A Quick Top 6 of 2012 So Far

A nod of the hat to Jared of Pornokitsch for reminding me that yes, we're halfway through the year. My answer to the question is always the same. It depends on what flavor you're after. These are my top six of the moment in no particular order:

Angelmaker by Nick Harkaway - A gonzo pulp cold war thriller fest with crazy contraptions.
The Croning by Laird Barron - As perfect of a Horror story that I've ever read.
Faith by John Love - Imagine the crew of the Enterprise only they're all a bit off their rocker while battling a mysterious ship.
Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed - Sword and Sorcery done right. Great characters and action.
Prepare to Die by Paul Tobin - A superhero novel that reminded me of a cross between Nick Hornby and Alan Moore.
The Coldest War by Ian Tregillis - The perfect middle volume in a genre bending trilogy. He used what was setup in the first so well. The wait was worth it. Nazi Supermen versus Dark Elder Gods indeed.

And yes, I'm just now realizing 3 of the top 6 are Night Shade titles as well as 4 being debuts, but I do tend to be a debut heavy reader. Wells's The Serpent Sea was another top book in addition to Kiernan's The Drowning Girl. Also, I'm almost halfway through with Black Bottle by Anthony Huso, the sequel to one of my favorite books of 2010, The Last Page. As of this moment I'm not sure if it would have made this list as there are plenty of pieces left to fall into place.

In the camp of best books I've read this year published prior to 2012 I'm still blowing the horn for Watts's Blindsight and Andre Norton's Forerunner. In the short story camp Loory's Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day as well as Ligotti's Noctuary are the bee's knees.

Some of my most anticipated books left for the year include The Broken Isles by Mark Charan Newton (another series closer), The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (already have a copy), A Red Country by Joe Abercrombie (on pre-order), The Fractal Prince by Hannu Rajaniemi, The Inexplicables by Cherie Priest, and The Siren Depths by Martha Wells. Still plenty of time for some surprises as well.

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UK Cover Unveiled for Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis

It was announced some months ago that Ian Tregillis' series The Milkweed Triptych would be released in the UK through Orbit. At first Bitter Seeds, the first volume, was scheduled for the end of the year, but got moved up to this July and the sequel The Coldest War will be coming in February. Orbit has opted to go with a totally new look instead of the ones given by Tor US. While I still love the Palencar version for Bitter Seeds best this design works a bit better then the Chris McGrath designs coming out shortly. This definitely give off a cool, dark vibe that meshes with the series thus far. Oh, and for those who would like to see what the Palencar cover for The Coldest War would have looked like check this out. Some very good stories go along with that image now that aren't related to Milkweed in the slightest.

I recently received a galley of The Coldest War that I'll be dipping into quite soon as I've waiting 2 years for it. It officially will be out in July around the same time the UK gets Bitter Seeds. If alt-history, crazy science, and dark gods are your thing you couldn't do any better then checking this series out.

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New US Covers Unveiled for Ian's Tregillis' The Coldest War & Bitter Seeds

Covers Unveiled for Ian's Tregillis' The Coldest War & Bitter Seeds

Ian Tregillis' debut Bitter Seeds garnered quite a bit of praise when it was released last year quickly making him a new voice in Alternative History Fiction melding dark forces, strange science, and the events of WWII into a gripping narrative.  It was only a few months ago that it was unclear what was happening with Ian Tregillis' Milkweed Triptych as there was no sight of the sequel The Coldest War. Word soon came that they landed with a new editor and a new cover approach would happen for the mass market release of Bitter Seeds to match the change in direction for The Coldest War in hopes of striking a different cord and widening the audience. Now feast your eyes on the new cover for Bitter Seeds.

The artist chosen for the new look is none other than Chis McGrath, who has been the fix-it man for Tor the past couple years coming in for the new look behind Ken Scholes' The Psalms of Isaak series as well. And here is the first look for The Coldest War.

