Win a copy of Sergei Lukyanenko's THE NEW WATCH


I have five copies of Sergei Lukyanenko's The New Watch up for grabs, courtesy of the cool folks at William Heinemann! For more info about this title: Europe.

Here's the blurb:

Walking the streets of our cities are the Others. These men and women are guardians of the Twilight, a shadowy parallel world that exists alongside our own. Each has sworn allegiance to one side, fighting for good, or for evil. But outside the battles that rage between Day and Night now comes a greater peril, one which threatens their very world...

At Moscow airport Senior Light Other Anton Gorodetsky overhears a child screaming about a plane crash. He discovers that the child is a prophet – a supernatural being whose predictions come true if they are heard by humans. When the catastrophe is averted, Gorodetsky senses a disruption in the natural order, one that is confirmed by the arrival of a dark and terrifying predator.

From the Night Watch headquarters Gorodetsky travels to London, to China and across Russia in search of clues, unearthing as he goes a series of increasingly cataclysmic prophecies. He soon realises that what is at stake is the Twilight itself – and that he alone has the power to save it.

The rules are the same as usual. You need to send an email at reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "WATCH." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Second, your email must contain your full mailing address (that's snail mail!), otherwise your message will be deleted.

Lastly, multiple entries will disqualify whoever sends them. And please include your screen name and the message boards that you frequent using it, if you do hang out on a particular MB.

Good luck to all the participants!

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Ken Scholes' Lamentation for only 2.99$ here.

Here's the blurb:

An ancient weapon has completely destroyed the city of Windwir. From many miles away, Rudolfo, Lord of the Nine Forest Houses, sees the horrifying column of smoke rising. He knows that war is coming to the Named Lands.

Nearer to the Devastation, a young apprentice is the only survivor of the city – he sat waiting for his father outside the walls, and was transformed as he watched everyone he knew die in an instant.

Soon all the Kingdoms of the Named Lands will be at each others' throats, as alliances are challenged and hidden plots are uncovered.

This remarkable first novel from an award-winning short fiction writer will take readers away to a new world – an Earth so far in the distant future that our time is not even a memory; a world where magick is commonplace and great areas of the planet are impassable wastes. But human nature hasn’t changed through the ages: War and faith and love still move princes and nations.

At the publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management software (DRM) applied.


And you can also download Peter F. Hamilton's The Dreaming Void for only 1.99$ here.

Here's the blurb:

Reviewers exhaust superlatives when it comes to the science fiction of Peter F. Hamilton. His complex and engaging novels, which span thousands of years–and light-years–are as intellectually stimulating as they are emotionally fulfilling. Now, with The Dreaming Void, the eagerly awaited first volume in a new trilogy set in the same far-future as his acclaimed Commonwealth saga, Hamilton has created his most ambitious and gripping space epic yet.

The year is 3589, fifteen hundred years after Commonwealth forces barely staved off human extinction in a war against the alien Prime. Now an even greater danger has surfaced: a threat to the existence of the universe itself.

At the very heart of the galaxy is the Void, a self-contained microuniverse that cannot be breached, cannot be destroyed, and cannot be stopped as it steadily expands in all directions, consuming everything in its path: planets, stars, civilizations. The Void has existed for untold millions of years. Even the oldest and most technologically advanced of the galaxy’s sentient races, the Raiel, do not know its origin, its makers, or its purpose.

But then Inigo, an astrophysicist studying the Void, begins dreaming of human beings who live within it. Inigo’s dreams reveal a world in which thoughts become actions and dreams become reality. Inside the Void, Inigo sees paradise. Thanks to the gaiafield, a neural entanglement wired into most humans, Inigo’s dreams are shared by hundreds of millions–and a religion, the Living Dream, is born, with Inigo as its prophet. But then he vanishes.

Suddenly there is a new wave of dreams. Dreams broadcast by an unknown Second Dreamer serve as the inspiration for a massive Pilgrimage into the Void. But there is a chance that by attempting to enter the Void, the pilgrims will trigger a catastrophic expansion, an accelerated devourment phase that will swallow up thousands of worlds.

And thus begins a desperate race to find Inigo and the mysterious Second Dreamer. Some seek to prevent the Pilgrimage; others to speed its progress–while within the Void, a supreme entity has turned its gaze, for the first time, outward. . .

Promise of Blood


It looks as though the folks at Orbit are really pushing Brian McClellan's Promise of Blood, the first volume in The Powder Mage trilogy, on both sides of the Atlantic. So much so that I was looking forward to sitting down and giving what is heralded as a very original and winning fantasy debut a shot. Unfortunately, after a decidedly strong start filled with lots of potential, as the story progresses the plot loses a lot of its initial appeal. I actually stopped reading right in the middle to pick up Ian Tregillis' Necessary Evil instead, hoping that some time away from Promise of Blood might help me get more into it when I returned to finish it. Alas, it was not to be. . .

Interestingly enough, had I been sixteen years of age, this would likely have been my favotite book of the year. Promise of Blood is filled with badass black-and-white characters, a cool magical system, lots and lots of action, idealistic politics that make little sense, powerful but somewhat idiotic villains, and the world seemingly hanging on the brink of destruction. All in all, the perfect ingredients to satisfy any adolescent SFF readers. Trouble is, I'm older now. Not wiser by any stretch of the imagination, and according to quite a few people, not that much more mature. But a more demanding reader, yes.

It's a fast-paced affair with a myriad of cool battle sequences. On a number of SFF message boards, I saw that these turned out to be entertaining enough for some readers to overlook the novel's many flaws. Sadly, it wasn't the case for me. In the end, it took everything I had to reach the last page, so devoid of depth the plot had become. Brian McClellan acknowledges that he learned much from Brandon Sanderson and it shows. Indeed, the strengths and weaknesses of Promise of Blood are actually the same ones attributed to Sanderson's body of work. And as such, I'm persuaded that McClellan's debut will appeal to those who have fallen in love with Sanderson's books over the years. On the other hand, those who have a hard time getting into Sanderson's work will indubitably find Promise of Blood off-putting.

