Title: SFF Swap - December 2007 Reveals Here!
shaunesay - December 15, 2007 12:42 AM (GMT)
luckaye - December 15, 2007 12:42 AM (GMT)
KathyB's Reveal
The Margarets by Sheri Tepper
Synopsis
The Margarets marks the long-awaited return of one of the most respected authors in the sf community; a writer who has earned accolades and the admiration of every true aficionado of bold, brilliant, risk-taking speculative fiction. Sheri S. Tepper dazzles yet again with a powerful tale of ingenious survival and strange destiny.
The only human child living in a human work colony on the Martian satellite Phobos, little Margaret Bain has devised a system for keeping the suffocating demons of boredom and loneliness at bay: She invents six imaginary companions, each an extension of her own personality, to play with. When the unproductive Phobos project is shut down, and after Margaret is forced to return to Earth with her parents, the child's other selves are lost to her. But they are not gone. Left behind, each one flourishes—refining its own persona, acquiring its own history—before ultimately dispersing to far-flung destinations throughout the universe.
On a near-barren homeworld denuded by thoughtless-ness and chemistry, Margaret grows to adulthood and marries, despite the seemingly utter hopelessness of humanity's future. The Earth is so impoverished that its inhabitants must import water and other basic necessities of life—trading the only viable product the planet has left to offer . . . slaves.
The time will come when Margaret must leave this world as well, expelled as part of a desperate survival plan millennia in the making—an astonishing scheme that will require her to gather together the many Margarets who are now scattered throughout the galaxy.
The creator of the Margarets must now bring all her selves home . .. or watch her race perish.
The Margarets by Sheri Tepper
Synopsis
The Margarets marks the long-awaited return of one of the most respected authors in the sf community; a writer who has earned accolades and the admiration of every true aficionado of bold, brilliant, risk-taking speculative fiction. Sheri S. Tepper dazzles yet again with a powerful tale of ingenious survival and strange destiny.
The only human child living in a human work colony on the Martian satellite Phobos, little Margaret Bain has devised a system for keeping the suffocating demons of boredom and loneliness at bay: She invents six imaginary companions, each an extension of her own personality, to play with. When the unproductive Phobos project is shut down, and after Margaret is forced to return to Earth with her parents, the child's other selves are lost to her. But they are not gone. Left behind, each one flourishes—refining its own persona, acquiring its own history—before ultimately dispersing to far-flung destinations throughout the universe.
On a near-barren homeworld denuded by thoughtless-ness and chemistry, Margaret grows to adulthood and marries, despite the seemingly utter hopelessness of humanity's future. The Earth is so impoverished that its inhabitants must import water and other basic necessities of life—trading the only viable product the planet has left to offer . . . slaves.
The time will come when Margaret must leave this world as well, expelled as part of a desperate survival plan millennia in the making—an astonishing scheme that will require her to gather together the many Margarets who are now scattered throughout the galaxy.
The creator of the Margarets must now bring all her selves home . .. or watch her race perish.
wss4 - December 15, 2007 03:39 AM (GMT)
The Mammoth Book of Comic Fantasy
by Mike Ashley (Editor)
Synopsis
The very best in whimsical and hilarious fantasy writing, this collection features specially commissioned stories by such masters of the fanciful imagination as Rabelais and Swift, Lewis Carroll and Edward Lear, P.G. Wodehouse, and James Thurber.
A compendium of comic fantasy writing. Most of the stories are modern, with many especially written for this collection. The book also includes classic reprints and rare gems from comic fantasy's roots in past years.
Mammoth Book of Seriously Comic Fantasy
Brand-new stories and comic classics fill the 500-plus pages of the sequel to the popular Mammoth Book of Comic Fantasy.
Bungee-jumping demons, mad Magi, seafaring aliens, and a tricky wizard who leaks to the press populate this new collection of magic and mayhem from fantasy's funniest, wackiest writers, among them Harlan Ellison, Ambrose Bierce, Neil Gaiman, Craig Shaw Gardner, Harry Harrison, Tom Holt, Terry Jonesm, and many more. Here are the madcap fantasies of "The Case of the Four-and-Twenty Blackbirds," "A Slow Day in Hell," "The Case of Jack the Clipper," "The Shoemaker and the Elvis," and other tales to delight, amuse, and, confuse fantasy fans.