Both designs are quite eye catching showcasing the action aspects of the series with The Coldest War particularly grabbing me with its Military Sci-Fi flare. And best of all I don't feel like I've seen these Chris McGrath pieces as I have with some of his other work.

The mass market of Bitter Seeds will hit shelves next year sometime in early May. No official date has been released for The Coldest War, but Tor's traditional schedule calls for a new series hardcover to follow a mass market release by a month or two, so hopefully we'll be seeing it in June or July.

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MISHMASH | Lev Grossman & Cherie Priest Sequel News, & Tregillis Free Fiction

It is that time of year when lots of dates are slowly released for Fall books with the first being a late summer release I've been looking for info on nearly weekly.  Lev Grossman's hotly anticipated sequel to The Magicians titled The Magician King has a semi official publication date of August 9th.  After the way Grossman turned Fantasy on its ear with The Magicians this is at the top of my summer read list. Here is the blurb for The Magician King.

Hailed as a “painfully perceptive novel of the fantastic that brings to mind both Jay McInerney and J. K. Rowling,”* The Magicians was praised as a triumph by readers and critics of both mainstream and fantasy literature. Now Grossman takes us back to Fillory, where the Brakebills graduates have fled the sorrows of the mundane world, only to face terrifying new challenges.

Quentin and his friends are now the kings and queens of Fillory, but the days and nights of royal luxury are starting to pall. After a morning hunt takes a sinister turn, Quentin and his old friend Julia charter a magical sailing ship and set out on an errand to the wild outer reaches of their kingdom. Their pleasure cruise becomes an adventure when the two are unceremoniously dumped back into the last place Quentin ever wants to see: his parent’s house in Chesterton, Massachusetts. And only the black, twisted magic that Julia learned on the streets can save them.

The Magician King is a grand voyage into the dark, glittering heart of magic, an epic quest for the Harry Potter generation. It also introduces a powerful new voice, that of Julia, whose angry genius is thrilling. Once again Grossman proves that he is the modern heir to C.S. Lewis, and the cutting edge of literary fantasy.

Ian Tregillis has posted two free short stories to his site. The first is called "Chronicle of Sorrows" is placed in the world of the Milkweed Triptych and specifically connected to the event so of "What Doctor Gottlieb Saw" that was released last summer. The other is a standalone called "Come Dancefight, My Beloved Enemy." If you haven't had a chance to check out Ian's debut Bitter Seeds than his short fiction is well worth your time.

Cherie Priest's third full length Clockwork Century novel Ganymede will be out September 27th. This time around we get to explore New Orleans with Andan Cly!

The air pirate Andan Cly is going straight. Well, straighter. Although he’s happy to run alcohol and guns wherever the money’s good, he’s not sure the world needs more sap, or its increasingly ugly side effects. But reforming is easier said than done: the captain’s first legal gig will be paid for by sap money, because the Seattle Underground is in dire need of supplies.

New Orleans is not Cly’s first pick for a shopping run. He loved the Big Easy once, back when he likewise loved a beautiful mixed-race prostitute named Josephine Early, but that was a decade ago. He’s still on Jo’s mind, he learns when she sends him a telegram about a peculiar piloting job. It’s a chance to complete two lucrative jobs at once. He sends his old paramour a note and heads for New Orleansl, with no idea of what he’s in for—or what she wants him to fly.

But he won’t be flying. Not exactly. Hidden at the bottom of Lake Pontchartrain lurks an astonishing war machine, an immense submersible called the Ganymede. This prototype could end the war, if only anyone had the faintest idea of how to operate it….if only they could sneak it past the Southern forces at the mouth of the Mississippi River….if only it hadn’t killed most of the men who’d ever set foot inside it.

Now the only question is whether Cly and his crew will end up in the history books, or at the bottom of the ocean.

Lastly, but certainly not least, do check out Genre For Japan, which is a series of auctions for various books, signed artwork, comics, and plenty of other surprises from many different publishers. The auctions are do to go live by the 28th of March and they are still accepting donations.