Here's the blurb:

The Age of Kings is dead . . . and I have killed it.

It's a bloody business overthrowing a king...
Field Marshal Tamas' coup against his king sent corrupt aristocrats to the guillotine and brought bread to the starving. But it also provoked war with the Nine Nations, internal attacks by royalist fanatics, and the greedy to scramble for money and power by Tamas's supposed allies: the Church, workers unions, and mercenary forces.

It's up to a few...
Stretched to his limit, Tamas is relying heavily on his few remaining powder mages, including the embittered Taniel, a brilliant marksman who also happens to be his estranged son, and Adamat, a retired police inspector whose loyalty is being tested by blackmail.

But when gods are involved...
Now, as attacks batter them from within and without, the credulous are whispering about omens of death and destruction. Just old peasant legends about the gods waking to walk the earth. No modern educated man believes that sort of thing. But they should...

The worldbuilding is pretty thin in this debut. It appears that depth was sacrificed so that this aspect of the story wouldn't get in the way of the crisp rhythm that McClellan maintains through out his debut. The Powder Mages appear to be a fascinating concept, yet at no time throughout the book does the author elaborate on this seemingly complex magical system. How was it discovered? How was it developed. How did it become such a force to be reckoned with and now acts as a counterpoint to the Privileged, magic-wielders who can touch the Else. Why does sniffing gun powder provide them with such powers? À la Sanderson, Brian McClellan introduced what appears to be a brand new and very cool magical system. But unlike Sanderson, there is no attempt on his part to flesh it out and elaborate on it. And since this was by far the most intriguing aspect of Promise of Blood, it was quite disappointing that no light is shed on that particular concept. Very little little is learned of Adro, the land where the tale occurs. Virtually nothing is discovered about Kez, a neighboring land whose role in this story appears to be quite important to the overall plot.

The book begin with a military coup that overthrows the reigning monarch and the nobility. The narrative is dark, brooding, filled with tension and uncertainty. The first few chapters show a lot of potential, and it definitely felt as though was holding the SFF debut of the year in my hands. But once the nobles face the guillotines and a brief civil war ensues, Promise of Blood appears to come to an abrupt end and then starts over in a new direction. Unfortunately, in a matter of a couple of chapters the novel loses most of its appeal and becomes something that reminded me of old Forgotten Realms books that used to fill my bookshelves when I was a teenager. The storylines lose their focus and their sense of direction.

The characterization is probably what killed it for me. As I mentioned, Promise of Blood is filled with badass, well nigh invincible protagonists that always beat the odds, no matter how heightened the stakes. Not only are they badass, but a lot around them feels contrived to make them even more powerful. For example, Olem not requiring any sleep so he can be the perfect bodyguard, or Ka-poel's magical protection of Taniel, rendering him nearly indestructible. As such, McClellan's debut is a throwback to fantasy books/series from the 80s, at a time when realism wasn't considered an important aspect of a plot and it was okay for the good guys to beat whatever impossible odds were stacked against them and come out on top every time. There are four POV characters: Field Marshal Tamas, his son and also Powder Mage Taniel, Investigator Adamat, and a laundress named Nila. None of the POVs are compelling and I couldn't connect with any of the protagonists. Nila's sections seemed to be totally unnecessary, so I wonder if her storyline will gain more importance in the upcoming sequel. Taniel is a cool and dashing hero that makes Salvatore's Drizzt Do'Urden feel vulnerable. Following aftermath of the military coup, the characterization quickly becomes uneven and often feels directionless.

The supporting cast is for the most part unmemorable, especially the members of Tamas' council, who are two-dimensional cardboard cutouts, each and every one of them. Truth to tell, Ka-poel is the only exception. But again, she is so powerful that it makes it hard to take her seriously. For the most part, again à la Sanderson, Promise of Blood is filled with black-or-white characters and there are no shades of gray to be found in any of them, or their grand ideals and motivations. Adamat a little less so, true, but the man is still a world away from being called a genuine three-dimensional protagonist. Add to the mix a cooking god and you've pretty much lost me at that point.

Unlike his mentor, Brian McClellan is not above using profanities. But for some reason, he refuses to stoop down to the level where using the word "fuck" is acceptable. Indeed, the f-word is replaced by the word "pit." As in "What the pit is going on?" or "Who the pit are you?" Like Sanderson, the author doesn't shy away from blood and gore, which you can find in industrial quantities (this debut is titled Promise of Blood, after all). And yet, in light of all the blood and violence, refusing to use the f-word seems to be a little incongruous, at least in my opinion.

The pace is nice and crisp. As I mentioned above, I have a feeling that the worldbuilding has for the most part been put aside in order to maintain this rhythm from start to finish. There's a lot of action and battle scenes in which the Powder Mages' abilities can take center stage. Unfortunately, beyond that fast pace and those exciting action sequences, I felt that McClellan's Promise of Blood offered very little in terms of depth and interesting characterization.

Having said that, I'm convinced that fans of Brandon Sanderson, R. A. Salvatore, and Brent Weeks will have a ball reading this debut.

Follow this link to read an extract from the book.

The final verdict: 6.5/10

For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Game of Thrones, Season 3, Episode 6 Preview

Extract from Stella Gemmell's THE CITY


Thanks to the folks at Bantam Press, here's a teaser extract from Stella Gemmell's The City. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Here's the blurb:

Built up over the millennia, layer upon layer, The City is ancient and vast. Over the centuries, it has sprawled beyond its walls, the cause of constant war with neighbouring peoples and kingdoms, laying waste to what was once green and fertile.

And at the heart of The City resides the emperor. Few have ever seen him. Those who have remember a man in his prime and yet he should be very old. Some speculate that he is no longer human, others wonder if indeed he ever truly was. And a small number have come to a desperate conclusion: that the only way to stop the ceaseless slaughter is to end the emperor's unnaturally long life.

