Fantasy 07

File Updated: 29/01/2008

Tangled Web UK: New Fantasy Titles 07

Tricia Sullivan Sound Mind Pbk published January 2007 by Orbit at Ł7.99 ISBN: 1841494054

When Cassidy walker stumbles into the middle of the highway, bloodied and bruised, bard college in flames behind her, and manages to flag down a ride, she thinks the worst is over.
Arriving in the nearby town of red hook, Cassidy tries to call her parents but the phone lines are down. Later she will discover that no radio or television signals are being received. The town, it seems, is cut off from the rest of the world - no one can get in and no one can get out. But that’s not the strangest thing. Not by a long shot. Nobody in red hook has even heard of Bard College. Furthermore, they claim that Cassidy is not a music student, but a hand at the local stable. And she has lived in a house she can’t remember, with people she barely knows, for over a year.
The world is fracturing. Cassidy just knows it - just as she knows that she is responsible. As she undertakes the ultimate road trip, through bubbles of reality, Cassidy will find that everything she thinks she knows about herself is wrong. Is she losing her mind or is the world a far more complex place than she thought?
Cassidy walker is about to find the answers to all of her questions. And that’s when things really get crazy...
Praise for Maul and Double Vision
‘Intricate and beautifully written’ Guardian
'A terrific page-turner' Starburst
'Fiercely intelligent' SFX
About The Author
Tricia Sullivan was born in New jersey in 1968 and studied in the pioneering `Music Program Zero’ program at Bard College. She later received a Master’s in Education from Columbia University and taught in Manhattan and New jersey before moving to the UK in 1995. Her novel Dreaming in Smoke won the Arthur C Clarke award in 1998. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Steph Swainston The Modern World Published May 2007 by Gollancz at Ł14.99 ISBN: 0575070072
The endless war, led by the Emperor San and his circle of fifty immortals, against the giant insects that have threatened to overwhelm the Fourlands grinds on. A war for survival has become a numbing war of containment. Frost, the architect, has provided new hope with her grandiose plan to push the insects back behind a lake created by her massive dam on the oriole river, but its little more than a new level of stalemate.
Jant, the Emperor's winged messenger has more pressing concerns. Cyan, daughter of Lightning, the Emperor's Archer, has gone missing in the city of Hacilith. Lightning wants Jant to bring her back. Jant has rescued Cyan before but he knows better than anyone just how much trouble a teenager can get into in Hacilith's underworld. And he has an added problem. Cyan is now eighteen and if Jant so much as touches her Lightning will kill him. Will curiosity be the death of Jant?
So begins a hectic quest. A quest that will take Jant back to his past, back to the bizarre world of the Shift and, eventually, back to the Fourlands. Just as it faces a terrifying new threat.
Praise for Steph Swainston
`Thoughtful, exuberant, incredibly inventive, funny but never whimsical or mannered: a blistering debut, and honest-to-god unputdownable’ China Mieville
`Bristles up out of the fantasy flowerbed in sharp spined poisonously beautiful bloom. It has finely drawn characters, dialogue that crackles with humour and humanity, and a rich vein of imagery that veers with consummate ease between the wry baroque of Angela Carter and the austere weirdness of M John Harrison’ Richard Morgan
A great first novel, boldly imagined, coloured with impressive flourish. Essential reading for anyone who wants their imagination to soar’ Justina Robson
'Steph Swainston's writing is as elegantly superior to most other fantasy as a samurai sword is to a flint dagger' Richard Morgan

About The Author
Steph Swainston is 29 and comes from Bradford. She studied archaeology at Cambridge University and then worked as an archaeologist for three years, gaining an M.Phil. from the University of Wales.
She also worked as researcher in a company that develops herbal medicines. Her current job is in defence research. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Sheri S. Tepper The Margarets Pbk published January 2008 by Gollancz at Ł12.99 ISBN: 0575080469

The myriad alien civilisations populating far, far distant worlds have many good reasons to detest the blight called ‘humankind’...