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NEWS | Update on Ian Tregillis' Milkweed Triptych Delays

Last week I was trolling around a few author blogs to see if there were any updates about some series books where news has been fairly mute lately. This included stopping by Ian Tregillis' blog as I'm eager to see where things go after the events of Bitter Seeds. I noticed a comment about the second book in the Milkweed Triptych, The Coldest War, would not be coming out in 2011 as previously announced. Ian promised to do a complete blog post explaining the situation and the new publication schedule. Yesterday he came through with a very heartfelt post going into quite a bit of detail about the ups and considerable downs surround his books and publishing at-large.

So I'll cut to the chase: My publisher has delayed—yet again—the publication dates for the mass market paperback of Bitter Seeds, as well as for the hardcover of Milkweed #2, The Coldest War. This means that contrary to my last announcement (which came on the heels of a face-to-face meeting with my editor), Coldest War will NOT debut in October 2011.

Firstly, for those wondering none of the delays are Ian's fault in any way.  He turned the manuscript for The Coldest War in a bit early where it has languished on his editor's desk for more than a year and a half. He has also turned in the third and final book in the series Necessary Evil as well during this time, which was required by contract. All of this was done without any editorial notes or feedback of any kind.

OK. So what happened? And why will more than 2 years pass between the publication of Bitter Seeds and its sequel, The Coldest War?

First and foremost, nobody wanted things to turn out this way. My editor didn't, my publisher didn't, my agent didn't, and I sure as hell didn't. And yet...

Ian than goes on explaining each and every stumble he faced including 3 massive delays in the publication time table.  The whole post is well worth reading even if you haven't read Bitter Seeds as a cautionary tale of what could happen.  But Ian says there is hope in sight with a change in his editor and a new publication date for the mass market version of Bitter Seeds and for the hardcover of The Coldest War as well as new cover designs for the series.

The Milkweed books have moved to a different editor. (They're staying at Tor, so this is purely an in-house move.) The move has the blessing of all invested parties: me, my agent, my previous editor, and my new current editor. It wasn't undertaken out of spite or anger. The sole purpose of this 100% amicable move, as agreed upon by everybody involved, is to try to put the Milkweed books back on a reliable publishing track.

.... In less than two weeks, she had already read the published version of Bitter Seeds, as well as the 20-month-old manuscript for Coldest War, and was a few chapters into Necessary Evil. And she even plans to go back and reread Coldest War again before consolidating her notes on the book! I've been told to expect an editorial letter by the end of this month. Best of all, we had a broad-strokes discussion of her analysis, only to discover that we're very much on the same wavelength.

In the comment thread for the blog post linked up above, I said that the tentative schedule for the hardcover/ebook release of The Coldest War is summer 2012 (again following a month after the mmpb of Bitter Seeds). I have reason to believe that this time there will actually be an effort to make that stick. But I'm not making any official announcements for at least a little while.

So there is strong hope in site. Hopefully this situation doesn't sour Ian too much on publishing as I'm sure he has plenty of other books in his future. Check over Tregillis blog for the complete story.

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FREE FICTION | Ian Tregillis's What Doctor Gottlieb Saw

One of the very best debuts this year is Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis. What you haven't bought it yet because you were waffling despite my high praise and that of many, many, others? Well now you can get a taste of this world in a short story set there with "What Doctor Gottlieb Saw." The story focuses on oracle Gretel and her Psychoanalyst, which gives you a little bit deeper of an understanding of the working of Gretel's mind and about a death mentioned in Bitter Seeds that happened before the events of the book. Now we get to fill-in that gab, which is always a nice bonus for those who have read the book. However, the story more than stands on its own and introduces you to the world and some of the main characters well.

"What Doctor Gottlieb Saw" is available from Tor.com on site or in a variety of download formats and definitely delivers the same level of reading pleasure that Bitter Seeds did so well. Tor.com has consistently been publishing some wonderful short fiction so if you haven't visited recently drop on by.