From the rotting, flood-ruined catacombs beneath The City where the poor struggle to stay alive to the blood-soaked fields of battle where so few heroes survive, these rebels pin their hopes on one man. A man who was once the emperor's foremost general. A man, a revered soldier, who could lead an uprising and unite the City. But a man who was betrayed, imprisoned, tortured and is now believed to be dead...

Enjoy!
---------------------------

First there was the darkness – heavy and choking, blueblack and tangible, filling the mouth and ears and mind. Then the smell – huge, as solid as rough stone beneath bare feet or a pillow over the face, suffocating thought. Finally, the sound of the sewer – the never-ending sigh of the stream, the drips and the splashes and the gushing.

And the pitter-patter of sharp claws on wet brick.

The rat was big and old, and he was canny. He needed no light to follow the contours of the labyrinth in which he lived out his days. His paws detected the minute variations of texture on the bricks he raced along, high above the never-ending stream of life. The astonishing discrimination of his twitching nose told him how high the stream was flowing, the quality of its contents – a high, thin flood brought vegetation, small dead things, sometimes larger ones; a low thick turgid flow held its own treats for the discerning rodent – and the quality of the air, which was sometimes enough to make even a rat ill. He could tell by the pressure on his sensitive ears whether he was running through a small tight tunnel, or where the ceiling opened high above him into one of the soaring vaults designed by a long-forgotten master architect, raised by a team of City builders, a wonder of mathematics, unseen for centuries, forgotten.

The rat could hear his friends pittering on the other side of the brick wall he followed, pattering in the next damp tunnel above him. But for a while he had outrun them all, following his nose’s relentless demand.

The corpse was barely bloated, barely dead, the rigor of mortality only recently departed. It was naked save for a rag drifting round its neck, the skin pale and cold as winter sunrise. It had fetched up against the worn teeth of a broken metal grille, which for a short while resumed its long-abandoned role of stopping large objects moving further downstream into the deeper depths of the sewer. A burgeoning of the stream would happen later that day, and the dead man would travel on alone – but for a while the rat kept him company.

The boy awoke with a start on the tiny ledge where he slept. He kicked out. The kick might have been an errant muscle or the dead-end of a bad dream, but it was only a small movement. He’d been taking his rest on this ledge for long enough to know – even in sleep – he could not afford any sudden move, far less a sleepy roll which would dump him into the stream of waste unreeling endlessly below him. But when he went to his rest at night he was always dog-tired, dead to the world (dead, certainly, in the world’s mind), and he lay unmoving, unconscious until it was time to wake.

Elija, who had been living in the sewer for four years, was ten years old.

He knew he held a privileged position. When he and his sister had first found sanctuary there their protector, an older boy, a redhead called Rubin, had to fight for their right to stay in that place of warmth and safety. Then for nights without number one of them had to stay on guard lest they be dumped into the stream by those jealous of their territory. But that was a long time ago; his little sister Em couldn’t remember back that far. Now they had been in the sewers for longer than most of the Dwellers and their status was, for the time, secure.

Elija shifted carefully, his bare foot detecting the variations of texture on the bricks until it hit an outcrop of broken cement, its contours better known to him than the palm of his hand. He levered up to sitting. Watery light was filtering through broken stonework high in the roof above him. It wasn’t enough to see by, but it thinned the air and gave it a texture of motes Elija felt he could trap in his hand and keep for later in the day, deeper in the sewer, where it might be needed.

His memories were mostly of a crying woman and a hard-handed man, fist constantly raised, face red. Then there was the time of being alone with Em, running and hiding, always frightened. His dreams often contained blood, although he remembered none. The fear still lay on the edge of his consciousness, but he had no memory of it; he was glad to be safe.

Rubin had explained to them about the stream. It was a small river which rose high above the City in the south, in a place of blue hills and silver trees under constant sun. It was called the Sheepwash there. It dived underground to take on its new guise as a sewer many leagues from the City. Goats dipped their feet in it in final tribute before it left the daylight for ever.

The light was stronger now. Elija had been aware of the presence of his sister since he woke, but now he turned carefully and could see the curve of her dark head above the huddled lump of her body.

‘Wake up, slugabed,’ he said quietly, with no real intention of waking her. She needed more sleep than he did. She didn’t stir, although he could hear movement around him as the Dwellers roused themselves for another day of darkness. There were stirring sounds, the occasional muttered exchange, a sudden echoing shout or imprecation to the gods of the Halls.

Elija stood and relieved himself into the stream which now ran the height of a man below his ledge. He walked confidently along the narrow shelf and picked up the small bag of belongings which lay between him and Em at night. He sat down and opened it, taking out the piece of valuable sapphire moss they had found beyond the Eating Gate. The moss still smelled fresh and he tore a piece off and rubbed it into his face and hands, relishing the fast-fading sweetness, the tang Rubin had told him was called lemon. He was supposed to use it on his feet, he knew, to ward off foot-rot, which claimed so many of the Dwellers. But they only had a little left and he didn’t want to waste it on his feet. He would see that Em did, though.

His hands clean, he foraged in the bag again and came up with strips of dried meat he’d bought from Old Hal. He chewed them slowly and thoroughly, coping stoically with the familiar cramps in his middle which flowed then ebbed.

He called again. ‘Wake up, Em. Time to eat.’

He kicked her gently and knew she was awake though she didn’t move. From the sack he used for a pillow he took out the rags for his feet and spent the next few moments carefully winding and rewinding them round ankles and heels, paying special care to the ankle bones, insteps, toes. In his years in the Halls he had got to know many people who were now dead, many of them from sicknesses arising in the feet.

Em was moving at last, going sleepily through her own morning rituals. Her brother did not speak to her and focused his eyes on far walls and the movements of distant Dwellers, giving her privacy.