Margaret Bain is the only child on Phobos, a human colony working on a doomed project to transform Mars into a garden planet. To keep away the suffocating demons of loneliness and boredom, she invents imaginary companions, her own alter egos - a queen, a spy, a tough boy, a healer’. . .
When the Phobos project is shut down, Margaret is forced to return to Earth with her parents, but mankind’s birthplace is impoverished, reduced to trading the only viable product the planet has left to offer: human slaves. Now no longer a little girl, Margaret’s imaginary friends are lost to her, but in this harsh new world she is forced to make some hard choices, and each life changing choice results in a different Margaret spinning off her imaginary selves are refining their own personae, acquiring their own histories, living their own lives.
And as the Margarets scatter off across the universe, unaware of their other selves, each has to struggle to survive by her (or his) wits - until the discovery of a threat to Earth and to the whole of humanity. It’s time for the Margarets to return home, for the survival of the human race depends on them ... all of them.
‘Tepper has lodged firmly upon the pinnacle of excellence’ Kirkus
‘Her novels are the old-fashioned kind, despite their futuristic settings that wrap you up in their embrace, that take over your life, that make the world disappear’ Village Voice
About The Author
Sheri Stewart Tepper is the highly acclaimed author of more than twenty novels. She was born in Colorado, where she lived until recently. She worked for many years for various non-profit-making organizations, and was a writer of children's stories. She sold her first adult novel in 1982. As well as science fiction and fantasy novels, Sheri Tepper has written crime and horror novels under her own name and various pseudonyms. She now lives in New Mexico. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Elizabeth Vaughan Warsworn Published July 2007 by Gollancz at Ł9.99 ISBN: 0575079630
A true Warprize brings new ways of thinking, of doing things, making the people stronger, better. You cannot fake a true Warprize, nor pick one, nor force one. A Warprize is a benediction from the elements themselves, even for the upheaval that they bring.
Lara is the Warprize. Now queen of Xy, she has given up her comfortable life to be with her Warlord, Keir, hoping to bring together her own people, the civilized city-dwellers of Xy, and the barbarian Firelanders. But though there are those who see her as a gift, there are enemies who would see her - and her Warlord - dead.
When plague sweeps through the Firelanders’ encampment, some call it punishment from the gods, while others view it as a means to an end, for Keir is one of those struck down. A challenge to his leadership while he is weakened means more than just loss of position, for if he loses, Keir dies - and so does Lara.
‘Everyone has thanked me for mentioning Warprize which I think is possible the best romantic fantasy I have ever read. I loved the sequel, Warsworn, nearly as much as it showed the strength of your ability to write a fascinating, engrossing story with strong characters as well as a good message. Continue please to enthrall me with your story-telling.’ Anne McCaffrey
`Warprize is simply mesmerising. The story is told flawlessly ... Keir is a breathtaking hero; you will never look at a warlord the same way again’ ParaNormal Romance Reviews

About The Author
Elizabeth Vaughan has always loved fantasy and science fiction. By day, her secret identity is that of a bankruptcy and financial lawyer. She is owned by four cats, and lives in the Northwest Territory, on the outskirts of the Black Swamp, along Mad Anthony’s Trail on the banks of the Maumee River. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Elizabeth Vaughan Warprize Published February 2007 by Gollancz at Ł9.99 ISBN: 0575079622
She sacrificed herself to stop a war and save her people, and now she is the…
Warprize
Xylara is a Daughter of Xy, brought up to do her duty to her country, her king and her people. Lara's father, the Warrior King Xyron, is dead and her incompetent half-brother Xymund is on the throne; she has chosen to serve her people as a healer, until she is needed to make a marriage of alliance.
But the once-great kingdom of Xy is falling to the Warlord and his barbarian Firelanders, and Lara's brother Xymund is forced to surrender. The terms are fair: the kingdom will remain under Xymund's control, and the taxes and tithes are reasonable. All prisoners and wounded are to be exchanged unharmed.
There is just one thing more: to ensure a true peace - no pillaging, no looting, no rapine - the Warlord has claimed tribute.
He claims Xylara, Daughter of Xy, to be his Warprize
‘The most enthralling book I’ve read all year’ All About Romance
‘Ms Vaughan has written a wonderful fantasy introducing two memorable characters. The story is well-written and fast paced. Run to the bookstore and pick up this debut novel by Elizabeth Vaughan. You won’t be disappointed’ A Romance Review
‘The dramatic tension is riveting and the emotional stakes are high’ Romantic Times
‘I loved Warprize! Keir is a hero to savour, and Elizabeth Vaughan is an author to watch’ Claire Delacroix
‘Vaughan’s brawny barbarian romance re-creates the delicious feeling of adventure and the thrill of exploring mysterious cultures created by Robert E Howard in his Conan books’ Booklist