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REVIEW | Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregillis (Tor)

The year is 1939 and World War II is upon us. The Nazi have raised their own team of elite battery-powered X-Men through scientific means called the Gotterelektrongruppe. The British have access to dark, blood thirsty demons. Both sides make undeniably hard decisions in the effort to thwart the other.

Bitter Seeds begins when many of the main players are children and where we see how events of the past entwine their future for the rest of the narrative. The British dark magicians pass on their knowledge to their children for some very interesting reasons. The subject matter involving Nazis may turn some people off, but Tregillis handles delicate matters deftly and does not at all show support or in any way condone what they did. In fact he has clearly made the group at large the bad guys while molding some of the Nazis into deep and complex characters. And he has developed a great mad scientist that rivals Dr. Moreau. Both sides stoop to some very evil yet justifiable depths, but when doesn't that happen in real war? Harsh times call for harsh decisions.

Ian Tregillis has arrived and what a bright and promising voice he has brought to bear. Bitter Seeds is an extraordinarily original work of fiction that blends ideas of Alternative History, Fantasy, and Science Fiction seamlessly yet denies being labeled specifically as one type. No matter how you approach it though it wins on each count.

The view point switches between various characters but mostly settles on Klaus for the Gotterelektrongruppe who can walk-through walls and spymaster Raybould Marsh for Milkweed, which is a covert group in Britain. Marsh is kind of the Jason Bourne of the book as you follow his missions into enemy territory.  Both Marsh and Klaus show unbelievable strength as characters to endure. Tregillis has a knack for knowing when to switch view points. Just when you want to long to see what's going on in the other camp he delivers. Other standout characters are William Beauclerk whose makes pacts with demons he hardly understands and Gretel, Klaus's sister, who is as mysterious as any seer of the future ought to be. Gretel is a very central character as she shapes future events, but to what end is still unknown.

The swiftly moving Bitter Seeds is a debut from a new and powerful voice in speculative fiction that I hope stays around for years to come. If you are a fan of dark comics or alternative histories Bitter Seeds would be well worth your time as we see a masterful mix of mad science versus the dark arts unlike any other. I give Bitter Seeds 9 out of 10 hats.  Bitter Seeds is the best debut so far this year and I can't see leaving it off my year end best of list. I suspect it will be on many others as well. 

Tregillis has caught me as much with his originality this year as much as Jesse Bullington and Ken Scholes did last year. Bitter Seeds is the first in a trilogy, but it more than stands on its own. However, you are left with greater implications on the world stage as events lead into Tregillis's version of the Cold War. The second in the Milkweed Triptych, The Coldest War will be released in February 2011.  Tregillis is also part of the Wild Cards consortium helmed by George R.R. Martin with stories in the three latest volumes.


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INTERVIEW | Ian Tregillis author of Bitter Seeds

Ian Tregillis is a debut novelist, scientist, screenwriter, man of leisure, and best of all mammal. His alternative history trilogy, The Milkweed Triptych, which starts with Bitter Seeds has just recently been released from Tor Books. His work has also appeared in the latest volumes of George R.R. Martin's Wild Cards.

MH: Firstly, thanks for agreeing to this interview. Secondly, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? I know you've been involved in GRRM's Wild Cards consortium for a few years now.

IAN: You're welcome. Thanks for interviewing me.

I'm originally from Minnesota. I grew up in the Twin Cities, and attended the University of Minnesota for both college and grad school. But then the lure of gainful employment lured me to New Mexico. A few years later, after a long sequence of events where I was at just the right place at just the right time, I fell in with an amazing collection of professional science fiction writers. I'm still somewhat amazed that they took me in.

A while after I joined up with the local writers, George Martin and Melinda Snodgrass were looking for new writers to join the Wild Cards consortium, in preparation for a relaunch of the series. Melinda and Daniel Abraham convinced George to take a chance on me.

And I've been chained in the hold of his dirigible ever since.

MH: How would you describe Bitter Seeds to new readers?

IAN: It's a fantasy alternative history of World War II, with superpowers, warlocks, spies, demons, and explosions. It's about the human costs of war, both in battle and behind the scenes. (Sometimes I say "superheroes" instead of "superpowers", but I looked ahead to your next question and cheated.) My friend Daniel Abraham calls it an adventure story with magic and spectacle. I jokingly refer to it as, "Watchmen meets Inglorious Basterds."

MH: Bitter Seeds centers around your version of the World War II or more specifically the conflicts between Nazi Germany and Britain. Did you ever worry that creating a story involving Nazi Superhero like people would be seen in a bad light?

IAN: Good question. The last thing I'd ever want is for people to think that Bitter Seeds is intended, in any way, as a glorification of the Third Reich. I tried to make it clear that although the war described in Bitter Seeds isn't the war we know from history books, the background of the fictional world is our world. So the German soldiers in Bitter Seeds serve the same twisted ideology they did in the real world. That hasn't changed.

The project that creates the "supers" in my book is modeled on gruesome human experimentation that really took place. If the book is dark in places, that's because it's skirting the edges of real history. That said, "superhero" is a convenient shorthand to describe some of the characters in the novel--one I use myself, frequently--but it's actually somewhat misleading. What we really mean is that these characters have unnatural abilities. "Superhero" connotes a dogooder, but none of the characters fit that description. Likewise, there are no supervillains.

I tried to paint all the principals in shades of gray. Nobody is purely evil or purely good. Even the protagonists of the story do dark things. At the same time, there is a point of view character on the Axis side of the war, and I wanted to ensure that he wasn't a cartoon. He's very conflicted about what he's doing and what he's a part of. And he should be.

MH: I can attest that none of your characters are placed in easy situations and never with clearcut choices. Your German X-Men come about their powers through scientific means. How did your own scientific background working with Los Alamos National Laboratory and other research influence Bitter Seeds?

IAN: You know, people often ask me that. When I first started kicking around the ideas behind this story, I brought an outline to my local writers' group, to see if they thought it was a project worth pursuing. (They did, enthusiastically.) One of the things I'll always remember from that meeting was the awkward silence, until somebody broke the ice by saying, "So, uh, what exactly do you do at the lab?"

But in fact my science background played very little part in the development and writing of Bitter Seeds. The story is purely fantastical. Writing is my escape, and if I started writing a novel rooted in rigorous science, it would feel like I was taking my work home with me. Although I couldn't resist working just a little bit of real-world physics into the plot.

MH: When I was a kid I would watch reruns of In Search Of hosted by Leonard Nimoy everyday after school and learned about all kinds of weird stuff on ancient civilizations, Dracula, and Loch Ness. This is also the show where I learned the Nazis were very into Ancient Mysteries such as Atlantis and strange science, which was little known until after their downfall. How much if and did the speculation of Nazis experimenting on humans and creating flying saucer tech play into your world?

IAN: In Search Of ! I loved that show when I was a little kid. (It scared the bejeezus out of me, though. Leonary Nimoy made everything sound so creepy.)

There was definitely an undercurrent of weirdness to pieces of the Third Reich, from the Ahnenerbe and pseudohistory, to Himmler's dabbling fascination with the occult. (Although not everything in the Third Reich was steeped in occultism, and in fact many prominent Nazis decried such things. In the grand scheme of things, it was probably more of a footnote than anything else.) The occult angle has been explored quite a bit, so I wanted to take the story in a slightly different direction.

World War II jump started tons and tons of technological research and development, for both the Axis and the Allies. It's also known that the Axis powers performed some truly horrific human experimentation. (At extermination camps in Europe, but also in places like occupied Manchuria.) So, while I didn't veer into saucer tech and foo fighters, I did think it would be interesting to build on that historical record of intense scientific development, and combine it with an overly-literal quest for Nietzsche's "overman".

MH: With so many well known and well regarded writing cohorts you must have been imparted some great wisdom at some point. What's the best advice you've been given as a writer? Have you followed it?

IAN: I've been extremely lucky in my writing efforts, largely because I've been able to work with and learn from some tremendous talents. I've received a lot of advice and guidance over the years, and I try my best to
keep it in mind while I work. Just off the top of my head:

George Martin taught me to, "Never hoard your silver bullet."

