Svašta nešto ovog meseca. Kao i svakog, preko 200 naslova raznih žanrova i podžanrova. No, ovoga puta izdvojiću samo ono što će se naći na mom spisku za čitanje.
Something More Than Night by Ian Tregillis
Tredžilis (valjda se tako izgovara; moraću da ga pitam) jedan je od najboljih pisaca - u smislu umeća pisanja i lepote stila - fantastike koji su u poslednjih nekoliko godina izronili iz senke autora kakav je GRRM. Dapače, Tredžilis je član podmlatka Martinovog kružoka, Critical Mass, i "Veliki Bradati Lednik" ga često pominje i ističe kao pisca na kojeg valja obratiti pažnju.
Ovaj autor čitaocima se predstavio trilogijom o alternativnom Drugom svetskom ratu, tokom kojeg nacisti koriste ibermenše po ugledu na X-mene, a Britanci lavkraftovske vešce. Pročitao sam samo prvu knjigu u toj trilogiji i već duže vreme čekam da mi se sklope kockice i da se stvore prave okolnosti da pročitam i preostale dve.
U međuvremenu, Tredžilis nije džabalebario već je napisao novi roman.
Ian Tregillis's Something More Than Night is a Dashiell
Hammett and Raymond Chandler inspired murder mystery set in Thomas
Aquinas’s vision of Heaven. It’s a noir detective story starring fallen
angels, the heavenly choir, nightclub stigmatics, a priest with a dirty
secret, a femme fatale, and the Voice of God.
Somebody has
murdered the angel Gabriel. Worse, the Jericho Trumpet has gone missing,
putting Heaven on the brink of a truly cosmic crisis. But the twisty
plot that unfolds from the murder investigation leads to something much
bigger: a con job one billion years in the making.
Because this
is no mere murder. A small band of angels has decided to break out of
heaven, but they need a human patsy to make their plan work.
Much
of the story is told from the point of view of Bayliss, a cynical fallen
angel who has modeled himself on Philip Marlowe. The yarn he spins
follows the progression of a Marlowe novel—the mysterious dame who needs
his help, getting grilled by the bulls, finding a stiff, getting
slipped a mickey.
Angels and gunsels, dames with eyes like fire, and a grand maguffin, Something More Than Night is a murder mystery for the cosmos.
The Iron Wolves: Book 1 of The Rage of Kings by Andy Remic
Endi Remik ima dva zapažena B serijala. Jedan sam pokušao da čitam (The Clockwork Vampire Chronicles) i nije mi se dopao. Biće da je stvar do mene, pošto je Remik postao solidna zvezdica na SF&F nebu. Ako bih morao da ga poredim sa nekim ko je poznat našem čitateljstvu, rekao bih da je najsličniji Piteru Bretu, makar po kvalitetu pisanja.
Thirty years ago, the Iron Wolves held back mud-orc hordes at the Pass
of Splintered Bones, and led a brutal charge that saw the sorcerer
Morkagoth slain. This ended the War of Zakora, and made the Iron Wolves
heroes.
Now, a new terror stalks the realm. In hushed whispers,
it is claimed the Horse Lady, Orlana the Changer, has escaped from the
Chaos Halls and is building an army, twisting horses, lions and bears
into terrible, bloody hunters, summoning mud-orcs from then slime and
heading north to Vagandrak where, it said, the noble King Yoon has gone
insane...
After hearing a prophecy from a blind seer, aged
General Dalgoran searches to reunite the heroes of old for what he
believes will be the final battle. But as mud-orcs and twisted beasts
tear through the land, Dalgoran discovers the Iron Wolves are no longer
heroes of legend... Narnok is a violent whoremaster, Kiki a honey-leaf
drug peddler, and Prince Zastarte a drinker, a gambler, amoral and
decadent: now he likes to hear people scream as they burn...
United
in hate, the Iron Wolves travel to the Pass of Splintered Bones; and as
half a million mud-orcs gather, General Dalgoran realises his grave
error. Together, the Iron Wolves hold a terrible secret which has
tortured them for three decades. Now, they only wish to be human
again...
The Greatship by Robert Reed
Nisam čitao Rida, ali gikovskom internetu je preskočilo srce na najavu objavljivanja zbirke njegovih priča, čija se radnja dešava na ogromnom svemirskom brodu.
Since the beginning of the universe, the giant starship wandered the
emptiest reaches of space, without crew or course, much less any clear
purpose. But humans found the relic outside the Milky Way, and after
taking possession, they named their prize the Great Ship and embarked on
a bold voyage through the galaxy’s civilized hearts.