It was as light now as it would get. Above him the vaulted dome was filled with a shining silver mist which never entirely went away but sometimes thinned and drifted in clouds. Hundreds of ledges ran along the curved walls, mostly above the height of Elija’s shelf, mostly inaccessible and untenanted. The Dwellers called it the Hall of Blue Light. Elija and Emly called it home.

Rivers flowed in from three brick arches at the base of the dome, met in a maelstrom of water at the centre, then exited through a pitch-black maw towards the perils of the Eating Gate, the little Hellespont, Dark Water and, finally, to the ocean itself uncounted leagues away.

A harsh voice behind him brought Elija quickly to his feet.

‘Lije. Em. Let’s march.’

And the new day began.

This week's New York Times Bestsellers (April 22nd)

In hardcover:

George R. R. Martin's A Dance With Dragons is down two spots, finishing the week at number 14. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Robin Hobb's Blood of Dragons debuts at number 24. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson's A Memory of Light is down seven positions, ending the week at number 28. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

In paperback:

Max Brooks' World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War is up three positions, ending the week at number 1 (trade paperback).

George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones maintains its position at number 6.

Charlaine Harris' Deadlocked is up one spot, finishing the week at number 13.

Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game is up nineteen positions, ending the week at number 14.

George R. R. Martin's A Clash of Kings is up one spot, finishing the week at number 18.

Stephenie Meyer's The Host is down nine spots, finishing the week at number 19.

Stephenie Meyer's The Host is down nine spots, finishing the week at number 21 (trade paperback).

George R. R. Martin's A Feast for Crows is up one position, ending the week at number 23.

George R. R. Martin's A Storm of Swords is down two positions, ending the week at number 24.

Hugh Howey's Wool is up one position, ending the week at number 26 (trade paperback).

Patrick Rothfuss' The Wise Man's Fear is up one spot, finishing the week at number 29.

George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones is down five positions, ending the week at number 34 (trade paperback).

Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus returns at number 35 (trade paperback).

New Guy Gavriel Kay TV interview



This from the Seattle Channel:

On the latest episode of An Evening With … bibliophile and Book Lust host Nancy Pearl interviews internationally bestselling author Guy Gavriel Kay about his latest novel River of Stars, a sweeping historical fantasy inspired by China’s Song Dynasty. A Canadian author of fantasy fiction with a core of devoted readers, many of Kay’s novels are set in fictional realms that resemble real places during real historical periods.

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


Just saw on Reddit that there are a lot of discounted speculative fiction ebooks out there! Here's a little list of the titles you can download on the cheap:

- Good Omens by Neil Gaiman $3.99
- Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman $3.99
- Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman $3.99
- Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury $3.99
- Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card $4.99
- Dragon Keeper by Robin Hobb $4.99
- Dragon Haven by Robin Hobb $1.99
- City of Dragons by Robin Hobb $4.74
- Hounded by Kevin Hearne $2.99
- Cold Magic by Kate Elliott $3.49
- The Way of Shadows by Brent Weeks $3.49
- The Black Prism by Brent Weeks $3.49
- Levithan Wakes by James S.A. Corey $4.99
- Gauntlgrym by R. A. Salvatore $3.99
- Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke $4.49
- Theft of Swords by Michael J. Sullivan1 $4.99
- Soulless by Gail Carriger $3.49
- Cryptonomicon by Neal Stephenson $4.49
- The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson $2.99
- Feed by Mira Grant $3.79
- Magic Dreams by Ilona Andrews $2.99
- Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey $3.49

Win a copy of Stella Gemmell's THE CITY


I have two copies of Stella Gemmell's The City for you to win, compliments of the folks at Bantam Press. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Here's the blurb:

Built up over the millennia, layer upon layer, The City is ancient and vast. Over the centuries, it has sprawled beyond its walls, the cause of constant war with neighbouring peoples and kingdoms, laying waste to what was once green and fertile.

And at the heart of The City resides the emperor. Few have ever seen him. Those who have remember a man in his prime and yet he should be very old. Some speculate that he is no longer human, others wonder if indeed he ever truly was. And a small number have come to a desperate conclusion: that the only way to stop the ceaseless slaughter is to end the emperor's unnaturally long life.

From the rotting, flood-ruined catacombs beneath The City where the poor struggle to stay alive to the blood-soaked fields of battle where so few heroes survive, these rebels pin their hopes on one man. A man who was once the emperor's foremost general. A man, a revered soldier, who could lead an uprising and unite the City. But a man who was betrayed, imprisoned, tortured and is now believed to be dead...

The rules are the same as usual. You need to send an email at reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "CITY." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Second, your email must contain your full mailing address (that's snail mail!), otherwise your message will be deleted.

Lastly, multiple entries will disqualify whoever sends them. And please include your screen name and the message boards that you frequent using it, if you do hang out on a particular MB.

Good luck to all the participants!

Charles Stross contest winners!

Thanks to the generosity of the folks at Tor UK, our winners will get their hands on complimentary copies of Charles Stross' The Bloodline Feud, a new omnibus edition comprised of The Family Trade and The Hidden Family! For more info about this title: Canada, Europe.

The winners are:

- Maria Patrinou, from Nea Ionia, Greece

- Martin Jackson, from Watford, England

- Dovile Petrasiunaite, from Jonava, Lithuania

Many thanks to all the participants!

More inexpensive ebook goodies!


You can now download Alex Hughes' Payoff for only 2.99$ here.

Here's the blurb:

Being a telepath, I should have seen the hell I was getting myself into…

I used to be one of the most powerful telepaths in the guild. That was before my drug addiction and before they kicked me out. But I'm not a bad guy. Now I help the Atlanta PD solve murders. And even though there are only a few people I call friends, I'd do most anything to keep their trust.

So when a judge asks me to help investigate a missing college kid, I'm down for it. No questions asked. No problem. But in this dark world, things are never easy and a favor is never just a favor. Turns out, politicians don’t like being murder suspects. And it's bad to anger someone with more power than you. I thought I had nothing to lose... I was wrong.

