Monday, July 14, 2014

  • NEW QSF&F Post
  • The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, June 8th, at 5 pm to discuss HORNS by Joe Hill.
  • The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, July 8th, at 5 pm to discuss FURTHER by Chris Roberson.
  • The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, August 10th, at 5 pm to discuss TRANSITION by Iain M. Banks.
  • The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, September 14th, at 5 pm to discuss LOCKSTEP by Karl Schroeder.
The QSF&F is a book club for LGBTQ and LGBTQ-friendly people who love reading all kinds of science fiction, fantasy, even a little bit of horror, and anything that could loosely fall into any of these categories. We meet the second Sunday of every month at Borderlands Cafe on Valencia Street in the heart of the Mission District of San Francisco. We also occasionally have movie nights, get togethers, dinners, and other fun and exciting events. Please come join our Book Club! We’re going on ten years strong! For more information, visit our website at http://www.qsfandf.weebly.com or come see us on Facebook

Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

Dispatches From the Border: June 2014

Events and News from Borderlands Books

Editor's Note - We have started changing the way we reproduce and distribute this newsletter. The entire newsletter is posted and archived at our blog <http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/>. At the end of major features in this newsletter you'll find permanent links to those individual items.  These links can be convenient if you want to send just a single article or if you'd like to link to it from your website.

The current newsletter is also reproduced in full at our website, and is distributed via email. You can view the current newsletter, and subscribe to the email version of at  <http:///www.borderlands-books.com/>.

Upcoming Author Events


Jane Lindskold, ARTEMIS AWAKENING, (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Saturday, June 7th at 3:00 pm

Greg van Eekhout, CALIFORNIA BONES, (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Wednesday, June 11th at 7:00 pm

Jo Walton, MY REAL CHILDREN, (Tor, Hardcover, $25.99) Saturday, June 14th at 3:00 pm

James S.A. Corey, CIBOLA BURN (Orbit, Hardcover, $27.00) Saturday, June 21st at 3:00 pm

Juliet Blackwell, A VISION IN VELVET (Signet, Mass Market, $7.99) Kate Carlisle, THE BOOK STOPS HERE (New American Library, Hardcover, $24.95), and Gigi Pandian, PIRATE VISHNU (Henery Press, Trade Paperback, $15.95) Saturday, July 12th at 3:00 pm

MP Johnson, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS (Eraserhead Press, Trade Paperback) Sunday, July 13th at 3:00 pm

Richard Lupoff, WRITER VOL. 1 (Ramble House, Hardcover, $32.00, and Trade Paperback, $18.00), WRITER VOL. 2 (Ramble House, Hardcover, $32.00, and Trade Paperback, $20.00) & WHAT IF? VOL. 3 (Ramble House, Hardcover, $32.00, and Trade Paperback, $18.00) Saturday, July 19th at 3:00 pm
Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/06/june-upcoming-events.html

News


*  Overheard in the Store:
"The moral of the story is pretty much 'Gravity wins'."
"It's worse . . . they don't show up and break your kneecaps, they come to your house and repossess your cat."

 *  Overheard at the Nebulas
"I don't think I trust squid from a truck."
"But he was seated next to [famous & famously grumpy author], so anyone looks like Santa Claus that way."
"Yay, San Jose. The Gateway to Gilroy."
"Oooh -- robot curtains!"
"I just want to make it perfectly clear that I don't know f**k about s** t."

Lots and lots of award news:

 *  Congratulations to Ann Leckie for winning both the Clarke Award AND the Nebula Award for Best Novel, ANCILLARY JUSTICE. http://www.clarkeaward.com/previous-awards/2014-clarke-award/2014-winner/

 *  Congratulations to the other Nebula winners as well, Vylar Kaftan, Aliette de Boddard and Rachel Swirsky! And to Nalo Hopkinson who won the Andre Norton Award for YA. http://www.sfwa.org/2014/02/2013-nebula-nominees-announced/

 *  Finalists for the 2014 Sturgeon Memorial Award announced. http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/sturgeon-finalists.htm

 *  Finalists for the 2014 Locus Awards announced. http://www.locusmag.com/News/2014/05/2014-locus-awards-finalists/

 *  Nominees for the 2013 Shirley Jackson Award announced. http://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/nominees/

 *  Congratulations to the winners of the 2013 Bram Stoker Awards! http://horror.org/winners-2013-bram-stoker-awards/

 *  Finalists for the 2013 John W. Campbell Award announced. http://www.sfcenter.ku.edu/campbell-finalists.htm

And lots of other news!

 *  Harper Collins to buy Harlequin. http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/62097-harpercollins-to-buy-harlequin.html

 *  io9.com tells us why the livestock of the future will be insects! http://io9.com/the-livestock-of-the-future-will-be-insects-1579754501

 *  International trailer for the highly anticipated Wachowski siblings new sci-fi epic JUPITER ASCENDING has been released and it looks like it could be awesome. http://sciencefiction.com/2014/05/22/new-jupiter-ascending-international-trailer-wachowskis/

 *  Scientists think that wormholes could be used to send messages through time. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25596-skinny-wormholes-could-send-messages-through-time.html#.U36foC-f_Yd

 *  Joe Hanson, in his ongoing series 'It's Okay To Be Smart', tries to scientifically explain Westeros and Game of Thrones.  It works . . .  somewhat. http://www.itsokaytobesmart.com/post/86252471997/science-of-game-of-thrones

 *  Echidnas are the only mammals (along with the platypus) to hatch from eggs. Watch it happen here. http://thekidshouldseethis.com/post/86509597537

 *  io9's animation blog gives us a list of the Most Bad-Ass Women in All Animation and some of the choices are quite surprising at first, but right on target. http://animation.io9.com/these-are-the-most-bad-ass-women-in-all-of-animation-1579248236/+katharinetrendacosta

 *  Alfonso Cuaron, (whose most recent film GRAVITY is amazing) is now rumored to have been offered first refusal rights to direct OVERLOOK HOTEL, the prequel to Stephen King's THE SHINING.  Cuaron is one of the few directors who could probably make this watchable -- let's hope he takes it. http://schmoesknow.com/hot-scoop-will-alfonso-cuaron-book-a-room-at-the-overlook-hotel/23609/

 *  The newest international trailer (Russian) for GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY continues to hit the perfect blend of camp and sci-fi awesome. When "Spirit in the Sky" started to play I almost snorted my drink out of my nose. http://sciencefiction.com/2014/05/22/new-guardians-of-the-galaxy-international-trailer-released/

 *  Sincerely epic geek tattoos: http://diply.com/trendyjoe/25-most-epic-geek-tattoos/34484

 *  Borderlands is saddened to announce the death of beloved author Mary Stewart at age 97.  http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/16/books/mary-stewart-british-writer-who-spanned-genres-dies-at-97.html?_r=0

