Release Week: The Rise of Ransom City, The Dresden Files, The Iron Druid Chronicles, and City of Dark Magic

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Release Week: The Rise of Ransom City, The Dresden Files, The Iron Druid Chronicles, and City of Dark Magic

Posted on 2012-11-28 at 14:49 by Sam

The last Tuesday in November brings new books in beloved series, as well as a Conan O’Brien-blurbed romp through a fantastical Prague. Still, it’s another sequel which most catches my eye, and another sequel (Hannu Rajaniemi’s The Fractal Prince) which I’m most disappointed to not see in audio this week.

That most-anticipated title for me this week is The Rise of Ransom City: The Half-Made World, Book 2 By Felix Gilman, Narrated by Ramon De Ocampo and Gregory Itzin for Audible Frontiers — Length: 14 hrs and 59 mins. Gliman’s novelette “Lightbringers and Rainmakers” was published in October 2010 by Tor.com and was one of my favorite reads of that year, introducing the delightful character of Harry Ransom and (a bit) of Gilman’s world of The Half-Made World. Harry Ransom made only a cameo appearance in the first novel, but here, right from the outset, it’s the Harry Ransom show, and that’s more than fine by me. The world of The Half-Made World is a kind of “weird west”, a fusion of frontier adventure and fantasy, with Steampunk contraptions as well. As an aside, I discovered another “Whispersync for Voice” price quirk, which would get you the first audiobook in the series for $12.94, including the Kindle version, versus the member price of $17.46 or one credit for the audiobook alone. (See the bottom of the post for another of these “quirks”.)

The Rise of Ransom City: The Half-Made World, Book 2 | [Felix Gilman] Cold Days

The first of those series continuations is Cold Days: The Dresden Files, Book 14 By Jim Butcher, Narrated by James Marsters for Penguin Audio — Series: The Dresden Files, Book 14 — Length: 18 hrs and 50 mins. Marsters returns as the voice of Harry Dresden after a scheduling conflict kept him off the last book. Here: “After being murdered by a mystery assailant, navigating his way through the realm between life and death, and being brought back to the mortal world, Harry realizes that maybe death wasn’t all that bad - because he is no longer Harry Dresden, Chicago’s only professional wizard. He is now Harry Dresden, Winter Knight to Mab, the Queen of Air and Darkness. After Harry had no choice but to swear his fealty, Mab wasn’t about to let something as petty as death steal away the prize she had sought for so long. And now, her word is his command, no matter what she wants him to do, no matter where she wants him to go, and no matter who she wants him to kill.”

The second of those series continuations is Trapped: The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 5 By Kevin Hearne, Narrated by Luke Daniels for Random House Audio — Series: Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 5 — Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins. “After twelve years of secret training, Atticus O’Sullivan is finally ready to bind his apprentice, Granuaile, to the earth and double the number of Druids in the world. But on the eve of the ritual, the world that thought he was dead abruptly discovers that he’s still alive, and they would much rather he return to the grave. Having no other choice, Atticus, his trusted Irish wolfhound, Oberon, and Granuaile travel to the base of Mount Olympus, where the Roman god Bacchus is anxious to take his sworn revenge—but he’ll have to get in line behind an ancient vampire, a band of dark elves, and an old god of mischief, who all seem to have KILL THE DRUID at the top of their to-do lists.” Narrator Daniels’ turn as Oberon — the wolfhound, not the fairy king — is a wonderful, smile-inducing pleasure.

Trapped: The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 5 | [Kevin Hearne] City of Dark Magic: A Novel | [Magnus Flyte]

Lastly above the “read more” link is a debut (well, kind of, as it is a new pseudonym for two writers), City of Dark Magic: A Novel By Magnus Flyte, Narrated by Natalie Gold for Penguin Audio — Length: 13 hrs and 33 mins. “Flyte” is a pseudonym for the writing duo of Meg Howrey and Christina Lynch, and that Conan O’Brien blurb? “This deliciously madcap novel has it all: murder in Prague, time travel, a misanthropic Beethoven, tantric sex, and a dwarf with attitude. I salute you, Magnus Flyte!”

ALSO OUT TUESDAY:

EARLIER THIS WEEK: SEEN BUT NOT HEARD:
  • The Fractal Prince by Hannu Rajaniemi (Tor, Nov 27) — followup to The Quantum Thief, “A physicist receives a mysterious paper. The ideas in it are far, far ahead of current thinking and quite, quite terrifying. In a city of “fast ones,” shadow players, and jinni, two sisters contemplate a revolution. And on the edges of reality a thief, helped by a sardonic ship, is trying to break into a Schrödinger box for his patron. In the box is his freedom. Or not. Jean de Flambeur is back. And he’s running out of time.”
  • Fellengrey by Scott Thomas (Raw Dog Screaming Press, Nov 26) -- excellent article at John Edward Larson's Bizarro Writer -- "As a boy, Hale Privet dreamed of sailing the grey waters of the northern Gantic Ocean aboard a mighty ship of war. But when farm life kept him from the sea, the sea came to him – in the form of Rye Blackbird, the infamous mutineer whose wondrous tales help set Hale on his own path to adventure. And such adventures they are! Villains, mysteries, sea battles and even a cursed island await. Privet's story is part folklore and part fantasy, set in a long-ago time where you might just as easily witness something mystical, as feel the salty spray of the sea on your face. Fellengrey is a bedtime story for grown-ups, complete with pirates, ghosts, magic spells and, of course, a beautiful maiden to capture the dashing hero's heart."
  • Tears in Rain by Rosa Montero (AmazonCrossing, Nov 27) read by Mary Robinette Kowal for Brilliance Audio -- I don't see an updated release date, but I also don't see it "in stock" or available for download anywhere -- "science fiction thriller set in Madrid 2109" via an SFSignal interview
  • Crossed Blades (A Fallen Blade Novel) by Kelly McCullough (Ace, Nov 27)
  • Bard's Oath by Joanne Bertin (Tor, Nov 27)
  • The Sum of Her Parts (Tipping Point Trilogy) by Alan Dean Foster (Del Rey, Nov 27, 2012)
  • Samurai Vs. Robo-Dick by Steve Lowe (Grindhouse Press, Nov 26)
  • Anthology: AfroSF: Science Fiction by African Writers edited by Ivor W. Hartmann (StoryTime, Nov 27) -- with stories by Nnedi Okorafor among others
  • Anthology: Edge of Infinity edited by Jonathan Strahan (Solaris, Nov 27) — “the thirteen stories in this anthology span the whole of the human condition in their race to colonise Earth’s nearest neighbours. Featuring stories by Hannu Rajaniemi, Alastair Reynolds, James S. A. Corey, John Barnes, Stephen Baxter, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Elizabeth Bear, Pat Cadigan, Gwyneth Jones, Paul McAuley, Sandra McDonald, Stephen D. Covey, An Owomoyela, and Bruce Sterling.”
  • Two collections of the writing of Ursula K. Le Guin published by Small Beer Press on Nov 27: The Unreal and the Real: Where on Earth and The Unreal and the Real: Outer Space, Inner Lands -- see Damien Walter's "stories for the ages" write-up at The Guardian
  • Collection: Moscow But Dreaming by Ekaterina Sedia (Prime Books, Nov 27)
  • Collection: The Love Machine & other contraptions by Nir Yaniv (infinity plus, Nov 26) -- debut English language collection, with translations by Lavie Tidhar (among others)
  • Collection: Mio Padre, il Tumore by Steve Lowe (Bucket O Guts, Nov 27) -- four bizarre stories
ON PRE-ORDER LISTINGS: COMING SOON:
  • The Kyoto Man by D. Harlan Wilson (Raw Dog Screaming Press)
  • The Testament of Jesse Lamb by Jane Rogers, read by Fiona Hardingham for Blackstone Audio (Dec 1) — a finalist for the Arthur C. Clarke Award and longlisted for the Man Booker Prize
  • Anthology: Fungi by Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Orrin Grey (Innsmouth Free Press, Dec 1, 2012) -- among other authors, Jeff VanderMeer, Laird Barron, Nick Mamatas, W.H. Pugmire, Lavie Tidhar, Ann K.Schwader, Jesse Bullington, Molly Tanzer and Simon Strantzas
  • Teen: Shaman of Stonewylde by Kit Berry (Gollanz, Dec 1, 2012)
  • Ink by Damien Walters Grintalis (Samhain Publishing, Dec 4) -- Debut novel: "The griffin inked on Jason’s arm looks real enough to take flight. Jason thinks his new tattoo is perfect. Until he wakes up one night to find his arm temporarily ink free. Until he finds a brick wall where the tattoo shop should be."
  • The Siren Depths by Martha Wells (Night Shade Books, Dec 4) -- third book in The Books of the Raksura. The first book is The Cloud Roads
  • Teen: The Steam Mole by Dave Freer (Pyr) -- sequel to Cuttlefish
  • Mercury Falls by Robert Kroese (Brilliance Audio, Dec 4) -- along with the remaining two books in the series
  • A Red Sun Also Rises by Mark Hodder (Pyr, Dec 4)
  • The Doctor and the Rough Rider by Mike Resnick (Pyr, Dec 4) -- third in The Weird West Tales
  • Alien vs. Alien by Gini Koch (DAW, Dec 4) -- the sixth book in the Katherine “Kitty” Katt series. The first book is Touched by an Alien
  • Elemental Magic edited by Mercedes Lackey (DAW, Dec 4) -- ninth book in the Elemental Masters series
  • Andromeda’s Fall by William C. Dietz (Ace, Dec 4)
  • Terminal Island by Walter Greatshell (Night Shade Books, Dec 4)
  • Mecha Rogue: A Novel of the Armor Wars by Brett Patton (Roc, Dec 4)
  • Robert Asprin’s Myth-Quoted by Jody Lynn Nye (Ace Trade, Dec 4)
  • Collection: The Ghost Pirates and Others: The Best of William Hope Hodgson by William Hope Hodgson (Night Shade Books, Dec 4)
  • Virus: The Day of Resurrection by Sakyo Komatsu (VIZ Media LLC, Dec 4)
  • The Bones of the Old Ones by Howard Andrew Jones (Thomas Dunne, Dec 11) -- sequel to The Desert of Souls
  • Falling Kingdoms by Morgan Rhodes (Razorbill, Dec 11)
  • Kids: The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man’s Canyon, S.S. Taylor (McSweeney's/McMullens, December 11) -- "The first middle-grade novel from McSweeney’s McMullens imprint" (via Flavorwire)
  • Z 2134 by Sean Platt & David W. Wright (47North, Dec 11) -- originally a Kindle Serial
  • The Folly of the World by Jesse Bullington (Orbit, Dec 18) — “On a stormy night in 1421, the North Sea delivers a devastating blow to Holland: the Saint Elizabeth Flood, a deluge of biblical proportions that drowns hundreds of towns, thousands of people, and forever alters the geography of the Low Countries. Where the factions of the noble Hooks and the merchant Cods waged a literal class war but weeks before, there is now only a nigh-endless expanse of grey water, a desolate inland sea with moldering church spires jutting up like sunken tombstones. For a land already beleaguered by generations of civil war, a worse disaster could scarce be imagined. Yet even disaster can be profitable, for the right sort of individual, and into this flooded realm sail three conspirators: a deranged thug at the edge of madness, a ruthless conman on the cusp of fortune, and a half-feral girl balanced between them.”
  • The Merchant of Dreams by Anne Lyle (Angry Robot, Dec 18) -- the second book in Night’s Masque. The first book is The Alchemist of Souls
  • Nexus by Ramez Naam (Angry Robot, Dec 18)
  • The Merchant of Dreams (Night’s Masque) by Anne Lyle (Angry Robot and Brilliance Audio, Dec 18)
  • An audiobook edition of Alchemystic by Anton Strout, published earlier this fall — reportedly coming from Audible Frontiers on Dec 21
  • The Complete John Thunstone by Manly Wade Wellman (Haffner Press, Dec 22)
  • Luck of the Draw by Piers Anthony (Tor, Dec 24)
  • The Hermetic Millennia by John C. Wright (Tor, Dec 24) -- sequel to Count to a Trillion
  • The Ramal Extraction by Steve Perry (Ace, Dec 24)
  • The Shadow’s Heir by K.J. Taylor (Ace, Dec 24)
  • Anthology: Latin American Science Fiction: Theory and Practice edited by M. Elizabeth Ginway and J. Andrew Brown (Palgrave Macmillan, Dec 24)
  • The Shadow’s Heir (The Risen Sun) by K. J. Taylor (Ace, Dec 24)
  • Unnatural Acts (Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I.) by Kevin J. Anderson (Kensington and Brilliance Audio, Dec 24)
  • Blood and Bone: A Novel of the Malazan Empire by Ian C. Esslemont (Bantam Press, Dec 25)
  • Witchbreaker: The Dragon Apocalypse 3 by James Maxey (Solaris, Dec 26) -- after Greatshadow and Hush
  • Ack-Ack Macaque by Gareth L. Powell (Solaris, Dec 26)
  • Day by Day Armageddon: Shattered Hourglass by J. L. Bourne (Permuted Press, Brilliance Audio, Dec 26)
  • Glass Thorns (Glass Thorns 1) by Melanie Rawn (Titan, Dec 28)
  • Doktor Glass by Thomas Brennan (Ace, Dec 31)
  • Ember: A Penguin Special from Roc by James K. Decker (Roc, Dec 31) -- prequel novella to The Burn Zone
  • Nell Gwynne’s On Land and At Sea by Kage Baker & Kathleen Bartholomew (Subterranean, Dec 31)
  • The Dog in the Dark: A Novel of the Noble Dead by Barb Hendee & J.C. Hendee (Roc Hardcover, Dec 31)
  • The Circle by Bentley Little (Cemetery Dance, December)
ANOTHER WHISPERSYNC PRICING QUIRK:

There are still some weird little “sweet spots” in the Whispersync for Voice area (hopefully you grabbed the two dozen or so professionally produced audiobooks of free classics when the feature launched), where if you buy the Kindle version, you get the audiobook more cheaply. For example, when checking out some books on Amazon’s list of top 10 sf/f of the year, I found the (er… Amazon-published, like The Mongoliad and the audiobook edition of Redshirts, so Amazon has 3 of its own properties on its list, but whatever, I am digressing…) Seed by Ania Ahlborn. It’s $9.79 member priced at Audible, but if you buy the $2.99 Kindle version, you can get the audiobook for $1.99, so a total of $4.98.

First, buy the Kindle version (http://www.amazon.com/Seed-ebook/dp/B0073XV3K8/) and then, go back to the Kindle page and there should appear a “buy at Audible for $1.99” option link, which automatically adds the audiobook (http://www.audible.com/pd?asin=B008H36SSU) to your cart, for $1.99. Just be careful and not waste a credit on it, which is by default what would happen. Uncheck and apply! Friends don’t let friends use credits on $1.99 titles.

Posted in regular, Release Week | Tagged city of dark magic, cold days, dresden files, felix gilman, iron druid chronicles, james marsters, jim butcher, kevin hearne, luke daniels, magnus flyte, release week, the rise of ransom city