Includes a preview of Alex Hughes’s Sharp

GRRM vs Rex Ryan


George R. R. Martin is a big New York Jets fan. He recently spoke out against the Darrelle Revis trade in a blog post, as he is wont to do when the Giants or the Jets make what he considers a bad move. What's different this time is that Rex Ryan, the Jets' head coach and fan of the Game of Thrones TV series, responded publicly via the ESPN Playbook:

Dear George R.R. Martin:

I saw your blog post about the Jets and our trade of Darrelle Revis.

I’m glad you are a fan of the Jets, but I think you should stick to your field of expertise. But you decided to put on your football hat, so let me take this opportunity to tell you all the many problems with your “Game of Thrones.” I am a fan of the show, as you are a fan of the Jets, but it has some major flaws.

Trades

You gripe about our trade of Darrelle Revis to the Buccaneers in exchange for the 13th overall pick and a conditional pick in 2014. You write: “It is never a good idea to trade the best player on your team.”

All due respect, sir, but you are the last person in the world who knows anything about realistic trades. In the latest episode of “Game of Thrones,” Daenerys Targaryen trades her biggest and strongest dragon for 8,000 slave soldiers. Eight THOUSAND.

And you’re trying to tell us what a fair trade is? Come on. Revis may not be a dragon, but he is our best and he couldn’t net anything close to that kind of return. You’ve been creating fantasy worlds for so long, you’re now living in one.

If only it stopped there.

After the trade is made, Targaryen gets her Revis right back because it burns its new master up with a belch of fire. Seriously?

I guess you think this is a good trade. Getting 8,000 soldiers in exchange for nothing. You probably think we should have traded Revis for Josh Freeman, Doug Martin, Vincent Jackson, Lavonte David, Ronde Barber and all of Tampa Bay’s draft picks for the next 10 years … only to then command Revis to destroy the Buccaneers and come right back to the Jets a minute later. Yeah, that would be nice. But sorry, guy, the NFL is not fantasyland. Please don’t try to tell us about trades again until you have some credibility on the subject.

Man-Woman Relationships

I get that you want the relationship between Stannis Baratheon and Melisandre to seem strange and uncomfortable. But you could do better. A relationship between a man and a woman can get all kinds of freaky. You have no idea. Trust me on this. You haven’t even scratched the surface. It’s like you’re not trying. Oh, and Melisandre is supposed to be all mysterious because she makes a ton of prophecies? Whoop-dee-damn-do. So do I. But at least I take some risks with my prophecies. I doubt your Melisandre believes in herself enough to say the Jets will win the Super Bowl. And, sure, I’ve never given birth to a shadow demon, but something almost as terrible comes out of me after I eat Taco Bell. My point is this: Step up your game.

Brothers

All of the brothers in your show seem to hate each other or at least have major rivalry issues. The Lannisters. The Starks. The Baratheons. Again, not realistic. I have a brother. A twin brother, in fact. We like to compete against each other, but at the end of the day, we just want to kick back with a few beers and shoot the s---, not each other. This is a real brother relationship. House Ryan, lords of awesome.

Storylines

How many seasons are you planning to draw this thing out? You realize you wouldn’t have this luxury in the NFL, right? The pressure is constant, and people demand immediate results. Some of your storylines are taking longer to develop than Mark Sanchez. That's not good.

The People North of the Wall

I don’t know what you’re going for here, but I don’t think it’s working. Is it some kind of metaphor? When most people I know think of people from the north, they think of the Buffalo Bills. And there’s nothing scary about them. “Winter is coming.” Great! That means two free wins because you get to play the Bills.

Look, I’m a fan of “Game of Thrones.” But you ripped my Jets, so I came back at you. Fair is fair. No one is perfect. Well, except, it seems, Arya Stark. Let’s develop her character a little better, OK? Everyone has flaws. Even Tim Tebow has flaws, as I well know.

All of these problems aside, I plan to keep watching, just as I hope you’ll keep rooting on the New York Jets.

Sincerely,

Rex Ryan

P.S. You modeled King Joffrey after Tom Brady, right? Whiny, petulant and cowardly. Nailed it!
---------------------------

The Tom Brady bit is just awesome!! :P

Win a copy of Peter Clines' EX-PATRIOTS


Thanks to the cool folks at Broadway Paperbacks, I have a copy of Peter Clines' sequel to Ex-Heroes (Canada, USA, Europe), Ex-Patriots, up for grabs! For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Here's the blurb:

Originally published by a small, print-on-demand press without any publicity or marketing support and almost no physical distribution, Peter Clines’s fantastic debut, Ex-Heroes, still managed to draw an incredible cult following and had genre fans all over the blogosphere raving when Broadway released the paperback in February. Now, Broadway is thrilled to introduce the second in Clines’s sci-fi, thriller, and horror fiction mashup series, Ex-Patriots (Broadway; on sale April 23, 2013; $14.00). Featuring the same cast of brilliant original superheroes (including Zzzap, able to transform into white-hot energy, power a small city, and transmit messages directly to phones and radio, among his other talents), expert thriller plotting, cinematic action scenes, and tons of fun geek and pop-culture references (and set in L.A., where a number of celebrities make rather humorous cameos as zombies), Ex-Patriots is one of those rare sequels that is even more gripping than the first and is sure to establish Clines as one to watch for by fans of such hits as Watchmen, World War Z, and Ready Player One.

In Ex-Patriots, it’s been two years since the plague of ex-humans decimated mankind. Since then, the superhero called St. George, together with fellow heroes Cerberus, Zzzap, and Stealth, have protected the people of Los Angeles at their film-studio-turned-fortress, the Mount. But the fight is getting harder every day—and the heroes are wondering how much longer they can hold out. Then hope arrives in the form of a surviving U.S. Army battalion, and not just any battalion. The men and women of the Army’s Project Krypton survived the outbreak because they are super-soldiers, created before mankind’s fall to be better, stronger, and faster than normal humans—and their secure base in Arizona beckons as a much-needed refuge for the beleaguered heroes and their charges. But there is a secret at the heart of Project Krypton, and those behind it wield an awesome and terrifying power.