 *  The full trailer for DARK DUNGEONS, the Jack Chick tract about playing D&D and Satanism, is out now! http://christiannightmares.tumblr.com/post/86310385726/its-here-the-full-trailer-for-dark-dungeons-the

 *  Happen to have $1.5 million sitting around? You can own the house where Ray Bradbury lived & wrote for 50 years: http://laist.com/2014/05/17/photos_ray_bradburys_cheviot_hills.php#photo-1

 *  We're very sorry to report the death of artist H.R. Giger at age 74. Giger died from injuries sustained in a fall. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/13/hr-giger-dead-alien-artist_n_5314408.html

 *  Tyrion Lannister & Jon Snow get Disney Prince-ified: (caution, spoiler in the text!) http://www.nerdist.com/2014/05/game-of-thrones-tyrion-lannister-and-jon-snow-get-disney-prince-ified/

 *  Looks like Topless Pulp Fiction Appreciation Society Book Club's really taking off http://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2014/may/08/topless-pulp-fiction-appreciation-society-book-club.  We likely won't have one here --  it's too cold!

 *  You may have heard about the recent Amazon / Hachette kerfluffle.  We're following the whole thing closely, but if you'd like an educated overview, here's the place to start:  http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-et-jc-amazon-and-hachette-explained-20140602-story.html

For interesting commentary on what the current conflict could mean for books, ideas and readers in the future, read this:  http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/05/how-the-amazon-hachette-fight-could-shape-the-future-of-ideas/371756/ 

If you'd like an extended look at Amazon's history and business practices (written before the current troubles), here is a really excellent and in-depth article from The New Yorker: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/02/17/140217fa_fact_packer?currentPage=all

Lastly, a profoundly less even-handed, but much more profane and entertaining look: http://misterkristoff.wordpress.com/2014/05/23/amazon-hachette-and-flaming-bullshit/ (Thank you to customer Keith B. for the link.)

* We regret to report the death of author Jay Lake on June 1st.  Jay used to come and write in-store in front of an audience, collaborating with artists Alan Clark and Paul Groendes to produce almost-instant books.

Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/06/may-news-roundup.html

From The Office


What Sword and Sorcery Is To Me
by Jeremy Lassen

For a long time I've heard various fantasy labels used interchangeably.  High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Heroic Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery . . . with newer bastardizations thrown in like Low Fantasy and Dark Fantasy, and, absurdly, Grim-Dark Fantasy.  Oftentimes, a favorite label is just a shorthand for "stuff I like" with a hodge-podge of disparate works crammed into a poorly-fitting box.

The only truly useful and pretty clearly delineated labels I know of for the fantasy genre are Portal Fantasy, Secondary World Fantasy, and Historical Fantasy.  A good example of Portal Fantasy is The Chronicles of Narnia.  There is OUR world and there is a world where fantastic stuff takes place that is categorically NOT our world, and there is some artifact, or device, or doorway (a portal of sorts) that connects the two.

Secondary World Fantasy is what most people think of when they think of fantasy fiction.  It's Tolkien's Lord of the Rings series: a world that is a close analog to ours, but it is NOT ours, and doesn't pretend to be.

Historical Fantasy is the fantasy that purports to take place in our world but has elements of the fantastic intruding into it.  Arthurian fiction of all stripes fall into this category.

For me Sword and Sorcery is the bastard child both historical fiction, and secondary world fantasy -- both in terms of its literary roots, and, in some cases, in terms of its setting. Though not known by a large audience, Harold Lamb's Khlit the Cossack fiction (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khlit_the_Cossack) is often cited by scholars and authors as being proto-sword and sorcery.  It influenced Robert. E. Howard and his Conan tales, with Howard himself citing Lamb as a favorite.

The Encyclopedia of Fantasy (http://sf-encyclopedia.co.uk/fe.php?nm=sword_and_sorcery) provides the etymology of the term sword and sorcery (Fritz Leiber coined it, at the prompting of Michael Moorcock), and also suggests another link between historical adventure fiction and sword and sorcery: Alexander Dumas as literary antecedent to sword and sorcery fiction.  I find these two points very interesting.

First, the Dumas connection, and the link to adventure fiction: The Conan stories are considered to be a foundation of the sword and sorcery genre, and its author still felt the need to articulate a relationship between our world and the fantastic world of Conan.  Howard's essay, The Hyborian Age (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hyborian_Age), details how the Conan stories (and indeed several other of Howard's creations) are temporally and geographically linked to our world.

This impulse on Howard's part, to my mind further cements the cross-fertilization between the fantasy genre and the historical adventure genre.  Howard's contemporary readers -- the readers of Weird Tales -- were quite likely readers of Adventure magazine, where Lamb's Cossack tales were published.  Howard was writing for the same audience, and knew what their expectations where.  Indeed Howard himself wrote many non-fantastic historical adventure stories and several unsold mundane adventure stories were revised into Conan stories, as the demand for his fantasy work outpaced the demand for mundane adventures.

Another way to look at this "pre-history" conceit is to see it as a narrative tool akin to the portal fantasy trope (secondary world fantasy was not a clearly developed genre when Howard was writing).  In a post-Tolkien world, many readers are conversant with the narrative conventions of a world that is "like ours, but not really ours."  Prior to the widespread popularity of this form, readers would find themselves asking "How did we get from here to there . . . ?"  Howard's construction of the Hyborian Age tried to answer that question.  Oral histories, found manuscripts, and mythology lie under the foundations of fantasy fiction.  And sword and sorcery, in its infancy, often pulled out the "pre-history" card.  Later, this trope was used as an homage to this pre-history tradition.  (One could even argue that one of the bastard offspring of this "pre-history" fantasy form is the "Dying Earth" or Post-History narratives, many of which are considered to be firmly in the sword and sorcery stable.)

The other reason I find the Fantasy Encyclopedia entry interesting is because the etymology of the term clearly shows that is a term used by authors and editors, trying to define and come up with labels to describe the things they were doing.  Writers, critics and editors in most fields engage in "long conversations" in which topics that are first discussed in small groups spread across the whole field over a period of months or years because of the essential nature of the topic to the field.  Topics like that mature over time and often reach a consensus conclusion without any real guidance or agenda.  And, throughout, that sort of conversation shapes the stories that are written.  I find the organic nature of these "long conversation" terms to be very alluring (as opposed to literary terms that come from outside the genre, or are applied retroactively to a group of writers and their works).  They might be filled with contradictions and littered with fine lines that are only discernible to fellow travelers, but they are not bounded by arbitrary rules and categories.  They are not terms meant to keep stories in separate boxes but instead these terms allow for and promote literary miscegenation and the cross-pollination of ideas.  And that's exactly what Sword and Sorcery is -- a confluence of specific fantasy archetypes.  With each generation, some part of the form is changed and altered, but the works preserve a similar-but-evolving aesthetic purpose, from generation to generation.