David Langford will appear with "The Case of Jack the Clipper"
~~~~
I know I am not supposed to chat but I love the artwork Shauney!! Thanks for sharing!!
shaunesay - December 15, 2007 04:36 AM (GMT)
| QUOTE (wss4 @ Dec 14 2007, 09:39 PM) |
| I know I am not supposed to chat but I love the artwork Shauney!! Thanks for sharing!! |
That's alright, I'm glad you liked! ;)
I admit it, I'm an art addict :lol: I don't actually have all of those, but I've got lots of others! :rolleyes: Randal is even a Kansas City guy, who has art shows here two or three or four times a year!
shaunesay - December 15, 2007 05:25 PM (GMT)
Lexilewords reveal:
title: the hidden worlds
author: kristin landon
description:
Linnea, the book's heroine, has run into more than her share of bad luck in recent years: her planet has been nearly abandoned by the Pilots on whom the "hidden worlds" depend for supplies and protection, and her impoverished village loses its boat, its men, and its livelihood in a terrible accident. What's a scrappy, stubborn, technically competent girl to do, with an extended family depending on her to save them? Linnea's quest to rescue her family and find her own way in the world takes her very far from home. On the rich, powerful, and rather sinister planet Nexus, where the Pilots live and train, Linnea will find out just how tough (and tender) a person she can be. And all the while, the nanobots of the Cold Minds are relentlessly approaching the hidden worlds . . . .
title: the hidden worlds
author: kristin landon
description:
Linnea, the book's heroine, has run into more than her share of bad luck in recent years: her planet has been nearly abandoned by the Pilots on whom the "hidden worlds" depend for supplies and protection, and her impoverished village loses its boat, its men, and its livelihood in a terrible accident. What's a scrappy, stubborn, technically competent girl to do, with an extended family depending on her to save them? Linnea's quest to rescue her family and find her own way in the world takes her very far from home. On the rich, powerful, and rather sinister planet Nexus, where the Pilots live and train, Linnea will find out just how tough (and tender) a person she can be. And all the while, the nanobots of the Cold Minds are relentlessly approaching the hidden worlds . . . .
KathyB - December 15, 2007 07:10 PM (GMT)
Lucie's reveal
The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay
It all began with a lecture that introduced five university students to a man who would change their lives, a wizard who could take them from Earth to the heart of the first of all worlds--Fionavar. And take them Loren Silvercloak did, for his need--the need of Fionavar and all the worlds--was great indeed.
And in a marvelous land of men and dwarves, of wizards and gods--and of the Unraveller and his minions of Darkness--Kimberly, Dave, Jennifer, Kevin, and Paul discovered who they were truly meant to be. For the five were a long-awaited part of the pattern known as the Fionavar Tapestry, and only if they accepted their destiny would the armies of the Light stand any chance of surviving when the Unraveller unleashed his wrath upon the world.
The Summer Tree by Guy Gavriel Kay
It all began with a lecture that introduced five university students to a man who would change their lives, a wizard who could take them from Earth to the heart of the first of all worlds--Fionavar. And take them Loren Silvercloak did, for his need--the need of Fionavar and all the worlds--was great indeed.
And in a marvelous land of men and dwarves, of wizards and gods--and of the Unraveller and his minions of Darkness--Kimberly, Dave, Jennifer, Kevin, and Paul discovered who they were truly meant to be. For the five were a long-awaited part of the pattern known as the Fionavar Tapestry, and only if they accepted their destiny would the armies of the Light stand any chance of surviving when the Unraveller unleashed his wrath upon the world.
luckaye - December 16, 2007 08:39 AM (GMT)
Pepper's reveal
New Crobuzon Book 1: Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
Beneath the towering bleached ribs of a dead, ancient beast lies New Crobuzon, a squalid city where humans, Re-mades, and arcane races live in perpetual fear of Parliament and its brutal militia. The air and rivers are thick with factory pollutants and the strange effluents of alchemy, and the ghettos contain a vast mix of workers, artists, spies, junkies, and whores. In New Crobuzon, the unsavory deal is stranger to none—not even to Isaac, a brilliant scientist with a penchant for Crisis Theory.
Isaac has spent a lifetime quietly carrying out his unique research. But when a half-bird, half-human creature known as the Garuda comes to him from afar, Isaac is faced with challenges he has never before fathomed. Though the Garuda's request is scientifically daunting, Isaac is sparked by his own curiosity and an uncanny reverence for this curious stranger.
While Isaac's experiments for the Garuda turn into an obsession, one of his lab specimens demands attention: a brilliantly colored caterpillar that feeds on nothing but a hallucinatory drug and grows larger—and more consuming—by the day. What finally emerges from the silken cocoon will permeate every fiber of New Crobuzon—and not even the Ambassador of Hell will challenge the malignant terror it invokes . . .
A magnificent fantasy rife with scientific splendor, magical intrigue, and wonderfully realized characters, told in a storytelling style in which Charles Dickens meets Neal Stephenson, Perdido Street Station offers an eerie, voluptuously crafted world that will plumb the depths of every reader's imagination.
AND
New Crobuzon Book 2: The Scar by China Miéville
A mythmaker of the highest order, China Miéville has emblazoned the fantasy novel with fresh language, startling images, and stunning originality. Set in the same sprawling world of Miéville’s Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning novel, Perdido Street Station, this latest epic introduces a whole new cast of intriguing characters and dazzling creations.
Aboard a vast seafaring vessel, a band of prisoners and slaves, their bodies remade into grotesque biological oddities, is being transported to the fledgling colony of New Crobuzon. But the journey is not theirs alone. They are joined by a handful of travelers, each with a reason for fleeing the city. Among them is Bellis Coldwine, a renowned linguist whose services as an interpreter grant her passage—and escape from horrific punishment. For she is linked to Isaac Dan der Grimnebulin, the brilliant renegade scientist who has unwittingly unleashed a nightmare upon New Crobuzon.
For Bellis, the plan is clear: live among the new frontiersmen of the colony until it is safe to return home. But when the ship is besieged by pirates on the Swollen Ocean, the senior officers are summarily executed. The surviving passengers are brought to Armada, a city constructed from the hulls of pirated ships, a floating, landless mass ruled by the bizarre duality called the Lovers. On Armada, everyone is given work, and even Remades live as equals to humans, Cactae, and Cray. Yet no one may ever leave.
Lonely and embittered in her captivity, Bellis knows that to show dissent is a death sentence. Instead, she must furtively seek information about Armada’s agenda. The answer lies in the dark, amorphous shapes that float undetected miles below the waters—terrifying entities with a singular, chilling mission. . . .
China Miéville is a writer for a new era—and The Scar is a luminous, brilliantly imagined novel that is nothing short of spectacular.
New Crobuzon Book 1: Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
Beneath the towering bleached ribs of a dead, ancient beast lies New Crobuzon, a squalid city where humans, Re-mades, and arcane races live in perpetual fear of Parliament and its brutal militia. The air and rivers are thick with factory pollutants and the strange effluents of alchemy, and the ghettos contain a vast mix of workers, artists, spies, junkies, and whores. In New Crobuzon, the unsavory deal is stranger to none—not even to Isaac, a brilliant scientist with a penchant for Crisis Theory.
Isaac has spent a lifetime quietly carrying out his unique research. But when a half-bird, half-human creature known as the Garuda comes to him from afar, Isaac is faced with challenges he has never before fathomed. Though the Garuda's request is scientifically daunting, Isaac is sparked by his own curiosity and an uncanny reverence for this curious stranger.
While Isaac's experiments for the Garuda turn into an obsession, one of his lab specimens demands attention: a brilliantly colored caterpillar that feeds on nothing but a hallucinatory drug and grows larger—and more consuming—by the day. What finally emerges from the silken cocoon will permeate every fiber of New Crobuzon—and not even the Ambassador of Hell will challenge the malignant terror it invokes . . .
A magnificent fantasy rife with scientific splendor, magical intrigue, and wonderfully realized characters, told in a storytelling style in which Charles Dickens meets Neal Stephenson, Perdido Street Station offers an eerie, voluptuously crafted world that will plumb the depths of every reader's imagination.
AND
New Crobuzon Book 2: The Scar by China Miéville
A mythmaker of the highest order, China Miéville has emblazoned the fantasy novel with fresh language, startling images, and stunning originality. Set in the same sprawling world of Miéville’s Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning novel, Perdido Street Station, this latest epic introduces a whole new cast of intriguing characters and dazzling creations.
Aboard a vast seafaring vessel, a band of prisoners and slaves, their bodies remade into grotesque biological oddities, is being transported to the fledgling colony of New Crobuzon. But the journey is not theirs alone. They are joined by a handful of travelers, each with a reason for fleeing the city. Among them is Bellis Coldwine, a renowned linguist whose services as an interpreter grant her passage—and escape from horrific punishment. For she is linked to Isaac Dan der Grimnebulin, the brilliant renegade scientist who has unwittingly unleashed a nightmare upon New Crobuzon.
For Bellis, the plan is clear: live among the new frontiersmen of the colony until it is safe to return home. But when the ship is besieged by pirates on the Swollen Ocean, the senior officers are summarily executed. The surviving passengers are brought to Armada, a city constructed from the hulls of pirated ships, a floating, landless mass ruled by the bizarre duality called the Lovers. On Armada, everyone is given work, and even Remades live as equals to humans, Cactae, and Cray. Yet no one may ever leave.
Lonely and embittered in her captivity, Bellis knows that to show dissent is a death sentence. Instead, she must furtively seek information about Armada’s agenda. The answer lies in the dark, amorphous shapes that float undetected miles below the waters—terrifying entities with a singular, chilling mission. . . .
China Miéville is a writer for a new era—and The Scar is a luminous, brilliantly imagined novel that is nothing short of spectacular.
shaunesay - December 16, 2007 02:28 PM (GMT)
Elsi's Reveal:
Belarus and Enemies by Lee Hogan
This is a two-for-one deal.
Belarus
It's a planet ripe for a new vision-of a glorious past that once was, and could be again. Andrei Mironenko, a powerful magnate in the Star republic, believes the pristine planet of Belarus is uninhabited and unspoiled.
He didn't dig deep enough.
With a richly imagined geo-political setting, Belarus reads like a Russian fairy tale set in space.
Ginger Armstrong - KLIATT
In Belarus, a future world created to emulate Imperial Russia, Andrei Mironenko finds himself tsar. With Enhanced Special Agents, mechanical sprites, and a world engineer at his side, Andrei rules this planet of the Republic. When murders start occurring on this new world, Andrei and his colleagues must discover who is committing these crimes. Since the newly engineered planet screened its populace, they wonder how a "superkiller" could inhabit it. But unbeknownst to Andrei, the "new" colonists are not the only inhabitants. The Enemies are creatures that enjoy torture and eat the organs of those who participate in their "Dance." These Enemies have found a way (with the help of a Belarus technician) to infiltrate the technology and to destroy local mining operations, space stations, and communications links as well as entire planets. In order to preserve the civilization on Belarus, Andrei must outwit and destroy the Enemies with the help of a secret weapon, "bug spray." The weaving of Russian culture throughout the novel with an emphasis on the Orthodox Church (as portrayed through Andrei's wife, Katerina) and with the inclusion of a Baba Yaga figure (as portrayed through Andrei's mysterious supporter) adds authenticity and a strong sense of place to this engineered world. The narrative jumps forward from Year 1 at Belarus to 870 years later by the end of the novel, leaving the reader to speculate on the future of the Belarus system. Part suspense, part high-tech SF, and even a bit romantic, this novel will have appeal to more than general SF readers. Recommended especially for readers of Melissa Scott's novels and Robert Silverberg's Alien Years. KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended forsenior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2002, Penguin Putnam, Roc, 398p.,
Enemies
In this extraordinary sequel, the once magnificent planet of Belarus has descended into centuries of isolationism and bigotry. When representatives of the new galactic Union contact Belarus, they claim to have their best interests at heart. But they also harbor a secret mission, related to the Enemies: the brutal alien race beneath the planet's surface.
KLIATT
The planet of Belarus seems suspiciously like Earth, and the center of action is a "once and future" Russia. However, the setting is far into the future. Argus Fabricus visits Belarus because it appears to be at the brink of disaster, and needs outside help, even if it isn't yet aware of the extent of its troubles. Serina, a disfigured young woman, also senses trouble and determines to break from the protection of her family to take action. Even though both are considered outsiders, Serina and Argus team up to stave off evil, personified as Loki—who has assumed the body of a local power named Ivan. Baba Yaga, a timeless old woman "force," provides occasional clues and help along the way. Russian folklore slips into the scene from time to time, but the main sense of the story is that of an enduring Russian spirit. The tone harks back to medieval peasant times, so the SF aspect sometimes seems out of joint. Characterization and plotline are adequate though not particularly absorbing. Perhaps because this volume is part of a series, the ending is not very satisfying either. This tale will probably find its special reader, however. (Sequel to Belarus). KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2003, Penguin Putnam, Roc, 406p.,
Belarus and Enemies by Lee Hogan
This is a two-for-one deal.
Belarus
It's a planet ripe for a new vision-of a glorious past that once was, and could be again. Andrei Mironenko, a powerful magnate in the Star republic, believes the pristine planet of Belarus is uninhabited and unspoiled.
He didn't dig deep enough.
With a richly imagined geo-political setting, Belarus reads like a Russian fairy tale set in space.
Ginger Armstrong - KLIATT
In Belarus, a future world created to emulate Imperial Russia, Andrei Mironenko finds himself tsar. With Enhanced Special Agents, mechanical sprites, and a world engineer at his side, Andrei rules this planet of the Republic. When murders start occurring on this new world, Andrei and his colleagues must discover who is committing these crimes. Since the newly engineered planet screened its populace, they wonder how a "superkiller" could inhabit it. But unbeknownst to Andrei, the "new" colonists are not the only inhabitants. The Enemies are creatures that enjoy torture and eat the organs of those who participate in their "Dance." These Enemies have found a way (with the help of a Belarus technician) to infiltrate the technology and to destroy local mining operations, space stations, and communications links as well as entire planets. In order to preserve the civilization on Belarus, Andrei must outwit and destroy the Enemies with the help of a secret weapon, "bug spray." The weaving of Russian culture throughout the novel with an emphasis on the Orthodox Church (as portrayed through Andrei's wife, Katerina) and with the inclusion of a Baba Yaga figure (as portrayed through Andrei's mysterious supporter) adds authenticity and a strong sense of place to this engineered world. The narrative jumps forward from Year 1 at Belarus to 870 years later by the end of the novel, leaving the reader to speculate on the future of the Belarus system. Part suspense, part high-tech SF, and even a bit romantic, this novel will have appeal to more than general SF readers. Recommended especially for readers of Melissa Scott's novels and Robert Silverberg's Alien Years. KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended forsenior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2002, Penguin Putnam, Roc, 398p.,
Enemies
In this extraordinary sequel, the once magnificent planet of Belarus has descended into centuries of isolationism and bigotry. When representatives of the new galactic Union contact Belarus, they claim to have their best interests at heart. But they also harbor a secret mission, related to the Enemies: the brutal alien race beneath the planet's surface.
