I’ve been very fortunate, over the years, to make the acquaintance of some wonderful authors.Their successes have astounded and inspired me, and lately they seem to be happening all at once. These are all the books that are out and those with release dates. I haven’t wanted to spam my facebook friends-list with post after post, so here they all are in one place, in no particular order, for your perusal! I am so excited for all of them! If any of these sound interesting, I encourage you to pick them up or place them on your want-to-read list on goodreads.
And don’t forget to leave reviews!
John Dixon – DISSIDENT, YA thriller, coming January 2014 Check your bookstores come January, and check your television. Not only is DISSIDENT being published by Simon & Schuster, but it’s been picked up by CBS under the name INTELLIGENCE. I’m not sure when the pilot is airing, but keep your eyeballs peeled! Josh Holloway (Sawyer from LOST) is starring as the lead. John is a member of our online Inkbots writing group (group blog coming soon!).
Laura Lam – PANTOMIME, YA fantasy, available now I picked up my copy last week and it is gorgeous. I love my ebooks, but the paper copy of this one was too pretty for me to resist. She’s been getting effusive reviews, including a comparison to Robin Hobb. If you like circuses, well-drawn characters with secrets, and beautiful writing, get thee to a bookstore or amazon! A negative review I saw of this book on amazon compared it to The Night Circus, which for me, is a selling point. Laura is also a member of Inkbots.
Caroline Hanson – Valerie Dearborn trilogy, paranormal romance, beginning with LOVE IS DARKNESS, all three available on now If you like your fiction incredibly steamy, then nab these. Fans of paranormal romance will find a lot to love between the pages of all three books—a sympathetic heroine, an irresistible anti-hero, and an interesting plot. I met Caroline through Stonehenge, a local writing group.
Dan Rix – ENTANGLEMENT, YA thriller, available now It’s a page-turner with an interesting premise: every person in this alternate reality (with hints of sci-fi) has a half, a person who carries the other half of their soul. Except the protagonist, Aaron. Keeps you guessing all the way up to the end. I met Dan at the San Francisco Writers’ Conference.
Sarah J. Maas – THRONE OF GLASS, YA fantasy, available now I began reading this book when it was up on fictionpress, waaay back in the day. I loved it so much that I did a painting of the main character. Check out the preceding novellas, available on amazon. Wonderful work, with an extremely compelling lead character. Celaena is an assassin with a heart of gold, but she’s also vain and impulsive. A re-telling of the Cinderella fairytale.
Olivia Rivers – FROST FIRE, YA fantasy, available now This young author is still in high school. I sometimes forget; she is so articulate and her writing such a smooth and easy read. Read a good book, do a good deed. Net proceeds go toward the Dysautonomia Youth Network of America, a charity that supports youth with medical conditions affecting the nervous system. I met Olivia through Stonehenge.
Wesley Chu – THE LIVES OF TAO (or pre-order here), Science-fiction, coming April 2013 I think the blurb sells the book better than I could:
When out-of-shape IT technician Roen woke up and started hearing voices in his head, he naturally assumed he was losing it.
He wasn’t.
He now has a passenger in his brain – an ancient alien life-form called Tao, whose race crash-landed on Earth before the first fish crawled out of the oceans. Now split into two opposing factions – the peace-loving, but under-represented Prophus, and the savage, powerful Genjix – the aliens have been in a state of civil war for centuries. Both sides are searching for a way off-planet, and the Genjix will sacrifice the entire human race, if that’s what it takes.
Meanwhile, Roen is having to train to be the ultimate secret agent. Like that’s going to end up well…
How can you NOT want to read this, right?? Aliens, spies, and a nerdy dude who has to save the world? Yes, please! Wes is also a member of Inkbots.
Steve Yeager – CHICKEN NUGGETS, Science-fiction/Post-apocalyptic, available now Pulpy raptor-slaying with a heart. Yes, you can have your blood and guts, and care about the characters dishing them out, too. When high-tech food production goes horribly, horribly wrong, a mass of raptor-like chickens are unleashed upon the world, eating everything (and everyone) in their path. I met Steve at Stonehenge.