And what is that purpose?  That gets to the title of this little essay.  I can't speak for others, but for me, when I first discovered them, Sword and Sorcery stories were tales of agency.  They served a similar purpose to superhero fiction; the archetype of the "hyper-competent loner" is often at the center of Sword and Sorcery and it serves a very specific pre-adolescent and adolescent need.  Which is why, like many "empowerment fantasies", it is often enthusiastically consumed by younger readers.  And if you never discovered the soulful allure of "blood and thunder" as a young reader, you may not ever come to appreciate its subtle nuance as an adult.

The other essential component of Sword and Sorcery is that it is character driven.  When describing heroic fantasy, people often cite the works by character name, rather than by setting or by title.  That naming convention is not a constant but its frequency does emphasize the character focus of these types of stories.  There can be world building and exotic locales, but the focus is always on the protagonists.

Much like the superhero genre, Sword and Sorcery has been reexamined and remixed and expanded beyond its archetypal form.  Siegal and Shuster's Superman gave birth to Frank Miller and Alan Moore and Grant Morrison, the same way that Howard's Conan gave birth to Michael Moorcock and Karl Edward Wagner and Richard Morgan.

Did you like the way I threw that last name in there?  Morgan (though often thought of as a writer of science fiction first) is doing an amazing job of keeping the Sword and Sorcery flame alive, via his series of novels A Land Fit for Heroes. I was lucky enough to read the first incarnation of Morgan's novel, The Steel Remains.  It was originally a short story written for The Magazine and Fantasy and Science Fiction.  This rejected story was more of a vignette, and was essentially the first chapter of The Steel Remains.  In my mind, Morgan stands shoulder to shoulder with Moorcock and Leiber, participating in and perpetuating a long conversation.  The impulse to use the furniture of Sword and Sorcery to say something unique and different about the nature of power and violence and agency is a big part of what that sub-genre is about.

Moorcock famously cast his Elric narratives "against type". That is, while Conan was a muscular barbarian who hated civilization, Elric was physically weak and frail member of the royal family from a decadent empire.  Morgan did the same with his character Ringil, taking the assumed heterosexuality of fantasy protagonists and turning it on its head.  Even more fitting, the homo-erotic subtext of a lot of Sword and Sorcery fiction is elevated to an over-text, with an unflinching narrative eye.

So how did we get from there to her, and what else is here now?  I've already pointed out Harold Lamb's Khlit the Cossack.  He clearly begat Robert E. Howard's Conan.  And a direct descendent of Conan was Fritz Leiber's Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser story cycle.  It is fitting that this duo begot two new-wave Sword and Sorcery giants -- Karl Edward Wagner's Kane, an Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone.  From these two characters, one can see the line that goes to Charles Saunder's Imaro, straight (sorry for the anti-pun) on to Morgan's Ringil.  Saunders and Morgan both reflect each other quite clearly, featuring as they do, heroic fantasy protagonists that embody a cultural other, (in the sense of the world the characters inhabit,) as well as "other" when measured against the often-presumed straight/white readership of fantasy fiction.

One great novel of relatively recent vintage that clearly draws the connections between Sword and Sorcery and the historical adventure fiction of Alexander Dumas is Ellen Kushner's Riverside series, beginning with Swordspoint. Though this novel fails to provide the "sorcery" part of the equation, it is a clearly secondary world fantasy, and it is very much character driven.  And it features Kushner blowing up fantasy fiction's assumed-sexuality norms long before Morgan got there.

Another recent novel that revels in its "Dumas-ness" is Scott Lynch's Lies of Locke Lamora, which quite literally embraces the character-name-as-title trope I referred to earlier.

Steven Erickson has his sprawling epic fantasy Malazan series, but within that world he has the story cycle of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach.  The black humor and story structure of these works is clearly an homage to the classic Sword and Sorcery form in general, and to Fritz Leiber specifically.

Others who are playing around with Sword and Sorcery tropes who should not be missed include K. J. Parker, Courtney Schaffer, Joe Abercrombie, and Jeff Salyards.

Obviously there are many other characters and works that exist in the lineage of the authors I've mentioned. From C. L. Moore to Manly Wade Wellman, L. Sprague de camp, Lin Carter and on and on . . . there are far too many to list here.  But one very good way to explore these gaps is via short fiction.  Sword and Sorcery anthologies have been a staple of the publishing industry for many decades now, and they are an amazing resource that can convey the very broad spectrum of the Sword and Sorcery sub-genre.

First up I'd point to the recent Hartwell and Weisman anthology, "The Sword and Sorcery Anthology."  I'm a fan the functional minimalism of this title, and I'm also a big fan of the overview provided by David Drake's introduction.  His combination of first hand accounts of authors and editors, and his clear, concise scholarship is a treasure.  That, and the broad, representative range of stories makes this book essential reading, IMO.

Another good historical overview is In Lands That Never Were: Tales of Swords and Sorcery from The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, which collects the best S&S from The Magazine of F&SF.

An original anthology of recent vintage is Jonathan Strahan and Lou Ander's Swords and Dark Magic.  This is a great example of contemporary authors being cognizant of the long genre conversation that they are a part of.

Going further back, one can find the five volume Flashing Swords series (1973-1981) of anthologies edited by Lin Carter, which featured then-original fiction by then-contemporary writers, like Leiber, Vance, Moorcock and many others.  Older reprint anthologies include L. Sprague de Camp's The Spell of Seven and Karl Wagner's Echoes of Valor series.  Jessica Amanda Salmonson had a series of "Amazon" anthologies that are also noteworthy.

Finally, I urge all of you to contact Mary Robinette Kowal, and ask her to write the novel she threatened to unleash upon the world with this April Fools spoof: "Sword and Sensibility" (http://www.tor.com/blogs/2012/04/sword-and-sensibility-conan-creator-robert-e-howards-lesser-known-collaboration).  When she announced the title of her recent novel, Valour and Vanity, I was convinced she had taken a suggestion of mine seriously.  You see, we had spent a long car ride together, where she picked my brain about Conan and Robert E. Howard.  I told her the Conan story "Queen of the Black Coast" would make the best Jane Austen/Robert E. Howard literary mash up ever.  When I found out Valour and Vanity WASN'T a Conan-novel-as-written-by-Jane-Austen, I was devastated.

Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/06/what-sword-and-sorcery-is-to-me.html

Top Sellers At Borderlands


Hardcovers
1. Valour and Vanity by Mary Robinette Kowal
2. Afterparty by Daryl Gregory
3. Hild by Nicola Griffith
4. Velveteen vs. the Multiverse by Seanan McGuire
5. The Martian by Andy Weir
6. Tropic of Serpents by Marie Brennan
7. Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
8. Shipstar by Gregory Benford & Larry Niven
9. A Stranger in Olondria by Sofia Samatar
10. Descent by Ken MacLeod

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
2. Half-Off Ragnarok by Seanan McGuire
3. Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss
4. A Clash of Kings by George R.R. Martin
5. Snuff by Terry Pratchett
6. Chimes at Midnight by Seanan McGuire
7. Great North Road by Peter F. Hamilton
8. The Seven-Petaled Shield by Deborah J. Ross
9. A Free Man of Color by Barbara Hambly
10. The Long War by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter

Trade Paperbacks
1. Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire
2. Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie
3. Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
4. A Stranger in Olondria by Sofia Samamtar
5. A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan

Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/06/may-bestsellers.html

Book Club Info


The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, June 8th, at 5 pm to discuss HORNS by Joe Hill.  Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club will meet on Sunday, June 15th, at 6 pm to discuss WOOL by Hugh Howey.  The book for July is MAKERS by Cory Doctorow.  Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

Upcoming Event Details


Jane Lindskold, ARTEMIS AWAKENING, (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Saturday, June 7th at 3:00 pm - Celebrated author Jane Lindskold launches an entirely new series with ARTEMIS AWAKENING.  Publishers Weekly described it as: ". . . paying homage to golden-age SF by authors like Andre Norton, Leigh Brackett, and C.L. Moore. . .", which invokes fallen interstellar empires, genetically altered animals (and humans), and a race to rediscover everything humanity has lost.  From the publisher's website: "The distant world Artemis is a pleasure planet created out of bare rock by a technologically advanced human empire that provided its richest citizens with a veritable Eden to play in. All tech was concealed and the animals (and the humans brought to live there) were bioengineered to help the guests enjoy their stay. . . but there was always the possibility of danger so that visitors could brag that they had “bested” the environment.  The Empire was shattered in a horrific war; centuries later humanity has lost much of the advanced technology and Artemis is a fable told to children.  Until young archeologist Griffin Dane finds intriguing hints that send him on a quest to find the lost world. Stranded on Artemis after crashing his ship, he encounters the Huntress Adara and her psych-linked companion, the puma Sand Shadow. Their journey with her will lead Dane to discover the planet’s secrets. . . and perhaps provide a key to give unimagined power back to mankind."

Greg van Eekhout, CALIFORNIA BONES, (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Wednesday, June 11th at 7:00 pm - Greg van Eekhout lives in Los Angeles and is the author of many short stories and several novels including NORSE CODE and the charmingly titled middle-grade adventure KID VS. SQUID.  However, I have to admit I'm most excited about his new novel CALIFORNIA BONES.  Here's the publisher's description: "When Daniel Blackland was six, he ingested his first bone fragment, a bit of kraken spine plucked out of the sand during a visit with his demanding, brilliant, and powerful magician father, Sebastian. Then, when Daniel was twelve, he watched Sebastian die at the hands of the Hierarch of Southern California, devoured for the heightened magic layered deep within his bones.  Now thirty, Daniel is a petty thief with a forged identity. Hiding amid the crowds in Los Angeles -- the capital of the Kingdom of Southern California -- he is trying to go straight. But his crime-boss uncle has a heist for Daniel to undertake: break into the the Hierarch’s storehouse of magical artifacts and retrieve Sebastian’s sword, an object of untold power.  Daniel assembles a trustworthy team of his closest friends from the criminal world. Moth, who can take a bullet and heal in mere minutes. Jo Morales, illusionist. The multitalented Cassandra, Daniel’s ex. And, new to them all, the enigmatic, knowledgeable Emma, with her British accent and her own grudge against the powers-that-be. The stakes are high, and the stage is set for a showdown that might just break the magic that protects a long-corrupt regime.  Extravagant, inventive, and shot through with moments of intensity as bright as the California sun, Daniel’s story is an epic adventure set in a city of canals and secrets and casual brutality -- different from the world we know, and yet also familiar and true."  We're looking forward to hosting Greg and checking out this incredible book; we certainly hope you'll join us!

Jo Walton, MY REAL CHILDREN, (Tor, Hardcover, $25.99) Saturday June 14th at 3:00 pm - In MY REAL CHILDREN, her first new novel since 2011's AMONG OTHERS (which won both the Nebula Award and Hugo Award for Best Novel) Jo Walton explores two different worlds and a woman who can't be sure which is real.  From the publisher's website: "It’s 2015, and Patricia Cowan is very old. 'Confused today,' read the notes clipped to the end of her bed.  She forgets things she should know -- what year it is, major events in the lives of her children.  But she remembers things that don't seem possible.  She remembers marrying Mark and having four children.  And she remembers not marrying Mark and raising three children with Bee instead.  She remembers the bomb that killed President Kennedy in 1963, and she remembers Kennedy in 1964, declining to run again after the nuclear exchange that took out Miami and Kiev.  Her childhood, her years at Oxford during the Second World War -- those were solid things.  But after that, did she marry Mark or not?  Did her friends all call her Trish, or Pat?  Had she been a housewife who escaped a terrible marriage after her children were grown, or a successful travel writer with homes in Britain and Italy?  And the moon outside her window: does it host a benign research station, or a command post bristling with nuclear missiles?  Two lives, two worlds, two versions of modern history; each with their loves and losses, their sorrows and triumphs."

James S.A. Corey, CIBOLA BURN (Orbit, Hardcover, $27.00) Saturday June 21st at 3:00 pm - Come join Daniel Abraham & Ty Franck (collectively known as James S.A. Corey) as they celebrate the release of CIBOLA BURN with a Q&A and signing at Borderlands! CIBOLA BURN is the fourth book in their series The Expanse, which has been nominated for various awards and was recently optioned as a TV series for Syfy.  Fun, exciting space opera with mysterious galactic history and complex characters awaits.  From the publisher's website: "The gates have opened the way to a thousand new worlds and the rush to colonize has begun.  Settlers looking for a new life stream out from humanity’s home planets.  Illus, the first human colony on this vast new frontier, is being born in blood and fire.  Independent settlers stand against the overwhelming power of a corporate colony ship with only their determination, courage and the skills learned in the long wars of home.  Innocent scientists are slaughtered as they try to survey a new and alien world.  James Holden and the crew of his one small ship are sent to make peace in the midst of war and sense in the heart of chaos.  But the more he looks at it, the more Holden thinks the mission was meant to fail.  And the whispers of a dead man remind him that the great galactic civilization which once stood on this land is gone.  And that something killed them."