Charles Coleman Finlay taught me that spending a lot of time struggling with some aspect of writing isn't necessarily a sign of weakness.

Cory Doctorow taught me that every writer has strengths and weaknesses, and that good writers acknowledge this.

Walter Jon Williams taught me that a truly skilled writer can make anything riveting.

Elizabeth Bear taught me that writing is a process of continual improvement.

Daniel Abraham taught me that "information control" is one of the keys to good storytelling.

MH: While Bitter Seeds is a complete story in and of itself you've set things up well for more stories. What can we expect out of The Coldest War? Will you be attempting to do things any differently in form or style? New character points of view? And most importantly when can I get my grubby little hands on it?

IAN: Hmmmm, let's see...

Bitter Seeds is the novel that introduces Marsh and Gretel, and where she puts all of her pieces on the board. The Coldest War is the novel where Marsh uncovers her plan. Necessary Evil is the novel where he has to deal with it.

There is a new point of view character in Coldest War. That novel follows a similar structure to Bitter Seeds. Necessary Evil, which I'm finishing now, differs from the previous two novels both in style and viewpoint characters. The stylistic change in this third novel has made for an interesting challenge, but I'm excited about it. The Coldest War is currently scheduled for February, 2011. I don't know when Necessary Evil will be hitting shelves.

MH: What caught me when I first saw Bitter Seeds was the beautiful, yet austere cover art by John Jude Palencar. Do you think his depiction of Gretal is accurate to what you envisioned? Did you have a hand at all in the cover's evolution?

IAN: My only influence on the cover art was in writing the actual book. But that didn't bother me at all, because when my editor told me that Tor had hired John Jude Palencar to do the cover for my first novel, I felt like I had hit the jackpot! I've been a fan of Mr. Palencar's work for a long time-- I'd never dreamed his artwork would someday grace one of my covers. The cover art for Bitter Seeds is yet another place where I've been phenomenally lucky.

His rendering of Gretel, and the entire novel, is pitch-perfect. The painting captures so many little elements from the book, both literally and stylistically, that it bowled me over the first time I saw it. I *love* the cover.

MH: Besides the Milkweed Triptych what else are you working on?

IAN: I wrote and tentatively sold a couple of short stories earlier this year (but I'm superstitious, so I'm not ready to announce those sales until the contracts are signed and the checks have cleared-- another thing I learned from GRRM). I'm also playing around with ideas for my next novel project, post-Milkweed. In fact I'll be discussing these with my agent when I see her in a few days. My gift to myself, after I turn in the manuscript for Necessary Evil, will be to finally turn my full attention to stuff that's been on the back burner for many years. I'm very excited about the next novel.

MH:What are two things most people don't know about you?

IAN: I once was thrown out of a Christmas party by a sock puppet.

And, I once had an unfortunate encounter with a Nobel Laureate--a man whom I admired greatly. (Not a bad encounter, just unfortunate.)

MH: In keeping with the name of this blog what is your favorite type of hat? (or just favorite hat if you have one)

IAN: I am very fond of my Tilley hat [pictured at the top]. It has a nice wide brim (which is a good thing, because my pasty Minnesota complexion doesn't respond well to the New Mexico sun) and plenty of airflow. Plus, any hat that can allegedly) pass through the digestive system of an elephant yet still do its job afterwards has got to be a good one, right?

MH: What was the book that made you love the Sci-Fi/Fantasy genre?

IAN: My introduction to science fiction happened when I was 5 years old, after the first day of kindergarten. That's when I discovered Dr. Who on public television. The first SF book I remember reading (devouring) was Heinlein's Red Planet. It's a very fond memory for me.

MH: Is there anything you'd like to say in closing?

IAN: I'm running a contest/puzzle on my website right now! First prize is a signed advanced review copy of Bitter Seeds. Details on the contest and some hints on how to play can be found in several entries on my blog, starting here.


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