Books of the Apocalypse: What we're expecting in 2012

[Grack21]

I should ring my mum and get her to bring me back all of them in Polish from her visit just to spite you. :P

I don't know why the translations are taking so long, but I guess it's better that they take their time and don't ruin it. I had a quick look in Polish to see if that tells me anything but I don't see much. You won't be the only one waiting though. Apparently this year Obama got the books as a gift from President Tusk so you're in good company...

There was some big legal fight over how the translations were being marketed/translated. From what I remember the Polish company didn't think they were being treated with "enough respect" or something like that. There's something about it somewhere in a thread, I'll look for it when search gets working again, but I think the next one is due out in early 2012.

[Larry.]

I read the whole series (plus Narrenturm and a collection) in Spanish translation because I didn't want to wait around for everything to be translated. What I noticed when re-reading the first books is that the English translation sucks in comparison to the Spanish, in part because the Spanish goes for a faux archaic quality in some of the dialogue for satiric effect that the English version largely fails to do. The prose in English felt more subdued than what I experienced in Spanish, so if there is something in that rumor of people being dissatisfied with the translation, I'd have to concur.

[Werthead]

I admit, I anticipate the new Witcher book if anyone has any idea when it'll actually bloody come out?

The delay has been down to a copyright problem between the author, his translator, the Polish publishers and the British publishers. They've been working to overcome it and apparently Gollancz will issue a press release once things are sorted and the schedule can get back on track. Apparently they wanted to resolve things to get the next book out to tie in with the release of the Witcher 2 computer game, but that was not possible. Like Lynch, apparently there should be movement by the end of the summer, but we'll see.

[Mjolnir]

Werthead:

That's interesting. I've never gotten that vibe off him at all, and the three books of his I've read (Swiftly, Yellow Blue Tibia and New Model Army) show him taking things very seriously indeed (though YBT does have a deliberately absurdist tone to its portrayal of Soviet Russia, but that's a reasonably valid line to take).

He's a very strong writer, with the caveat that in the three books I've read, none really has an ending as such. They just kind of fizzle out and have a rather vague and surreal final chapter that he seems to hope will wrap things up. Doing that once in a while is okay, but three books in a row gets a little old (though NMA did have the best and strongest ending of the three, so he's definitely getting better). I should get to his new book, By Light Alone, in a few weeks.

Thanks. Yeah, I definitely haven't given his books a fair try yet. Looking forward to your thoughts on By Light Alone, as I think I might start with Roberts there. Each of his books has an interestingly unique-looking premise, but I think this may be the one that most intrigues me.

I think -- and this isn't fair of me -- that part of my impression of his stuff based on very little evidence may be creeping in from my awareness of him as a noted sf critic. I've found a lot of the nonfiction I've read by Roberts to be very insightful and helpful; he's a very good critic. But he does have an extraordinary talent for ripping the piss out of things, and he spreads it around pretty liberally in his more informal critical writing. All the snark is of the highest possible quality, and of course it is a good reviewer/thinker's job to not spare the critical commentary when she feels it's warranted, but the cup runneth pretty full and occasionally it feels a tiny bit mean-spirited. Reading and enjoying his own sf work might actually help me get better perspective on this. He does clearly love the field.

After considering, and flipping through some of Roberts's most recent blog entries but before I actually posted this: I'm not seeing anything that tweeks my sensitive fannish nose today, at a glance. It's all very interesting stuff -- though nothing at the top of his incredibly productive critical writing pile at the moment is about anything I'm specially invested in. Maybe I'm maturing in my reading of criticism. I think where I got this impression may have been in his approach to more commercial material, like [though far from restricted to] The Wheel of Time. He's great with commenting on dense, "literary" material, but is quite dismissive of some stuff that might be, being honest, pretty damn deficient on some literary scales, but has other merits. Anyhow, off topic. Can't find any new release news right now, I'm afraid.

[RedEyedGhost]

Thanks. Yeah, I definitely haven't given his books a fair try yet. Looking forward to your thoughts on By Light Alone, as I think I might start with Roberts there. Each of his books has an interestingly unique-looking premise, but I think this may be the one that most intrigues me.

None of his other books have really intrigued me, but I'm definitely buying By Light Alone because it sounds pretty awesome.

[Jussi]

From Robin Hobb:

I will also mention here that the publishing schedule has changed. Book three, City of Dragons, is scheduled for February 2012. And Book four, Blood of Dragons, has been pushed back to 2013. So there will be a bit of a wait between the books after all.

http://robinhobb.com/2011/08/worldcon-recap-and-rwc-updates-and-a-little-french-story/

[Garlan the Gallant]

From Robin Hobb:

http://robinhobb.com/2011/08/worldcon-recap-and-rwc-updates-and-a-little-french-story/

She also implied that she is writing a short story entry in Martin's Dangerous Women anthology.

Also, for anyone interested in this kind of thing, I found this site that tracks upcoming speculative fiction novels and their expected release dates. I am in no way, shape, or form affiliated with the website, I just thought you guys might like it:

http://en.risingshadow.net/library?action=coming_books

[Calibandar]

Jussi will find that amusing, since he hails from that site.