Juliet Blackwell, A VISION IN VELVET (Signet, Mass Market, $7.99) Kate Carlisle, THE BOOK STOPS HERE (New American Library, Hardcover, $24.95), and Gigi Pandian, PIRATE VISHNU (Henery Press, Trade Paperback, $15.95) Saturday, July 12th at 3:00 pm -  Do you like witches or pirates?  (We know you like books!)  Why choose when you can enjoy all three at this event?  Juliet Blackwell, Kate Carlisle, and Gigi Pandian return to their respective series, with even more mystery, magic and pirates.   Come celebrate the release of three books!  In A VISION IN VELVET, the sixth in Blackwell's Witchcraft Mystery series, Lily must save someone very important to her, her pot-bellied pig familiar Oscar.  A witch is reaching out from the past, through her velvet cloak, and it's up to Lily to decide whether she is friend or foe and to prepare to fight if she must.  In THE BOOK STOPS HERE, rare-book expert and appraiser Brooklyn Wainwright is thrilled to be appearing on the San Francisco edition of the hit TV show This Old Attic.  Her first subject is a very valuable (and likely very dangerous) first-edition copy of The Secret Garden.  Then the show's host, Randolph, is accosted by an angry man who says the book was purchased on the cheap at his garage sale, and he wants it back, or else.  Can she protect Randolph and herself?  The past also reaches out in PIRATE VISHNU, Pandian's second Jaya Jones mystery.  Historian Jones is stuck not only dealing with her complicated love life but also trying to solve two murders a century apart and decipher a treasure map left by one of her ancestors, the Pirate Vishnu of the title.  If she succeeds she could very well rediscover sacred jewels thought lost forever . . .  and if she fails she could end up being the next one to walk the plank.

MP Johnson, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS (Eraserhead Press, Trade Paperback) Sunday July 13th at 3:00 pm - Borderlands is proud and tickled as pink as Ms. LaRuse's wig to welcome MP Johnson for the release for his latest work, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS.  It is quite simply everything you've always wanted in a fantasy novel and didn't know how to ask for.  Drag Queens! Wizards! Monsters! Fabulous Wigs! And more! When Sleazella LaRuse, the reigning queen-of-queens of Green Bay, ends up in a completely different world as the intended bride of the serpent god Houmak, she must use all of her guile, skills, and lip-synching prowess to make her way, survive and maybe find love along the way. A delicious mix of irreverent humor, sword-and-sorcery and Drag-attude.  Even if you've never been into drag you'll be into this simply because it's a great adventure story that never goes where you expect.

Richard Lupoff, WRITER VOL. 1 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00), WRITER VOL. 2 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $20.00) & WHAT IF? VOL. 3 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00) Saturday July 19th at 3:00 pm - Celebrated author Dick Lupoff comes to Borderlands for the release of three books.  Read behind-the-scenes stories of triumphs and hardships in WRITER VOL. 1 & 2.  Memoir, criticism, analysis and anecdotes combine and inform each other and give the reader a real idea of what it means to be a working writer for 60 years.  If you've enjoyed Richard Lupoff's work in the past, dig into these books to see what was happening behind the stories.  Lupoff is also presenting the long awaited WHAT IF? VOL. 3, decades after VOL. 1 & 2.  Lupoff returns to collect stories that were eligible for the Hugo, and in Lupoff's opinion should have won.  Collecting stories from 1966-1973, it includes works by Joanna Russ, Samuel Delany, Gene Wolfe, Ursula LeGuin, and more!

Borderlands event policy - all events are free of charge unless otherwise stated.  You are welcome to bring copies of an author's books purchased elsewhere to be autographed (but we do appreciate it if you purchase something while at the event).  For most events you are welcome to bring as many books as you wish for autographs.  If you are unable to attend the event we will be happy to have a copy of any of the author's available books signed or inscribed for you.  We can then either hold the book(s) until you can come in to pick them up or we can ship to you.  Just give us a call or drop us an email.  If you live out of town, you can also ship us books from your collection to be signed for a nominal fee.  Call or email for details.


Dispatches from the Border
Editor - Jude Feldman
Assistant Editor - Alan Beatts
Contributor - Jeremy Lassen

All contents unless otherwise noted are the property of
Borderlands Books
866 Valencia St.
San Francisco, CA  94110
415-824-8203
http://www.borderlands-books.com

Comments and suggestions should be directed to editor@borderlands-books.com

Short Old

Dispatches From the Border: June 2014

Events and News from Borderlands Books

Editor's Note - We have started changing the way we reproduce and distribute this newsletter. The entire newsletter is posted and archived at our blog <http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/>. At the end of major features in this newsletter you'll find permanent links to those individual items.  These links can be convenient if you want to send just a single article or if you'd like to link to it from your website.

The current newsletter is also reproduced in full at our website, and is distributed via email. You can view the current newsletter, and subscribe to the email version of at  <http:///www.borderlands-books.com/>.

Upcoming Author Events


Jane Lindskold, ARTEMIS AWAKENING, (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Saturday, June 7th at 3:00 pm

Long news letter July 2014

Dispatches From The Border: July 2014

Events and News from Borderlands Books

Editor's Note - We have started changing the way we reproduce and distribute this newsletter. The entire newsletter is posted and archived at our blog <http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/>.

The current newsletter is also reproduced in full at our website, and is distributed via email. You can view the current newsletter, and subscribe to the email version of at  <http:///www.borderlands-books.com/>.

Upcoming Events

Juliet Blackwell, A VISION IN VELVET (Signet, Mass Market, $7.99), Kate Carlisle, THE BOOK STOPS HERE (Obsidian, Hardcover, $24.95), and Gigi Pandian, PIRATE VISHNU (Henery Press, Trade Paperback, $15.95) Saturday July 12th at 3:00 pm

MP Johnson, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS (Eraserhead Press, Trade Paperback, $10.95) Sunday July 13th at 3:00 pm

Richard Lupoff, WRITER VOL. 1 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00 and Hardcover, $32.00), WRITER VOL. 2 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $20.00 and Hardcover, $32.00) & WHAT IF? VOL. 3 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00 and Hardcover, $32.00), Saturday July 19th at 3:00 pm

Michael J. Martinez, THE ENCELADUS CRISIS (Night Shade Books, Trade Paperback, $15.99) Saturday July 26th at 3:00 pm

Serena Valentino, THE BEAST WITHIN (Disney Press, Hardcover, $16.99) Saturday July 26th at 5:00 pm

Tobias S. Buckell, HURRICANE FEVER (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Sunday July 27th at 3:00 pm

Joe Abercrombie, HALF A KING (Del Rey, Hardcover, $26.00) Monday July 28th at 7:00 pm

Glen Hirshberg, MOTHERLESS CHILD (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Saturday August 2nd at 3:00 pm

Katharine Kerr, SORCERER'S FEUD (Osel Books, Trade Paperback, $14.50) Saturday August 23rd at 3:00 pm

Kelli Stanley, CITY OF GHOSTS (Minotaur, Hardcover, $25.99) Saturday August 23rd at 5:00 pm

Brent Weeks, THE BROKEN EYE (Orbit, Hardcover, $28.00) Thursday August 28th at 7:00 pm

(for more information check the end of this newsletter)

And stay tuned for more exciting readings and signings, including Dana Fredsti, Ray Garton, and John Scalzi in September!