Larger
than worlds, the Great Ship is laced with caverns and oceans, scenes of
exalted beauty and corners where no creature has ever stood. Habitats
can be created for every intelligent species, provided that the
passengers can pay for the honor of a berth, and the human captains make
the rules and dispense the justice in what soon becomes thousands of
alien species joined a wild, unpredictable journey.
The first
Great Ship story was “The Remoras”, published in 1994 by THE MAGAZINE OF
FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION. All but the most recent titles in the
series have been included in this volume, arranged in a rough
chronological order, each story partly rewritten to capture the author’s
growing expertise in the starship. New material has been added to
bridge the centuries, hopefully enriching the resident confusion.
Ascension: A Tangled Axon Novel by Jacqueline Koyanagi
Potpuno nova spisateljica, koja se pojavila niotkuda i objavija roman za ne baš veliku i prestižnu izdavačku kuću. No, siže njenog prvenca bio mi je dovoljno zanimljiv da mi ovaj naslov odma' uleti na tablet.
Alana Quick is the best damned sky surgeon in Heliodor City, but
repairing starship engines barely pays the bills. When the desperate
crew of a cargo vessel stops by her shipyard looking for her
spiritually-advanced sister Nova, Alana stows away. Maybe her boldness
will land her a long-term gig on the crew. But the Tangled Axon proves
to be more than star-watching and plasma coils. The chief engineer
thinks he's a wolf. The pilot fades in and out of existence. The captain
is all blond hair, boots, and ego... and Alana can't keep her eyes off
her. But there's little time for romance: Nova's in danger and someone
will do anything - even destroying planets - to get their hands on her!
The Cormorant by Chuck Wendig
Vending je skorašnja fantazijska senzacija.
Ono što piše spada u urbanu fantaziju, a piše dovoljno dobro da je već stekao pristojan broj poklonika. Meni je zanimljivo to što je Vending neko vreme radio kao dizajner fantasy role play igara smeštenih u Svet tame, izdavača White Wolf. Ti su ljudi radili urbanu fantastiku i pre nego što je postojala. Jednog od narednih dana zaista ću morati da pročitam sve što je napisao.
Miriam is on the road again, having transitioned from "thief" to "killer".
Hired
by a wealthy businessman, she heads down to Florida to practice the one
thing she's good at, but in her vision she sees him die by another's
hand and on the wall written in blood is a message just for Miriam.
She's expected...
The Suicide Exhibition: The Never War by Justin Richards
Ne ide mi baš u glavu da se izdavač kalibra Del Reya odlučio da objavi nešto nalik ovome, tako da je jedino logično objašnjenje da je reč o sjajnom romanu, samo sam ja toliki duduk da mi to nije jasno na prvi pogled. Će da vidimo.
A groundbreaking alternate history World War 2 thriller.
The
threat is not new. The aliens have been here before -- if indeed they
are aliens. Obsessed with the Occult, Hitler and other senior Nazis
believed they were destined to inherit the Earth. To this end, they are
determined to recover 'their' ancient artifacts -- the Ark of the
Covenant, the Holy Grail, the Spear of Destiny. When Dunkirk veteran and
Foreign Office trouble-shooter Major Guy Pentecross stumbles across a
seemingly unbelievable conspiracy, he, together with pilot and American
spy Sarah Diamond and SOE operative Leo Davenport, enter the shadow
world of Section Z. All three have major roles to play as they uncover
the Nazis' insidious plot to use the alien Vril's technology to win the
war... at any cost.
This is The Thirty-Nine Steps crossed with Indiana Jones and Quatermass.
Justin Richards has an extremely credible grasp of the period's history
and has transformed it into a groundbreaking alternate reality
thriller.
Najslađe za kraj...
Fell Sword by Miles Cameron
Ovo je drugi roman Majlsa Kamerona. Prvi je objavljen krajem 2012, ali ja sam ga pročitao u 2013. Što se mene tiče, Red Knight - Kameronov prvenac - biće ozbiljan kandidat za najbolji roman kojeg sam pročitao ove godine.
Loyalty costs money. Betrayal, on the other hand, is free When the
Emperor is taken hostage, the Red Knight and his men find their services
in high demand - and themselves surrounded by enemies. The country is
in revolt, the capital city is besieged and any victory will be hard
won. But The Red Knight has a plan. The question is, can he negotiate
the political, magical, real and romantic battlefields at the same time -
especially when intends to be victorious on them all?