With the same wry wit and light touch that bedazzled readers of Ex-Heroes, Ex-Patriots features great new characters, cool new threats, and jaw-dropping plot twists that will amaze even the most well-versed in the adventure genre.

The rules are the same as usual. You need to send an email at reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "PATRIOTS." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Second, your email must contain your full mailing address (that's snail mail!), otherwise your message will be deleted.

Lastly, multiple entries will disqualify whoever sends them. And please include your screen name and the message boards that you frequent using it, if you do hang out on a particular MB.

Good luck to all the participants!

Harry Turtledove contest winner!

This lucky winner will get his hands on Harry Turtledove's Videssos Cycle! The prizepack includes:

- Videssos Cycle, Volume One, which is comprised of The Misplaced Legion and An Emperor for the Legion (Canada, USA, Europe)
- Videssos Cycle, Volume Two, which is comprised of The Legion of Videssos and Swords of the Legion (Canada, USA, Europe)

The winner is:

- Nathan Schwartz, from Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada

Many thanks to all the participants!

Roger Taylor, Take 2!


Ever since I put up that first Roger Taylor post in 2011, I sometimes receive random email from readers who gave the author a shot and enjoyed the books. I got another such message just the other day and it's always nice when you can help people find new quality books/series/authors.

Roger Taylor is a British fantasy author whose novels used to be published by Headline during the late 80s and early 90s. The books sported very nice covers, and I was a big fan of the author for many years.

And since all of his novels are available for 5$ or less in ebook format, I thought the time was just about right to pimp Taylor once more.

Here's a list of Roger Taylor's novels, including links to extracts for each work:

The Chronicles of Hawklan

- The Call of the Sword (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt
- The Fall of Fyorlund (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt
- The Waking of Orthlund (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt
- Into Narsindal (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Dream Finder (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Farnor (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Valderen (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Whistler (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Ibryen (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Arash-Felloren (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Caddoran (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

The Return of the Sword (Canada, USA, Europe) Excerpt

Necessary Evil


Ian Tregillis' Necessary Evil, sequel to the excellent Bitter Seeds and the awesome The Coldest War, is the final installment in the Milkweed Triptych sequence. And since the second volume was my top read of 2012, I was really looking forward to finding out how the author would close the show.

And although my expectations were quite high, Tregillis delivered on all fronts! Indeed, the Milkweed Triptych is definitely one of the very best speculative fiction series of the new millennium! Too bad Tor Books sort of dropped the ball on this one, what with the delays and everything else. With such crossover appeal, with the right marketing the Milkweed Triptych could have been a real hit. . .

With this Back to the Future format, several kinds of pitfalls could have sunk this book. And yet, Ian Tregillis steers the various storylines with panache and aplomb and brings Necessary Evil to a fully satisfying ending!

Here's the blurb:

12 May 1940. Westminster, London, England: the early days of World War II.

Again.

Raybould Marsh, one of “our” Britain’s best spies, has travelled to another Earth in a desperate attempt to save at least one timeline from the Cthulhu-like monsters who have been observing our species from space and have already destroyed Marsh’s timeline. In order to accomplish this, he must remove all traces of the supermen that were created by the Nazi war machine and caused the specters from outer space to notice our planet in the first place.

His biggest challenge is the mad seer Greta, one of the most powerful of the Nazi creations, who has sent a version of herself to this timeline to thwart Marsh. Why would she stand in his way? Because she has seen that in all the timelines she dies and she is determined to stop that from happening, even if it means destroying most of humanity in the process. And Marsh is the only man who can stop her.

Necessary Evil is the stunning conclusion to Ian Tregillis’s Milkweed series.

Bitter Seeds was a paranormal alternate history novel in which Tregillis tinkered with the history of WWII. With The Coldest War, he did the same by extrapolating with the events surrounding the Cold War. With his eye for historical details and his evocative prose, the author revisits what occurred in Bitter Seeds as Marsh must alter the past in order for the future to have a chance in this new timeline. I was afraid that the time travel aspect could perhaps rob the book of its espionage feel, but it was not to be. Tregillis adroitly avoided potentially hazarduous plot points and Necessary Evil is everything it needed to be.

Once again, we witness events unfolding through the eyes of three main protagonists: A younger Raybould Marsh, the go-to guy of Operation Milkweed; a younger, more innocent William Beauclerk, who isn't yet aware of what will be asked of him during WWII; and the elder version of Raybould Marsh, a hard and bitter man who has traveled back in time in an attempt to make things right. Or die trying. Burned and disfigured during the Cold War, with damaged vocal cords, the older Marsh is unrecognizable. There are some touching moments as he can't help but make contact with his wife and baby daughter. For a while I was afraid that Tregillis would go down the corny road, and I guess that he does play with readers' preconceptions to misdirect us. I feel that there was a nice balance between the three POVs, and it was interesting to get two different viewpoints from the same character. The two incarnations of Raybould Marsh are so alike, and yet so different. At times, it felt as though William's storyline, even if it is inherently important to the resolution of the tale, also served as a counterpoint to the other two darker POV sections by offering up "lighter" interludes.

Gretel, the gypsy-born German seer remains the most fascinating character of the series. Although she is indubitably brilliant, her short POV sections show that she is also quite mad. As was the case in Bitter Seeds and The Coldest War, at the beginning of the novel Gretel continues to be in complete control of events. Yet somehow, in this new timeline, the only timeline in which the seer saw herself surviving the Eidolons, Gretel slowly realizes that she can't see and shape the future as she used to. And unstable as she is, realizing that she isn't infallible will have repercussions that could throw everything in jeopardy.

With several loose ends to tie up in order to make this novel work, Ian Tregillis paced this one to perfection. There isn't a single dull moment to be found within the pages of Necessary Evil, making it a true page-turner. The ending, when it comes, packs a powerful emotional punch. I don't believe that Tregillis ever received the credit he deserves for writing such an absorbing series. He is definitely an author to watch out for!

As was the case with its two predecessors, Necessary Evil is an intelligent, thought-provoking, inventive, and engrossing work that totally satisfies you and makes you beg for more. The Milkweed Triptych is by far the best series released by Tor Books in many a year and in my opinion it is one of the very best speculative fiction sequences of the last decade.

Looking for the perfect blend of alternate history, science fiction, and urban fantasy? Then the Milkweed Triptych is exactly what you should read! This series deserves the highest possible recommendation.

The final verdict: 9/10

For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe

Game of Thrones, Season 3, Episode 5 Preview



Bring it on!

New Survey: Best Secondary Character Casting Selection


Most fans agree that the casting for all three seasons of HBO's Game of Thrones has been, thus far at least, simply phenomenal. All the main roles are/have been played by men and women who have managed to bring those characters to life on screen, most of the time in spectacular fashion.

As important as the casting as been regarding protagonists such as Ned, Cercei, Tyrion, Robb, Jon, Arya, Daenerys, and the rest, I'm amazed by the quality of actors cast for the myriad of secondary roles in the series. And although I like virtually all of them, I have to admit that I have a sweet spot for Jerome Flynn, who plays Bronn (and often manages to steal the show in most of the scenes he stars in, even though he's almost always paired with Peter Dinklage), and Aidan Gillen, whose Littlefinger is brilliant!

What about you guys??? Which casting selection has been your favorite up until this point?

- John Bradley (Samwell Tarly)
- Gwendoline Christie (Brienne of Tarth)
- Charles Dance (Tywin Lannister)
- Jerome Flynn (Bronn)
- Conleth Hill (Lord Varys)
- Aidan Gillen (Petyr Baelish "Littlefinger")
- Iain Glen (Ser Jorah Mormont)

Cast your vote in the top left corner of the Hotlist!

Extract from Peter F. Hamilton's GREAT NORTH ROAD

The Tor Books Blog has an excerpt from Peter F. Hamilton's Great North Road. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Here's the blurb:

When attending a Newcastle murder scene, Detective Sidney Hurst finds a dead North family clone. Yet none have been reported missing. And in 2122, twenty years ago, a North clone billionaire was horrifically murdered in the same manner on the tropical planet of St Libra. So, if the murderer is still at large, was Angela Tramelo wrongly convicted? She never wavered under interrogation, claiming she alone survived an alien attack.

Investigating this potential alien threat now becomes the Human Defence Agency’s top priority. St Libran bio-fuel is the lifeblood of Earth’s economy and must be secured. A vast expedition is mounted via the Newcastle gateway, and experts are dispatched to the planet – with Angela Tramelo, grudgingly released from prison. But the expedition is cut off deep within St Libra’s rainforests, and the murders begin. Angela insists it’s the alien, but her new colleagues aren’t sure. Did she see an alien, or does she have other reasons for being on St Libra?

Follow this link to read the extract.

New Tad Williams Podcast

Darkmatterfanzine.com just posted a two-hour long interview with bestselling author Tad Williams:

At nearly two hours, Tad amazed me with his awesomeness. During the course of this interview I felt some hero-worship developing or at the very least a bromance (yeah, I know, but there isn’t another word with quite the same connotation). Get your popcorn, sit down and enjoy this interview with a really interesting author who may have missed his calling as a public speaker. MP4 and MP3 versions at the bottom of the page. Enjoy.

Follow this link to listen to the podcast.

Calling on all self-published/indie speculative fiction writers: The Verdict


Okay. . .

So after much consideration, and though most people are telling me that this is a major waste of time, it's time for me to own up to the challenge I issued and read the first 100 pages of a self-published speculative fiction work.

The winner is J. Anne Huss' Fledge:

I'll bite. What the hell.

I'm nominating my second book - FLEDGE: Book Two of the I Am Just Junco series.

My main character is a female version of Takeshi Kovacs and if you liked the Altered Carbon series by RKM - you might like mine, however, this is a female POV, and I've noticed that the boys in the SFF world don't care for that, so if you're one of them, disregard.

If you're up for a female Kovacs, then I'll take your knocks and be happy. Here's the blurb:

Junco Coot can’t even remember her trip off Earth; she was too busy being morphed into her new avian body. But reality hits her hard when she wakes up to find her new life is not what she expected. Not even close.

Tier is on trial for treason, the avian president wants her dead, her new military team is hostile, her body is being taken over by an illicit AI, and her only friend is a ten-year old throwaway boy.

In most places the avian Fledge ritual would be nothing more than mass murder, but here in the capital city of Amelia, it’s called growing up. Junco has two choices: fight to the death to prove her worth, or get sent back to Earth in the hands of her enemies.

In a foreign culture and surrounded by people she can’t trust or count on, Junco must find a way to save herself and Tier without losing her immortal soul in the process.
------------------------

I kind of liked her cocky attitude in her response. Trouble is, Richard Morgan's Altered Carbon received a perfect score here on the Hotlist and it was a debut to boot. Hence, Huss has set the bar rather high. . .

J. Anne Huss, please send me a .doc or PDF file via email to reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "SELF-PUBLISHED CHALLENGE." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Not sure if I'll have the chance to read and perhaps review it (if I continue reading beyond the first 100 pages) before I fly away across the pond to spend a month in Europe. But it will be done. . . =)

Win a copy of Jack Campbell's THE LOST FLEET: BEYOND THE FRONTIER: GUARDIAN


I have five copies of Jack Campbell's The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier: Guardian up for grabs, courtesy of the folks at Ace! For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Here's the blurb:

Admiral Geary’s First Fleet of the Alliance has survived the journey deep into unexplored interstellar space, a voyage that led to the discovery of new alien species, including a new enemy and a possible ally. Now Geary’s mission is to ensure the safety of the Midway Star System, which has revolted against the Syndicate Worlds empire—an empire that is on the brink of collapse.