News

*Overheard in the Store:
"Have you been watching 'Game of Thrones'?" "I gave up 'cause I'm tired of their bullsh*t."
"I feel kinda weird. I feel the way something strangely compelling tastes."
"Teach me the ways of love, squishy poet from beyond the stars."
5 year-old: "Mom, I basically have memories from 50 years ago." Mom: "You weren't born yet." 5 year-old: "THIS me wasn't, but I remember."
"You get a bunch of artists together in a room for a board meeting…Now THAT'S a stupid idea."

Do you remember Borderlands Press' wonderful Little Books series?  They've just announced a second series of Little Books, and according to the announcement, they "are contracting with 15 popular writers to do Little Books Series II, and currently have the following writers on board: David J. Schow, Ed Gorman, Jack Ketchum, Dennis Etchison, Rick Hautala, David Morrell, Ray Garton, Ed Lee, Karl Wagner, Chet Williamson, Laird Barron, Poppy Z. Brite, and Joe Hill. (several more writers to follow). All volumes in the series will be signed and numbered and limited to 500 copies. If you have buyers who want the same number throughout, we can accommodate."  The books retail for $30 each.  Please call us or email us if you'd like to subscribe and purchase all of the volumes of this very collectible and fun series.  More info about the series here: http://borderlandspress.com/coming-soon-series-ii-of-our-little-books/

Would you like to be a Blackguard Captain?  If you'll be attending our event with Brent Weeks on Thursday, August 28th, enter to win some prizes & the chance to hang out with Brent!  Just send an email to office@borderlands-books.com with a paragraph telling us about your favorite character from any of Brent's books by 11:59 pm Pacific Time on Sunday, July 27th.  We'll choose five lucky winners who will each get a tour t-shirt, a copy of THE BLACK PRISM to share with their friends, and an invitation to meet Brent at the store before the event!  We hope you'll enter, and good luck to all.

The finalists for the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award have been announced! Congratulations to them all, and especially to Max Gladstone who has had several events at Borderlands.  Winners will be announced at MythCon 45 which will be held August 8-11.
http://www.mythsoc.org/news/mythopoeic-awards-finalists-announced/

We are saddened by the loss of Walter Dean Myers, an amazing mainstream YA author who dipped his toes into genre occasionally.  The first-ever winner of the Michael L. Printz award, five time Coretta Scott King Book Award winner, and three time nominee for the National Book Award, he passed away on July 1st after a brief illness.
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/04/arts/walter-dean-myers-childrens-author-dies-at-76.html

Congratulations to SFWA's two new board members: Cat Rambo & Sarah Pinsker!
http://www.sfwa.org/2014/07/new-board-members-sfwa/

Check out these gorgeous Star Wars watercolor prints painted by a French fan. She has more and they are available for purchase on her website.
http://io9.com/an-exclusive-look-at-the-new-fan-art-from-one-of-our-fa-1600187929
http://boutique.blule.fr/collections/star-wars

The David Gemmel Awards announced their winners.  Congratulations to Mark Lawrence, Brian McClellan and Jason Chan!
http://gemmellaward.com/profiles/blogs/gemmell-awards-2014-the-winners

Guy Gavriel Kay was made a member of the Order of Canada.  (Does that means we have to call him Sir Kay now? Best do it just in case.) Congratulations Sir Kay!
http://www.gg.ca/document.aspx?id=15694&lan=eng

Condolences to the family and friends of award-winning author Daniel Keyes who passed away last month. His novel "Flowers for Algernon" is still taught in schools all over the country.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/daniel-keyes-author-of-the-classic-book-flowers-for-algernon-dies-at-86/2014/06/18/646e30d6-f6f4-11e3-a606-946fd632f9f1_story.html

True or not, this story about a dead girlfriend sending her boyfriend recycled messages and photos through Facebook is truly terrifying.  Don't dive in unless it's light out and you have people near you.
http://jezebel.com/dead-girlfriends-fb-messages-from-beyond-the-grave-will-1599900589

The Sunburst Award for excellence in Canadian Fantastic Literature has announced its shortlist for 2014. Congratulations to Nalo Hopkinson (who had a recent event at Borderlands,) and to all the other nominees.
http://www.sunburstaward.org/content/2014-shortlists

Fans of Clive Barker and creepy fantastic horror rejoice! On the eve of its 25th anniversary and release on Blu-ray, "Nightbreed" is slated to become a TV series as well.
http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=41439

Sadly Angry Robot has closed down both their YA imprint, Strange Chemistry, and their crime/mystery imprint, Exhibit A.  All titles from those imprints are discontinued and no titles will be forthcoming.  So if you've been delaying trying out Martha Wells' fantastic Emilie series or Gwenda Bond's riveting The Woken Gods, now is the time to pick them up before the print run is gone.
http://angryrobotbooks.com/2014/06/news-about-strange-chemistry-and-exhibit-a/

Nour Saleh is an artist who wears a hijab and so she's taken to tumblr to share her drawings of herself as iconic heros complete with headscarves. Check out these gorgeous interpretations!
http://io9.com/hijab-wearing-lady-draws-herself-as-different-marvel-su-1599805081

Locus announces the winners for their 2014 awards. Winners include Neil Gaiman, Ann Leckie and recent past Borderlands guests James S.A. Corey and Catherynne M. Valente. Congratulations to all the winners. For the complete list of winners:
http://www.locusmag.com/News/2014/06/2014-locus-awards-winners-2/

Longtime editor and author Frank M. Robinson has passed away. Known for writing speeches for Harvey Milk and as a pulp magazine collector and scholar, Robinson was recently a recipient of a special SFWA award at the Nebulas.  We join with the rest of the community in mourning the passing of this well-loved San Francisco local.
http://www.sfgate.com/lgbt/article/Frank-M-Robinson-writer-of-Harvey-Milk-Hope-5599194.php

The on/off switch for consciousness might have just been discovered by accident deep in the brain. A team placing deep brain electrodes in a woman's brain stimulated the claustrum and she immediate lost consciousness. Check out the full article at New Scientist:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22329762.700#.U7bh6LFBkoB

The 2014 inductees into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame have been announced: Frank Frazetta, Hayao Miyazaki, Leigh Brackett, Olaf Stapledon and Stanley Kubrick.
http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/museum-features/science-fiction-and-fantasy-hall-of-fame.aspx

An 80s movie for 2014: check out the hilarious review of Wolfcop, a classic for the ages to be sure...and I'm already getting my keys to head to the movie theater.
http://io9.com/wolfcop-is-the-best-80s-movie-ever-made-in-2014-1600249694

From The Office

How Sharing Becomes Exclusionary
by Alan Beatts

A common idea in science fiction is the post-scarcity society; one in which energy is so cheap and manufacturing involves so little effort that, for all intents, physical property and goods are no longer in limited supply and, as a result, have little or no cost (and, by extension, no value).  Voyage To Yesteryear by James Hogan is one of my favorites but you'll find examples in the works of Ken MacLeod, Iain M. Banks, Robert Heinlein (as is often the case, ahead of his time), and many other authors.  A feature of many of these societies is a real sharing economy in which, once a person no longer needs an item, it is passed along to another or just abandoned in a public place for the next person who needs it.  Another feature of some of these societies is a sort of curious disdain for people who want to collect possessions regardless of their need for them.

People often comment that we are living in the world of science fiction.  Day-to-day features of our lives were elements of SF only a decade ago (smart phones, self-driving cars, and facial recognition software are all fine examples).  I suppose that the current rise in the "sharing economy" as exemplified by companies like Uber and Airbnb could be mistaken as the early days of the science fictional post-scarcity shared property society.  But it's not.  In fact, it's more like a horrible dystopian novel by someone like Richard Morgan, Philip K. Dick or even George Orwell.

When I was much younger I was a relatively enthusiastic Libertarian . . . or at least something like one.  I never really agreed with the Libertarian party but I did think that the government should regulate businesses less and generally stay out of people's personal lives as much as possible.  I also thought that a fee-for-service model was better than tax-funded public services and that privatization wasn't such a bad idea at all.  In retrospect I think I was pretty dumb or, at the very least, simple-minded.  Despite the change in mindset that I've experienced over the ensuing decades, I still feel a little uncomfortable bashing the modern sharing economy so vigorously.  But . . . .

There are two big, obvious problems with companies like Uber and Airbnb, but there's also a much less obvious problem that might be even bigger.  The first problem is that no one is actually "sharing" anything.  What happening is that people are "selling" stuff, be it rides in their cars or nights in their house.  And, while the people doing the selling are making some money, the companies assisting in those sales are making boat-loads of money.  Let me put it this way -- I "share" a truck with someone.  We both use it when we need it and make arrangements with each-other about when we'll use it.  We each cover half the costs of the insurance, repairs, and gas.  However, we pay our own parking tickets.  But neither of us makes any money off the deal, despite most of the purchase cost of the truck having been paid by one of us.  That is actual sharing.

What the current "sharing economy" is about is private parties selling the use of a thing (or their own time in the case of companies like TaskRabbit) to other private parties with the assistance of a third party (which is a large for-profit company, or at least one with dreams of being large).  No-one is actually "sharing" a goddam thing and everyone involved is in it for the money -- the people selling want to make some money, the companies running things want to make a lot of money, and, in most cases, the people buying want to save some money.

It's not that I'm against people wanting to make (and save) money.  After all, I run a small business.  But I do think it's a problem when you call something and present something as "sharing" when it's not.  And it does have an effect.  Recently lawmakers all over the US have tried, with varying levels of success, to pass laws regarding the sharing business model.  It's a tough sell when you're trying to "restrict" the "sharing economy".  It makes one sound like the mean kid at preschool who hoards their toys, "Billy hasn't learned to share yet," (and the teacher shakes his head sadly).

The other problem is that there isn't much accountability.  It's a strange business that was pioneered by companies like eBay and AbeBooks in the 90s.  The idea is that the big company involved in the transaction isn't _really_ involved.  All that they do is connect the buyer and the seller then take a fee or commission for the transaction.  And often they even "clear" the transaction by collecting the money from the buyer and passing it along to the seller.  But, despite that level of involvement, the "facilitator" is not actually a party to the transaction.  If something goes wrong (i.e. the items sold are damaged, not as described, or aren't even delivered) the facilitator can't really be held responsible.  In all cases that I'm aware of, they just shrug, send some nasty notes, and possibly de-list the seller.  But they're not accountable.

That is possibly a problem when you're buying a rare book or a solid-gold Kama Sutra coffee pot, but it can really be a problem when you're staying in someone's house or being driven around in their car.  And it's also a problem when you're driving someone around _in_ your car or renting out your house.  Recently people driving for Uber have discovered that their insurance doesn't cover them when they're doing commercial driving and neither does Uber's insurance.  So, they get into an accident, get dropped by their insurance, and, unable to pay for the repairs for their car, end up with no car and unable to earn money driving.  And Uber just shrugs and, I'm sure, figures that there are plenty more drivers where that one came from.  Likewise, people renting out their apartments via Airbnb have been evicted by their landlords for violating their lease.  To which Airbnb shrugs and responds that they should have checked their lease and local laws first.

Instead of a real sharing economy, what is actually happening is more like a "sharecropper economy".  Like the landowners after the civil war, companies like Uber and Airbnb have all the advantages in the situation and no shortage of people willing to work for them, despite the lack of any chance of advancement, benefits, or the give-and-take obligations that go with employment.  Meanwhile, they're subject to far less regulation, restrictions and taxation than taxi companies and hotels.  And, obviously, they're willing to fight tooth and nail to avoid any additional regulation or to pay the taxes that they already owe.

And then there's the hidden problem.  The story that is being told about the sharing economy is that it is helping people support themselves.  I constantly hear Airbnb talking about how occasional rentals are helping people pay their mortgages or their rent.  The thing that is being left out of that is the rock-hard fact that, to participate you have to have something that someone else wants.  If you want to drive for Uber X or Lyft you have to have a car.  If you want to rent a room on Airbnb you've got to live somewhere someone else would want to stay (and you can't have six of your family members sharing a two-bedroom apartment).  In short, if you want to be part of the sharing economy, you can't be poor or actually scrabbling to make ends meet.  If your life is like that, you don't have anything the sharing economy wants.

But, if you're poor, you can certainly get a job cleaning rooms in a hotel.  And driving a taxi has been a decent job for recent immigrants to the US for decades.

Now, I ask you, does this sound like a dystopian SF novel?  A society in which the lower-middle class do work (without any job-security or benefits) for the upper and upper-middle class while the lower class are excluded and subsist on shrinking jobs at businesses that are being destroyed by the economics of the "sharecropper economy".

In fact, I think that was a feature of novels by William Gibson, Richard Morgan, and Harry Harrison.  Excellent books all, but none of them very happy.  The great thing (perhaps the greatest thing) about science fiction is that it allows us to look at where we are, extrapolate that into the future, and consider where we might end up.  And, upon considering that, it gives us a chance to change the outcome.  I love to read dark visions of the future, but I sure as hell don't want to live them.

