Recent Reviews: Strahan, Williams and Brown

Let’s not mince words here. Engineering Infinity is one of the best science-fiction collections to hit bookshelves in years, marrying hard sci-fi and big ideas with a whirlwind of talent and innovation. From time travel to world-building to body modification, each story is a universe unto itself, as complete as it is fascinating.
The San Francisco Book Review, on Engineering Infinity

Yet again, I couldn’t stop reading and (yet again) I’m recommending a Conrad Williams book to you all...
Graeme's Fantasy Book Review, on Loss of Separation by Conrad Williams

Powered by imagination and executed with a loving eye for language, ‘Engineman’ is more than worthy of a place on your bookshelf. But that’s not all – this reprint includes the original novel plus eight extra short stories set in the same universe... all of which makes for a great bargain when the quality is as good as this.
Mass Movement Magazine reviews Eric Brown's Engineman

Survivors battling the odds - and cannibals - is as relentless as the sun beating down on its protagonists. ... devoid of Mad Max-esque cliches and features a didn't-see-it-coming ending that is wholly to Brown's credit.
Focus Magazine on Eric Brown's Guardians of the Phoenix

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Waterstones loves Solaris!

Our Account Manager Ben Smith went for a wander in London last Friday, and took these lovely snaps for us in Waterstones' flagship branch in Piccadilly.

A spaceship manned by humans crashlanding on an alien world is fairly unoriginal, but that world being linked to hundreds of others by a coil-shaped river-like sea is not. But is this a natural system or created? And if the latter, by whom?

A quote on the cover from Peter F. Hamilton? That's never a bad sign. ENGINEMAN is an old book getting a re-release, but even so Brown's knack of memorable characters is as prevalent as ever. A great, underpushed author.

They recommended two Eric Brown books - Helix and Engineman - and Rowena Cory Daniells's King Rolen's Kin trilogy.


One of the most well-received fantasy series of recent years. if you like shady goings-on, sibling rivalries, murder and wall-to-wall sword-based shenanigans start this series today.

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SciNow says 2011 could be the year of Eric Brown...

Newstand magazine SciFi Now has announced its SciFi Now Awards for 2010. Two Solaris authors have won first place in their categories!

Eric Brown wins the 'Olaf Stapledon Award For Most Under-Discussed Author'.


This seems like a good time to announce that both of the books mentioned, Guardians of the Phoenix and Engineman, which came out in print at the end of last year, are now available for purchase with an Amazon Kindle. Engineman buy US/buy UK, Guardians of the Phoenix buy US/buy UK.

Tim Akers, author of Heart of Veridon, wins the 'Rising Star Award'. SciFi Now writes 'we expect big things from him over the next few years.' Well, they're in luck, because Solaris will be releasing the sequel to Heart of Veridon this June, with Dead of Veridon...


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...

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Reviewspam!

Wotcher all!

Hope you've all enjoyed "Blue Portal," the free ebook sample chapter from Eric Brown's upcoming The Kings of Eternity (if not, go now and read).

And now, some reviewspam.


Alice Wybrew at Total Sci-Fi Online has posted a very warm review of Paul Kearney's Corvus, awarding 8/10:

"Kearney’s effective mix of carnage and gut-wrenching moments mean you’ll be thinking about Corvus long after you’ve finished it."

Keith Harvey at Hub Magazine also included a detailed and very respectful review (warning - PDF) of Corvus:

"Corvus is a jewel of a novel and easily meets the challenge of the very successful The Ten Thousand. It feels very much like a Gemmell novel but... harder, sharper, and tighter."

Patrick Mahon at SF Crow's Nest was very impressed by Eric Brown's Engineman:

"I thoroughly enjoyed Engineman. Like most of Brown’s stories, the SF plot and setting are used to explore the lives of a set of complex, three-dimensional characters."

So some good results, there. Glad to see.

David

Reviewspam, spam, spam, spam...

Wotcher!

Right, some reviewery.

Niall Alexander at the Speculative Scotsman simply loves the new edition of Eric Brown's Engineman:

Engineman is an elegy of addiction, at its core, a lyrical and indelibly persuasive fable of one man's hunger for something greater, something more. And it is that rare - not to mention precious - thing in science fiction: a cracking good story over and above an account of awesome future tech.

Liviu at the Fantasy Book Critic site is similarly effusive about Paul Kearney's Corvus:

A page turner that will keep you hooked until the end... we somehow want both sides to win. Corvus (A+) delivered what I expected of it with brio and reinforced the standing of Paul Kearney as a master of military fantasy.

Brian Sammons, of the Innsmouth Free Press, has offered up a review of Ellen Datlow's multiple-award-winning Poe as part of Poe Week:

Poe-heads rejoice! Poe is usually used as a starting-off point, a place to give some Poe flavor or theme, but then the stories usually go off on their merry way in a wide range of directions... consider this one highly recommended by me.

Schweeeet.

Please do go and read the reviews and give these kids your love.

Cheers,

David

Eric Brown Interview

Wotcher!

Well, it seems I totally should have held off linking to his awesome review.

Mark Chitty over at Walker of Worlds has now posted an interview with Solaris's own Eric Brown!

Check it out here.

Eric talks about Engineman, the upcoming Guardians of the Phoenix and The Kings of Eternity, his influences, and "being a Bob Shaw sort of writer."

Enjoy.

David

Yet More Reviewspam...

Wotcher,

Bit of an unscheduled Reviewspam update, since you only had one a day or so ago, but a bunch of new reviews have landed on my lap.

First off, Angus over at Fantasy Literature gives five stars to Paul Kearney's Hawkwood and the Kings.

"Kearney’s battle scenes are the best I have ever read in fantasy, or even empirical history, and that includes the likes of Steven Erikson and George R.R. Martin... I strongly recommend readers of good epic fantasy everywhere to buy The Monarchies of God, now."

Angus then goes on to give four and a half stars to the second half of the Monarchies of God series, Century of the Soldier.

"A familiar story about the human condition that is freshly executed... Kearney’s battles are vivid, intense, alive, brutal, and bloody... The political drama is quick, intelligent and exciting."

And then Mark Chitty over at Walker of Worlds gives Eric Brown's Engineman nine out of ten.

"All in all I would highly recommend Engineman - it's got great characters, great tech and a wonderful story that is nicely wrapped up at the end. It's also the sort of sci-fi that doesn't throw the science in your face and uses it as a background detail to tell the story rather than depending on it. Another favourite of mine!"

Many thanks,

David

Eric Brown's Engineman

This is the so-far unseen cover for Eric Brown's Engineman. I've just sent the novel to print today, and it should be out in shops in the US, Canada and the UK at the end of September.

Here's the blurb:-

Once the Enginemen pushed bigships through the cobalt glory of the nada-continuum. But faster than light isn’t fast enough anymore. The interfaces of the Keilor-Vincicoff Organisation bring planets light years distant a simple step away. Then a man with half a face offers ex-Engineman Ralph Mirren the chance to escape his ruined life and push a ship to an undisclosed destination. The nada-continuum holds the key to Ralph’s future. What he cannot anticipate is its universal importance – nor the mystery awaiting him on the distant colony world.
Engineman is a thrilling action adventure by the author of Helix and Kéthani. Also in this volume are nine stories set in the Engineman universe, including the Interzone award-winning ‘The Time-Lapsed Man.’

“Eric Brown is the name to watch in SF.”
Peter F. Hamilton

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