KLIATT
The planet of Belarus seems suspiciously like Earth, and the center of action is a "once and future" Russia. However, the setting is far into the future. Argus Fabricus visits Belarus because it appears to be at the brink of disaster, and needs outside help, even if it isn't yet aware of the extent of its troubles. Serina, a disfigured young woman, also senses trouble and determines to break from the protection of her family to take action. Even though both are considered outsiders, Serina and Argus team up to stave off evil, personified as Loki—who has assumed the body of a local power named Ivan. Baba Yaga, a timeless old woman "force," provides occasional clues and help along the way. Russian folklore slips into the scene from time to time, but the main sense of the story is that of an enduring Russian spirit. The tone harks back to medieval peasant times, so the SF aspect sometimes seems out of joint. Characterization and plotline are adequate though not particularly absorbing. Perhaps because this volume is part of a series, the ending is not very satisfying either. This tale will probably find its special reader, however. (Sequel to Belarus). KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 2003, Penguin Putnam, Roc, 406p.,
shaunesay - December 16, 2007 04:13 PM (GMT)
Book 1 of The One Land Saga: The Sacred Seven - Amy Stout (TBR)
Once there was peace in the One Land among elf, dwarf and human. But that was long, long ago...
Now ragged refugees crowd the roads -- fleeing the unfettered rage of gargantuan trolls who wreak havoc in the service of the Elfwitch. A ruthless conqueror of inestimable power, she has never known defeat. And she has never shown mercy.
But there are those who oppose her: a young mercenary and her dragon, a young dwarf, and a royal spy. along with a few stalwart companions, they might yet breathe new life in the fading dream of a king's lost heirs. For in secrets of the royal blood hide threads to bind a violently sundered realm -- and the impossible hope of defeating the most devastating evil their world has ever seen.
Book 2 of The One Land Saga: The Royal Four - Amy Stout (TBR)
In her stunning debut novel The Sacred Seven, author Amy Stout gave us an enthralling adventure replete with all the magic and heroism, mystery and power of the best epic fantasy. Now, in the Royal Four, she transports us back to a kingdom known as the One Land where, for one brief, golden moment a ruthless conqueror was vanquished and long-awaited peace reigned...
... For but an instant. Now a vengeful elfwitch and her monsters endanger a harmony that was dearly and bitterly won. And a young mercenary and her dragon brother, so recently revealed as royal heirs and transformed to claim their rightful thrones, find their birthright imperiled yet again -- as they come face-to-face with a hidden poison in the royal bloodline that threatens to beget a nightmare of cruelty, devastation and darkness that will endure for all eternity.
shaunesay - December 17, 2007 01:53 PM (GMT)
Xeyra's reveal:
THE SUMMER COUNTRY
by James A. Hetley
Maureen Pierce is young, tough, and a little bit schizophrenic. She has chalked her craziness up to being sexually abused when she was 10 and to the difficult life that followed. But she manages okay. Then one night, a shining knight who appears out of thin air rescues her from a troll of a man in a dark alley by sending the troll up in smoke. If she can believe her rescuer--and heaven knows, she has a boatload of reasons not to trust any man--she has the old blood running in her veins, the kind of blood that the land itself speaks to, the kind that sings of power and magic.
In the Summer Country, where magic is a way of life--and death, more often than not--a woman such as Maureen, a carrier of the old blood unaware of her power, could be a prize, a tool, or a threat. The inhabitants of the Summer Country, the bored elite who sport with the lives of insignificant others, plan to use her in their deadly games.
But they underestimate Maureen's strength of spirit and steely determination to conquer her fears.
THE SUMMER COUNTRY
by James A. Hetley
Maureen Pierce is young, tough, and a little bit schizophrenic. She has chalked her craziness up to being sexually abused when she was 10 and to the difficult life that followed. But she manages okay. Then one night, a shining knight who appears out of thin air rescues her from a troll of a man in a dark alley by sending the troll up in smoke. If she can believe her rescuer--and heaven knows, she has a boatload of reasons not to trust any man--she has the old blood running in her veins, the kind of blood that the land itself speaks to, the kind that sings of power and magic.
In the Summer Country, where magic is a way of life--and death, more often than not--a woman such as Maureen, a carrier of the old blood unaware of her power, could be a prize, a tool, or a threat. The inhabitants of the Summer Country, the bored elite who sport with the lives of insignificant others, plan to use her in their deadly games.
But they underestimate Maureen's strength of spirit and steely determination to conquer her fears.