About The Author
Elizabeth Vaughan has always loved fantasy and science fiction. By day, her secret identity is that of a bankruptcy and financial lawyer. She is owned by four cats, and lives in the Northwest Territory, on the outskirts of the Black Swamp, along Mad Anthony’s Trail on the banks of the Maumee River. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Elizabeth Vaughan Warprize Pbk published July 2007 by Gollancz at Ł6.99 ISBN: 0575080302

She sacrificed herself to stop a war and save her people, and now she is the…
Warprize
Xylara is a Daughter of Xy, brought up to do her duty to her country, her king and her people. Lara's father, the Warrior King Xyron, is dead and her incompetent half-brother Xymund is on the throne; she has chosen to serve her people as a healer, until she is needed to make a marriage of alliance.
But the once-great kingdom of Xy is falling to the Warlord and his barbarian Firelanders, and Lara's brother Xymund is forced to surrender. The terms are fair: the kingdom will remain under Xymund's control, and the taxes and tithes are reasonable. All prisoners and wounded are to be exchanged unharmed.
There is just one thing more: to ensure a true peace - no pillaging, no looting, no rapine - the Warlord has claimed tribute.
He claims Xylara, Daughter of Xy, to be his Warprize
‘The most enthralling book I’ve read all year’ All About Romance
‘Ms Vaughan has written a wonderful fantasy introducing two memorable characters. The story is well-written and fast paced. Run to the bookstore and pick up this debut novel by Elizabeth Vaughan. You won’t be disappointed’ A Romance Review
‘The dramatic tension is riveting and the emotional stakes are high’ Romantic Times
‘I loved Warprize! Keir is a hero to savour, and Elizabeth Vaughan is an author to watch’ Claire Delacroix
‘Vaughan’s brawny barbarian romance re-creates the delicious feeling of adventure and the thrill of exploring mysterious cultures created by Robert E Howard in his Conan books’ Booklist
About The Author
Elizabeth Vaughan has always loved fantasy and science fiction. By day, her secret identity is that of a bankruptcy and financial lawyer. She is owned by four cats, and lives in the Northwest Territory, on the outskirts of the Black Swamp, along Mad Anthony’s Trail on the banks of the Maumee River. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Gene Wolfe Severian of the Guild Pbk published October 2007 by Gollancz at Ł14.99 ISBN: 0575081309

Severian of the Guild contains all four novels that make up The Book Of The New Sun: an extraordinary epic that has been voted, with The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, one of the greatest fantasies of all time.
Severian is a lowly apprentice torturer, blessed and cursed with a photographic memory, who finds himself exiled from his guild after falling in love with one of his victims. Armed with his ancient executioner’s sword, Terminus Est, he travels through the marvels of far-far-future Urth towards the distant city of Thrax. Gene Wolfe is a master storyteller, and in Severian of the Guild he has woven together all the classic ingredients - growing up, adventure, sex, betrayal, murder, exile, battle, monsters, and mysteries to be solved - to create a wondrous tapestry, a masterpiece that will live with you for ever.
‘Gene Wolfe is the smartest, most dangerous writer alive today’ Neil Gaiman
‘One of the great science-fantasy epics of all time’ George R.R. Martin
Outstanding . . . A major work of twentieth-century American literature’ The New York Times Book Review
‘Wonderfully vivid and inventive ... the most extraordinary hero in the history of the heroic epic’ Washington Post Book World
‘Almost heartbreakingly good, full of riches and subtleties that improve with each rereading. It is Gene Wolfe’s masterpiece’ David Langford
‘Magic stuff... a masterpiece’ Ursula Le Guin
About The Author
Gene Wolfe was born in 1931 in New York but raised in Texas. He Served in the Korean War and afterwards studied mechanical engineering. Apart from The Fifth Head of Cerberus, his major work is the four-volume Book of the New Sun. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction describes him as 'quite possible the most important author in the SF field today'.
In 1972 Gene Wolfe became editor of an engineering periodical. His first story ('The Dead Man') appeared in 1965, after he had already been writing for some time. During the 60s and the 70s Wolfe wrote a large number of short stories, many of which were published in Damon Knight's Orbit anthologies. In 1973 'The Death of Doctor Island', part of a quartet of stories later collected as The Wolfe Archipelago in 1983, won a Nebula award. His first novel (Operation Ares) was published in 1970, but was heavily cut by the publisher. His second novel was The Fifth Head of Cerberus, published in 1972. In 1980, he started to publish a long sequence of novels called The Book of The New Sun, beginning with The Shadow of the Torturer (1980). The final book in the sequence was The Citadel of the Autarch (1983), although there followed a sequel in 1987 (The Urth of the New Sun). Of these books, The Shadow of the Torturer won a World Fantasy Award and The Claw of the Conciliator (1981) won a Nebula. He wrote several more novels before starting on a new sequence in 1993 called The Book of The Long Sun. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Gene Wolfe The Wizard Pbk published December 2007 by Gollancz at Ł7.99 ISBN: 0575080256

About The Author
Gene Wolfe was born in 1931 in New York but raised in Texas. He Served in the Korean War and afterwards studied mechanical engineering. Apart from The Fifth Head of Cerberus, his major work is the four-volume Book of the New Sun. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction describes him as 'quite possible the most important author in the SF field today'.
In 1972 Gene Wolfe became editor of an engineering periodical. His first story ('The Dead Man') appeared in 1965, after he had already been writing for some time. During the 60s and the 70s Wolfe wrote a large number of short stories, many of which were published in Damon Knight's Orbit anthologies. In 1973 'The Death of Doctor Island', part of a quartet of stories later collected as The Wolfe Archipelago in 1983, won a Nebula award. His first novel (Operation Ares) was published in 1970, but was heavily cut by the publisher. His second novel was The Fifth Head of Cerberus, published in 1972. In 1980, he started to publish a long sequence of novels called The Book of The New Sun, beginning with The Shadow of the Torturer (1980). The final book in the sequence was The Citadel of the Autarch (1983), although there followed a sequel in 1987 (The Urth of the New Sun). Of these books, The Shadow of the Torturer won a World Fantasy Award and The Claw of the Conciliator (1981) won a Nebula. He wrote several more novels before starting on a new sequence in 1993 called The Book of The Long Sun. Thousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online

Chris Wooding The Fade Pbk published October 2007 by Gollancz at Ł10.99 ISBN: 0575076992

A subterranean world of vast caverns, underground seas, crystalline forests. A civilisation born of darkness, living in darkness, protected by shadows. A city of merchants, whose eyes have turned upward to the surface, where the lethal light of day beats down. A vast conspiracy at the heart of it all.
The World is at War
Deep in enemy territory a captive languishes in an inescapable prison. A skilled assassin, a thief, a spy; highly intelligent, exceptionally dangerous and dangerously obsessed. And in possession of information that could shake their civilization to its core.
Information which may be the only hope of preventing the disaster to come.
Information that fuels a very personal passion for revenge.
The Fade is a stunning ly original fantasy from a multi-award winning author. With a beautiful baroque world, a gripping plot and Chris Wooding’s trademark insight into the genre, The Fade is like nothing you’ve ever read before.
Reviews for The Braided Path
‘Will surprise, delight and horrify. A pleasure to read’ John Berlyne, SFREVU
‘Fantasy in a unique setting. Enjoyable and yes, very original’ SFSITE
‘Entertainment and energy in equal measures. A luxurious blend of oriental and occidental adventure with a double dose of intrigue’ SFXThousands of New and used Books at your Fingertips...
Support Tangled Web - Buy Your Books Online