Best Sellers

Borderlands Best-Selling Titles for June, 2014

Hardcovers
1. MY REAL CHILDREN by Jo Walton
2. CIBOLA BURN by James S. A. Corey
3. SKIN GAME by Jim Butcher
4. CALIFORNIA BONES by Greg Van Eekhout
5. THE THREE by Sarah Lotz
6. ROGUES edited by George RR Martin and Gardner Dozois
7. ARTEMIS AWAKENING by Jane Lindskold
8. THE MARTIAN by Andy Weir
9. WHAT MAKES THIS BOOK SO GREAT by Jo Walton
10. AFTERPARTY by Daryl Gregory

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. DANCE WITH DRAGONS by George RR Martin
2. NEPTUNE'S BROOD by Charles Stross
3. WISE MAN'S FEAR by Patrick Rothfuss
4. DAWN'S EARLY LIGHT by Pip Ballantine & Tee Morris
5. APOCALYPSE CODEX by Charles Stross
6. DEADSHIFTED by Cassie Alexander
7. HALF-OFF RAGNAROK by Seanan McGuire
8. LONDON FALLING by Paul Cornell
9. IMPULSE by Steven Gould
10. MEMORY OF LIGHT by Brandon Sanderson

Trade Paperbacks
1. OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE by Neil Gaiman
2. HOMELAND by Cory Doctorow
3. ANCILLARY JUSTICE by Ann Leckie
4. RITHMATIST by Brandon Sanderson
5. TIME TRAVELER'S ALMANAC edited by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer tie with ANNIHILATION by Jeff VanderMeer

Book Club Information

The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, July 13th, at 5 pm to discuss FURTHER by Chris Roberson.  Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club will meet on Sunday, July 20th, at 6 pm to discuss MAKERS by Cory Doctorow.  The book for August is BLUE REMEMBERED EARTH by Alastair Reynolds.  Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

Upcoming Event Details

Juliet Blackwell, A VISION IN VELVET (Signet, Mass Market, $7.99), Kate Carlisle, THE BOOK STOPS HERE (Obsidian, Hardcover, $24.95), and Gigi Pandian, PIRATE VISHNU (Henery Press, Trade Paperback, $15.95), Saturday July 12th at 3:00 pm - Do you like witches or pirates? (We know you like books!) Why choose when you can enjoy all three at this event?  Juliet Blackwell, Kate Carlisle, and Gigi Pandian return to their respective series, with even more mystery, magic and pirates.  Come celebrate the release of three books!  In A VISION IN VELVET, the sixth in Blackwell's Witchcraft Mystery series, Lily must save someone very important to her, her pot-bellied pig familiar Oscar.  A witch is reaching out from the past, through her velvet cloak, and it's up to Lily to decide whether she is friend or foe and to prepare to fight if she must.  In THE BOOK STOPS HERE, rare-book expert and appraiser Brooklyn Wainwright is thrilled to be appearing on the San Francisco edition of the hit TV show This Old Attic.  Her first subject is a very valuable (and likely very dangerous) first-edition copy of The Secret Garden.  Then the show's host, Randolph, is accosted by an angry man who says the book was purchased on the cheap at his garage sale, and he wants it back, or else.  Can she protect Randolph and herself?  The past also reaches out in PIRATE VISHNU, Pandian's second Jaya Jones mystery.  Historian Jones is stuck not only dealing with her complicated love life but also trying to solve two murders a century apart and decipher a treasure map left by one of her ancestors, the Pirate Vishnu of the title.  If she succeeds she could very well rediscover sacred jewels thought lost forever. . . and if she fails she could end up being the next one to walk the plank.

MP Johnson, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS (Eraserhead Press, Trade Paperback, $10.95) Sunday July 13th at 3:00 pm -Borderlands is proud and tickled as pink as Ms. LaRuse's wig to welcome MP Johnson for the release for his latest work, DUNGEONS AND DRAG QUEENS. It is quite simply everything you've always wanted in a fantasy novel and didn't know how to ask for. Drag Queens! Wizards! Monsters! Fabulous Wigs! And more! When Sleazella LaRuse, the reigning queen-of-queens of Green Bay, ends up in a completely different world as the intended bride of the serpent god Houmak, she must use all of her guile, skills, and lip-synching prowess to make her way, survive and maybe find love along the way. A delicious mix of irreverent humor, sword-and-sorcery and Drag-attude. Even if you've never been into drag you'll be into this simply because it's a great adventure story that never goes where you expect.

Richard Lupoff, WRITER VOL. 1 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00 and Hardcover, $32.00), WRITER VOL. 2 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $20.00 and Hardcover, $32.00) & WHAT IF? VOL. 3 (Ramble House, Trade Paperback, $18.00 and Hardcover, $32.00), Saturday July 19th at 3:00 pm - Celebrated writer Dick Lupoff  comes to Borderlands for the release of three books. Read behind-the-scenes stories of triumphs and hardships in WRITER VOL. 1 & 2. Memoir, criticism, analysis and anecdotes combine and inform each other and give you a real idea of what it means to be a working writer for 60 years. If you've enjoyed Richard Lupoff's work in the past, dig into these books to see what was happening behind the stories. Lupoff is also presenting the long awaited WHAT IF? VOL. 3, decades after VOL. 1 & 2. Lupoff returns to collect stories that were eligible for the Hugo, and in Lupoff's opinion should have won. Collecting stories from 1966-1973, it includes works by Joanna Russ, Samuel Delany, Gene Wolfe, Ursula LeGuin, and more!

Michael J. Martinez, THE ENCELADUS CRISIS (Night Shade Books, Trade Paperback, $15.99)Saturday July 26th at 3:00 pm - Borderlands is pleased to welcome Michael J. Martinez to celebrate the release of his second novel THE ENCELADUS CRISIS, sequel to THE DAEDALUS INCIDENT. Again dimensions collide, while ships sail to Saturn and people try to discover the reason France invaded Egypt to begin with. Imagine an Age of Sail novel, mixed with a first contact novel with a dash of history, alchemy and a mystery that gets more complex day-by-day. There is something old and familiar for everyone in this novel as well as something new to discover and love.

Serena Valentino, THE BEAST WITHIN (Disney Press, Hardcover, $16.99) Saturday July 26th at 5:00 pm - Valentino returns to the world of Disney to explore the background of another villainous character. Like her previous novel FAIREST OF ALL, which explored the past of the Wicked Queen from Sleeping Beauty, this one tackles a different complex and villainous character, the Beast from Beauty & the Beast. From the publisher's description of the newest novel THE BEAST WITHIN: "A cursed prince sits alone in a secluded castle. Few have seen him, but those who claim they have say his hair is wild and nails are sharp -- like a beast's! But how did this prince, once jovial and beloved by the people, come to be a reclusive and bitter monster? And is it possible that he can ever find true love and break the curse that has been placed upon him?" Valentino's career has spanned comics, novels and hilarious How-To books; she is a writer of great range, wonderful descriptions and dark imagination. Come join us as we celebrate the release of her latest enthralling work.

Tobias S. Buckell, HURRICANE FEVER (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Sunday July 27th at 3:00 pm - