Abaddon Books

The final chapter in the story of Kerberos begins

2012-01-19T13:39:00.002Z

The Twilight of Kerberos:
The Wrath of Kerberos
by Jonathan Oliver

£7.99 (UK) ISBN 978-1-907992-35-3
$9.99/12.99 (US & CAN) ISBN 978-1-907992-36-0

An ebook-only release from Abaddon Books

Suddenly stranded in a desert by a magical storm, Silus Morlader must lead the crew of the Llothriall across the harsh landscape in search of civilisation. What they find will change their view of the world forever.

A new race reveals to Silus that his god, the planet-deity Kerberos, is not all he appears to be; that everything they understand about life on Twilight may be wrong.

The ninth and latest in the Twilight of Kerberos series, The Wrath of Kerberos is the first time Abaddon Books has published a brand new title only as an ebook.

And with the success of the recent series omnibuses – including the The Best of Tomes of the Dead and Afterblight: America – and capitalising on the growing US readership who are discovering Abaddon’s startlingly fresh shared-worlds, Abaddon Books has decided to focus the Twilight range on this format.

The long-awaited third book of the Lucius Kane Trilogy by Matthew Sprange, Legacy’s Price, will see print this March as part of the first Twilight of Kerberos Omnibus, with two more omnibuses in the series to collect the titles by Mike Wild and Jonathan Oliver.

About the Series
Twilight of Kerberos was Abaddon’s fifth shared world, launching with Matthew Sprange’s Shadow Mage in February 2008. Rocked by war and religious schism, Twilight is a fantasy world like no other, a land girt by impassable mountains and impenetrable storms, dimly lit by a distant sun and dominated by great Kerberos, an azure gas giant that fills the sky. Or is it? To some, Kerberos is a god. To others, another world. Its nature is a mystery, and uncovering its secrets – as, it is whispered, the Elder Races strove to do before they were wiped out – is sure to rock the world of Twilight to its core.

About the Author
Jonathan Oliver is the editor-in-chief of the Solaris and Abaddon Books imprints. He has previously had stories published in a variety of magazines and anthologies, including Pandemonium: Stories of the Apocalypse. The Wrath of Kerberos is his second novel.

The Birth of a Dragon

2012-01-19T12:55:00.003Z

Writing my second novel for Abaddon, it certainly felt like a bit of a beast at times. With my first novel, The Call of Kerberos, I had learnt so much and the trick with Wrath, was taking all that knowledge and doing it all over again. I believe it's known as Difficult Second Album Syndrome. Also, there was the added complexity of writing in a shared-world universe. This isn't a grumble, it's genuinely been great fun bouncing ideas off the other Twilight of Kerberos authors, it does however mean that everything you write has to chime true for everything the other authors are writing in the same world. Sometimes I'd hit on what I'd think would be a fantastic scene, only to find it would do things with the world that wouldn't carry well into future novels.

As well as the complexities of writing Wrath, it was the period during which my wife and I were awaiting the birth of our first child. Maia Rose Oliver was born on the 10th of February, 2011, about halfway through writing the novel. It's true what they say, being a parent changes everything and you can see some of my fatherly concerns channelled through my hero. In fact, Silus is accompanied by both his wife and child on much of his adventures.

And adventure is really the key to this novel. When I first started writing all those years ago, I actually saw myself as being a moody horror writer. (Think of an emo Garth Marenghi and you wouldn't be far wrong). Horror is still my first love (although I think I've grown out of that emo phase) but it was in my early twenties that I first started reading the pulp fantasies of Robert E. Howard, Fritz Leiber and Clark Ashton Smith. It was also in my early twenties that I first started gaming, starting with Call of Cthulhu, but soon moving onto Dungeons & Dragons. The fantasy worlds of the American pulp writers and the adventure games I had started to play had as big an influence on my writing as Ramsey Campbell and Stephen King when I first started. When I sat down to write my first novel, I wanted to give some of the joy back I'd had reading the pulps and rolling a D20. I'm not hugely keen on world building, so with Call of Kerberos I set it almost entirely on the sea or beneath it, giving me a sort of blank watery canvas. With Wrath I started with a world in its infancy and explored pre-history. Both of these gave me great scope to do pretty much what I pleased.

And I decided that I'd do the dragons.

Dragons had been mentioned in the previous Twilight of Kerberos novels, but neither Mike, Matthew or David had gone into too much depth (aside from some scenes in Mike's novels). I decided then, with Wrath, that I wanted to do the dragons. I'm still really pleased with the scene depicting the creation of these awesome monsters and a great deal of the book follows the adventures of the eunuch, Emuel, as he travels across the desert with his dragon companion. Not the easiest creatures to write, as they're so iconic, but I had a lot of fun with them.

Anyway, if you like your Sword and Sorcery redolent with Leiber, Lovecraft, Howard and Ashton Smith and packed full of adventure and monsters, then I present to you my final novel for the series. Head over to the Rebellion store and check it out.

Chuck Wendig returns to Abaddon

2012-01-18T14:51:00.002Z

The author behind Abaddon’s fastest-selling title of 2011 is set to return with a follow-up novella and a brand new series.

Abaddon is delighted to announce that Chuck Wendig has signed up to write an ebook sequel to the popular Double Dead, as well as create a brand new series for Abaddon in 2013.

An October 2011 release from Abaddon, Double Dead was Wendig’s first original novel and became the fastest-selling Abaddon title to date, with a particularly strong showing as an ebook.

The freshest take on the undead for years, Double Dead saw the vampire Coburn awaken during the zombie apocalypse, only to realise that if he wants to survive he has to protect his food source from the undead hordes.

Now Wendig is set to return to the world of Coburn later this year with Double Dead: Bad Blood, an ebook-only novella sequel. It will be released on May 14th on all e-platforms.

Wendig is also working on an exciting new urban fantasy series for Abaddon Books, bringing gods and monsters onto the city streets in a thrilling new-take on classic genre tropes. The first in this new series is due for release in 2013.

With his prominent online presence, including his popular blog on which he is not afraid to give his opinions on the process of writing and the industry at large.

“It’s wonderful to be welcoming Chuck back to the Abaddon team,” said Jon Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books. “He’s certainly one of the most exciting new writers around and Chuck is going to build on the success of Double Dead while bringing a brand new series to Abaddon.”

"The vampire Coburn kicked his way out of my skull and onto the pages of Double Dead,” said Wendig, “so it's great to be revisiting that cantankerous old bloodsucker. And I'm utterly geeked to be working with Abaddon to help birth this brand new series of gods and monsters."

About the Author
Chuck Wendig is a novelist, screenwriter and self-described 'penmonkey'. He sold his first story when he was 18. After working in the computer and role-playing game industries he began scripting TV- and film-projects, including a horror film script which won him a place at the prestigous Sundance Screenwriter Lab 2010. He currently lives in the wilds of Pennsyltucky with a wonderful wife and two very stupid dogs.

Abaddon Wins "This Is Horror" Award 2011!

2012-01-17T11:22:00.000Z

Wha-hey!

So, wotcher all. I'm not sure if you're aware of the sterling work that This Is Horror does, promoting and discussing the horror genre? If not, go and check out their site; it's crammed with interviews, reviews, features and all sorts of good stuff.

At any rate, they have recently launched a new award for the horror genre, the annual This Is Horror Award, which enjoyed an enormous response and looks set to become something pretty exciting in the years ahead.

And just to show what great taste they have, they have awarded us - Solaris Books and Abaddon Books, Rebellion's sister fiction imprints - their inaugural Publisher of the Year Award!

We're thrilled, naturally. Jon, our Editor-in-Chief, says, “What a lovely way to start the New Year! I’m so pleased that Abaddon and Solaris have made their mark on the horror genre, because horror has always been my first love, ever since I discovered Ramsey Campbell at the age of 11. It’s been a real pleasure to work with This is Horror over 2011 and to be recognised by Michael and the team in this way means a great deal to us.”

To top it off, they've also given one of Solaris's books, Gary McMahon's The Concrete Grove, the Novel of the Year Award. Abaddon fans will recognise Gary as the author of the unsettling Tomes of the Dead: Hungry Hearts. We're massively chuffed for Gary; this is an amazing book, and the start of what's promising (having just finished the copy-edit on Silent Voices myself) to be an extraordinary series.

Gary says, “I’m delighted to have my book named as Novel of the Year. The Concrete Grove is a very personal novel and it’s gratifying to receive any kind of recognition for my work.”

So we're just popping open the champers in our office, here, and will pop up a photo of the certificate. Huge congratulations to Angry Robot, the runner-up Publisher of the Year, to BC Furtney, whose Scarla was the runner-up Novel of the Year, and to all the other winners and runners-up.

Cracking.

For Your Consideration

2012-01-10T15:32:00.001Z

As you will know, the time of year has come upon us once again when the World Science Fiction Society decide on their nominations for the Hugo Awards. You are eligible to nominate if you attended WorldCon last year, or are to attend WorldCon this year, or have signed up for 2013's WorldCon. Instructions for nomination can be found here and the deadline is 31st of January (which also happens to be my birthday. Send cake.)

So, for your consideration, here is a list of Solaris and Abaddon titles that are eligible for nomination:

Novels:

Pax Britannia: Pax Omega - Al Ewing

Age of Odin - James Lovegrove

Twilight of Kerberos: The Trials of Trass Kathra - Mike Wild

The Sentinel Mage - Emily Gee

Malory's Knights of Albion: Black Chalice - Steve Savile

Loss of Separation - Conrad Williams

Cloneworld - Andy Remic

Tomes of The Dead: The Viking Dead - Toby Venables

The Kings of Eternity - Eric Brown

Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein - Jonathan Green

No Man's World: Ironclad Prophecy - Pat Kelleher

The Noise Revealed - Ian Whates

Malory's Knights of Albion: Savage Knight - Paul Lewis

Dead of Veridon - Tim Akers

Desdaemona - Ben Macallan

Tomes of The Dead: Double Dead - Chuck Wendig

The Concrete Grove - Gary McMahon

Sympathy for the Devil - Justin Gustainis

The Hadrumal Crisis: Dangerous Waters - Juliet E. McKenna

The Recollection - Gareth Powell

Regicide - Nicholas Royle

Redlaw - James Lovegrove

Kultus - Richard Ford

Theme Planet - Andy Remic

Authors eligible for the John W. Campbell award (best new writer):

Toby Venables

Gareth L. Powell

Richard Ford

Chuck Wendig

Cover artists for your consideration:

Mark Harrison (Pax Britannia: Gods of Manhattan/ Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein, Twilight of Kerberos: The Trials of Trass Kathra)

Gerard Miley (Tomes of The Dead: The Viking Dead)

Simon Parr (Malory's Knights of Albion: Black Chalice/ No Man's World: The Ironclad Prophecy/ Malory's Knights of Albion: Savage Knight/ Tomes of the Dead: Double Dead/ Regicide/ Solaris Rising: The New Solaris Book of SF)

Luke Preece (Tomes of The Dead: Best of Tomes of The Dead Vol. 2/ House of Fear)

Marek Okon (Age of Odin/ Cloneworld/ Themeplanet)

Stephan Martiniere (Engineering Infinity)

Larry Rostant (The Sentinel Mage)

Dominic Harman (The Kings of Eternity/ The Noise Revealed)

Vincent Chong (Loss of Separation/ Desdaemona/ The Concrete Grove)

Greg Staples (Dead of Veridon/ Twilight of Kerberos: The Trials of Trass Kathra)

Chris McGrath (Sympathy for The Devil)

Frazer Irving (Kultus)

Clint Langley (Redlaw/ The Hadrumal Crisis: Dangerous Waters)

Short Stories, for your consideration:

From Engineering Infinity, edited by Jonathan Strahan

Malak by Peter Watts

Watching the Music Dance by Kristine Kathryn Rusch

Laika's Ghost by Karl Schroeder

The Invasion of Venus by Stephen Baxter

The Server and the Dragon by Hannu Rajaniemi

Bit Rot by Charles Stross

Creatures with Wings by Kathleen Ann Goonan

Walls of Flesh, Bars of Bone by Damien Broderick and Barbara Lamar

Mantis by Robert Reed

Judgment Eve by John C. Wright

A Soldier of the City by David Moles

Mercies by Gregory Benford

The Ki-anna by Gwyneth Jones

The Birds and the Bees and the Gasoline Trees by John Barnes

From Solaris Rising: The New Solaris Book of SF, edited by Ian Whates

A Smart Well-Mannered Uprising of the Dead by Ian McDonald

The Incredible Exploding Man by Dave Hutchinson

Sweet Spots by Paul di Filippo

The Best Science Fiction of the Year Three by Ken MacLeod

The One that Got Away by Tricia Sullivan

Rock Day by Stephen Baxter

Eluna by Stephen Palmer

Shall I Tell You the Problem with Time Travel? by Adam Roberts

The Lives and Deaths of Che Guevara by Lavie Tidhar

Steel Lake by Jack Skillingstead

Mooncakes by Mike Resnick and Laurie Tom

At Play in the Fields by Steve Rasnic Tem

How We Came Back from Mars by Ian Watson

You Never Know by Pat Cadigan

Yestermorrow by Richard Salter

Dreaming Towers, Silent Mansions by Jaine Fenn

Eternity's Children by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown

For the Ages by Alastair Reynolds

Return of the Mutant Worms by Peter F. Hamilton

From House of Fear, edited by Jonathan Oliver

Objects in Dreams may be Closer than they Appear by Lisa Tuttle

Pied-a-Terre by Stephen Volk

In the Absence of Murdock by Terry Lamsley

Florrie by Adam L.G. Nevill

Driving the Milky Way by Weston Ochse

Moretta by Garry Kilworth

Hortus Conclusus by Chaz Brenchley

The Dark Space in the House in the House in the Garden at the Centre of the World by Robert Shearman

The Muse of Copenhagen by Nina Allan

An Injustice by Christopher Fowler

The Room Upstairs by Sarah Pinborough

Villanova by Paul Meloy

Widow's Weeds by Christopher Priest

The Doll's House by Jonathan Green

Inside/Out by Nicholas Royle

The House by Eric Brown

Trick of the Light by Tim Lebbon

What Happened to Me by Joe R. Lansdale

Day 24: Merry Christmas

2011-12-24T10:00:00.004Z

Merry Christmas to all our faithful readers! As a Christmas present to you here is a roundup of all our free eBooks available to download from 2011 – a little something to enjoy before you kick off your Yuletide celebrations or even something to hide yourself away from the bedlam! Enjoy!

The End of The Line edited by Jonathan Oliver
A collection of some of the very best in new horror writing in a themed anthology of stories set on, and around, the Underground, the Metro and other places deep below. The Lure is an erotically-charged tale of voyeurism and dread sparked by Nicholas Royle that is included in The End of the Line and now available as a free download.

The Wizard’s Coming by Juliet E McKenna serves as a prequel for The Hadrumal Crisis – McKenna’s brand new trilogy that hit the shops in August with Dangerous Waters. Download now in ePub, Kindle and PDF.

Eric Brown’s The Blue Portal is the opening of his novel The Kings of Eternity, which began as this short story. The Kings of Eternity took SF great Eric Brown ten years to complete and is a space opera spanning decades. Download the first chapter The Blue Portal for free now using the epub file from our website.

Babylon Steel is Gaie Sebold’s debut novel and a brilliant start to an exciting new fantasy series. Ex-sword-for-hire, ex… other things, Babylon runs the best brothel in Scalentine; city of many portals, two moons, and a wide variety of races, were-creatures, and religions, not to mention the occasional insane warlock.

She’s not having a good week. The Vessels of Purity are protesting against brothels, women in the trade are being attacked, it’s tax time, and there’s not enough money to pay the bill. So when the mysterious Darask Fain offers her a job finding a missing girl, Babylon decides to take it. But the missing girl is not what she seems, and neither is Darask Fain. In the meantime twomoon is approaching, and more than just a few night’s takings are at risk when Babylon’s hidden past reaches out to grab her by the throat. To read the first chapter follow the links for epub and mobi.

Hell Train is the Hammer Horror movie they never made. In his first book for Solaris, Christopher Fowler, the multi-award winning author of the Bryant & May mysteries conjures up bizarre creatures, satanic rites, terrified passengers and the romance of train travel, all in a classically-styled horror novel that evokes the real-life spirits of this most British of movie studios.

When American screenwriter Shane Carter is asked to revive the classic studio’s fortunes and, inspired by an old board game, writes a script where four strangers who meet on a train journey through Eastern Europe during the First World War must solve a terrifying mystery if they are to survive.
As they race through the war-torn countryside, they must uncover the secrets of a locked casket and of the veiled Red Countess who travels with them. And what exactly is the devilish riddle of the train itself?! Read the first chapter here and see if you get hooked! epub and mobi

And to round things off, we present the first chapter of the next book in the Twilight of Kerberos series – The Wrath of Kerberos by Jonathan Oliver – which will be the first time the imprint has published a brand new title as only an ebook.

The Twilight of Kerberos is a shared-world fantasy series set on a planet inhabited by the remnants of lost civilisations, orbiting the gas giant Kerberos. The Wrath of Kerberos will be the series’ ninth book.

The Wrath of Kerberos will be released early next year and the first chapter is available in epub and mobi formats.

Thanks for sticking with the Abaddon and Solaris Advent Calendar. We hope you've found something you like.

Merry Christmas, readers! See you in 2012!

Day 23: The Best of 2011

2011-12-23T10:00:00.001Z

We love all out books and authors here at Abaddon and Solaris but we wanted to showcase a few worth noting from 2011:

Solaris Rising edited by Ian Whates. Solaris Rising is the first in an exciting new series of anthologies that are set to reaffirm Solaris’s proud reputation for producing high quality science-fiction. The book feature's all original short stories from some of the foremost authors in the field; stories guaranteed to surprise, thrill and delight, demonstrating yet again why science fiction remains the most innovative, satisfying, and downright exciting genre of all.

The Recollection is Gareth L Powell’s debut SF novel with Solaris
When his brother disappears into a bizarre gateway on a London Underground escalator, failed artist Ed Rico and his brother's wife Alice have to put aside their feelings for each other to go and find him. Their quest through the 'arches' will send them hurtling through time, to new and terrifying alien worlds.
Four hundred years in the future, Katherine Abdulov must travel to a remote planet in order to regain the trust of her influential family. The only person standing in her way is her former lover, Victor Luciano, the ruthless employee of a rival trading firm.
Hard choices lie ahead as lives and centuries clash and, in the unforgiving depths of space, an ancient evil stirs...

The Black Chalice by Steven Saville is the beginning of Abaddon Books' brand new The Malory’s Knights of Albion Series
Son of a knight and aspirant to the Round Table, Alymere yearns to take his place in the world, and for a quest to prove his worth. He comes across the foul Devil's Bible – written in one night by an insane hermit – which leads and drives him, by parts, to seek the unholy Black Chalice. On his quest he will face, and overcome, dire obstacles and cunning enemies, becoming a knight of renown; but the ultimate threat is to his very soul. Malory’s Knights of Albion: The Black Chalice is the start of an exciting new series of never-before-seen Arthurian adventures.

House of Fear edited Jonathan Oliver is our 2011 horror anthology
The tread on the landing outside the door, when you know you are the only one in the house. The wind whistling through the eves, carrying the voices of the dead. The figure glimpsed briefly through the cracked window of a derelict house. Editor Jonathan Oliver brings horror home with a collection of haunted house stories by some of the finest writers working in the horror genre, including Joe R. Lansdale, Sarah Pinborough, Lisa Tuttle, Christopher Priest, Adam L. G. Nevill, Nicholas Royle, Chaz Brenchley, Christopher Fowler, Gary Kilworth, Weston Ochse, Eric Brown, Tim Lebbon, Nina Allan, Stephen Volk, Paul Meloy and more.

Dangerous Waters is the first novel in a brand new series for The Hadrumal Crisis by Juilet E. McKenna. The Archmage rules the island of wizards and has banned the use of magecraft in warfare, but there are corsairs raiding the Caladhrian Coast, enslaving villagers and devastating trade. Barons and merchants beg for magical aid, but all help has been refused so far.
Lady Zurenne’s husband has been murdered by the corsairs, and a man she doesn’t even know stands watch over her and her daughters. Corrain, former captain and now slave to the corsairs, knows that Zurenne’s guardian is a rogue wizard.

If Corrain can only escape, he’ll see justice done. Unless the Archmage’s magewoman, Jilseth, catches the renegade first...

Viking Dead by Toby Venables is a typical example of the fresh eyes theTomes of the Dead series bring to Zombie literature
Northern Europe, 976 AD. Bjólf and the viking crew of the ship Hrafn flee up an unknown river after a bitter battle, only to find themselves in a bleak land of pestilence. The dead don’t lie down, but become draugr – the undead – returning to feed on the flesh of their kin. Terrible stories are told of a dark castle in a hidden fjord, and of black ships that come raiding with invincible draugr berserkers. And no sooner has Bjólf resolved to leave, than the black ships appear... Now stranded, his men cursed by the contagion of walking death, Bjólf has one choice: fight his way through a forest teeming with zombies, invade the castle and find the secret of the horrific condition – or submit to an eternity of shambling, soulless undeath!

Day 22: Galactic Tales

2011-12-22T10:00:00.001Z

Only a couple of days left for Christmas shopping! Lucky for you, eBooks can be brought and delivered in one click!

Today’s recommendation is for Solaris Author, Eric Brown. Not only has he written a huge volume of novels for Solaris Books but he is described by Peter F Hamiliton as ‘the name to watch in SF’.

The Kings of Eternity
1999 on the threshold of a new millennium, the novelist Daniel Langham lives a reclusive life on an idyllic Greek island, hiding away from humanity and the events of the past. All that changes, however, when he meets artist Caroline Platt and finds himself falling in love. But what is his secret, and what are the horrors that haunt him? 1935. Writers Jonathon Langham and Edward Vaughan are summoned from London by their editor friend Jasper Carnegie to help investigate strange goings-on in Hopton Wood. What they discover there – no less than a strange creature from another world – will change their lives forever. What they become, and their link to the novelist of the future, is the subject of Eric Brown’s most ambitious novel to date.
To read the opening chapter of The Blue Portal, the story that inspired The Kings of Eternity, download the .epub file from our website, or find the book on Apple’s iBookstore. If you haven’t got an e-reader, just read the book in PDF format!

Helix
Helix
Helix is a grandiose space opera, a story of exploration, alien contact and desperation. It follows the plight of a group of humans who crash land on a desolate alien planet. Daylight brings the discovery that the planet is merely one of thousands arranged in a vast spiral wound around a central sun. The group set off to discover a more habitable Earth-like world, encountering bizarre alien races on the way. But they must also find a means to stay alive.

Proving that good things come in threes - The Bengal Station Trilogy is set on an exotic spaceport that dominates the ocean between India and Burma and follows Jaded telepath, Jeff Vaughan. In the first novel,Necropath, Vaughan discovers a sinister cult that worships a mysterious alien god. The Church of the Adoration of the Chosen One uses drugs to commune with the Ultimate, and will murder to silence those who oppose their beliefs. The story follows Vaughan as his mistrust of his fellow humans is overturned by his love for the Thai street-girl Sukura, while he attempts to solve the murders and save himself from the psychopath out to kill him.

Xenopath - Happily married to Sukara with a child on the way, Vaughan now works for a telepathic detective agency and is investigating a series of murders linked to the colony world of Mallory, and the slaughter of innocent aliens there by the Scheering-Lassiter colonial organisation. But not only does the investigation put his own life in danger, back on Bengal Station Sukara’s life is threatened too.

Finally in Cosmopath, Jeff Vaughan comes out of retirement when he is hired by a ruthless businessman to find out what happened to a lost crew. When he arrives on Canopus VII, the investigation takes a strange turn as they are captured by a group of humans inhabiting the planet. They take him to an underground city, where the true reason for the investigation becomes clear.

Day 21: Christmas Chronicles

2011-12-21T10:00:00.001Z

‘Royal intrigue, court politics and outlawed magic make for an exciting adventure.’

Rowena is an award winning fantasy author and her Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin has everything a great fantasy needs - kings and queens, beasts and warriors, magic and politics. Rowena set out to write the ideal book to curl up with during the winter months and we think that makes for a great Christmas gift.

The King’s Bastard: Book One of The Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin
The Kingdom of Rolencia, By royal decree, all those afflicted with Affinity must serve the Abbey or face death. Sent to the Abbey because of his innate Affinity, the King’s youngest son, Fyn, trains to become a warrior monk. Unfortunately, he’s a gentle dreamer and the other acolytes bully him. The only way he can escape them is to serve the Abbey Mystic, but his Affinity is weak.
Fiercely loyal, thirteen year-old Piro is horrified to discover she is also cursed with unwanted Affinity. It broke their mother’s heart to send Fyn away, so she hides her affliction. But, when Fyn confesses his troubles, Piro risks exposure to help him.
Even though Byren Kingson is only seven minutes younger than his twin, Lence, who is the king's heir, Byren has never hungered for the Rolencian throne. When a Seer predicts that he will kill Lence, he laughs. But Lence Kingsheir sees Byren’s growing popularity and resents it. Enduring loyalty could be Byren’s greatest failing.

The Uncrowned King: Book Two of The Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin
Rolencia’s ancestral enemy, Merofynia, has invaded and marches on King Rolen’s castle. Powerless to help, thirteen yeard old Piro watches as her father, King Rolen, listens to poisoned whispers concerning his son Bryen. How could the King doubt his second son? Determined to prove his loyalty, Bryen races across the path of the advancing army to ask the Abbot to send the warrior monks in defense of the castle.

Usurper: Book Three of The Chronicles of King Rolen's Kin
Now a slave, Piro finds herself in the Merofynian Palace where, if her real identity is discovered, she will be executed. Meanwhile, Fyn is desperate to help his brother, Bryen, who is now the uncrowned King. Bryen never sought power but now he finds himself at the centre of a dangerous resistance movement as the people of Rolencia flee vicious invaders. How can Byren defeat the invaders, when half his warriors are women and children, and the other half are untrained boys and old men?

Day 20: Other Worldly Giveaway

2011-12-20T10:00:00.004Z

Today we have a giveaway of Science-Fcition of the highest order! Packed with quality stories, Solaris Rising is the first in an exciting new series of anthologies that are set to reaffirm Solaris’s proud reputation for producing high quality science fiction!

Not only are we giving away three copies of Solaris' latest anthology - We are giving away three copies signed by Ian Whates, Alastair Reynolds, Eric Brown, Lavie Tidhar, Pat Cadigan, Jaine Fenn, Dave Hutchinson.

In a book full of boundless variety, energy and imagination, editor Ian Whates gathers together the most accomplished writers in science fiction including Ian McDonald, Dave Hutchinson, Paul di Filippo, Ken Macleod, Tricia Sullivan, Stephen Baxter, Stephen Palmer, Adam Roberts, Lavie Tidhar, Jack Skillingstead, Mike Resnick and Laurie Tom, Steve Rasnic Tem, Ian Watson, Pat Cadigan, Richard Salter, Jaine Fee, Keith Brooke and Eric Brown, Alastair Reynolds, Peter F. Hamilton.

From bizarre futures and surreal present day to gritty other worlds and strange realms, Solaris Rising exemplifies the diversity and innovation that make science fiction the most exciting genre of all time.

“A cliché it may be, but there really is something for everyone here... an ideal bait to tempt those who only read novels to climb over the short fiction fence.”
– Interzone

To win please email abaddonsolaris@rebellion.co.uk and answer this other worldly question.

What is the name of the Earth-like planet found earlier this month by the Kepler Telescope?

Day 19: Post-Apocalyptic Present?

2011-12-19T10:00:00.001Z

The Afterblight Chronicles is a post-apocalyptic series in which a devastating epidemic has ravaged the world. In the Afterblight pockets of humans attempt to continue civilization amidst the mounting chaos of the collapsed infrastructure. Mobs run rampant while cults and warlords fight for authority over the survivors of the global plague.

For your entertainment we have decided to showcase The Afterblight Chronicles: The St Marks trilogy. Scott Andrews’ series follows a bunch of kids in post-Cull Britain who must not only survive in the post-apocalypse world – they must survive school in these harshest of conditions.

School’s Out
"After the world died we all sort of drifted back to school. After all, where else was there for us to go?" It's never easy being fifteen, but when your teachers are killing each other, the prefect who loves to bully you is experimenting with crucifixion, and the rival gang from across town have decided that ritualistic cannibalism is the way to go, spots and BO don't seem like such big problems after all. These are the final days of St Marks' School For Boys, and the punishment for disobedience is death!

Operation Motherland
"I celebrated my sixteenth birthday by crashing a plane, fighting for my life and facing execution, again." Lee Keegan travels to Iraq on the trail of his missing father, only to find himself caught between desperate rebels and a general who wants to strap him into an electric chair. In England, Jane Crowther, one time matron of St Mark's School for Boys, attracts the wrong kind of attention and has to fight to protect her new school from unlikely enemies. And in a bunker underneath Washington, a madman issues orders that will tip two devastated countries into total war.

Children’s Crusade
The orphaned children of post-Cull Britain have always been easy prey for gangs, cults and killers. But now something has changed. Organised teams are roaming the country, taking children from their homes and villages, spiriting them away into the night. Jane Crowther is willing to risk everything to rescue them, but to save the children, Jane must confront the woman she used to be, and the man who killed her. This is the third and final year of St Mark's school for Boys and Girls. But it's not going down without a fight!

Day 18: Medieval Merriment

2011-12-18T10:00:00.001Z

The Malory’s Knights of Albion is an Arthurian adventure perfect for our fans of the Sword in the Stone legends.

The Black Chalice
Son of a knight and aspirant to the Round Table, Alymere yearns to take his place in the world, and for a quest to prove his worth. He comes across the foul Devil's Bible – written in one night by an insane hermit – which leads and drives him, by parts, to seek the unholy Black Chalice. On his quest he will face, and overcome, dire obstacles and cunning enemies, becoming a knight of renown; but the ultimate threat is to his very soul. Malory’s Knights of Albion: The Black Chalice is the start of an exciting new series of never-before-seen Arthurian adventures.

The Savage Knight
Sir Dodinal the Savage is more at home in the wild forest than in the tilting yard or the banquet hall. Keenly attuned to the natural world, but burdened with a terrible rage, he turns his back on Camelot to find peace, or a just death. In a quiet village on the Welsh border, Dodinal believes he may have finally found a home, but the village is struck by child-stealing raiders from the hills, and he must take up arms once again in his new friends’ aid. His quest will take him into the belly of darkness, as the terrible secret hidden in the hills comes to light...

Dark North
The latest novel in the Abaddon series by Paul Finch is due out next year. A new Empire has risen in Rome, and the Emperor, Lucio Bizerta, is determined that Britain shall kneel before him as they once did to the Caesars. As Lucio’s forces mass in France and his ambassadors come to Camelot, Arthur hurriedly convenes his court to meet them. Sir Lucan, one of Arthur’s most stalwart supporters, comes from his cold northern home with his squire, Alaric. Lucan’s beautiful wife Trelawna has come as well, for among the Italian delegates is her lover, the noble Rufio. The world stands poised on the brink of a terrible war, in which the fates of lives and hearts will play as great a role as those of nations...

Day 17: Need something with a kick this Christmas?

2011-12-17T10:00:00.001Z

Andy Remic is our hard-talking, hard-fighting author whose novels are always full of action packed, gun-blazing hardcore SF. His long-running Combat-K Series is "Fun and fast-paced ass-kicking action."

War Machine
In a time of post-Singularity and FTL travel, the Helix War has raged across galaxies. Ex-soldier Keenan is now working as a private investigator on a planet at the peaceful fringes of the Tri-Gal. Following the death of his family he's run up debts and become a heavy drinker, but he cannot refuse business. Especially when a prince from the Jervai Province offers him a case on a dangerous colony world in exchange for clues that may lead him to his family's murderer. However, to have any chance of success he must gather together his old military unit, a group who swore they'd never work together again...

Biohell
On a planet teeming with corruption, a global technology corporation manufactures the Biomod Human Upgrade. However, when hackers break the code it heads onto the black market, creating a zombie population packed with hardcore weaponry. The Combat-K squad must uncover what's really turned this planet into a wasteland of murder and mutations, and they focus on the darkness at the heart of the corporation that created the upgrade.

Hardcore
Sick World was a planet dedicated to the ill, the deformed, the dying and the dead. Humanity as an organism was not the most durable chassis. After mixing it up with aliens, the human shell developed a host of unwanted and incurable ailments… esoteric diseases, curious viruses, life-changing bugs, vomit-inducing deformations. So a beautiful planet, Sick World, was terraformed with limitless funding, state-of-the-art research centres, gleaming wards and towering operating theatres providing unparalleled care, a perfection of medicine and a pinnacle of repair for the plethora of grotesque diseases and mutating conditions. However, a thousand years ago something happened, and the planet was evacuated in totality. Today, it lies uninhabited. Combat K: Keenan, Franco and Pippa, forced by implanted logic cubes into an unholy alliance of cooperation. Mission: to infiltrate Sick World and carry out a simple fact-finding mission prior to SLAM excavations to research the new Junk threat. It should have been safe, simple, secure. As the first day fades, so a long hibernation ends. The Medical Staff of Sick World, the doctors, the nurses, the patients, those abandoned long ago, a thousand year gestation of hardcore medical mutation and accelerated healthcare technology… they can smell fresh meat, and begin to awake…HARDCORE. You’ll never look at a nurse the same way again.

Cloneworld
Junks, an ancient evil alien scourge, are flooding Quad-Gal with terror as they spread their toxic plague. Combat K, proficient in infiltration, assassination and demolition, are sent on a mission to find an elusive alien retrovirus which can be used against an enemy. SLAM-dropped to CLONEWORLD, a planet ravaged by violent civil war, not only are Combat K hunted by elite junk assassins, but they get caught in a global conflict between ORGS, huge augmented mechanised war machines, and GANGERS, slick, genetically modified humans who have the ability to ganger, or clone themselves at will.

Through a mash of constant battle and vast, war-torn landscapes, through mechanised ORG factories and G.U.N. workshops, through GANGER SlushPits and CloneCities and SexVats, Combat K must think and fight their way to victory, to save the planet, and save the Four Galaxies. But how can Combat K possibly succeed, when their main foe are their own elite and deadly clones?

Day 16: Strong Female Characters

2011-12-16T10:00:00.001Z

Strong Females Characters can take many forms. Here are some of Solaris’s leading ladies.

The Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin by Rowena Cory Daniells
Rowena Cory Daniell’s trilogy centres on King Rolen and his family, written from the view-point of his three children. His 13 year old daughter, Piro is headstrong and fiercely loyal. Her unwanted affinity soon becomes integral to her family's survival and her decisions and actions are a driving force throughout the trilogy.

The Chronicles of the Lescari Revolution by Juliet E McKenna
In Juliet E McKenna's epic tale of fantasy rebellion, women are at the heart of the conspiracy with just as much at stake as the men. Branca is a strong-minded scholar whose humble origins won't stop her studying lost magic to help the cause. Failla is one duke's mistress while spying for his enemies. Charoleia is an enigmatic trader of invaluable information and contacts. Set against them and their allies, can Duchess Litasse of Triolle find common cause with Duchess Tadira of Carluse or Ridianne, the Duke of Marlier's mistress and captain of his mercenaries?

Dangerous Waters - Book One of the Hadrumal Crisis by Juliet E McKenna
An acclaimed magewoman of Hadrumal, Jilseth has long been trusted by the Archmage to safeguard the wizard isle's interests, travelling the realm of Caladhria with no need to fear the corsairs who ravage the coastline. Lady Zurenne by contrast has lived a sheltered and cosseted life. But now she's bereft of her husband and any other protector for her fatherless daughters.

As two of the few who know the truth of a scandal which could bring down the Archmage, will these women work together to help defeat the corsairs and keep such perilous secrets or find themselves on opposite sides?

The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee
Shapeshifting Innis is the youngest ever female Sentinel Mage. Her abilities are unique along with their strength. So much so it must be her that does the forbidden and take the form of a human to save the Seven Kingdoms.

Desdaemona by Ben Macallan
Desdaemona is a sassy leading lady who takes no prisoners. Half demon, half human she has enough powers to not be messed with and enlists protagonist Jordan to help her find her missing sister Faye.

'Twilight' series sees an e-book first for Abaddon

2011-12-15T10:53:00.003Z

Abaddon Books is to publish its first ever ebook-only title, while capitalising on the recent success of its series omnibuses.

The next book in the Twilight of Kerberos series – The Wrath of Kerberos by Jonathan Oliver – will be the first time the imprint has published a brand new title as only an ebook.

The Twilight of Kerberos is a shared-world fantasy series set on a planet inhabited by the remnants of lost civilisations, orbiting the gas giant Kerberos. The Wrath of Kerberos will be the series’ ninth book.

With its READ ANYTHING campaign and commitment to producing first rate genre fiction, the Abaddon Books team are firm believers in new forms of publishing. The Twilight of Kerberos series is a perfect fit for experimenting with an ebook only release.

And with the success of the recent series omnibuses – including the The Best of Tomes of the Dead and Afterblight: America – and capitalising on the growing US readership who are finding our shared-worlds through them, Abaddon Books has decided to focus the Twilight range on this format.

The long-awaited third book of the Lucius Kane Trilogy by Matthew Sprange, Legacy’s Price, will see print in March 2012 as part of the first Twilight of Kerberos Omnibus, with two more omnibuses in the series to collect the titles by Mike Wild and Jonathan Oliver.

Jonathan Oliver said: “It’s great to be part of this experiment in publishing, and Wrath of Kerberos is a perfect fit.”

“A remarkably creative debut.” – Un:Bound on The Call of Kerberos

Day 15: Silent Night - Twilight

2011-12-15T10:00:00.001Z

We have too much high fantasy for just one calendar day so today’s recommendation is Abaddon’s long-running Swords and Sorcery series. The Twilight of Kerberos currently spans nine books and the final novel, Children of the Pantheon, is due out in 2012.

Rocked by war and religious schism, Twilight is a fantasy world like no other, a land girt by impassable mountains and impenetrable storms, dimly lit by a distant sun and dominated by great Kerberos, an azure gas giant that fills the sky... Or is it? To some, Kerberos is a god. To others, another world. Its nature is a mystery, and uncovering its secrets - as, it is whispered, the Elder Races strove to do before they were wiped out - is sure to rock the world of Twilight to its core.

Jonathan Oliver’s contributions follow Silus Morlader, a simple fisherman with a horrifying legacy.

The Call of Kerberos by Jonathan Oliver.
Silus is a fisherman working the Nurn coast; a simple man leading a simple life. But there is more to Silus than even he himself realises. When a mysterious man on the run from the Final Faith tries to persuade Silus on an extraordinary voyage, his world begins to change. And when an ancient and evil race bursts from the sea to try and claim Silus as one of their own, he is forced to flee his home. Soon Silus becomes a pawn in a deadly game played between ancient races. On the forbidding Twilight seas, Silus begins to discover the extraordinary truth behind his burgeoning preternatural abilities. As he battles alongside the crew of the magical galleon the Llothriall, Silus will find out more about his world and his legacy than he could ever have imagined. Hearing the call of Kerberos, he will fight to save existence itself!

The Wrath of Kerberos by Jonathan Oliver (due for release January 2012 in e-book)
Silus Morlader and the crew of the Llothriall find themselves beached in the middle of a desert after a magical storm envelops their ship. Stranded with dwindling supplies and half their crew missing, Silus leads his companions across the harsh landscape in search of civilisation. What they find will change their view of the world forever.
A new race reveals to Silus that his god, Kerberos, is not all he appears to be; that everything they understand about life on Twilight may be wrong. When the truth is finally told, Silus and his companions must fight their way across a dying world, facing Final Faith fanatics, orcs and dragons. They must find a way to deliver a very important message to Katherine Makennon, head of the Final Faith, before war tears Twilight apart.

Day 14: We’re got plenty of S-Punk!

2011-12-14T10:00:00.004Z

Not only do we have plenty, Abaddon Books is proud to publish Pax Britannia, the longest-running steampunk series.

Launched in 2007, Pax Britannia is a steampunk alternative history set in a late twentieth century in which Queen Victoria – now nearing the end of her sixteenth decade on the throne, and wholly dependent on steam technology for survival – rules over the vastly wealthy, powerful and decadent Empire of Magna Britannia. Airships ply the skies overhead as gentlemen of leisure admire the dinosaurs in London Zoo, while the Empire has extended to the Moon. Across the pond, the United Socialist States of America, loosely allied with the might of Magna Britannia, is home to dreamers, poets, madmen, and heroes, poised to usher in a new era.

Pax Britannia: Gods of Manhattan by Al Ewing
While his sidekick lies bleeding out in hospital, city saviour Doc Thunder and Maya, his beatiful companion, attempt to discover the identity of their friend's assailant. The clues lead to secrets altogether older and darker than they could ever have imagined.
The Blood Spider - a name that strikes fear into the hearts of criminals everywhere. But unlike Doc Thunder, this vigilante is willing to kill, and it can only be a matter of time before the two heroes collide.
Mexican masked swordsman El Sombra is visiting the Big Apple, but he's not just any tourist. El Sombra is on a mission of revenge that will take him all the way into the heart of the city's corrupt underworld.

Author, Tim Akers also creates his own steampunk universe of Veridon and the Church of the Algorithm.

Heart of Veridon by Tim Akers
Jacob Burn: pilot, criminal and disgraced son of one of the founding families of the ancient city of Veridon. When an old friend delivers to him a strange artifact, Jacob's world crashes down around him as he runs not only from the law but also from those who were once friends. But even as the array of machines and strange creatures stalk him through the streets of Veridon, something even more sinister and dangerous makes its move against him, an entity that will make Jacob question everything he thought he knew about himself and the city.

Dead of Veridon by Tim Akers

Trouble finds Jacob Burn: kicked out of his house, out of his comfortable life – out of everything that is familiar – even turned away from his circle of criminal friends and interesting enemies. Two years after he saved an ungrateful city from a mad angel, thwarting the plans of every powerful faction in Veridon, Jacob is still trying to pull his life together. And still trouble finds him. A bad job goes worse, and soon old enemies present themselves as allies, and former friends set themselves against Jacob as he tries to put the dead to rest and the living to justice. Things gets even harder when he’s appointed by the Council to investigate the rise of the cog-dead, while some hold him personally accountable, and others in the city work to use the chaos to their advantage.

Kultus by Richard Ford is a steam-powered burlesque of brutal demonic action!
Thaddeus Blaklok – mercenary, demonist, bastard and thug-for-hire – is pressed into retrieving a mysterious key for his clandestine benefactors. Little does he know that other parties seek to secure this artefact for their own nefarious ends and soon he is pursued by brutal cultists, bloodthirsty gangsters, deadly mercenaries and hell spawned monsters, all bent on stopping him by any means necessary. In a lightning-paced quest that takes him across the length and breadth of the steam-fuelled city of Manufactory, Blaklok must use his wits and his own demonic powers to keep the key from those who would use it for ill, and open the gates to Hell itself.

And today we are offering a fantastic short story, Masques and Lies by David Moore from our Pax Britannia Series. Enjoy on epub and mobi!

Day 13: Deck the Dead

2011-12-13T10:00:00.001Z

Behind today’s door is the latest in Abaddon’s Tomes of Dead series, Double Dead.

Double Dead is a bloodthirsty ride through zombie-infested Route 66 that answers that age old question: what does a vampire eat during the zombie apocalypse?

Coburn has a problem – he’s just woken up from a five year sleep to find that human civilisation has fallen in the face of the zombie apocalypse. He likes blood. They like brains. So, yeah – problem.

And now he’s starving. So this vampire not only has to find human survivors but must become an unlikely shepherd with a shotgun. After all, a man has to look after his food supply...

A thrilling chase across a zombie-infested America – but with a twist – Double Dead is Chuck Wendig’s fantastically entertaining, blood-thirsty, brain-guzzling debut novel.

As a little ‘Merry Christmas’ present from Abaddon and Solaris, here’s a free preview of chapter one of Double Dead available for download! Check out the epub version, the Kindleversion or the .pdf version now.

Red-Handed: the Big Result!

2011-12-12T16:15:00.002Z

Cover by Pye Parr...

Hey chaps-slash-chapesses,

You probably remember how, a couple of months ago, we announced a thrilling new experiment in publishing. Jonathan Green's eighth Ulysses Quicksilver book, Time's Arrow, is being released in three parts, and you - yes, you - yes, actually you right now, sitting there and reading this; I can see you, you know - can download each part as a separate mini-ebook and vote on the direction of the next part.

So you read the blog post, you bought the book (in the US or UK), you read and loved it, and you voted. And I want to thank you all. We've been really pleased with the response.

And that response, overwhelmingly - by a ratio of something like four to one - has been for Option B: Ulysses goes in search of the mysterious "M. Lumière."

Outstanding.

So, there you go. Green's been given his ~~marching~~ writing orders, and you get to wait a couple of months as he rolls the next one out for you to vote on. This is shaping up to be pret-ty exciting.

And it's not too late to get involved! Buy Red-Handed now, catch up, and wait with bated breath like the rest of us for Black Swan to come out, and next time your vote can be counted! It's like we're playing a massive game of Fighting Fantasy! Whee!

Time's Arrow: Red Handed (US Kindle Store)

Time's Arrow: Red Handed (UK Kindle Store)

Time's Arrow: Red Handed (US iTunes Store)

Time's Arrow: Red Handed (UK iTunes Store)

Kick ass.

David

Day 12: Guns Galore

2011-12-12T10:00:00.001Z

Behind today’s calendar door is our recommendations for military SF fans. First up is a title just published this month, which should have all fans of the genre drooling with delight...

Andy Remic’s Combat K books are kick-ass, action-adventure SF extravaganzas centring around a corrupt and slightly insane combat squad.Themeplanet is a particular delight. It’s better than sex! It’s better than drugs! If you haven’t been sick yet, you soon will be... Welcome to Theme Planet, an entire alien world dedicated to insane rides, excessive hedonism and dangerous adventure. Operated by the Monolith Corporation, Theme Planet is the No. 1 destination for fun-seeking human holidaymakers Galaxy-Wide! Amba Miskalov is an Anarchy Android, an assassin/torture model fitted with a Quantell Systems v4.7 KillChip. She is beautiful, merciless and deadly, and blends perfectly with her human superiors. Sent to Theme Planet on a dangerous assassination mission, Amba stumbles upon a plot to undermine and destroy Earth’s all-powerful Oblivion Government – and its Ministers of Joy. But Amba is twisted, damaged and decadent – and this rebellion poses Amba a problem: to remain loyal to her creators and tormentors, to support the enemy – or annihilate them all.

The No Mans World series by Pat Kelleher is a great military SF series based on a World War One battalion. Black Hand Gang is the first in the series, set in 1916. Nine-hundred men of the 13th Battalion of The Pennine Fusiliers vanish without trace from the battlefield, only to find themselves stranded on an alien planet. There they must learn to survive in a frightening and hostile environment, forced to rely on dwindling supplies of ammo and rations as the natives of this strange new world begin to take an interest. However, the aliens amongst them are only the first of their worries, as a sinister and arcane threat begins to take hold from within their own ranks!

Day 11: Time’s Arrow

2011-12-11T10:00:00.000Z

Have you ever wished the characters in your book would just listen to your advice? Found yourself screaming “No you Idiot! Don’t go that way!” at the page?

Well, Abaddon Books is here to grant your wish with their new interactive novel, Time’s Arrow by Jonathan Green. Time’s Arrow allows you, the reader, to decide its hero’s next step! Quick, Hop, Run though – Today is the last day to download your free copy of Part One: Red Handed and decide Ulysses Quicksilver’s fate!

Time’s Arrow is the latest book from the world’s longest continuously running Steampunk novel series, Pax Britannia. Set in a world where the Victorian age never ended, Pax Britannia is an insane world of high technology and rip-roaring adventure.

Each instalment of Time’s Arrow is published as an ebook and, at the end of each of the first two, readers will be able to vote on where THEY want the story to go. Once all three instalments have been published, they will be bound together into a print edition.

Vote Today!
In the next thrilling installment of Time's Arrow, “Black Swan,” our hero - wanted by the French Police for murder - battles his way across Paris, from the Louvre to Notre Dame, in order to prove his innocence. But where he goes next is up to the reader to decide. Voting closes today!

Day 10: Swords and Sorcery

2011-12-10T10:00:00.001Z

High fantasy has it all - Epic stories arcs, magic, politics and battles. Solaris and Abaddon Books are teeming with fantasy authors, so we've picked a select few for today’s calendar:

Thief With No Shadow by Emily Gee
Emily Gee is a compelling fantasy writer and Thief With No Shadow is a rich, romantic fantasy tale set in a world where the ordinary and extraordinary co-exist, where fire-breathing salamanders live alongside men, and magic runs in the blood of mortals. Melke is a wraith, able to walk unseen. Feared by all, hunted and hated, she has lost everything - except her younger brother. Now she is forced to do the unthinkable: in exchange for her brother's freedom, she must use her magic to commit a terrible crime.

The Sentinel Mage by Emily Gee
The Sentinel Mage is Emily’s latest book with Solaris. In a distant corner of the Seven Kingdoms, an ancient curse festers and grows, consuming everything in its path. Only one man can break it: Harkeld of Osgaard, a prince with mage's blood in his veins. But Prince Harkeld has a bounty on his head and assassins at his heels.

The Chronicles of King Rolen’s Kin is a brilliant trilogy that begins with The King's Bastard. In the Kingdom of Rolencia, by royal decree, all those afflicted with Affinity must serve the Abbey or face death. Sent to the Abbey because of his innate Affinity, the king’s youngest son, Fyn, trains to become a warrior monk. Unfortunately, he’s a gentle dreamer and the other acolytes bully him. The only way he can escape them is to serve the Abbey Mystic, but his Affinity is weak.

Fiercely loyal, thirteen year-old Piro is horrified to discover she is also cursed with unwanted Affinity. It broke their mother’s heart to send Fyn away, so she hides her affliction. But when Fyn confesses his troubles, Piro risks exposure to help him.

Even though Byren Kingson is only seven minutes younger than his twin, Lence, who is the king's heir, Byren has never hungered for the Rolencian throne. When a Seer predicts that he will kill Lence, he laughs. But Lence Kingsheir sees Byren’s growing popularity and resents it. Enduring loyalty could be Byren’s greatest failing.

The sequels, The Uncrowned King and The Usurper, are also available from the new Rebellion Store.

Chronicles of the Necromancer by Gail Z. Martin
This is the pick for fans of Robin Hobb, Lois McMaster Bujold and Terry Goodkind. The Summoner is the first in the series. The world of Prince Martris Drayke is thrown into sudden chaos and disorder when his brother murders their father and seizes the throne.

Cast out, Martris and a small band of trusted friends are forced to flee to a neighbouring kingdom where he believes they can regroup and plot their retaliation. With only a handful of loyal colleagues to support him, he must seek retribution and restore his father's honour.
But if the living are arrayed against him, Martris must call on a different set of allies: the ranks of the dead.

Day 9: Gifts of Gore - Tomes of the Dead

2011-12-09T10:00:00.001Z

Everyone loves a zombie. The perfect stocking filler for every gore guzzler, Abaddon’s Tomes of the Dead series, has been running since our inception and is full of fresh stories in this evergreen genre:

Double Dead – Chuck Wendig
Coburn’s been dead now for close to a century, but seeing as how he’s a vampire and all, it doesn’t much bother him. Or at least it didn’t, not until he awoke from a forced five-year slumber to discover that most of human civilization was now dead – the walking dead. Suddenly the vampire not only has to find human survivors but now he has to make the transition from predator to protector—after all, a man has to look after his food supply.

Viking Dead – Toby Venables
Northern Europe, 976 AD. A viking crew find themselves in a bleak land of pestilence. The dead don’t lie down, but become draugr – the undead – returning to feed on the flesh of their kin. Bjólf, our brave viking, is stranded, his men cursed by the contagion of walking death and his only choice is to fight his way through a forest teeming with zombies, invade the castle and find the secret of the horrific condition – or submit to an eternity of shambling, soulless undeath!

Stronghold – Paul Finch
Stronghold is a zombie novel with a difference, set in the dark world of medieval Wales. Ranulf, a young English knight, sent to recapture Grogen Castle from Welsh rebels, comes into conflict with his leaders over their brutal methods. Unbeknownst to any of them, the native druids are using an ancient artefact to summon a horrifying army. As Grogen Castle is besieged by countless, tireless soldiers forged from bone and raddled flesh, Ranulf must defy his masters and rescue the daughter of his enemy... if the castle stronghold lasts!

Empire of Salt – Weston Osche
The Olivers have a chance to make a new home at Salton Sea. Looking forward to California fun, sun and adventure they are unprepared for the ecological devastation they find. The sea is rotting, the town of Bombay Beach is dying and the citizens are like bait, waiting to be plucked from their homes by what comes from the sea. Beware the coming of the green, they say. Beware the coming of the night.

I, Zombie – Al Ewing
"My name is John Doe. I’ve been dead for ten years." John Doe is a zombie, though he can’t explain how so he sells his dead flesh to the highest bidder. Kill for you, steal for you, or save your life for you - there's no mystery he can't be hired to solve… until now. This is murder mystery with a deadly secret, the kind of secret that could end life on this planet.

Day 8: Warrior Races, Feuding Monarchies and Self Righteous Churches - Paul Kearney

2011-12-08T10:00:00.002Z

Today our door reveals Paul Kearney, British Fantasy Award short list nominee who has produced the critically-acclaimed series The Monarchies of God and The Macht Trilogy. Paul’s battle-orientated work will suit the more traditional fantasy lover.

The Monarchies of God series begins with Hawkwood and the Kings.

The world is in turmoil. In the east the savage Merduks, followers of the Prophet Ahrimuz, have captured the holy city of Aekir. The western kingdoms are too distracted by internecine bickering to intervene and the Church seems more obsessed with rooting out heresy. It is an age where men go to the stake for the taint of magic in their blood, where gunpowder and cannon co-exit with werewolves and sorcerers. It is the turning point when two great religions will fight to the death and the common folk will struggle to merely survive.

In The Monarchies of God sequel, The Century of the Soldier, it is the mid sixth-century of Ramusian reckoning and the great struggle is approaching its climax. For the victor there will be supremacy; for the vanquished, cultural annihilation. Fighting that war, Corfe of Torunna will find that court intrigue can be as murderous as any martial foe. The monks Albrec and Avila will explode a bombshell of secret knowledge which will change the continent irrevocably. And Richard Hawkwood will return with the discovery of a New World. The sixth century is the crucible of history. The century of the soldier.

Kearney’s The Macht Trilogy follows a warrior race of mercenaries whose skills are the stuff of legends:

In The Ten Thousand on the world of Kuf, the Macht are little more than rumour, after centuries of solitude in the Harukush Mountains. But now the Great King's brother means to take the throne of the Asurian empire by force, and in order to do so he has sought out the legend. He hires ten thousand mercenary warriors of the Macht, and leads them into the heart of the Empire.

Corvus is the second novel in the series, set twenty-three years since a Macht army fought its way home from the heart of the Asurian Empire. The man who came to lead that army, Rictus, is now a hard-bitten mercenary captain, middle-aged and tired. He wants nothing more than to lay down his spear and become the farmer that his father was. But fate has different ideas. A young war-leader has risen to challenge the order of things in the very heartlands of the Macht. A solider of genius, he takes city after city, and reigns over them as king. What is more, he has heard of the legendary leader of The Ten Thousand. His name is Corvus, and the rumours say that he is not even fully human. He means to make himself absolute ruler of all the Macht. And he wants Rictus to help him.

Kings of Morning is the thrilling conclusion to Paul Kearney's Macht trilogy, due out in March 2012. For the first time in recorded history, the ferocious city-states of the Macht now acknowledge a single man as their overlord. Corvus, the strange and brilliant boy-general, is now High King, having united his people in a fearsome, bloody series of battles and sieges. He is not yet thirty years old. A generation ago, ten thousand of the Macht marched into the heart of the ancient Asurian Empire, and fought their way back out again, passing into legend. Corvus’s father was one of those who undertook that march, and his most trusted general, Rictus, was leader of those ten thousand. But he intends to do more. The preparations will take years, but when they are complete, Corvus will lead an invasion the like of which the world of Kuf has never seen. Under him, the Macht will undertake nothing less than the overthrow of the entire Asurian Empire.

Day 7: Christmas is not a date but a State of Mind

2011-12-07T10:00:00.001Z

The urban fantasy genre is becoming increasingly popular, and Abaddon and Solaris have everything you could want when delving behind the shop fronts and into the dark alleyways of our modern urban nightmares…

British Fantasy Award winner Nicholas Royle creates a nightmarish hidden city in Regicide. Carl, who runs a London record store, meets the mysterious Annie Risk and falls for her - hard. Carl stumbles across part of a map to an unknown town. He becomes convinced it represents the city of his dreams, where ice skaters turn quintuple loops and trumpeters hit impossibly high notes.... where Annie Risk will agree to see him again. But if he ever finds himself in the streets on his map, will they turn out to be the land of his dreams or the world of his worst nightmares?

What really walks the city streets? In Desdaemona, Ben Macallan’s debut novel in Urban Fantasy, you will definitely wish you hadn't asked. Jordan is a not so regular teenager who helps kids on the run find their way back home. Desdaemona is desperately searching for her lost sister Fay, who did a Very Bad Thing involving an immortal. She enlists Jordan’s help but is it a mistake for them both? Too many people are interested now, and some of them are not people at all...

The Infernal Games series is thriller meets urban fantasy and Cold Warriors by Rebecca Levene merges cold war intrigue and occultist plots. The Hermetic Division of the British secret services was formed at the height of the Cold War, an agency charged with using supernatural means to defend the nation. It has only one mission: to find the mysterious Ragnarok artefacts, said to have the power to end the world. Now, two of the division's most powerful agents are sent on the trail of a corrupt Russian oligarch who may possess the artefacts. Their perilous journey will take them across Europe and into the darkest reaches of the occult!

Day 6: Go big this Christmas - Space Opera

2011-12-06T10:00:00.001Z

Larger than life, breathtaking, grandiose – the biggest gift a SF fan could hope for this Christmas is a space opera. Behind today’s door we are looking at some of biggest in Solaris’s collection.

Released earliest this year, The Recollection is Gareth L. Powell's epic new science-fiction novel that delivers galaxy-spanning scope. When his brother disappears into a bizarre gateway on a London Underground escalator, failed artist Ed Rico and his brother's wife Alice have to put aside their feelings for each other to go and find him. Their quest through the 'arches' will send them hurtling through time, to new and terrifying alien worlds. Meanwhile, four hundred years in the future, Katherine Abdulov must travel to a remote planet in order to regain the trust of her influential family. The only person standing in her way is her former lover, Victor Luciano, the ruthless employee of a rival trading firm.

Highly acclaimed Helix is a story of exploration, alien contact and desperation. It follows the plight of a group of humans who crash land on a desolate alien planet, one of thousands arranged in a vast spiral wound around a central sun. The group set off to discover a more habitable Earth-like world, encountering bizarre alien races on the way. But they must also find a means to stay alive.

More from Brown and proving that good things come in threes, The Bengal Station Trilogy is some of Brown’s most acclaimed work. Set on a exotic spaceport that dominates the ocean between India and Burma and following Jaded telepath, Jeff Vaughan. In the first novel, Necropath, Vaughan discovers a sinister cult that worships a mysterious alien god. The Church of the Adoration of the Chosen One uses drugs to commune with the Ultimate, and will murder to silence those who oppose their beliefs. The story follows Vaughan as his mistrust of his fellow humans is overturned by his love for the Thai street-girl Sukura, while he attempts to solve the murders and save himself from the psychopath out to kill him.

Xenopath - Happily married to Sukura with a child on the way, Vaughan now works for a telepathic detective agency and is investigating a series of murders linked to the colony world of Mallory, and the slaughter of innocent aliens there by the Scheering-Lassiter colonial organisation. But not only does the investigation put his own life in danger, but back on Bengal Station Sukura’s life is threatened too.

Day 5: 2 for 1 Offer: Two Series , One Great Author - Juliet E McKenna

2011-12-05T10:00:00.001Z

Classics scholar and Oxford graduate Juliet E McKenna is a well-loved and much respected fantasy writer who always delivers rich characters and high adventure. The fifth door on our advent calendar reveals her two series with Solaris Books.

We recommend Juliet’s work not just to fantasy fans but anyone who’s looking for strong, interesting characters. Look below for a free short story of her work!

The Chronicles of the Lescari Revolution series is a high fantasy adventure set in a land laid to waste by its rival dukes who fight for the High King’s crown. A mismatched band of exiles and rebels agree that the time has come for change. Can a small group, however determined, put an end to generations of intractable misery?

The Hadrumal Crisis Series is Juliet E McKenna’s brand new trilogy and kicks off with Dangerous Waters.

In a world where magic is banned, what protection is there for the innocent against murderous roving corsairs? And who will be the first to unveil the secret of a widow’s mysterious guardian? The Caladhrian Coast is a rich new world filled with pirates and politics, rogue wizards and adventure. This is the perfect point to join a new fantasy series from an increasingly dominant voice in the genre.

For a sneak peek at The Hadrumal Crisis, Solaris is happy to offer this short story prequel,The Wizard’s Coming free to download as an ePub, PDF and Kindle

Day 4: Stocking Sized Stories - Anthologie

2011-12-04T10:00:00.001Z

Here’s your chance to read all your favourite authors in one book. Anthologies are the perfect gift for Christmas. Today we are recommending our favourite Solaris anthologies that include some of the brightest names in science fiction.

Our newest anthology, the critically-acclaimed Solaris Rising: The New Solaris Book of Science Fiction edited by Ian Whates, is the first in an exciting new series that is set to reaffirm Solaris’s proud reputation for producing high quality science-fiction, featuring some of the biggest names in the genre, including Ken Macleod, Tricia Sullivan, Stephen Baxter, Adam Roberts, Mike Resnick, Steve Rasnic Tem, Ian Watson, Keith Brooke and Eric Brown, Alastair Reynolds, Peter F. Hamilton.

Shine makes a great gift this Christmas as it is a collection of optimistic (and shiny) stories set in the near future. The genre’s brightest talents write about the opportunity and chances for a better tomorrow and make a refreshing alternative to dire dystopian warnings. Jetse de Vries collects 16 stories from the likes of Eric Gregory, Jacques Barcia, Jason Stoddard, Holly Phillips, Paula R. Stiles, Gareth L. Powell & Aliette de Bodard, Lavie Tidhar, Mari Ness Silvia, Moreno-Garcia, and Alastair Reynolds.

The universe shifts and changes: suddenly you understand, you get it, and are filled with a sense of wonder... Engineering Infinity, edited by Jonathan Strahan, is an innovative anthology that centres on that moment of universal understanding that drives some of the greatest science-fiction stories. This exciting anthology collects together stories by some of the biggest names in the field, including Stephen Baxter, Charles Stross and Greg Bear.

Day 3: Winter Chills - Horror

2011-12-03T10:00:00.001Z

To accompany the chilly weather, we have gathered together our best collection of horror titles to give you the Winter Thrills! We recommend reading them with a blanket, some mulled wine and the lights turned down – If you dare....

House of Fear: An Anthology of Haunted House Stories, edited by Jonathan Oliver brings horror home with with 19 short stories from some of the finest writers working in the genre, including Joe R. Lansdale, Sarah Pinborough, Lisa Tuttle, Christopher Priest, Adam L. G. Nevill, Christopher Fowler, Eric Brown, Tim Lebbon, Nina Allan, Stephen Volk, Paul Meloy and more.

On the cutting edge of horror, Concrete Grove by Gary McMahon is the start of a chilling horror trilogy showing us a modern Britain many of us will recognise, while whispering of the terrible and arcane presences clawing against the boundaries of our reality.

Any of one of our Tomes of Dead series is a gore-rific horror fest but today we are recommending Viking Dead by Toby Venables. Bjólf and his viking crew find themselves in a bleak land of pestilence. The dead don’t lie down, but become draugr – the undead – returning to feed on the flesh of their kin. Stranded, his men cursed by the contagion of walking death, Bjólf has one choice: fight his way through a forest teeming with zombies, invade the castle and find the secret of the horrific condition – or submit to an eternity of shambling, soulless undeath!

Finally, The End of The Line. edited by Jonathan Oliver. collects some of the very best in new horror writing in a themed anthology of stories set on, and around, the Underground, the Metro and other places deep below.

The Lure is one of the short stories from The End of The Line collection. It’s is an erotically-charged tale of voyeurism and dread sparked by Nicholas Royle and is available as a free download this Christmas!

http://solarisbooks.com/downloads/End_of_Line_-_The_Lure.pdf
Both it and The End of the Line anthology were nominated last month for the prestigiou British Fantasy award. So please enjoy and check back tomorrow to see what our next calendar recommendation has in store!

Advent Calendar Day 2: ‘It’ll be over by Christmas!’

2011-12-02T10:13:00.005Z

For all you historical boffins, today for the Abaddon and Solaris Advent Calendar we’ve selected a new series that launched this year and combines World War One with a hearty dose of science-fiction.

Pat Kelleher’s No Man’s World series is a truly unique blend of trench warfare and survival on an alien world. Guarding the British lines at The Somme in 1916, the 13th Battalion of the Pennine Fusiliers think facing the Germans is bad enough – until they suddenly find themselves wrenched from the mud of Flanders and displaced to an inhospitable alien world. Great characters, lots of action and a real attention to historical detail make this a series you don’t want to miss:

Black Hand Gang by Pat Kelleher
On November 1st 1916, 900 men of the 13th Battalion of the Pennine Fusiliers vanish without trace from the battlefield only to find themselves on an alien planet. There they must learn to survive in a hostile environment, while facing a sinister threat from within their own ranks and a confrontation with an inscrutable alien race!

The Ironclad Prophecy by Pat Kelleher
It has been three months since the 13th Battalion of the Pennine Fusiliers vanished from the Somme and found themselves stranded on an alien world, and their trenches have become the target for vengeful Khungarrii attacks. While the encampment faces an alien threat, a search party discover an ancient edifice, hiding a secret that will tear the Battalion apart... As the Pennines fight for their lives against the mounting horrors of No Man’s World, their only hope for survival – and a way home – lie in the psychotropic fuel-addicted crew of the Ivanhoe... and it’s increasingly insane commander!

Also set in the maelstrom of World War, Sniper Elite: Spear of Destinyis Abaddon Book’s accompaniment to Rebellion’s successful 2005 Sniper Elite video game - a high-octane shoot 'em up set against an alternate historical backdrop, shot through with political intrigue.

Sniper Elite: Spear of Destiny by Jasper Bark
Berlin, 1945. Karl Fairburne is a member of an elite sniper corps, working for the American secret service deep behind enemy lines. Stalin's troops have overrun the city looking to revenge the battle of Stalingrad and seize control of the Nazi's nuclear secrets before their British and American allies. SS General Helmstadt, head of the Nazi nuclear programme, is defecting to Russia, but first he plans the ultimate act of vengeance, to make the US pay for the defeat of the Third Reich. If he succeeds Russia will win the Cold War before it has even begun. Karl has one chance to stop him. A single sniper's bullet will change the course of history.

The Christmas Count Down Begins!

2011-12-01T13:30:00.004Z

The Christmas Count Down Begins!

Finally the time is here to deck the halls and jingle some bells but more importantly... To open the first door of our Advent Calendar!

Here at Solaris and Abaddon Books we have decided to create our own Advent Calendar for readers, old and new. And this is the perfect opportunity for all those who get a new e-reader in their stocking from Father Christmas to find out about all our best books from fantasy to horror - sorcery to aliens!

Check our blog every day as we open a new door on our calendar and post a new feature full of fantasy filler and seasonal SF for all our readers this winter. Every day we will have our recommendations for the best buys for Christmas, some free downloads and your chance to win copies of our best selling books.

Day One: The Gift of Gods

So what does the first day of Christmas bring? Not a partridge in a pear tree. Instead we are kicking off our Abaddon and Solaris Advent Calendar with The Pantheon Series by James Lovegrove.

What if the Gods of Mythology were not only real but played a direct role in mankind’s lives?

This series of military SF, including New York Times bestseller The Age of Odin, sets itself in alternative histories that can be read as standalone novels or enjoyed as a collective. Deities of old are rewritten and revitalized by Lovegrove, a talented writer who creates some truly gripping adventures:

The Age of Ra

The Ancient Egyptian gods have defeated all the other pantheons and claimed dominion over the Earth, dividing it into warring factions, each under the aegis of a different deity. Lt. David Westwynter, a British soldier, stumbles into Freegypt, the only place to have re

mained independent of the gods' influence. There, he encounters the followers of a humanist leader known as the Lightbringer, who has vowed to rid mankind of the shackles of divine oppression. As the world heads towards an apocalyptic battle, there is a far more to this freedom fighter than it seems...

The Age of Zeus
The Olympians appeared a decade ago, living incarnations of the Ancient Greek g

ods on a mission to bring permanent order and stability to the world.  Resistance has proved futile, and now humankind is under the jackboot of divine oppression. Until former London police officer Sam Akehurst receives an invitation too tempting to turn down: the chance to join a small band of guerrilla rebels armed with high-tech weapons and battlesuits. Calling themselves the Titans, they square off against the Olympians and their ferocious mythological monsters in a war of attrition which some will not survive.

The Age of Odin
Gideon Coxall was a good soldier but bad at everything else. Now the British Army doesn't want him anymore. So when he hears about the Valhalla Project it seems like a dream come true. They're recruiting former service personnel for excellent pay, no questions asked, to take part in unspecified combat operations. The last thing Gideon expects is finding himself fighting alongside the gods of the ancient Norse pantheon. The world is in the grip of one of the worst winters it has ever known, and Ragnarok - the fabled final conflict of the Sagas - is looming.

On the high seas, if you don’t live large… you just sink

2011-11-22T11:36:00.001Z

The Afterblight Chronicles:
Blood Ocean
by Weston Ochse

Released on 16th February in the UK and 14th February in US & Canada

£7.99 (UK) ISBN 978-1-907992-87-2
$9.99 (US & CAN) ISBN 978-1-907992-87-2

Will also be available as an ebook

In a world reduced to ruin by all-consuming plague, one young boy embarks on a mission of revenge after one of his friends is found dead … harvested for his blood!

Kavika Kamalani is a Pali Boy on Nomi No Toshi, the floating city. The post-plague heir to an ancient Hawai’ian warrior tradition that believes in overcoming death by embracing one’s fears and living large, Kavika’s life is turned upside down when one of his friends dies – and he sets out to find the killer.

When he is kidnapped and subjected to a terrifying transformation, Kavika must embrace the ultimate fear – death itself. It is the only way if he, his loved ones, and the Pali Boys are to survive.

This stand-alone title is the latest pulse-pounding story of post-apocalyptic survival in The Afterblight Chronicles series from Weston Ochse – a writer who pulls no punches.

“Weston Ochse is an artist whose craft, stories and voice are so distinct and mesmerising that you can’t help but be enthralled.” – Dani Kollin, Prometheus Award-winning author of The Unincorporated Man

About the Series
The Afterblight Chronicles is a post-apocalyptic series in which a devastating epidemic has ravaged the world. In the Afterblight, pockets of humans attempt to continue civilization amidst the mounting chaos of the collapsed infrastructure . Mobs run rampant while cults and warlords fight for authority over the survivors of the global plague.

One of the three series with which Abaddon Books launched in 2006, The Afterblight Chronicles is a collection of stand-alone novels that has showcased the talents of a number of brilliant, up-and-coming authors, including Scott Andrews, Paul Kane, Jasper Bark and Rebecca Levene. Blood Ocean is the eleventh Afterblight Chronicles title.

About the Author
Weston Ochse is the Bram Stoker award-winning author of various short stories and novels, including the critically-acclaimed Scarecrow Gods and Tomes of the Dead novel, Empire of Salt.

He is much in demand as a speaker at genre conventions and has been chosen as guest of honour on numerous occasions. Weston lives in Southern Arizona with his wife Yvonne and their menagerie of animals.

Out Now! in November

2011-11-15T11:52:00.005Z

Hello all!

On the shelves this month is just one title, but it's a proper doozy. You may have heard of Chuck from his long career writing for roleplaying games - especially for the World of Darkness - or you may have encountered his many screenwriting projects, or been spattered with bile and whisky on his hate-filled writing-advice-and-general-thought-vomit site, Terrible Minds. Either way, you've either fallen in love with his peculiar mix of insight, sarcasm and spite, or taken out a restraining order.

Well, Chuck has strode (stridden? strode? stroden? let's say "strode"), mighty-thewed, into the world of the novellist, with self-published novella, short-story collection, and several "writing" "advice" "books" available at all good ebook retailers, and two full-length novels in the works over at Angry Robot, but we're extremely proud to be able to present his first full-length, original novel, the vampire/zombie/apocalypse epic Double Dead.

Tomes of the Dead: Double Dead, by Chuck Wendig

Coburn’s been dead now for close to a century, but seeing as how he’s a vampire and all, it doesn’t much bother him. Or at least it didn’t, not until he awoke from a forced five-year slumber to discover that most of human civilization was now dead— but not dead like him, oh no. See, Coburn likes blood. The rest of the walking dead, they like brains. He’s smart. Them, not so much. But they outnumber him by about a million to one. And the clotted blood of the walking dead cannot sustain him. Now he’s starving. And nocturnal. And more pissed-off than a bee-stung rattlesnake. The vampire not only has to find human survivors (with their sweet, sweet blood), but now he has to transition from predator to protector—after all, a man has to look after his food supply.

David Says: A hectic road movie of a book, complete with guns, arbitrary deaths, religious fanatics, drug-crazed juggalo cultists and a big final showdown with explosions and shattering glass. Coburn's a proper lovable rogue - well, a despicable rogue, but acerbic and awesome; you want him to win even though you kind of hate him - and the story barrels along. I was left sweat-drenched and gasping for air.

Which is about all you needed to know. It's available in hard copy at all good bookstores (literally; if it's not at your local bookstore, it's a rubbish bookstore), and in ebook at all good electronic stores, including at Rebellionstore.com.

Go now! Buy it! Hurry!

David

Rebellionstore.com Now Trading!

2011-11-04T16:07:00.000Z

So this is our Very Exciting New Development For Twenty-First Century Ladies And Gentlement Of Discretion And Taste.

At long last, Rebellion Publishing has opened its own book store!

I'm assuming you're a fan of electronic books, of course...*

Well, we got loads! And we're selling them online!

The new Rebellion Publishing Ebook Store, Rebellionstore.com, is the last word in Abaddon and Solaris ebooks. Almost our entire list of electronic is up there already, and they should all be up there very shortly.

And we have the best prices around for our ebooks. Including two very exciting offers! Right now, for a limited time, All Tomes of the Dead books and all Infernal Games books are available for a mere £2!

Which is value by anyone's standard, and I stand ready to call out anyone who says otherwise...

*You are, aren't you? They're the way of the future. They're why electricity was invented. Hell, right now, you're using electricity to read about how important it is to be able to read using electricity! That must be worth something.

New Website! Also, Time's Arrow LIVE NOW!

2011-10-11T17:24:00.001+01:00

Cover by Pye Parr...

Hey all,

So as you've probably noticed - what with how everything looks all shiny and different on the website (of course, you may only ever read these updates directly on Blogger, in which case may God have mercy on your wretched soul) - the new, shiny website is up and looking pretty damn pretty.

It should also be up to date and everything, but let us know if anything is out of date or isn't working.

And, of course, beautifully timed to coincide with the new update...

BREAKING NEWS

So as you may have noticed on Jon Green's Pax Britannia blog, or on the Pax Britannia facebook page or group, or on Amazon - if you're in the habit of tracking Amazon to see if any highly-anticipated new products have hit the shelves (you know who you are; all hovering over the screen in your darkened room, cathode glow playing over your pallid features, feverishly pounding the f5 key as you wait for that special something you've been waiting for to finally come up as available) - or, hell, on the website, where there's a whole full-screen ad for it and everything, the first part of Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow is here!

Yeppers. It's available through the Kindle store in both the US and UK, and should come online in the iTunes store presently, for less than a pint of beer.

Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow, Part One, "Red-Handed" (or Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow: Red-Handed, for those of you who don't mind the ol' double-colon) comprises the first nine chapters, or roughly a third of the final book. The second and third parts are due out early next year.

And, for the first time in ebook-publishing history, you, the readers get to tell the story.

...sort of.

Buy the book, read it, then follow this link - or just click the massive VOTE NOW button on every page of the Abaddon Books website - and vote on where the story goes next.

Pretty cool, huh?

Do it now. Buy. Read. Click. Vote. Bosh.

David

Fantasycon 2011 - Our Schedule

2011-09-26T11:41:00.004+01:00

Good morning/afternoon

As some of you folk will be aware, this weekend sees Fantasycon 2011 taking over Brighton, well a hotel in Brighton. Myself. desk editor Jenni Hill, and our PR wizard, Michael Molcher, will be in attendance, and if you too are at this splendid event, why not buy us beer and lavish us with praise? Anyway, our schedule at said event is the following:

FRIDAY

General mingling, come find us and say 'hi' and

2pm-3pm - Fitzherbert - Abaddon's Scott Andrews will be taking part in a panel on How to Maintain Your Online presence, alongside Lee Harris, Stephen Hunt, Adam Christopher and Adele Wearing.

3pm-4pm - Fitzherbert - Hell Train author, Christopher Fowler, and Loss of Separationauthor, Conrad Williams, will be taking part in a panel on Making a Living as a Writer alongside Guy Adams, Lisa Tuttle and Tony Lee.

4pm-5pm - Fitzherbert - It's that Gary McMahon again, this time on the panel Has Crossover Overtaken Genre? Alongside Gary will be Suzanne McLeod, Mike Carey, Steve Mosby and Sarah Pinborough.

9-9.30pm - Room 134 - Lou Morgan, author of the forthcoming Blood and Feathers, will be reading a sample from her brilliant novel.

10.30-11pm - Room 134 - Concrete Grove author, Gary McMahon, will be doing a reading.

SATURDAY

10am-11am - Russel Room - Hadrumal Crisis author, Juliet McKenna, joins Adrian Tchaikovsky, Tom Lloyd, and Joe Abercrombie to talk about trends in fantasy fiction.

10am-11am - Fitzherbert - Desdaemona and Concrete Grove trilogy cover artist, Vincent Chong, will be on a panel about, strangely enough, book covers with Les Edwards, Steve Upham, Ben Baldwin and Marc Gascoigne

1pm-2pm - Fitzherbert - Pantheon and Redlaw series author, James Lovegrove, will be chatting about What's Next in SF alongside Christopher Priest, Brian Aldiss, Ian R. Macleod and Dan Abnett

1pm - Reading Room 134 - Jonathan Oliver will be reading his story 'The Ruby Nipples of Jugulon' for the entertainment of anybody who turns up. This was written for the occasion of Jared Shurin of Pornokitsch's birthday, and has only been read/heard by a handful of the select. Now you can become one of those select and enjoy Jon's tribute to Dungeons & Dragons and smutty humour.

2pm - The Big Solaris Book Event - Regency Lounge

We will be giving away, yes giving away, a selection of our titles and giving you the chance to meet some of our authors and have a drink on us. How good does that sound? Free books, booze and literary repartee. Join us for the biggest book event of the convention.

5pm-6pm - Dealing with Agents and Editors panel - Fitzherbert

Jonathan Oliver will be moderating a panel in which we discuss the role of the agent and the editor in publishing. Joining Jon will be Jo Fletcher, John Berlyne, Meg Davis and Dorothy Lumley.

8pm-9pm - Fitzherbert - Stronghold author, Paul Finch, will be joining Stephen Volk, Pete Atkins, and Stephen Gallagher to chat about Script Writing and Improv.

9pm-1opm - Fitzherbert - Join Regicide author, Nicholas Royle and Robert Shearman, Jasper Kent, Gwyneth Jones and Peter Crowther to hear them talk about their favourite books.

1opm-11pm - Fitzherbert - School's Out author, Scott Andrews, is back to moderate a panel on Tie-in Fiction featuring Simon R. Green, Guy Adams, Mark Morris and Cath Trechman

SUNDAY

10am - How to Market Your Novel panel - Fitzherbert

Michael Molcher will be joining Ian Whates, Jon Weir, Colleen Anderson and Gary McMahon to discuss the role of marketing and PR in genre fiction. A must-attend to those who want to know the best way to promote their novel.

1pm-4pm - Fantasycon Banquet and Awards Ceremony.

Jon and Mike will attend the prestigious Fantasycon banquet and will then attend the awards ceremony. Jon's anthology, The End of The Line, is up for Best Anthology with one short story from the collection, The Lure by Nicholas Royle, being up for Best Short Story.

Anyway, hope to see you all there.

TIME FOR A CHANGE: Abaddon Books introduces a new direction for genre publishing

2011-09-20T14:03:00.001+01:00

Abaddon Books is delighted to announce a bold new venue in genre publishing – one where the readers are in charge!

Time’s Arrow will be the latest book from the world’s longest continuously running Steampunk novel series, Pax Britannia. Set in a world where the Victorian age never ended, Pax Britannia is an insane world of high technology and rip-roaring adventure.

The big difference with Time’s Arrow? Each instalment will be published as an ebook and, at the end of each of the first two, readers will be able to vote on where THEY want the story to go. Once all three instalments have been published, they will be bound together into a print edition.

The first part of the book will go live online on October 11th, with the vote for what happens next closing on December 11th.

Merging the best of print and online, Abaddon is proud to engage in such an exciting experiment – one where readers actively have a say in how the book is written.

Jon Green has written titles in the legendary Fighting Fantasy series and created seven of the critically-acclaimed Pax Britannia books for Abaddon.

“Pax Britannia is one of Abaddon’s most established series,” said Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books, “so it seemed like the natural choice for such a unique venture in publishing. This adventure is sure to reach out to new readers while giving established fans a say in the rich universe they have come to love.”

“I am passionate about the whole Steampunk milieu, and the world of Pax Britannia in particular, while my first forays into writing professionally were adventure gamebooks,” says Jonathan Green. “To marry elements of both is a fantastic opportunity for me as a writer and I, for one, can't wait to see how the story pans out!”

About the Series
Pax Britannia launched in 2007 with Unnatural History. A steampunk alternative history set in a late twentieth century in which Queen Victoria – now nearing the end of her sixteenth decade on the throne, and wholly dependent on steam technology for survival – rules over the vastly wealthy, powerful and decadent Empire of Magna Britannia. Airships ply the skies overhead as gentlemen of leisure admire the dinosaurs in London Zoo, while the Empire has extended to the Moon. Across the pond, the United Socialist States of America, loosely allied with the might of Magna Britannia, is home to dreamers, poets, madmen, and heroes, poised to usher in a new era.

The series has included seven books by Jonathan Green, featuring the adventures of Ulysses Lucian Quicksilver, dandy and adventurer and agent of the throne; an omnibus collecting the first three is currently available.

Announcing the launch of our READ ANYTHING campaign

2011-09-07T12:09:00.003+01:00

READ ANYTHING

Ever wanted to read something different but didn’t want the world to judge you by the cover of the book?

Spaceships, wizards, hooded swordsman – we love them all. But it’s not the cover, it’s the insides that matter. So, Solaris and Abaddon books are here to tell you that you can READ ANYTHING.

The revolution in eReaders gives you, the reader, the freedom to read whatever you want – fantasy, science-fiction, horror, urban fantasy, Steampunk, historical action, ANYTHING. They’re perfect to explore genre fiction you never knew even existed!

The READ ANYTHING campaign from Solaris and Abaddon Books aims to do away with judging a book, or rather its reader, by its cover. At last, content shall be king with whole new worlds of genre publishing opening up to readers.

Solaris and Abaddon Books are two of the freshest genre publishers in the UK today, producing books that transcend lazy genre clichés. Explore the Steampunk world of Pax Britannia on your iPad, the terrifying sink estate of The Concrete Grove on your Kindle, or soaring SF epics such as The Recollection and The Kings of Eternity.

Solaris and Abaddon don’t just release eBooks – we want to provide new and exciting material for readers. Both imprints will:
• publish every new book as an eBook on multiple platforms on the same day as it sees prints
• publish the first chapter of every new book online, for free, ahead of publication
• publish selected future titles exclusively as eBooks
• introduce new ways to share eBooks with your friends and family.

“The world of genre fiction is as rich and rewarding as anything produced by the publishers of ‘literature’,” says Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of both Solaris and Abaddon Books. “At Solaris and Abaddon we are committed to providing great fiction in a format to suit the reader. Now with the READ ANYTHING campaign you can jump into the world of genre without worrying what your fellow commuters will think.”

What is Steampunk: Al Ewing has a few ideas...

2011-09-07T09:30:00.000+01:00

It's The Summer of Steampunk here at Abaddon Books and before we embark on our next giveaway, we continue our look at what the Pax Britannia authors think of the genre.

Next up is the mighty Al Ewing, author of Gods of Manhatten and El Sombra. Here are his thoughts on Steampunk:

I know people who love Steampunk above all other genres - I'm not one of them. For me, it's just another kind of alternate universe, and the reason I love alternate universes is that they're experimental playgrounds - ways to interrogate aspects of the universe we live in. If you take the scope wide enough, that's what all fiction is - but let's get back to Steampunk. I'm just going to talk off the top of my head.

For many, Steampunk equals Victoriana. If we look at the Pax Britannia universe, it's incredibly significant that Victoria is still alive in the 'present day', kept alive far beyond her natural span by machinery. She's the mirror of what Steampunk often is - the Victorian era, returned to life through science fiction. All the story potential inherent in the imperialism of the time, in the massive class differences, in the struggles of the disempowered to empower themselves in the face of inherent societal prejudice, in emerging technology on the edge of science. We're back to interrogating the world we're in again. It's an incredibly rich seam, so to speak.

That said - I find the emphasis on Victoria, or Britain, gets a bit stifling, and also Jon has that sewn up and I like having room to work. In Gods Of Manhattan, I was exploring what happens when you let a steampunk world grow and change - I took out the Victoriana and the Verne and replaced them with Americana and pulp-fiction influences, and that worked out nicely.

What I'm doing - particularly with Pax Omega - is taking that further. Looking at what a steampunk universe looks like a hundred and fifty years before Victoria's reign, or a million years after. These are the interesting questions to me - for instance, can a steampunk world survive having Warhol in it? Or Grandmaster Flash? Or Betty Page? I'm not talking about just dressing them up in frock coats and corsets and goggles - what does their effect on the world look like when you transpose it to a steampunk world? What shape is it then?

Now take it forward five hundred years. Look around. Describe it.

Is that still Steampunk? If so, why? If not, why not?

Discuss.

Guest post: steampunk and the world of Pax Britannia

2011-09-05T13:53:00.003+01:00

The Summer of Steampunk continues over at our special Pax Britannia Facebook page - this week we'll be continuing with the competitions AND bringing you news of our special, super, mega, big steampunk announcement...

To kick off the new week with a bang, we asked the authors behind Pax Britannia to give their views on steampunk, writing in the genre, what makes it so much fun and why more people should read them.

First off today, we have Mr Jonathan Green:

Why do I like reading and writing steampunk adventures? Because they’re cool, that’s why. Even if they’re set in the future, they hark back to a time when there wasn’t a corner of the globe that couldn’t be explored, where there wasn’t a machine that couldn’t be built to do whatever it was that needed to be done, when the British Empire was at its height, driven on but an almost endemic sense of indefatigable optimism.

Steampunk is born of that science fiction staple “What if?”

What if the rule of the British Empire had never ended? What if Babbage’s analytical engine had been completed – and worked? What if H G Wells and Jules Verne weren’t writing science fiction but science fact? It’s precisely those questions I asked myself when I first came up with the world of Pax Britannia and created my dandy protagonist, and Hero of the Empire, Ulysses Quicksilver.

My first experience of steampunk was Tim Powers’ The Anubis Gates. Later came 2000AD’s John Smith-scripted Jack the Ripper Indigo Prime thriller Killing Time and Alan Moore’s meta-fictional The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

As well as clanking machinery, vast gothic revival backdrops and rivets by the thousand, they brought with them a certain sense of decorum, of elegance, of style, of – well – Britishness, goddammit! Tea in china cups, duelling at dawn on Hampstead Heath, locomotives constructed with an artificer’s eye to detail, along with top hats, frock coats and monocles everywhere you looked.

What wasn’t there to like, when all around us in modern society we are confronted by the total antithesis of these things on a daily basis. (I’m thinking more here about a general lack of good manners and respect for one’s elders, rather than people drinking coffee out of paper cups.)
It was this that I was, in part, trying to emulate in my own steampunk creation, the world of Pax Britannia.

The great thing about the Pax Britannia setting is that it is just that. After nine books (with more on the way) and various short stories, totalling some three quarters of a million words altogether, Pax Britannia has grown to become something that is far greater than merely the sum of its parts.

And because of that, because it is such a richly painted setting, you can write pretty much any kind of story you want to set within it. Whether it’s action-adventure, horror, murder mystery, spy thriller, superhero pastiche, romance, ghost story, out-and-out SF, war story or time travel caper, all have their place within the world of Pax Britannia.

So if you’ve not experienced Pax Britannia yet for yourself, then what, quite frankly, are you waiting for? The game is, after all, most definitely afoot!

Welcome to The Summer of Steampunk!

2011-08-24T14:29:00.006+01:00

Longest running steampunk series raises the heat in fortnight-long genre celebration

Break out your top hats and holster your Tesla Mark Seven blunderbuss, the Summer of Steampunk from Abaddon Books is here!

To mark a major new direction for the world’s longest-running series of steampunk novels, Pax Britannia, Abaddon is running two weeks of steampunk shenanigans at the new dedicated Pax Britannia Facebook page.

From free eBooks and competition giveaways to debate and word from our authors about what makes steampunk so much fun, join us for two weeks of celebration of this most charming, exciting and ever-growing line of books.

The event will culminate in a major announcement about a surprising new book which throws away the rulebook of how genre publishing works.

A must for any fan of steampunk or pulp adventure action, Pax Britannia is set in a radically different version of the late 20th Century where the age of the Victorians never ended and Queen Victoria remains alive thanks to steampunk technology.

From Jonathan Green’s swashbuckling agent of the Empire, Ulysses Quicksilver, to Al Ewing’s ultra-violent El Sombra, Pax Britannia takes steampunk adventure to a new level.

Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books, said:
“Pax Britannia is one of the longest running steampunk adventures in publishing, and our Summer of Steampunk will bring a host of goodies bound to appeal to new and old readers of the series alike.”

Abaddon announces major new SF series

2011-08-16T16:22:00.002+01:00

Acclaimed SF author Eric Brown creates new epic world for imprint

Best-selling author Eric Brown has created a brand new shared world for Abaddon Books: Weird Space.

This thrilling space-opera series will begin in June 2012 with the release of The Devil's Nebula by the best-selling author of Helix, Engineman and The Kings of Eternity.

In the first book in this epic new series, Brown will introduce readers to the human smugglers, veterans and ne’erdowells who are part of the Expansion – and their uneasy neighbours, the Vetch Empire.

When an evil race threatens not only the Expansion, but the Vetch too - an evil from another dimension which infests humans and Vetch alike and bends individuals to do their hideous bidding, only cooperation between them means the difference between a chance of survival and no chance at all.

Brown has meticulously created a massive shared world of interstellar potential, which other writers will explore with each new book.

With the launch of this new SF epic, Abaddon is adding to its series of shared worlds which already include the post-apocalyptic The Afterblight Chronicles, the new take on Arthurian legend Malory’s Knights of Albion, the World War One soldiers marooned on an alien world in No Man’s World, steampunk adventure in Pax Britannia, the zombie-infested Tomes of the Dead and the fantasy quests of the Twilight of Kerberos.

Eric Brown said:
"It's great to be part of the team working for Abaddon on the Weird Space project, and it's a fantastic imaginative opportunity to be developing the background and working on the first novel, The Devil's Nebula. The Weird is vast in scope - borrowing on an age-old tradition of everything that's best is space-opera - and will allow the writers to tell exciting, human stories set against an eerie, thrilling, futuristic back-drop. I'm more than a little excited at being part of the team!"

Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon, said:
“Eric is such a terrific writer that it's a great honour to be welcoming him to the Abaddon fold. The vast scope of this series and the richness of Eric's writing will mean that this will be a space-opera like no other.”

Coming soon: Arthurian legend as you’ve never seen it before

2011-08-15T13:39:00.002+01:00

Malory’s Knights of Albion:
The Savage Knight
by Paul Lewis

Coming in September 2011

£7.99 (UK) ISBN 978-1-907992-33-9 $9.99/$12.99 (US & CAN) ISBN 978-1-907992-34-6
Also Available as an eBook

Forget the quaint pageantry of Camelot and the noble knights of the Round Table – join Abaddon as we recast the legend of King Arthur’s court as a tale of blood, sweat and tears.

Sword and sorcery is back thanks to the Camelot and Game of Thrones TV series – now find out why they called it The Dark Ages...

Burdened with a terrible rage, Sir Dodinal the Savage turns his back on Camelot to find peace in a quiet Welsh village. But even here there is none. When his new home is struck by child-stealing raiders he must take up arms once again. But can a simple knight deal with the terrible secret hidden in the hills...?

An exciting, action-packed, and totally original Arthurian story, The Savage Knight is a new take on the well-known sub-genre, filled with savagery and knights who live and die by their bloodied swords.

“Lewis has a compelling and brilliant writing style and a great ability to create and maintain suspense and terror.” – The Alien Online on The Ice Maiden

About the Series
‘Uncovered’ in the parish church of St. Barbara and St. Christopher in the summer of 2006, the Salisbury Manuscript (British Library Add. MS 1138) is the only extant copy of Sir Thomas Malory’s The Seconde Boke of kyng Arthur and also His noble Knyghts, apparently written at Thomas Caxton’s request after Malory’s release from gaol. Deep controversy surrounds the book, which is claimed by some to be a contemporary forgery, possibly written by Caxton himself. In March 2010, Rebellion Publishing announced that it had secured exclusive rights to publish the modernisations of the stories.
Abaddon’s eighth shared world, Malory’s Knights of Albion will regale our readers with totally original stories set in King Arthur’s time, exploring the stories of the less well-known knights – like loyal Sir Alymere – or telling previously-unknown events from the lives of beloved characters close to Britain’s greatest king.
With courage and courtesy close to its heart, the series promises to deliver the best of heroic, chivalric adventure, often with a dark or surprising twist.

About the Author
Paul Lewis has written hundreds of comedy sketches for UK network TV, including Spitting Image, as well as radio sitcoms and plays. Paul co-edited the Cold Cuts horror anthology and is co-author of the novels The Ragchild and The Quarry, several novellas and numerous short stories including a Doctor Who contribution for BBC Books. Paul works as a journalist and lives with his wife and son in a village near Swansea, Wales.

The Devil's Nebula

2011-08-10T14:27:00.007+01:00

Hello Abaddonians

I'm very excited to be able to announce the start of a new series for Summer 2012: Weird Space. This is Abaddon's first foray into the space-opera and if that weren't enough to pique your interest, just check out who we have to launch the series.

We are more than a little bit excited to have the brilliant Eric Brown (best-selling author of Helix, Engineman and The Kings of Eternity) with us for the launch of this new SF epic. Fans are going to be in for a real treat with a series that promises to be vast and hugely entertaining. Here, for your delectation, is the blurb for the first book in the series:

Starship Captain Ed Carew and his crew of two - ex-marine Lania Takiomar and ex-convict Gord Neffard - lead a carefree life of smuggling, gun-running and other illicit pursuits in a far future ruled by the fascistic Expansion Authority. But when an Expansion judiciary ship captures Carew and his crew leaving the planet of Hesperides, an out-of-bounds world governed now by the fearsome Vetch extraterrestrials, Carew, Takiomar and Neffard are sentenced to death...

Unless they agree to travel through Vetch territory in pursuit of an human colony vessel which set off for the Devil's Nebula one hundred years ago. But why are the Expansion authorities so eager to track down the ship, will Carew and co. survive the journey through Vetch territory - and what might they find when they arrive at the Devil's Nebula?

The Devil's Nebula is the first book in a thrilling space opera series, Weird Space. An evil race is threatening not only the human Expansion, but the Vetch Empire, too - an evil from another dimension which infests humans and Vetch alike and bends individuals to do their hideous bidding. And only if humans and Vetch cooperate to fight off the fearsome Weird do they stand a chance of ensuring their survival...

Eric Brown said, "It's great to be working for Abaddon on the Weird Space project, and it's a fantastic imaginative opportunity to be developing the background and working on the first novel. Weird Space is vast in scope - borrowing on an age-old tradition of everything that's best in space opera - and will allow future writers to tell exciting, human stories set against an eerie, thrilling, futuristic backdrop."

Podcast Twelve!

2011-07-19T16:16:00.004+01:00

Hi all,

We're clearly on some kind of obscene roll. Podcasts just keep happening, without any of those pesky six-month hiatuses...

The twelfth podcast, A Pax in Time, Book Nine,* sees the return of that earth-shattering editor David Moore, and likewise the return of that plucky pensmith, Jonathan Green, and of our intriguing intern, Colm Bannon.

Jon's here to talk about the Pax Britannia universe, the recent (and profoundly affordable) Ulysses Quicksilver Short Story Collection, ebooks in general, his experiences with the Fighting Fantasy series, and the upcoming Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow, a very exciting project in which Jon will let the story unfold in short ebook-format "chapbooks" and allow readers to vote on the direction the story will take each time. Find it here on iTunes, or go to the Store and search for "Abaddon and Solaris."

You can also just go here to look at the feed direct, or to subscribe using an RSS application, like Outlook.

Cheers,

David

*This title is a total lie. Time's Arrow is book eight. But that would ruin the name of the podcast. I dunno, pretend like the Short Story Collection is book eight, or something.

Interview with Simon Bestwick...

2011-07-19T16:08:00.002+01:00

Hey kids,

Have you ever wondered, "I wonder what that Simon Bestwick, author of Tomes of the Dead: Tide of Souls thinks about stuff?"

Yup, thought so. Probably more than ever, with the release of Best of Tomes of the Dead 2 coming up, bringing with it a fresh chance to have his words fired into your synapses by your eyes.

Well, you need no speculate any longer than you wish (and, I dunno, maybe you're cool with the speculation thing; me, I like speculating from time to time).

Why, I hear you ask? Why, because Jimbo at... ahem, "Ginger Nuts of Horror"... has interviewed him!

Read his brains here.

Cheers,

David

Reviewspam!

2011-07-19T15:30:00.003+01:00

Hey all,

So it's an exciting month, coming up, 'cos I'm going on holiday to Australia! Okay, that's probably not exciting to you, but I'm pretty chuffed about it. Ben's heading off as well, as is Jenni; there's cons and business trips and stuff; it's all very busy. Which means we're working ourselves hard to get ahead of our workload, which means we're crazy busy, which means we've been neglecting our blog. We're bad bloggers. And we're sorry. :(

So I'll just trot out a couple of extra posts now to give you something to digest.

For starters, the ever-popular (actually, I have no idea if this is popular or not; but I figure you probably read some of our books, so you presumably want to read reviews of our books to see which ones to read) REVIEWSPAM!

I can feel the thrill pouring off you even now. You may want a shower.

Some stuff people have said stuff about includes:

Graeme over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review has had some nice thoughts to share on Pat Kelleher's No Man's World: The Ironclad Prophecy. And just as well, it's awesome.

And what a story it is!... Kelleher doesn’t mince his words letting us know just what’s at stake here... The outcome here blazes with action and suspense as Atkins and men take on the absolute worst that their new home can throw at them. These final scenes are more than worth the price of entry.

Andrea at Book Chick City has clearly enjoyed Rebecca Levene's The Infernal Game: Cold Warriors, really digging her teeth into an intricate, mythic thriller.

A quick, fun read that kept me guessing with each page, and each character was so ambiguous it’s hard to know which one to root for. It’s an original story with a great plotline and a solid foundation in the supernatural.

Jared at Hub Fiction was blown away by Toby Venables' Tomes of the Dead: Viking Dead, and its crew of manly, hairy, heavily armed but essentially lovable heroes.

Just to be clear, The Viking Dead is about Vikings... fighting zombies. And, just to be completely clear, it is awesome. There are some key structural reasons behind Mr. Venables’ tome of legitimate awesomesauce.

Liz at SFRevu was deeply impressed by Steven Savile's Malory's Knights of Albion: The Black Chalice, particularly by Savile's knack of making a medieval manuscript feel like a piece of contemporary historical fantasy.

We are shown how one wrong decision can change a person's future... In the end we have a thoroughly unpleasant main character on our hands. One who has become even more unreliable than when we met him... an interesting conundrum presented to the reader: do we hope Alymere gets to redeem himself or do we wish him into the fires of Hell?

So a good mix of older and more recent titles, some pretty solid support, and (importantly, to us) some reviewers who very much Got It on some of our slightly more daring projects. Always brilliant to see.

Cheers,

David

Bit More Kelleher Love

2011-07-04T12:30:00.000+01:00

Hey all,

A little bit more Pat Kelleher joy, for those of you still anxiously awaiting the arrival of No Man's World: The Ironclad Prophecy on the shelves.

Graeme Flory over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review has asked Pat to write a few words about his inspiration for the series, and Pat has kindly obliged.

Read his guest post here:

Kelleher on No Man's World

Good stuff.

David

Pat Kelleher Reading

2011-06-27T15:59:00.005+01:00

Hey all,

So as you know, me and Jenni hit the Derby QUAD over the weekend, to meet some extraordinary people, drink a little beer, talk - a lot - and generally get our vibe on with the community of British writers, current, new, up-and-coming and aspiring.

A fantastic time was had, by us and by the people around us. Not, you understand, because you were around us, but because they were also at the very good event we just attended.

I mean, they probably also enjoyed being around us; as far as I know, we were perfectly charming company. Jenni was, certainly. I was a little drunk for some of it, so I may have just been loud company. Charmingly loud, maybe. I don't know. I mean, you don't, do you? There you are, getting on with your evening, having fun, thinking everyone around you is having a good time too, but maybe they're not, and they're too polite to say. Does that ever bother you? Or did it not, but now it will?

Anyway.

So we will be getting some kind of blogpost out about our experiences - tomorrow, hopefully - but in the immediate term, here's a bit of a treat. Our own Pat Kelleher was there, pimping his latest ouvre, No Man's World: The Ironclad Prophecy, and fine company he was too.

He also did a reading, Sunday afternoon, and I was on hand to capture it on my phone:

Forgive slightly shaky camera work.

Anyway, more tomorrow.

Sleep tight...

David

Alt.Fiction this Saturday!

2011-06-24T12:33:00.008+01:00

Tomorrow David and I will be heading off to Derby for one of the best alternative literary festivals around, Alt.Fiction!

Not only will you be able to meet the editors (us!), but Pat Kelleher, the author of the No Man's World series, will be on several panels, and reading from his newest book on the Sunday.

Gary McMahon, author of The Concrete Grove (Solaris) and Hungry Hearts (Abaddon) will also be there, as will Paul Kane, author of the Arrowhead trilogy and Paul Finch of Stronghold fame.

From Solaris we will have science fiction author Ian Whates and acclaimed fantasy novelist Juliet E. McKenna doing the rounds!

Check out the Alt.Fiction website for ticket details, you can turn up for the Saturday, the Sunday or the whole weekend. View the programme for full details of all the sci-fi, fantasy and horror-themed events on offer.

-

Out Now! in June

2011-06-23T15:58:00.003+01:00

Hey all,

As you may have seen over at our partners at Solaris, we've decided to run monthly articles on our blogs about what's actually out now on the shelves and what we think of it. Of course, we love all our children equally, but here's a chance to see why...

The Afterblight Chronicles: America, by Simon Spurrier, Rebecca Levene and Al Ewing

The Blight arose from nowhere. It swept across the bickering nations like The End of Times and spared only those with a single fortuitous blood type. Hot headed religion and territorial savagery rule the cities now. Somewhere amidst the chaos, however, there are groups of people fighting to survive. Heroes determined to create a better world. But can these warriors of the apocalypse hope to rediscover the humanity lost long ago in the blood and filth and horror of the Cull?

The Afterblight Chronicles Omnibus: America features three action-packed novels set in a dangerous, broken America ruled by crazed gangs and strange cults.

David Says: Fast, maniac, bloody and action-packed. It almost feels like Spurrier, Levene and Ewing are playing some kind of game of one-upmanship, both in the craziness/grotesquery of the villains and in the hard-boiledness of the heroes. By the time you get to cannibal bankers and a man punching a bear to death, it almost feels reasonable. Brilliant.

So go get it!

David

Jon Green Interviewed in SFX!

2011-06-22T16:21:00.003+01:00

Hey gang,

Not sure if you're a regular reader of SFX Magazine, or of their website, but if not you should jump on there and check out the interview with Jon Green, author of the Ulysses Quicksilver books in the Pax Britannia series.

Check. It. Out.

The interview is, of course, in honour of the Ulysses Quicksilver Collection, collecting three of the early novellas from Ulyssess Quicksilver's career: "Fruiting Bodies," "Vanishing Point" and "White Rabbit."

If you want to catch up on this neat little collection, you can buy it now for as little as 99 cents.

Outstanding.

David

Abaddon & Solaris Books Podcast #11 now up!

2011-06-20T10:19:00.002+01:00

Hi all,

Check it out! Twice in one month!

Well, kind of. Truth be told, I got a bit behind updating the blog on the podcast, so for those of you who wait to read it here before going to listen to it, I decided to trickle the last two in rather than tell you both of them at once.

The eleventh podcast, No Man's World But Pat's, brings together handsome and debonair Desk Editor David Moore (hey, I can say what I want; nobody checks these things) and dry raconteur Pat Kelleher, author of the stunning No Man's World series, including the up and coming Ironclad Prophecy. Find it here on iTunes, or go to the Store and search for "Abaddon and Solaris."

You can also just go here to look at the feed direct, or to subscribe using an RSS application, like Outlook.

Cheers,

David

Double Dead Preview: Coburn is coming, November 2011!

2011-06-16T12:19:00.010+01:00

Here's a treat for all you Chuck Wendig fans, we've got a preview of Chapter One of Double Dead sitting right here on our servers.

Download the epub version, the Kindle version or the .pdf version now, for free!

Coburn’s been dead now for close to a century, but seeing as how he’s a vampire and all, it doesn’t much bother him. Or at least it didn’t, not until he awoke from a forced five-year slumber to discover that most of human civilization was now dead— but not dead like him, oh no. See, Coburn likes blood. The rest of the walking dead, they like brains. He’s smart. Them, not so much. But they outnumber him by about a million to one. And the clotted blood of the walking dead cannot sustain him. Now he’s starving. And nocturnal. And more pissed-off than a bee-stung rattlesnake. The vampire not only has to find human survivors (with their sweet, sweet blood), but now he has to transition from predator to protector—after all, a man has to look after his food supply...

Double Dead will arrive in stores in November 2011. It is currently available for pre-order on Amazon.

Chuck Wendig ~~rants and froths at the mouth~~ blogs about the craft of writing, to much acclaim, at Terrible Minds. Double Dead will be his first published novel.

UK release - 10th November 2011 - £7.99 - ISBN: 978-1-907992-40-7
US release - 15th November 2011 - $9.99 - ISBN: 978-1-907992-41-4

ebook releases - November 2011
Kindle ISBN: 978-1-84997-272-7
epub ISBN: 978-1-84997-271-0

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Get your steampunky fix for International Steampunk Day!

2011-06-14T11:48:00.010+01:00

It is, apparently, International Steampunk Day - yes, no more hiding in the shadows of International Talk Like a Pirate Day or Global Cheese Week (we may have made that last one up), it's time to break out the cog-strewn goggles, fire up the steam-powered walking stick and sally forth into the world of steam tech amazingness!

And there's no better way of marking this global celebration of all things steampunky than by picking up a title from the world's longest running steampunk novel series: Pax Britannia from Abaddon Books!

You can start your steampunk addiction for just $0.99 (or as little as 49p) by downloading the Ulysses Quicksilver Short Story Collection from Kindle or iTunes! Fans of Boy’s Own adventure and insane steampunk shenanigans will love this thrilling collection of short stories following the dandy, detective and adventurer Ulysses Quicksilver.

These three short stories have been hand-picked by the author, taken from his earlier novels to form the perfect introduction to the acclaimed steampunk world of Pax Britannia.

Now available to download for 99 cents through Kindle (UK 69p) and iTunes (UK 49p).

All titles in the Pax Britannia series are available as eBooks – part of Abaddon’s mission to bring the best of genre fiction to fans in new and exciting formats.

Also published recently in the Pax Britannia series:

Al Ewing's stunning Gods of Manhatten (available both in the UK and the US): The steam-powered city of tomorrow where psychedelic beat-poets rumble with punk futurists in the rain-drenched alleys, and where mad science colludes with the monstrous plans of the Meccha-Fuhrer! NEW YORK, USS - City of dazzle and danger. Only here could we find The Blood Spider, Doc Thunder and the saint of ghosts known as El Sombra! NEW YORK, USS - The setting for a bloody battle of steel will and science gone wild in a contest to save the city of tomorrow - or end it!

Could Hitler’s ultimate weapon be our hero’s nemesis? - time travelling Nazi terrorists, flailing steampunk fisticuffs, dapper swashbucklers facing Hammer Horrors from before they were born – Ulysses Quicksilver may have travelled into the past, but has he bitten off more than he can chew?

It’s temporal trouble for Quicksilver as he travels back in time to stop the ultimate weapon falling into Hitler’s hands just at the crucial moment of his defeat in the Second Great War but must infiltrate the most heavily-defended fortress on the planet to stop this malignant gift from the future from changing the past – and erasing Quicksilver himself from history!

Available in the UK and the US, Jonathan Green storming steampunk adventure is Mary Shelley meets Kim Newman meets The Terminator!

“Jonathan Green gets mileage out of his monsters, with big action set-pieces that read like things we’d like to see in a rip-roaring summer movie.” SFX

Three slices of steampunk for just $0.99

2011-06-08T12:14:00.008+01:00

Yes, you can now get THREE slices of steampunk for JUST $0.99

Abaddon is delighted to announce the release of its first 99 cent eBook – the Ulysses Quicksilver Short Story Collection.

Now available to download for 99 cents through Kindle (UK 69p) and iTunes (UK 49p), fans of Boy’s Own adventure and insane steampunk shenanigans will love this thrilling collection of short stories following the dandy, detective and adventurer Ulysses Quicksilver. These three short stories have been hand-picked by the author, taken from his earlier novels to form the perfect introduction to the acclaimed steampunk world of Pax Britannia.

In Fruiting Bodies a gruesome death leads Ulysses and his manservant Nimrod to the glasshouses of Kew, bringing them face to face with the horrors lurking within. A Hallowe’en séance leads our intrepid duo into a close encounter with the world beyond in Vanishing Point, while in White Rabbit Ulysses journeys into a world of madness and murder, meeting some sinisterly familiar characters along the way.

All titles in the Pax Britannia series are available as eBooks – part of Abaddon’s mission to bring the best of genre fiction to fans in new and exciting formats.

Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books, said:
“Abaddon is committed to bringing the best genre fiction to the widest audience possible and it’s a great delight to be able to present these stories in this format at such an attractive price.”

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The Abaddon & Solaris Books Podcast #10: Eric of Eternity

2011-06-01T10:30:00.005+01:00

Hi all,

Right, regularity still a slight challenge with the Podcast, but it's still trickling in...

The tenth podcast, Eric of Eternity, finds peerless Editor-in-Chief Jon Oliver face-to-face with Eric Brown, author of the Space Opera epic Kings of Eternity, out now from Solaris Books.

Find it here on iTunes, or go to the Store and search for "Abaddon and Solaris."

You can also just go here to look at the feed direct, or to subscribe using an RSS application, like Outlook.

Cheers,

David

Interview with Jonathan Oliver

2011-06-01T09:12:00.005+01:00

The Read Horror blog have interviewed Abaddon Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Oliver for their Meet the Publisher feature:-

http://readhorror.wordpress.com/meet-the-publisher/abaddon/

What Abaddon releases are you most proud of and why?

With so many books published this is very hard to answer. I’m very chuffed that we published Gary McMahon’s first mass market novel with Tomes of The Dead: Hungry Hearts and I was delighted that Simon Bestwick got the recognition he deserved with Tomes of The Dead: Tide of Souls, but really I’m so proud of both imprints. I’m the luckiest man alive; I get paid to work with my favourite people...

Read the rest of the interview here.
-

Win a Signed Copy of The Black Chalice!

2011-05-25T14:05:00.005+01:00

Wotcher all,

Fancy a signed copy of Steven Savile's groundbreaking Arthurian fantasy, Malory's Knights of Albion: The Black Chalice?

'Course you do.

Well, check this. How about the world-exclusive, first ever signed copy of The Black Chalice? Authenticated by Mr. Savile himself?

Now we're talking.

Steven has been so good as to sign his first ever copy of the book, and will be giving it away to one lucky subscriber to his newsletter in the next few weeks.

The newsletter is kicking off very soon, and will include such goodies as excerpts, teasers in advance of his coming books, and links to unlock special content on his site.

So pop on over to his website, StevenSavile.com, right now, and you could be in on a genuinely special piece of collectibilia.

Collectibilia? Is that a word? You can have memorabilia. This is kind of memorabilia. It's collectible. It's collectibilia.

To Hell with it. I'm an editor; I can add new words if I want.

You still here? Why are you still reading this? I'm just waffling about new words I made up. You should be at StevenSavile.com, registering for his newsletter!

Cheers,

David

Appear in Savage Knight!

2011-05-23T12:23:00.003+01:00

Hey all,

As you may know (if you've been good boys and girls and bought Steven Savile's The Black Chalice), the Malory's Knights of Albion series features helpful faux-academic appendices in the back, with research and analysis of the Second Book of King Arthur and his Noble Knights and the history of the text.

Well, I'm producing the essays for the back of the second Malory's book now, Paul Lewis's The Savage Knight, and I'm offering you the chance to appear in the appendices as an "expert."

It's a dead simple offer. The first three people to comment on this post saying "yes, please!" get naming rights for an academic in the appendices. Give us the name and university of your academic and I'll pop him (or her) in, attributing some learned and possibly controversial opinion.

Offer closes at midnight tonight, GMT, after which I'll just make three names up.

Cheers,

David

Paul Kane in Leeds, Nottingham and London

2011-05-18T11:01:00.000+01:00

Paul Kane will be making several public appearances over the next few weeks. The first is this weekend:

Saturday 21st May, Midday – 2pm
Travelling Man, 32 Central Rd, Leeds

The second is:

Saturday 28th May from 11:30am onwards
Waterstone’s, 1-5 Bridlesmith Gate, Nottingham

Copies of the Arrowhead Promo comic will also be available before and during the events.

He'll also be at the British Fantasy Society Open Night on Friday 3rd June, 3 Tooley Street, London, from 6pm onwards.

Paul's display in Waterstones, Nottingham

Manchester Signing

2011-05-17T10:49:00.000+01:00

MANCHESTER DEANSGATE

A Super SF/Fantasy Weekender
Gary McMahon, Pat Kelleher, Mike Wild, Conrad Williams and Ian Whates
Saturday, 21 May 2011, 2PM - 5PM

Waterstones asks "Can Manchester contain this amount of SF and Fantasy talent?" It's an SFF and horror invasion as authors Gary McMahon, Mike Wild, Pat Kelleher, Ian Whates and Conrad Williams take over Manchester's Deangate Waterstones for an afternoon of signings and discussion.

Arrive early, at 1pm, and you'll get to see another great SF signing, the 'Deansgate Doctor Who Forum'. Waterstones says 'Join Terry Nation expert Alywn Turner, Doctor Who Big Finish audio play and Dead Ringers maestro Nev Fountain and that walking encyclopaedia of all things Gallifrey, David J. Howe, for a discussion-filled odyssey into all things Doctor Who.'

Further details can be found at the Waterstones Manchester Deansgate website, or at this number: 0161 839 1248.

______________

Also, check out this interview with Gary MacMahon at horror and dark fiction site The Black Abyss.
______________

-

School’s Out for the summer blockbuster?

2011-05-03T12:06:00.000+01:00

Abaddon’s ‘Attack the Block meets Lord of the Flies’ novel optioned by Multistory Films

Abaddon Books is proud to announce that it has struck a deal with Multistory Films to bring School’s Out by Scott Andrews to the big screen.

Attack the Block meets Lord of the Flies in a post-apocalyptic landscape where pupils at a public school grow up fast or they don’t grow up at all, School’s Out is one of the stand-out titles from Abaddon’s successful Afterblight Chronicles series.

The books follows the final days of St Mark’s School for Boys; and when your teachers are killing each other, the prefect is experimenting with crucifixion, and the rival gang from across town has decided that ritualistic cannibalism is the way to go, spots and BO don’t seem like such big problems any more.

Multistory Films is a new UK-based production company, which has just completed post-production on its debut feature film, low budget horror thriller The Harsh Light of Day. This will be closely followed by art house feature Verity’s Summer; written and directed by Short film Palme D’Or nominee Benjamin Crowe.

Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Abaddon Books, said:
“We’re delighted that the quality of Scott’s work on School’s Out has been recognised – it’s a great novel and a cracking read that never lets up. With teenagers facing insurmountable odds in TV series like Misfits and films such as Attack the Block, the time when teens save the world is nigh!”

Jason Kingsley, CEO of Rebellion, said:
“Whereas much post-apocalyptic fiction focuses on the bleak, The Afterblight Chronicles is made for the silver screen: action, big set pieces, strong characters and a killer concept. Abaddon’s status as an ideas factory is now well established – our medieval zombie novel Stronghold was optioned earlier this year and this is yet another property that’s been snapped up by a film company.”

Emma Biggins, producer and MD of Multistory Films, said:
“We are thrilled to begin development on School’s Out. The book presents a perfect opportunity to create a high-octane action movie with depth, intelligence and wit. As a new production company we are extremely excited to be collaborating with a company as successful and renowned as Rebellion.”

Zombie apocalypse smackdown: which civilisation could would fare best?!

2011-05-03T11:17:00.000+01:00

Inspired by Toby Venables' The Viking Dead, Pornokitsch is asking the question we're all dying (and rising again) to know the answer to: which ancient culture would be best equipped to defeat the undead hordes? The winner gets a copy of The Viking Dead!

Your suggestions should go here and you have till 11 pm Wednesday (UK time) to come up with your decision - choose wisely though, lest you find yourself becoming an undead hors d'oeu·vre!

The Arthur C Clarke Awards!

2011-04-28T16:11:00.001+01:00

Hey yo,

So I went to the Arthur C. Clarke Award in Picadilly last night. We weren't in the running - this time - but we'd been invited, so it'd be rude not to accept.

And a good time was had by all. The ceremony was short and sweet, which is nice. Lauren Beukes' Zoo City won, which I think was richly deserved. And I wandered over to the after-party at the Picadilly Institute right after, where some kind of drinks were enjoyed and I caught up with people, or as it may be, met people I had previously only spoken to on the interweb.

Pictures were a hard ask, in the darkness of the bar, and I wasn't sure I was allowed pictures of the ceremony (I got in quite late and couldn't ask), so you've just got a couple here.

The venue was the Apollo Cinema at Picadilly. It was interesting actually sitting in a cinema for an awards ceremony. Felt a little odd.

Here's proof I was at Picadilly. 'Cause, you know, there's no way I could have just pulled this shot off the net or something.

The remarkable Dave Monteith of Geek Syndicate fame, interviewing the equally remarkable Tom Hunter, the compere of the award, for the podcast.

Believe it or not, this is Lauren. I did say it was dark.

Our own Scott Andrews, who had discovered it was a free bar shortly before this shot.

So, good time had by all. Congratulations to Lauren on her award!

David

Pax Britannia: who says democracy doesn’t work?

2011-04-27T17:24:00.000+01:00

While first-past-the-post may or may not be done away with in modern Britain, in the steampunk world of Pax Britannia it’s still very much alive – and author Jon Green is giving you the chance to have your vote on his nightmarish vision of an alternate Blighty!

Jon is searching for a motto for the terrifying troops of the Frankenstein Corps from his new Ulysses Quicksilver book, Anno Frankenstein, due out in May.

Having previously run a mini-competition to choose a motto for the Corps, Jon has whittled a shortlist out of the suggestions and is giving you a week to vote for the one you like best – and you could win a very unique prize most befitting a tale of stitched-together soldiery!

Pop along to his blog and vote now!

News from your Editor in Chief

2011-04-26T15:03:00.000+01:00

So yes... sorry for my lack of postings of late. Last few months have been somewhat hectic what with becoming a daddy with the birth of our daughter Maia, and then being buried in copy-editing for weeks on end on my return to the Solaris/Abaddon towers.

But news! I have news and things!

This weekend I shall be at World Horror Con in Austin, Texas. I shall be in attendance from Friday morning, through to Sunday. On Friday afternoon between 1-3pm, I will be listening to pitches and on Saturday at 10am I will be on a panel about what editors want. I shall be traveling with Mr Gary McMahon author of the brilliant forthcoming Concrete Grove for Solaris, so come seek us out and lavish on us praise and beer.

In other news, I'm delighted to be welcoming back Paul Finch to the Abaddon stable, with a book in the Malory's Knights of Albion series to be published in 2012. Paul is a prolific gent at the moment, hard at work on not only novels but Doctor Who audios and film scripts.

And that's all from me for now. Until next time...

Happy reading.

The hunt is on for knights in shining armour!

2011-04-12T12:17:00.000+01:00

Are you chivalrous enough to be a Knight of the New Round Table – and win the chance to be a real knight for the day?

To celebrate the release of the new Knights of Albion series of Arthurian adventure, Abaddon Books is on the hunt for ‘knights in shining armour’ to sit on a 21st Century King Arthur’s Round Table – and they could win the chance to be a real knight for a day.

As part of the hunt, a real knight in shining armour ventured out onto the streets of London – and caused a few stares – as he searched for chivalrous candidates, even managing to do a little wooing of his own!

Whether it’s rescuing a princess from a dragon or just opening doors for your beloved, wannabe Sir Galahads can tell us why they should earn a place at Arthur’s side by going to http://www.abaddonbooks.com/knight_for_a_day

The most chivalrous are in with a chance to win an exclusive day of training from experts at a specialist jousting facility where they’ll undertake the essential training that no aspiring knight would be without – from swordplay to donning armour. The day will be crowned with a thrilling live demonstration of jousting.

The Knights of Albion is an exciting new series based on the ‘rediscovered’ second book by Thomas Malory, author of the Le Morte d'Arthur. The first in the series, The Black Chalice, follows wannabe knight Alymere, who discovers the foul Devil’s Bible – said to have been written in one night by an insane hermit – which leads him to seek the unholy anti-Grail know as the Black Chalice.

About the Series
‘Uncovered’ in the parish church of St. Barbara and St. Christopher in the summer of 2006, the Salisbury Manuscript (British Library Add. MS 1138) is the only extant copy of Sir Thomas Malory’s The Seconde Boke of kyng Arthur and also His noble Knyghts, apparently written at Thomas Caxton’s request after Malory’s release from gaol. Deep controversy surrounds the book, which is claimed by some to be a contemporary forgery, possibly written by Caxton himself. In March 2010, Rebellion Publishing announced that it had secured exclusive rights to publish the modernisations of the stories...

Abaddon’s eighth shared world, Malory’s Knights of Albion will regale our readers with totally original stories set in King Arthur’s time, exploring the stories of the less well-known knights – like loyal Sir Alymere – or telling previously-unknown events from the lives of beloved characters close to Britain’s greatest king.
With courage and courtesy close to its heart, the series promises to deliver the best of heroic, chivalric adventure, often with a dark or surprising twist.

About the Author
Steven Savile has written almost thirty novels and short story collections, including The Hollow Earth, Temple: Incarnations, Laughing Boy’s Shadow, Houdini’s Last Illusion, Angel Road, and the graphic novel Fragrance of You (with artist Robert Sammelin). He was a runner up in the 2000 British Fantasy Awards, a winner of a 2002 Writers of the Future Award, and nominated twice for the Scribe Award, in 2006 (for best novel adaptation) and the 2008 (for best young adult novel). www.stevensavile.com

Pornokitsch Gives You... Anno Mortis!

2011-04-08T16:29:00.000+01:00

Hey all,

As you probably remember, the fine folk at Pornokitsch.com have spent all week bringing you the best, worst and most interesting of Romeiana... Romana?... Romanesque?... stuff about Romans, in their week-long feature, "V Days of Rome."

It's gone brilliantly well, as near as I can tell, with loads of blogposts, reviews, an enormous interview with Sophia McDougall, and competitions and giveaways on their Facebook page. So very well done, Anne and Jared. It's been a blast.

Anyway, today they have a spate of Anno Mortis-related shenanigans! There's the downloadable free sample already mentioned (it's Chapter Sixteen, by the way, with all the zombies and zombie tigers and chariots and stuff), a review of the book (actually, kind of a re-review, since as Jared points out it was one of the first books they reviewed, back in the day), and until midnight tonight you can win a signed first edition of the book on their Facebook page by answering the question, "What caused the fall of Rome?"

Check their shiznit izout.

The book comes together in a complex mash-up of classical mythologies that, in my case, really did benefit from a re-read. If the "what" (zombies) is unveiled early in Anno Mortis and the "how" (evil bugs) soon follows, the "why" is kept a tight secret until the final pages. There are a lot of players involved, both mortal and immortal, and it takes an explosive chain of conclusions to reveal them all. Needless to say, the stakes are not only much higher than just Rome, but also more personal. What a god wants, the whole world may have to give.

To freely lift from my own original conclusion: "All said and done, Anno Mortis is a massively entertaining - and oddly educational - romp. From sieges to orgies; tigers to chariot races; it pulls out all the stops in providing unceasing fun." And as a footnote, Anno Mortis isn't just another chapter in a passing fad. Good pulp is timeless, and this pulp is very, very good indeed.

Schweet.

David

Pornokitsch's "V Days of Rome"

2011-04-04T16:03:00.000+01:00

Salve all,

I don't know if you already follow the good men and women (or, alright, the good man and woman; it's a modest outfit) at Pornokitsch.com? It's a kind of nerd-culture, reviews, interviews and general geek crap site, with an unhealthy fixation on low-fi sixties pulp romances and a recurring feature on crappy eighties fantasy and horror movies. It's also Jared Shurin and Anne Perry, who are wonderful people and deserve your endorsement.

At any rate, they are currently running a feature called V Days of Rome all this week, which will emphasise all things Roman, including reviews of gladiator movies and of Roman historical (or alt-historical) fiction novels, interviews and guest-blogs from authors involved in Roman-themed projects, free downloadable content, and giveaways of signed books all week long.

And we're involved! If you get on there now, you can download a free sample chapter of one of the climactic scenes from Rebecca Levene's Tomes of the Dead: Anno Mortis, and they assure us they will be reviewing the book later in the week, and giving a signed copy away on their Facebook page.

And they've just posted up Masques & Lies, a totally new and exclusive Pax Britannia story by yours truly. This has never appeared in press, even in the bonus story in the back; it's there for you, now, in support of Pornokitsch.

So go and check it out, and keep checking it out all week as they update with new and awesome content and competitions.

Awesome.

David

Wanted: Real-Life Monsters!

2011-04-01T10:28:00.000+01:00

Hey all,

Right, we’re setting aside our scepticism for a moment. As a rule, we’re pretty secular, rational, twenty-first century people, here at Abaddon Towers – as I think you have to be, to publish books about zombies, aliens, and steam-powered robots – but there are enough people out there who are convinced about the existence of the supernatural in this world, or even that they are supernatural creatures themselves, that it’s got to be worth suspending your doubts and taking a plunge.

Which is why we’re looking for real-life monsters to write books for us. If you are a genuine Haitian zombie, or a vampire hunting among the social elite of Paris, and you think you can write a book, then get in touch with us!

We appreciate that the inhuman, posthuman and superhuman communities are traditionally very reluctant to come out and make themselves known, and we can promise total anonymity. But we do need all our writers for this project to definitely be supernatural beings, and may ask you to (discreetly) provide proof. We also recognise that these communities are small, so it may be that the number of monsters interested in writing a book – and able to do so with flair and confidence – may be small, but if you’re out there, we want you.

What we need from you is a pitch, including a chapter breakdown and writing sample, for our latest project, which we haven’t given a title yet, but which we’re tentatively calling “Ultranormal Romance” (or “Urban Mundanity”). Some ideas we’re knocking around at the moment include a series of books set in a world in which accountants have risen up and destroyed civilisation; a love story between a normal girl from the big city and a tortured dentist on the run from his own kind; and an alternate history in which Gordon Brown is still the Prime Minister. These are rough guidelines only; if you have a similar pitch in mind, get in touch and we can workshop it.

So get in touch, and your name might be on the cover of one our most exciting new series in 2012!

Special Freebie Feature: Anno Frankenstein Wallpapers!

2011-03-31T14:47:00.000+01:00

Hey all,

As we've previously mentioned, the design for the upcoming seventh Ulysses Quicksilver book, Jonathan Green's Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein, features an ass-kicking piece of internal art for the section headers: a grotesque, steampunky, "vitruvian frankenstein."

And if you were paying attention, you'd also remember that we promised you a wallpaper based on the image, lovingly rendered on a parchment-effect background, to be made available closer to the release date.

Well, it's closer, and here it is!

Hand-drawn, rendered and digitally en-parchmented by our very own Pye Parr, the Pax Britannia Vitruvian Frankenstein Parchment Wallpaper is now available for download in a variety of sizes. Choose from the below:

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (800 x 600)

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (1024 x 768)

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (1280 x 960)

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (1600 x 1200)

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (1920 x 1080)

Vitruvian Frankenstein Wallpaper (1920 x 1200)

Outstanding!

(And why not add to your fine book and handsome desktop a signed promotional Anno Frankenstein poster, now available in the Genre for Japan charity auction?)

David

Paul Kane Signing at Waterstones!

2011-03-29T15:16:00.000+01:00

Wotcher all!

Just a quickie to remind you that Paul Kane, the author of the Hooded Man books in The Afterblight Chronicles (including the latest, Arrowland, pictured) will be signing copies of his books and generally being accessible to the public on:

Saturday 2nd April
1pm

...which is this very weekend!

He will be at the fine Waterstones in Sheffield, at:

24-26 Orchard Square
Sheffield
South Yorkshire
S1 2FB

Be sure and drop in to give him some love.

_________________________________________

And for a little more Hooded Man love, download this free promotional comic strip adaptation of the opening of the first book, Arrowhead...

...and for a little more Paul Kane love, do drop by his and Marie's Genre for Japan auction for a chance at picking up some signed copies of his rarer works.

_________________________________________

Awesome.

David

Genre for Japan: Git Chore Bids In!

2011-03-29T11:31:00.000+01:00

Hi all,

Well, if you've been looking out at blogland and Tweetland this past week or so, you're no doubt aware of Genre for Japan, the charitable auction being organised by Amanda Rutter, Lou Morgan, Alasdair Stuart, Ro Smith, and our very own Jenni Hill.

So naturally Jenni's rattled the bars on some of our authors' cages, and they've been absolute stars.

If you haven't already, you need to go on the auction's Item Index right now (you'll also note a "categories" box on the right, near the top of the page, if you're looking for something specific, like *ahem* "Abaddon Books") and place some bids - bidding is only open until Sunday, so you'll miss out if you leave it too long - but I would be remiss if I didn't urge you to consider some of our chaps' lots:

Mike Wild, author of the Kali Hooper books in the Twilight of Kerberos series, has put up signed copies of the four books currently out (including The Trials of Trass Kathra, which is only just out on the shelves now). The winner of the lot will also be commemmorated in a dedication to the upcoming fifth book.

Scott Andrews, author of the St. Marks' School trilogy in The Afterblight Chronicles, has also put up a signed set, along with a named character in his next book.

Jonathan Green, author of the Ulysses Quicksilver books in the Pax Britannia series, is offering a named part in his upcoming Quicksilver book, Time's Arrow. He's also offering, in a separate lot, a signed promotional Anno Frankenstein poster, signed by both himself and the designer, Pye Parr.

Not to be outdone, Al Ewing, author of the El Sombra books in the Pax Britannia series, is offering not one, but two named (speaking) parts in the third El Sombra book, Pax Omega.

They're not actually Abaddon books, but Paul Kane, author of the Hooded Man books in The Afterblight Chronicles, is offering signed copies of three of his celebrated horror books.

And Chuck Wendig, author of the upcoming Tomes of the Dead: Double Dead, is offering up both an e-book of his self-published collection, Irregular Creatures, and a detailed critique of a short work.

Finally, Jon, Jenni and I are all offering our editorial services to writers who want to know how to add some polish to their stories and (hopefully) render them more publishable. This is an outstanding opportunity if you're still unpublished and hoping to "break in."

So. Not that we're competitive or anything - obviously any money raised on any lot is brilliant - but if you could see your way clear to bidding on some of these lots, that'd be champion.

(And go look at Solaris Books's contribution, as well!)

Awesome.

David

Black Chalice Out Now!

2011-03-17T11:59:00.000Z

Steven Savile's in good company, between George R. R. Martin, Patrick Rothfuss and... Ron Hubbard? Guess you can't win 'em all.

We've been sent this photograph this morning, taken in Barnes and Noble, Lancaster, Pennsylvania, because The Black Chalice is out now in North America and all over the world! You can find it in the fantasy section in your local bookshop or for sale online, and the ebook will be coming out very soon!

Son of a knight and aspirant to the Round Table, Alymere yearns to take his place in the world, and for a quest to prove his worth. He comes across the foul Devil's Bible – written in a single night by an insane hermit – which leads and drives him to seek the unholy Black Chalice. On his quest he will face, and overcome, dire obstacles and cunning enemies, becoming a knight of renown; but the ultimate threat is to his very soul.
Malory’s Knights of Albion: The Black Chalice is the start of an exciting new fantasy series of never-before-seen Arthurian adventures.

Back Up On iTunes!

2011-03-14T14:54:00.000Z

Hi all,

The much-anticipated (seriously; for, like, six months) return of the Abaddon & Solaris Books Podcast to the iTunes Store is finally here!

Find it here on iTunes, or go to the Store and search for "Abaddon and Solaris."

If you were already subcribed previously, you'll need to resubscribe.

You can also just go here to look at the feed direct, or to subscribe using an RSS application, like Outlook.

Cheers,

David

Gods of Manhattan Book Giveaway!

2011-03-14T14:04:00.000Z

Wotcher all,

Graeme Flory over at Graeme's Fantasy Book Review is giving away some copies of Al Ewing's Pax Britannia: Gods of Manhattan. All you have to do to take part is tell him you're interested. Head on over to his blog to enter the comp!

Check It Out Here!

Cheers,

David

Podcast Episodes You Need To Catch Up On

2011-03-10T12:54:00.000Z

Hey all,

So now that I've explained why you haven't heard anything from the Podcast for a bit, here's a little bit of an update on the 'casts you will have missed if you weren't already subscribed to us on iTunes.

Buckle your seatbelts...

Podcast #7: To the End of the Line

In the run up to the publication of Solaris Books' anthology of underground-travel-themed horror, The End of the Line, Editor-in-Chief Jon Oliver (who also edited the anthology) invited contributors Pat Cadigan and Adam LG Nevill to join him in the studio and talk about the book and their ideas on horror.

We also went to the pub with them later.

Podcast #8: A Year in Publishing

Editor-in-Chief Jon Oliver, Junior Editor Jenni Hill, and Desk Editor yours truly tuck ourselves away in the studio to look back on 2010 and ahead to 2011.

Podcast #9: The Welcoming Party

A time of welcomings. We welcome our generally mic-shy Account Manager Ben into the booth, we welcome our new PR Coordinator Michael Molcher to the company, and we welcome Jon and Ali's new baby Maia Oliver into the world.

Left to Right: Me, Ben Smith, Jenni Hill and Michael Molcher.

If these images and words intrigue you and you haven't already heard them,

Go and Listen Now

Cheers,

David

The Abaddon & Solaris Books Podcast (Update)

2011-03-10T12:40:00.001Z

Hi all,

You may have been wondering what's been going on with the podcast for about six months, and you would be right to do so.

The reason we haven't announced any new podcasts is because, while we have been recording them and posting them, they haven't been going up on the iTunes Store, and that's the main link we use to direct people to the 'cast.

The reason for that is that the automated systems at iTunes got the link mixed up, somehow, and the tech support at Apple has been unable to resolve the issue for us (this isn't necessarily a criticism of Apple, you understand; it seems to have been an odd problem). We could have just posted the RSS link directly, of course, but the solution always seemed to be one more step away, so we wanted to leave it until we had the problem fixed.

Of course, weeks turned into months, with no result, so we should have just gone ahead. Apologies to those of you who look out for these posts to listen to the 'cast.

If you've been subscribed, you should have received the last two 'casts, so I hope you enjoyed them. The old link has been cancelled now, in the final (at the end of a loooong process) attempt to fix the problem, so now you'll all have to use the new RSS feed directly until the new link goes up in iTunes.

Which, I'm glad to say, should be a week or so away now! We've finally solved the problem (basically we gave up on the old podcast and started a totally new one; something else we should have just done right at the start) and the new 'cast should be available on iTunes shortly. I'll be sure and post about it when we do.

Until then, then, here is the

New RSS Feed for
The Abaddon and Solaris Books Podcast!

You can listen to the latest episodes directly here, and the new iTunes link will be posted soonish.

Keep reading for the run-down on the most recent episodes...

David

Reviewspammerification

2011-03-10T12:03:00.000Z

Hey all,

Another quick round of reviews, not for any one title:

First off, Kerl at Un:Bound has offered up an enthusiastic review of Mike Wild's Twilight of Kerberos: The Engines of the Apocalypse:

With a full complement of bad, bad jokes, magic, intrigue, redemption and a smidge of drunken dimension hopping, the book remains a bouncy if slightly quirky read from end to end.

Secondly, Kerl seemed to like Paul Finch's Tomes of the Dead: Stronghold even more:

For a book where it’s hard to decide if there are “good guys” and if so, who they are, Tomes of the Dead: Stronghold is some good old zombie smushin’ read, with some of the most interesting ideas for use for the brainless dead I’ve seen in a while combined with some interesting little historical details that have obviously been well researched before publishing.

Thirdly, Greenspan at the Midwest Book Review was very impressed by Jon Green's Ulysses Quicksilver Omnibus:

A riveting read of three novels that should definitely prove quite fascinating, The Ulysses Quicksilver Omnibus is a volume that will prove very hard to put down and very highly recommended.

Finally, George Wilhite at The Horror Review has clearly enjoyed our very newest zombie book, Toby Venables' Tomes of the Dead: Viking Dead, which has only just come back from the printers!

Fans of both horror and fantasy will enjoy this novel. It evokes the historical period well and has a nice fast pace. There is a very original twist in the final chapter explaining the origin of the draugr and at least two other nice twists I did not see coming.

So give them blogs some love and check 'em out.

Cheers,

David

Review Backlog: Gods of Manhattan

2011-03-04T11:57:00.001Z

Hi all,

As I've just explained over at the Solaris blog, Jenni and I have been so busy - since, basically, the start of November - with our editing and proofing, that we've only really been able to occasionally jump on the blog. I know Jenni's been slightly more helpful than me at keeping you updated; I've been rubbish.

Anyway, inevitably, my "reviews" email folder has been spilling over in this time, with reviews and stuff we've found on the internet, and since I know you're ~~faintly ambivalent~~ always thrilled to hear about reviews, I've decided to try and catch up with them a bit - not in order, but grouped by title.

Second update: Al Ewing's Gods of Manhattan. All of the Pax Britannia books are a whole bunch of fun, and this is no exception. Pretty much everone who's read this book has loved it.

Here are some of the people who have...

SF Site's Nathan Brazil was "in luck" when he received the book, writing:

"The story is a curious coupling of the straightforward and the subtly devious, playing with archetypes and sometimes using them like blunt instruments, but also blending in conceptual complexities and cunning plot twists. Most of all, Gods of Manhattan is a book in which the characters are written in such a way as to make the reader feel as if one has always known them."

I get the feeling it wasn't entirely Total Sci-Fi Online's Brigid Cherry's cup of tea, but she still obviously felt it was well done:

"This is real pulp material, the stuff of brooding humour, gritty violence and all-out action, with rugged (super)heroes and sarky dames."

Emotionally Fourteen's Brad Harmer evidently thought it was a hoot:

"The action scenes are fantastically well written, and you can actually feel each and every impact as it strikes home. If this was a comic, it would be written and drawn by Mike Mignola. It plays into the conventions of the superhero story, without ever being hampered by them."

Finally, Graeme Flory of Graeme's Fantasy Book Review gave it an extraordinary 9 and three quarters out of ten:

"I can’t emphasise enough how much fun I had with Gods of Manhattan, a read with no pretensions other than to give its reader a ride like never before. Not only does it succeed but it does so in some style."

So lots of good responses there. What are you waiting for? Go and buy it!

David

Steampunk at Waterstones and the Vitruvian Fankenstein...

2011-02-28T15:00:00.000Z

Wotcher all,

We're all pretty excited here at Abaddon Towers, as we're just sending Jon Green's seventh Ulysses Quicksilver adventure, Pax Britannia: Anno Frankenstein, to the printers. That means it's now only a matter of weeks away from hitting the shelves!

In Anno Frankenstein, dandy and adventurer Ulysses finds himself thrust back in time to the Second Great European War, to combat the horrific super-soldiers of Germany's top-secret Frankenstein Corps. Among other terrors, he will fight with - or alongside - werewolves, vampires, the extraordinary Edward Hyde, the beautiful agents of the Monstrous Regiment, and his own father, Hercules.

Quicksilver's (now, I suppose, "the Quicksilvers'") adventures are continuing to make a stir out there in the steampunkophile world, as evidenced at Waterstones's flagship store in Picadilly, which has put up this Steampunk promotional display.

Note particularly that we make two appearances on the shelf, which we share with some extremely good company - something that, otherwise, only China Mieville seems to have achieved:

This is what Waterstones's "Dave" has to say about the Quicksilver Omnibus:

"That's always good news, surely?" We certainly like to think so, Dave.

Anyway, the very last thing we put together for the book was a kind of "Vitruvian Frankenstein," named in honour of da Vinci's most famous sketch, to put in the section headers (to understand why, buy and read the book...). Our brilliant artist and designer Pye Parr drew it for us, and we thought we'd share it with you:

Just to get your juices flowing even more, be aware that this will be available as a free downloadable desktop, on a lovely old-paper background, a little closer to the launch date. Keep your eyes on the blog!

Cheers,

David

Scrolls Interviews

2011-02-24T09:52:00.000Z

Scrolls is one of the finest literary podcasts around, so imagine how pleased we were when Dion Winton-Polak, creator of Scrolls, interviewed not one, but two of our Abaddon authors when we met him at the SFX Weekender.

The podcast has now gone up, with interviews from post-apocalyptic author Scott Andrews and steampunk author Jonathan Green from Abaddon, NYT-bestselling author James Lovegrove, sci-fi author Andy Remic from Solaris and also fantasy authors Joe Abercrombie and Adrian Tchaikovsky.

Scrolls: Author Interviews

Dion says: "Authors by and large get very little direct feedback from their readers, so make their day and show them your love (and if you’ve enjoyed this episode of Scrolls, for goodness sake let them know that as well. It will increase the likelihood of them letting the bald-nutter-with-the-tiny-microphone interview them again in future.)"

You can contact Scrolls by tweeting @scrollscast, or e-mailing them on scrolls@hotmail.co.uk. Scrolls is now hosted by the dashing chaps of Geek Syndicate.

-

Photoblog - The SFX Weekender

2011-02-16T12:06:00.000Z

So, finally posting some of the great photos we got from the SFX Weekender! Okay, so you had to wait, but do you remember the days when you had to wait at least a week for your holiday snaps? Well, pretend this is like that, alright?

The SFX Weekender saw a great turn-out from the authors of Abaddon Books!

We had Al Ewing, Jonathan Green and Scott Andrews with us for the weekend, signing books, selling books, scaring away loyal fans, singing karaoke, (because as we all know, Abaddon has a fine history of karaoke) and generally helping us spread the Abaddon message to more and more people. What is the Abaddon message, you say? We think it's MORE ZOMBIES. But send us your alternative suggestions...

Scott Andrews wears his Serious Author Face while signing books.

Jonathan Green meets his biggest fan! This guy had all of Jon's science fiction and fantasy books, even ones Jon didn't have copies of himself!

Al Ewing scares away the children. Whe people talk about the New Weird, they're talking about this man.

Al Ewing and Jonathan Green were on a panel, 'Dual Britannia' with the illustrious Bryan Talbot, China Miéville and Kate Griffin, about creating alternate Englands. It was a great panel, and we had a ton of people rush up to the dealer's room afterwards to check out their books!

The Abaddon Pub Hour was a great hit - where fans and authors alike sat down, with drinks, to talk about how to create pulp fiction novels, and to have a laugh brainstorming silly ideas for new pulp novels. You could hear people inside giggling and shouting their ideas even from outside the bar!

The most popular idea turned out to be full of bad puns, enter Mortal Wombat, a world where the time-travelling Dr. Hoof fights evil wombats... or something. David's chart might explain it better than I can.

So, a great time was had by all, thanks to all the authors and to all the fans who made time to meet us to tell us how much they love Abaddon! We love you guys too.

-

Empire of Salt up for the Bram Stoker!

2011-02-10T13:04:00.001Z

Hi all,

This is properly cool. Like, "Holy f***ing c**p this is cool!" cool.

Weston Ochse's redneck-zombie-filled opus, the extraordinary Empire of Salt, has made it onto the preliminary ballot for the Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel!

If you're not sure what that is, the Preliminary Ballot is essentially the long-list. Members of the Horror Writers' Association vote on the preliminaries to produce the shortlist, from which the eventual winner will be selected. Making it onto the shortlist means that Ochse goes to the awards ceremony to sit, fingers and toes crossed, and see if he'll be recognised with the most prestigious award in horror writing.

And it's not a long long-list either. The final ballot will, if I recall correctly, consist of five books; the preliminary ballot only has eleven. This is essentially the HWA's recognition that Empire is one of the eleven best horror novels of 2010.

Hell of an achievement, even if it doesn't go any further. And, you know, it might. You can even help; do you know anyone in the HWA? Bother them! Leave copies of Empire lying around significantly when they come to visit. Frequently remind them of how cool a book it is. Mention how, maybe, you'd like to bear Weston's child, if the option were there. That sort of thing.

So, anyway, awesome news. Well done, Weston. We're dead chuffed for you.

Cheers,

David

New PR contact for Rebellion and Abaddon Books

2011-02-02T14:27:00.000Z

Computer game developer and book publisher Rebellion has appointed Michael Molcher as its new PR coordinator.

One of the largest independent games development studios in Europe, Rebellion also publishes the legendary British comic book 2000 AD, as well as the critically-acclaimed science-fiction and fantasy book imprints, Solaris and Abaddon Books.

Michael's role will be to coordinate the PR across the Rebellion group, supporting the developers and editors to maximise awareness of the firm's new and existing products.

He will be working with industry and fan contacts to boost awareness of the firm's fantastic brands, as well as establishing a greater presence in markets in both the UK and abroad.

He joins the innovative games developer and publishing house in Oxford after five years as a press officer for the second largest local authority in England, Leeds City Council, following a career as a local journalist in Rochdale and Harrogate.

For the past five years, he has also been a feature writer for 2000 AD and the Judge Dredd Megazine, for which he has interviewed some of the biggest names in British comics such as Carlos Ezquerra, Pat Mills and Dave Gibbons.

Jason Kingsley, CO of Rebellion, said:
“I'm delighted to have Michael on board at Rebellion, he'll be working closely with our fantastic creative teams to bring our games, books and comics to audiences both at home in the UK or abroad.
“Whether on the games front or in the pages of 2000 AD and our book imprints, 2011 is promising to be a great year for Rebellion.“

Michael said:
“I've been reading 2000 AD since I was 11 and was a science-fiction fan well before that, so to now be part of the team at Rebellion is really exciting.
“It's shaping up to be a fantastic year ahead for Rebellion – with everything from the new Dredd movie to great titles from Abaddon Books and new releases for Solaris from debut and New York Times Best Selling authors.
“Bringing these to new and existing audiences alike is going to be both thrilling and challenging.”

For press releases, review copies and interview requests,

please e-mail Michael Molcher or call 01865 797 016

www.rebellion.co.uk

www.2000ADonline.com

www.abaddonbooks.com

www.solarisbooks.com

SFX Weekender Here We Come!

2011-02-02T09:56:00.000Z

Wotcher all,

We're just about packed and ready to head off to the SFX Weekender, where we hope to see a bunch of you chaps and chapesses for chats, signings, buying our books, buying us beer, and good times.

Couple of highlights we need to let you know about:

- Al Ewing's on a panel at 4pm on Friday about horror in the 21st Century in the cinema room.

- Al's back with Jon Green at 11.45 on Saturday to talk about Alternative Londons (in particular, their experiences with the Pax Britannia series...)

- Al, Jon, Rebecca Levene, Scott Andrews and anyone else we can grab while we're there will be in the pub at 2pm on Saturday for the "Abaddon Pub Hour," when you'll get a chance to talk to your Abaddon authors, get books signed, and ask questions that have been on your minds the whole time you've been reading our stuff.

Finally, Jenni and I (and Ben, for some of the time) will be at the Abaddon traders' stall both days, and will be more than happy to chat with people and generally get our groove on. You'll also probably find Al, Jon, Bex, Scott and others hanging around our stall at one time or another, and we'll have signed copies of our books on sale and stuff like that.

We'll also be blogging, tweeting and vlogging all weekend (I know, I know, I said I was going to do those three vlogs in January; it's been a busier month than I expected), and bothering people in the bar in the evenings.

Looking forward to seeing you all there!

David