[Knight Of The North]

Any word on J.Abercrombie's "(A) Red Country"? He usually takes a year or two to finish a standalone, so we might be seeing it in late 2012.

[Garlan the Gallant]

Any word on J.Abercrombie's "(A) Red Country"? He usually takes a year or two to finish a standalone, so we might be seeing it in late 2012.

I'm hoping for Logen Ninefingers as Will Munny. :thumbsup:

[Werthead]

Any word on J.Abercrombie's "(A) Red Country"? He usually takes a year or two to finish a standalone, so we might be seeing it in late 2012.

I think Joe said a while back he was aiming at 18-month gaps (but not to hold him to that), so going by that and his most recent update, a July-August 2012 release (give or take a few months) seems viable.

[Calibandar]

Wert, did you not get an arc of Priest's Islanders? I know you're keen on that one, and it is from Gollancz.

[Werthead]

Wert, did you not get an arc of Priest's Islanders? I know you're keen on that one, and it is from Gollancz.

No, or rather not yet. Speculative Scotsman has, though.

[Jussi]

Jussi will find that amusing, since he hails from that site.

Yeah, I have a link in my signature.

John Gwynne's So Deep a Malice will be published by Tor UK in March 2012. Here's the blurb:

With echoes of Celtic myth, wonderfully realised characters, dark magic, and a deeply engaging storyline, John Gwynne’s debut announces the arrival of a major new talent.

With one foot in Celtic myth and the other loosely straddling the imagined beginning of the Roman empire, this fresh and original fantasy takes two worlds, old and new, and demonstrates the clash that will occur when the modern tries to overthrow established traditions.

Set on a continent called the Banished Lands, populated by men and giants, dark forests, dreadwolves and draigs; this debut fantasy follows the story of Corban, a young man who just wants to become a warrior, but whose path will lead him to so much more. Populated with original and engaging characters, set in a primal, feral world, soon to become the battleground of angels and demons, this is a tale of love and betrayal, truth and courage, friendship and loyalty.

An epic and intimate coming-of-age tale filled with mystery, Machiavellian politics, adventure, joy and tragedy, So Deep a Malace will have instant appeal to readers of George R.R. Martin and Robert Jordan.

The source.

[Grack21]

She also implied that she is writing a short story entry in Martin's Dangerous Women anthology.

Also, for anyone interested in this kind of thing, I found this site that tracks upcoming speculative fiction novels and their expected release dates. I am in no way, shape, or form affiliated with the website, I just thought you guys might like it:

http://en.risingshad...on=coming_books

That's a nice site, assuming some of those dates aren't made up, but it's not amazon, so I'll assume they're not. :P Also if people here are running it, then double yay.

[Jussi]

Some of the dates are made up (e.g. The Republic of Thieves), because they are taken from Amazon...

[Mark Lawrence]

Yeah, I have a link in my signature.

John Gwynne's So Deep a Malice will be published by Tor UK in March 2012. Here's the blurb:

The source.

I've swapped some emails with John, nice guy - we've got some stuff in common (and not just caring for our disabled daughters) - I'll be keen to see what the book's like.

[Calibandar]

The John Gwynne book sounds kind of cool. Disclaimers about new books are in place of course; but it sounds like I could like it, if it'll be well written.

[Jussi]

More information about Gwynne's new series (from December 2010):

Julie Crisp, Editorial Director of Pan Macmillan in London, has concluded a pre-emptive World Rights deal for two epic fantasy novels in a series called THE FAITHFUL AND THE FALLEN by new British author John Gwynne with agent John Jarrold, for a very good five-figure sum.

SO DEEP A MALICE, the first volume in the series, will be published by Tor UK in 2012, followed by its sequel TERROR OF HEAVEN in 2013.

Julie Crisp said of the acquisition, ‘This is an incredibly exciting book. It gave me the same feeling when reading it that I had when I first read George R R Martin, Robert Jordan and Patrick Rothfuss. I fell in love with the characters, the world building and the detailed imagining. The beginning of a brand new series, this is a contemporary epic fantasy that I’m sure will gather an enthusiastic and loyal readership and we’re thrilled to be publishing John at Tor UK.’

John Jarrold said: ‘I’m not sure I’ve seen a major fantasy novel that I would recommend more strongly to readers of George R R Martin in the last ten years. I’ve now read it three times and I am still emotionally involved with the characters and storylines throughout, which is a wonderful achievement for a new writer. Julie’s enthusiasm was immediate when it was submitted to major publishers on both sides of the Atlantic, and she was able to bring her senior colleagues on board with a very strong pre-emptive offer within days.’

[Calibandar]

Just noticed that all the top books I am awaiting are still being written, and probably due for a second half of the year release. Bakker, Abercrombie, Jones, Brett, and probably Lynch as well.

Looking forward to Orbit books Seven Princes by Fultz and The Troupe by Bennett early in the year the year though.