, and Sylvia will have to choose between the life she’s earned and the one she left behind.

Cover Launch: THE MIDNIGHT KINGDOM by Tara Sim

The Midnight Kingdom (US) is the second installment of Tara Sim’s Dark Gods trilogy—“a glorious tapestry of magic and murderous gods” (Buzzfeed News)—coming August 2023. Check out the stunning cover below!

The Midnight Kingdom by Tara Sim

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio

In The Midnight Kingdom, each heir walks a dangerous path, attempting to undo the damage the gods have wrought across the four realms. But they live on borrowed time. The divine will have their war—and not all of them will survive it.

A cataclysmic battle to save the city of Nexus has left the four noble heirs scattered across the realms.

Taesia, the shadow-wielding rebel of House Lastrider, and Nikolas, the reluctant soldier of House Cyr, have been cast into Noctus, the realm of eternal night. But they are not alone. The dangerous and unpredictable god of light has traveled with them, and he will do anything in his power to destroy Noctus in his bid for cosmic control.

Risha, the peacekeeping necromancer of House Vakara, must navigate her way through Mortri, the realm of death. But still she cannot help the wayward spirits, nor does she have any idea how to return home. All she knows is that no mortal can survive for long in Mortri. And the creatures that prowl the realm of death don’t take kindly to the living.

Angelica, the stubborn elementalist of House Mardova, is on her own in Vitae, trying to keep Nexus from unraveling. But Angelica secretly suffers from an illness that her god left in her veins. And when she is sent on a delicate diplomatic mission, she knows that any weakness will have disastrous repercussions for her family, her kingdom, and her dreams of the throne.

All will encounter old friends and new enemies as they attempt to restore the balance of the universe. But the gods grow stronger. And their descendants will need more than their magic and their wits to survive the war that is coming…

Acquisition Announcement: THE CITY OF STARDUST by Georgia Summers

Georgia Summers

We’re delighted to announce Orbit’s sister imprint, Redhook, has acquired Georgia Summers’ rich and evocative fantasy debut, The City of Stardust.

Set in a world with the whimsy and darkness of a fairytale, The City of Stardust follows a woman who discovers her family owes a blood debt to a powerful being, and must venture into a hidden realm of magic, gods, and monsters to escape her fate. Perfect for readers of Alix E. Harrow and Erin Morgenstern, The City of Stardust will transport you to a world you’ll want to visit over and over again.

 

The Everly family is cursed. Every generation is destined to lose their best and brightest, taken by a woman named Penelope, who never ages, never sickens, and never forgives a debt.

When her mother vanishes in the middle of the night, the curse falls on Violet Everly—unless she can break it first. To do so, she must descend into a seductive, magical underworld of power-hungry scholars, fickle gods, and monsters bent on revenge. And at the edges of the world, she’ll find the City of Stardust, where the Everly story began.

 

We can’t wait to share The City of Stardust with you in early 2024! And, in the meantime, please join us in welcoming Georgia to Orbit/Redhook. You can find her on Twitter @ge_summers.

Georgia Summers is half-British, half-Trinidadian, and spent most of her life living across the world, including Russia, Colombia, and the US. When she’s not doing bookish things, she’s planning her next great adventure. She currently lives in London, but she dreams of one day living in a haunted château with a ghost that cleans.

Cover Launch: THE FAITHLESS by C.L. Clark

In case you missed it, meet the cover of The Faithless (US | UK), the sequel to The Unbroken by C.L. Clark! You can take a closer look at the cover and read an exclusive first chapter excerpt here at io9. This next volume in The Magic of the Lost trilogy is coming March 2023. Read further for a synopsis and a cover comparison!

The Faithless by C.L. Clark

Cover Design by Lauren Panepinto; Cover Illustration by Tommy Arnold

In the second installment of C.L. Clark’s Magic of the Lost trilogy, soldier Touraine and princess Luca must return to Balladaire to reclaim Luca’s throne and to face the consequences of dismantling an empire.

The rebels have won, and the empire is withdrawing from Qazal. But undoing the tangled web that binds the two nations will not be easy, and Touraine and Luca will face their greatest challenge yet.

Luca needs to oust her uncle from the Balladairan throne once and for all and take her rightful place as Queen. But he won’t let go of power so easily. When he calls for a “Trial of Competence” and Luca’s allies start disappearing from her side, she will need to find a way to prove her might. And she knows someone who can help…

Touraine has found a home in the newly free country of Qazal. But she soon realizes that leading a country and leading a revolution are two very different tasks. And, even more importantly, if Luca’s uncle doesn’t ratify the treaty, the Qazali could end up right back where they started.

Together, the two women will have to come overcome their enemies, their history, and their heartbreak in order to find a way to secure Luca’s power and Touraine’s freedom.

The Unbroken and The Faithless by C.L. Clark

Cover Launch: TWO TWISTED CROWNS by Rachel Gillig

Two Twisted Crowns (US | UK) is the dark and luscious sequel to One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig. The next volume in The Shepherd King is coming October 2023. Take a look at the stunning cover below!

Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig

Cover Design by Lisa Marie Pompilio; Cover Images by Trevillion Images and Shutterstock

One Dark Window and Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig