This excellent blog entry by 20 year publishing pro Andrew Wheeler should be read by anyone who is curious why bookstores don’t carry certain books.

Wheeler goes on to explain how the process works. An informative posting and a must for all authors.

An informative post that should be read by all writers was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

A beautiful book by David Wiesner that tells the tale of a boy who finds a camera on the beach. The camera is full of surreal and fantastical images, including one of a little girl holding the picture of another child holding a picture of another child . . . you get the idea.

What makes this book spectacular is that all of this is told with out the use of text. The pictures are beautiful and tell the reader all they need to know about the story. It is easy to see why this won the Caldecott in 2007. It may also be in the next After Harry.

Get this for the child, big or small, in your life.

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

Quofum by Alan Dean Foster

Promo copy:

Bestselling author Alan Dean Foster’s new adventure takes place in the amazing Humanx Commonwealth, home of the ever-popular Pip & Flinx. Although the dynamic redhead and his daring minidrag do not appear in Quofum, this knockout thriller sets the stage for their explosive date with destiny in the duo’s final climactic adventure, Flinx Transcendent.

The mission to planet Quofum is supposed to be a quickie for Captain Boylan and his crew. Boylan is tasked with delivering four scientists–two men, one woman, and one thranx–to the unknown world, setting up camp while the experts investigate flora and fauna, then ferrying them safely home.
The first surprise is that Quofum, which regularly slips in and out of existence on Commonwealth monitors, is actually there when Boylan and company arrive. The second surprise is more about what Quofum is not: The planet is not logical, ordered, or rational.

The team encounters three intelligent, warring species–some carbon-based, others silicate-based, all bizarre–along with thousands of unique, often unclassifiable life-forms. Quofum’s wild biodiversity doesn’t appear to be natural. But if it is by design, then by whose, and for what purpose?

There are more revelations, more highly evolved species waiting to be identified, even tantalizing clues to a civilization light-years ahead of the Commonwealth’s. But the crew members are not ready for the real shockers, because none of them expect to find a killer in their midst, or to discover that their spaceship is missing and, with it, all means of communication.

Of course, the marooned teammates know nothing about the Great Evil racing toward the galaxy, and they certainly have never heard of Flinx, the only person with half a chance to stop it. Nor do they know that Quofum could play a crucial role in defeating the all-devouring monster from beyond.

One thing the scientists do know, however, is how to ferret out the truth. But whether that will be enough to alter the course of the oncoming catastrophe is anyone’s guess.

The Watchers Out of Time by H. P. Lovecraft and August Derleth

Promo copy:

Venture at your own risk into a realm where the sun sinks into oblivion–and all that is unholy, unearthly, and unspeakable rises. These rare, hard-to-find collaborations of cosmic terror are back in print, including

• Wentworth’s Day A fellow figures his debt to a dead man is null and void, until he discovers just how terrifying interest rates can be.

• The Shuttered Room A sophisticated gentleman must settle his grandfather’s estate, only to find that the house shelters dark secrets.

• The Dark Brotherhood A beautiful woman and her companion meet the likes of Edgar Allan Poe, in a tale as terrifying as anything Poe himself ever created.

• Innsmouth Clay A sculptor returns from Paris to create a statue not entirely of this world–and not at all under his control.

• Witches’ Hollow A new schoolteacher puts his soul in peril while trying to save one of his students from a ravenous creature.

Going Under by Justina Robson

Promo copy:

Lila Black is off with the faeries …

Ever since the Quantum Bomb of 2015 things have been different; the dimensions have fused and suddenly our world is accessible to elves, demons, ghosts and elementals and their worlds are open to us. Things have been different for Special Agent Lila Black too: tortured and magic-scarred by elves, rebuilt by humans into a half-robot, part-AI, nuclear-fueled walking arsenal, and carrying the essence of a dead elfin necromancer in her chest, sometimes she has trouble figuring out who she is.

And a mission to the world of the fae may not help her work it out.

The fae are beautiful, glamorous, exotic, and talented. Their inventions make food taste better, make beer divine, and bring sparkle and mischief to the world but that’s only the surface. And Lila is being sent in at the deep end, to the deepest, darkest levels of Faerie: on the primal level, nothing about the fae is glamorous at all.