To complicate matters further, Geary also needs to return safely to Alliance space not only with representatives of the Dancers, an alien species, but also with Invincible, a captured warship that could possibly be the most valuable object in human history. Despite the peace treaty that Geary must adhere to at all costs, the Syndicate Worlds regime threatens to make the fleet’s journey back grueling and perilous.

And even if Geary escorts Invincible and the Dancers’ representatives safely unharmed, the Syndics’ attempts to spread dissent and political unrest may have already sown the seeds of the Alliance’s destruction...

The rules are the same as usual. You need to send an email at reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "GUARDIAN." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Second, your email must contain your full mailing address (that's snail mail!), otherwise your message will be deleted.

Lastly, multiple entries will disqualify whoever sends them. And please include your screen name and the message boards that you frequent using it, if you do hang out on a particular MB.

Good luck to all the participants!

This week's New York Times Bestsellers (April 15th)

In hardcover:

George R. R. Martin's A Dance With Dragons is down one spot, finishing the week at number 12. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson's A Memory of Light is down six positions, ending the week at number 21. For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

Patricia Briggs’ Frost Burned is down eight spots, finishing the week at number 25.

In paperback:

Max Brooks' World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War maintains its position at number 4 (trade paperback).

George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones is up seven positions, ending the week at number 6.

Stephenie Meyer's The Host is up one spot, finishing the week at number 10.

Stephenie Meyer's The Host is down six spots, finishing the week at number 12 (trade paperback).

Charlaine Harris' Deadlocked is down eight spots, finishing the week at number 14.

George R. R. Martin's A Clash of Kings is up three spots, finishing the week at number 19.

George R. R. Martin's A Storm of Swords is down two positions, ending the week at number 22.

George R. R. Martin's A Feast for Crows is up two positions, ending the week at number 24.

Hugh Howey's Wool is down eleven positions, ending the week at number 27 (trade paperback).

George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones returns at number 29 (trade paperback).

Patrick Rothfuss' The Wise Man's Fear debuts at number 30.

Faith Hunter's Blood Trade debuts at number 32.

Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game is down twelve positions, ending the week at number 33.

Playboy interview with Peter Dinklage


Eric Spitznagel from Playboy.com recently interviewed Peter Dinklage. Here's a teaser:

You are aware that you're a sex symbol, right? Some might even call you a DwILF.

DwILF, as in Dwarf I'd Like to Fuck? That's very clever. Honestly, I think there's an irony in all of this. I take it with a grain of salt. They'll say, "Oh, he's sexy," but women still go for guys who are six-foot-two. It's nice that people are thinking outside the box, but I don't believe any of it for a minute.

Follow this link to read the interview.

Win a pair of tickets for Up in the Aether: The Steampunk Convention



The organizers of Up in the Aether: The Steampunk Convention are giving away a pair of tickets for the event:

Greetings, Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls, Heroes and Villains, Soldiers and Pirates! Welcome to Up In The Aether: The Steampunk Convention, Detroit's Newest Steampunk Convention!

Our inaugural flight launches over Memorial Day weekend (May 24th through 27th) at the DoubleTree Hotel in Dearborn, MI Featuring artists and musicians from across the land and sea, all for your entertainment pleasure! That's not all, we will also be showing you a collection of different vendors, panels and events to help you tone up your steampunk wardrobe, cooking, literature, and knowledge, for both families and adults. And we'll give you a party like it is 1875 with the biggest steampunk dance EVER!

This entire event is run by the community, for the community, and if you haven't guessed it yet, you ARE our community. So please come and join us in our newest voyage. Don't forget to pack your wings, Aether-Nauts! We'll see you sooner than you think!

Guests include Elizabeth Bear and Scott Lynch! The convention will take place in Detroit, Michigan. So please keep that in mind before registering for this giveaway. The organizers are giving away a pair of tickets, but the winners will have to arrange their own transportation and lodging.

For more information about the convention and its activities, check out the Up in the Aether official website.

The rules are the same as usual. You need to send an email at reviews@(no-spam)gryphonwood.net with the header "AETHER." Remember to remove the "no spam" thingy.

Second, your email must contain your full mailing address (that's snail mail!), otherwise your message will be deleted.

Lastly, multiple entries will disqualify whoever sends them. And please include your screen name and the message boards that you frequent using it, if you do hang out on a particular MB.

Good luck to all the participants!

Paul Cornell contest winner!

Thanks to the folks at Tor Books, our winner will receive a copy of Paul Cornell's London Falling! For more info about this title: Canada, USA, Europe.

The winner is:

- Patrick Petzall, from North York, Ontario, Canada

Many thanks to all the participants!

Exile: A New Essay By Guy Gavriel Kay

Exile is a recurring theme in Guy Gavriel Kay's novels, and River of Stars (Canada, USA, Europe) was no exception. There is a new essay on the topic by the author on John Sclazi's Whatever. Here's a teaser:

We all have our understanding of human nature and the world. Our themes as writers shift as we change as people and artists (or they should, I think). A motif might drift away, and later re-emerge to be explored differently – because we are different and the world is for us.

I find exile to be one of the most powerful ways to present and explore a character in extremis. The intensity of that. Longing for the homeland. The idea of exile also lets a novelist, if he’s done his or her homework, underscore elements of the society being evoked. Why are people exiled? What does it mean for them? For those left behind?

It also, from a technical, ‘writerly’ perspective, can set up a viewpoint for the reader: if someone is experiencing a new place (cynically, fearfully, arrogantly?), their observations and reactions become a way in for the reader who is, obviously, also ‘away from home’.

Follow this link to read the whole piece.