Gabrielle Harbowy – Editor and Writer, lots of things, most recently WHEN THE VILLAIN COMES HOME Gabrielle edits a number of authors you may have heard of (Philippa Ballantine, anyone?), in addition to writing her own work. See the results of both in Dragon Moon Press’ anthologies – When the Hero Comes Home and When the Villain Comes Home. I loved both of them. There are some seriously good stories within (one of which is Gabrielle's!), perfect for a late night read. I met Gabrielle at the San Francisco Writers’ Conference.
Alex Shvartsman – Editor and Writer, lots of things, most recently UNIDENTIFIED FUNNY OBJECTS I’ve had the pleasure of critiquing some of Alex’s short pieces. In addition to writing, he pulled together and edited a star-studded humorous short-story anthology. Check it out on amazon. It received a positive review from Ms. Tilton at Locus (and this lady is a tough critic!). I met Alex through the AbsoluteWrite.com forums.
R. A. Gates – PUCKER UP, YA urban fantasy, available now I believe I mentioned this book before. A fun read with a magical road trip that goes hilariously awry. Pick up her short piece, The Tenth Life of Mr. Whiskers, to get a feel for her work. I met R.A. Gates through Stonehenge.
Lee Battersby – THE CORPSE-RAT KING, fantasy, available now If you want your fantasy fresh, new, and interesting, this is the book for you. First off – the title, OMG the title. This book doesn’t follow a young boy coming into his powers, or any grizzled veteran of war. The protagonist is Marius, a man who loots battlefields for a living. After a case of mistaken identity, the dead rope him into finding them a new King, or his life is forfeit. Lee Battersby is a member of Inkbots.
Lee Collins – DEAD OF WINTER, western/dark fantasy, available now A gritty alternate reality fantasy, set in Colorado. Cora and her husband are supernatural bounty hunters who are pulled into a mystery: what is killing the people in Leadville? Described as True Grit meets True Blood, and a delightful genre-blender. His follow-up, SHE RETURNS FROM WAR, was recently released. Lee Collins is a member of Inkbots.
Lauren Stewart – HYDE trilogy (urban fantasy) and NO EXPERIENCE REQUIRED (mystery), available now Okay, I semi-lied: the last book of HYDE isn’t out yet, but she’s working on it! Lauren writes in a couple different genres. Her Hyde trilogy is urban fantasy with a strong romantic element. Her main characters—Mitch and Eden—both suffer from the same ailment: they each have another personality that lives inside them, one that has preternatural strength and no impulse control. For lighter fare, pick up NO EXPERIENCE REQUIRED, a mystery with a snarky female protagonist who investigates a murder in order to clear her name. A real draw for me here was the fact that the protagonist grew up on a commune, and this informs her thoughts and actions. I met Lauren through Caroline.
Kody Kline - THE SARAITHAN RISING (fantasy) and POETIC TRASH (poetry), available now The Saraithan Rising is a novella in the vein of traditional high fantasy. This is the kind of stuff I grew up on. Kings, knights, magic, and cool critters. Betrayal and redemption. In addition to writing fantasy, Kody also writes poetry (allegedly - he debates the title of poet). His collection, Poetic Trash, was written when he was between the ages of 18-22. I met Kody at Stonehenge.
Karen Blakely - SECRETS IN THE DARK, Middle grade fantasy, available now Portal fiction! I loved this stuff when I was a kid. As stated by the main character, "In our town, people still talk about that time twelve years ago — the year we were born — as THE STRANGEST YEAR EVER. Yeah, like that. ALL CAPS. Turns out, only someone born that year can get through the secret doorway." Dun dun DUUUUN! Three kids trying to hide from bullies end up in a magical world--where saying the wrong thing can have interesting consequences. I met Karen at Stonehenge.
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Please let me know if I missed anyone, so I can add them to the list. I am notoriously scatterbrained; any omission was unintentional! Thanks!