In a winter-locked, raw, and primitive world, Lila has to deal with the fae at their most basic levels, as tricksters and dealmakers and the only deals worth making are bloody ones. If Lila’s quest is to succeed, and if she is ever to escape Faerie, the right question must be asked, the right sacrifice must be made, and the right quarry must be hunted down on the winter solstice. All of which is difficult, when the only aides Lila brought to Faerie are her friends …

Justina Robson’s new series combines her trademark themes of identity and reality, magic and technology, break-neck plots, a mischievous sense of fun, and a seriously sexy new heroine.

More in Part Two.

Books received 10/16/08 Part One was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

Let’s take a quick look to see what’s arrived in the mail here at the Geek Compound.

End of the Century by Chris Roberson

Promo copy:

UNCOVER THE SECRETS OF THE HOLY GRAIL

Three people. Three eras. One city. Endless possibilities. End of the Century is a novel of the distant past, the unimaginable future, and the search for the Holy Grail. Set in the city of London, the narrative is interlaced between three ages, in which a disparate group of heroes, criminals, runaways, and lunatics are drawn into the greatest quest of all time.

Twilight – Londinium, Sixth Century, CE

Galaad, a young man driven by strange dreams of a lady in white and a tower of glass, travels to the court of the high king Artor in Londinium, abandoned stronghold of the Roman Empire in Britain. With the dreams of Galaad as their only guide, Artor and his loyal captains journey west to the Summerlands, there to face a threat that could spell the end of the new-forged kingdom of Britain.

Jubilee – London, 1897
Consulting detective Sandford Blank, accompanied by his companion Roxanne Bonaventure, is called upon to solve a string of brutal murders on the eve of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee. The police believe that Jack the Ripper is back on the streets, but Blank believes that this is a new killer, one whose motive is not violence or mayhem, but the discovery of the Holy Grail itself. And what of the corpse-white Huntsman and his unearthly hounds, who stalks the gaslit streets of London?

Millennium – London, 1999
At the eve of the new millennium, American teenager Alice Fell is on the run, and all alone. On the streets of a strange city, friendless and without a pound to her name, Alice is not sure whether she’s losing her mind, or whether she is called by inescapable visions to some special destiny. Along with a strange man named Stillman Waters, who claims to be a retired occultist and spy, she finds herself pursued by strange creatures, and driven to steal the priceless vanishing gem that may contain the answers to the mysteries that plague her.

The three narratives Dark Ages fantasy, gaslit mystery, and modern-day jewel heist alternate until the barriers between the different times begin to break down, and the characters confront the secrets that connect the Grail, the Glass Tower, and the vanishing gem. And lurking behind it all is the entity known only as Omega.

Given Roberson’s skill and track record, I’m really looking forward to this one.

Without Warning by John Birmingham

Promo copy:

John Birminghams big new breakout geopolitical thriller asks what would happen to the world if America suddenly vanished.

Star Wars: Millennium Falcon by James Luceno

Promo copy:

Two years have passed since Jacen Solo, seduced by the dark side and reanointed as the brutal Sith Lord Darth Caedus, died at the hands of his twin sister, Jaina, Sword of the Jedi. For a grieving Han and Leia, the shadow of their son’s tragic downfall still looms large. But Jacen’s own bright and loving daughter, Allana, offers a ray of hope for the future as she thrives in her grandparents’ care. And when the eager, inquisitive girl, in whom the Force grows ever stronger, makes a curious discovery aboard her grandfather’s beloved spacecraft–the much-overhauled but ever-dependable Millennium Falcon–the Solo family finds itself at a new turning point, about to set out on an odyssey into uncertain territory, untold adventure, and unexpected rewards.
To Han, who knows every bolt, weld, and sensor of the Falcon as if they were parts of himself, the strange device Allana shows him is utterly alien. But its confounding presence–and Allana’s infectious desire to unravel its mystery–are impossible to dismiss. The only answer lies in backtracking into the past on a fact-finding expedition to retrace the people, places, and events in the checkered history of the vessel that’s done everything from making the Kessel Run “in less than twelve parsecs” to helping topple an evil empire.

From the moment the Falcon broke loose from a Corellian assembly line like an untamed creature with a will of its own, it seemed destined to seek out trouble. It wasn’t long before the feisty YT-1300 freighter went from shuttling cargo to smuggling contraband. But it‘s a fateful rendezvous on Coruscant, at the explosive height of the Republic/Separatist uprising, that launches a galaxywide cat-and-mouse game whose newest players are Han, Leia, Allana, and C-3PO. And they’re not alone: Crime lords, galactic pirates, rogue politicians, and fortune hunters alike loom at every turn of the quest–each with his or her own desperate stake in the Millennium Falcon’s most momentous mission. Through the years and across the stars, from the Rim worlds to unknown points beyond, the race will lead them all to a final standoff for a prize some will risk everything to find–and pay any cost to possess.

Jacen Solo?

See Part One here.

Books received 10/16/08 Part Two was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

[  Mood: Angelic ]
[ Currently: Breastfeeding my son – Situation Normal ]
This is an interesting book that starts with the very familiar "mother with young children moves to an old house that has been in the family for years" plot. This move has been caused by the death of the father in a car accident. In this family home, the children find a mysterious room full of secret artifacts that belonged to an ancestor. One of these artifacts opens up a portal to another world. The children and their mother are sucked into this alternate world – and into a mysterious quest and destiny.

Nice illustrations, easy to follow dialogue, this is one for the reluctant readers.

My review of Quark: The Complete Series is now available at SF Site.

Quark: The Complete Series was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

[ Mood: Very Sad ]
I received an email from Michael Moorcock that Barrington J. Bailey died yesterday from bowel cancer. He was 71.

When I published Barry on RevSf, we exchanged several interesting emails. He was generous with his time and his work. Barrington J. Bayley, a talented and unheralded writer, never got the break he deserved. He is survived by his wife Joan and two kids.

If you’ve never read or heard of Barrington J. Bailey, check out the Astounding Worlds of Barrington J. Bailey . Complete with fiction, interviews, and other stuff, the site serves as a brilliant introduction to this important writer.

Barrington J. Bayley (1937-2008) was originally published on The Geek Curmudgeon

[  Mood: Sleepy ]
[ Currently: Getting ready for bed ]
Husband Unit took today off to spend some quality time with Geeklet and I. Part of our activities was voting in the Canadian election. We went to our local poll and dutifully voted. We took Geeklet along to show him how important it was to vote.

As Geeklet’s grandfather says, if you don’t vote, you can’t complain.

And since I vote . . .

Pundits are saying that we are most likely going to have a minority government. Again. The only question is what flavour. Liberal or Conservative. We have a Conservative minority goverment now. So it is possible that we went through this election for no reason.

I swear, if that happens, I am going to look into transfering to the school where the PMs kids go and fail them. Better yet, I will make them write tests that have no bearing on their marks.

Or maybe I will just leave a flaming bag of dog poop on the front door step of 24 Sussex on Halloween. Sort of a trick for the treat the PM has given us.

[  Mood: Evil ]
[ Currently: Breastfeeding my son – Situation Normal ]
So the Husband Unit and I took the boy to Saunders Farm today to run some mazes. Okay walk, cause a stroller doesn’t move that fast.

Apparently Saunder’s farm has the largest collection of outdoor mazes in North America. And it was one of the only places a family can gather on Thanksgiving Day Monday, so the place was packed. The weather didn’t hurt either as the day was unseasonably warm.

Geeklet really enjoyed the Cedar maze and the Grapevine Maze (although it is really a labyrinth) in the Baby Bijorn. He’s at a stage where he can face forward and look at the world, and all the kids were cool. So were the leaves.

The Mile Maze lived up to its name, especially as you twisted and turned through the ten foot hedges. Geeklet loved it so much, that he slept through it while in the carriage.

(The Mile Maze is at the top. The Cedar Maze is in the bottom right corner. The Grapevine Maze is bottom centre.)

But what about the title, Ubal? Well the best thing I saw that day was a set of parents resting outside the Mile Maze. They were yelling encouragement to their kids, that were in the maze. "Keep going straight!" "You can do it!" came out of their mouths. I knew what they were doing, and I told them that. The mom put her finger to her lips and said "Ssssh." The dad said, "they don’t know that" and pointed at the maze.

Smart people. And funny ones.

[  Mood: Silly ]
[ Currently: Getting ready to go to Thanksgiving Dinner ]
The boards and blogs are back!

And I am not pregnant!

Cause one of the last times a happened, b happened.

(And Canadian Thanksgiving is this weekend.)