More Androids with a Dash of Grandmother

iD
Madelaine Ashby
Angry Robot Books
UK Print
Date: 4th July 2013
ISBN: 9780857663108
Format: Medium (B-Format) Paperback
R.R.P.: £8.99
US/CAN Print
Date: 25th June 2013
ISBN: 9780857663115
Format: Large (Trade) Paperback
R.R.P.: US$14.99 CAN$16.99
Ebook
Date: 25th June 2013
ISBN: 9780857663122
Format: Epub & Mobi
R.R.P.: £5.49 / US$6.99

I reviewed the initial novel in this series, vN, last year and was quite impressed by it.  It held my interest when I wasn't able to read it for days at a time.  As a result, I was looking forward to the sequel.

Unfortunately (for me, at least), the sequel didn't live up to its predecessor.  Part of that is because the viewpoint character in this one is Javier rather than Amy.  Javier doesn't interest me as much as Amy and her grandmother Portia do. Portia isn't dead, BTW.

The Android That Ate its Grandmother

vN
Madeline Ashby
Angry Robot Books
448pp trade paperback
$12.99 US $14.99 CAN
448pp B-format paperback
£8.99 UK
ebook $4.89 Kindle $6.01 Nook

This book took me over two weeks to read, but please don't take that as a negative comment on the book.  It's actually a high compliment.  Life was happening at the time, and the fact that the book could hold my attention when I wasn't able to read it for literally days at a time speaks highly of the author's ability to tell a compelling story.

Normally, I don't get excited about the whole androids who act like humans subgenre, partly because I got enough of it with ST:TNG and Commander Data.   I like Data, but the whole trope gets old after a while.

Fortunately something I read in a blurb by Joe Lansdale on a novel by Christopher Golden years ago is true:  There are no boring genres, only boring writers.  Madeline Ashby is not a boring writer, and vN is anything but a boring book.  This one surprised me several times by the direction it took.

A Review of Night's Engines by Trent Jamieson

Night's Engines
Trent Jamieson
Angry Robot Books
US/CAN
29 May 2012
416pp mass-market paperback
$7.99 US $8.99 CAN
eBook
29 May 2012
£4.49

UK/RoW
7 Jun 2012
384pp B-format paperback
£7.99 UK

This book won't be released for another week here in the States, and later in other parts of the world, so if you haven't read Roil yet (reviewed here), don't worry.  You still have time before the conclusion of The Nightbound Land duology hits the shelves.

This is a science fiction novel that reads like fantasy, but a careful reading of either book shows it's clearly science fiction (or at least science fantasy), which is why I'm reviewing it here rather than at Adventures Fantastic.  It's different than most anything I've seen lately, further proof of my conclusion that Angry Robot is one of the publishers you should be reading.

Night's Engines is old fashioned adventure, the kind we don't see enough of these days.   One of the advantages of being in the Robot Army is getting to read some of the most exciting new science fiction and fantasy before anyone else does.  And while not every title I've previewed has worked for me, most of them have.  This series certainly does.

Angry Robot Announces New Authors

The following is a press release from Angry Robot Books:

** ANGRY ROBOT SIGNS TWO NEW "OPEN DOOR MONTH" AUTHORS **

Like most successful publishers, Angry Robot generally only accepts submissions through literary agencies. Earlier this year, however, the company ran a pilot programme to see how many unpublished - but talented - authors there were without representation. During March, Angry Robot invited all un-agented authors to submit completed manuscripts as part of an "Open Door Month". Over 990 novels were submitted during that period.

Today, Angry Robot are delighted to announce the first acquisitions from the first Open Door Month. Two new authors, each with a minimum two book deal, have now joined the Angry Robot family.

Cassandra Rose Clarke was the first signing to come through this process. Her two novels for Angry Robot show the versatility of this important new talent.

'The Mad Scientist's Daughter' is the heartbreaking story of the journey from childhood to adulthood, with an intriguing science fictional twist. And 'The Assassin's Curse' is a fantastical romp, starring Ananna, a no-nonsense lady pirate, born into pirate royalty.

Clarke said: "I'm beyond excited to have Angry Robot publishing my first-ever novel, and not only because of the delightful coincidence that my novel involves a robot who is, on occasion, angry. Angry Robot's reputation is stellar and their author list incredibly impressive - I'm humbled to be included amongst their ranks!"

We take a somewhat darker turn with a pair of books from Lee Collins - 'The Dead of Winter' and 'She Returns From War'. Both novels follow Cora Oglesby, a bounty hunter with a reputation for working supernatural cases.

Collins said: "As excited as I am at the prospect of rubbing shoulders with Angry Robot's outstanding authors, publication was really a secondary goal of my submitting to them. My primary reason was the hope, however slim, of cybernetic augmentation."

Both deals were negotiated by Angry Robot's editor, Lee Harris, who stated: "There is an enormous amount of talent out there, waiting to be discovered, and I am thrilled we have found two great new talents as part of our search."

Both authors' debut novels will be published by Angry Robot in autumn 2012, with their second books scheduled for spring 2013.

Following the success of the project, Angry Robot expects to run a similar Open Door period in spring 2013, details of which are to be confirmed at a later date.


Ok, that's the end of the press release.  Further details and author photos can be found on the Angry Robot website.  Advanced reading copies of  The Mad Scientist's Daughter and The Dead of Winter will be available at some point.  I'll download them and post the reviews, here for the former and at Adventures Fantastic for the latter.  Angry Robot is one of the more innovative publishers out there.  I'm eager to see what new authors they've discovered.

A Roiling Adventure

Roil
Trent Jamieson
Angry Robot Books
$7.99, 432 p. mass market paperback
$5.99 ebook

The publisher's website classifies this one as fantasy, but I'm going to pick nits and call it science fiction (which is why I'm reviewing it here rather than over on Adventures Fantastic), or as a compromise, science fantasy.  Unless I misread something, this one takes place on another planet thousands of years in the future, after at least one civilization's global collapse.  In other words, Roil is science fiction that reads like fantasy.

I've never read William Hope Hodgson's The Night Land, but from what I've read about it, I suspect there are similarities between that work and this one.  The subtitle of the book, or rather the title of the series, is The Nightbound Land, after all.   In addition, Roil has elements of steam punk with a dash of pulp adventure thrown in.  There are airships, but they're organic, living things.  There are examples of advanced technology in a milieu of Victorian era science.  There's a man who is at least one thousand years old.  There are strange races that are only partly human.  And a cast of Dickensian characters.  If any of these appeal to you, then you should check this book out.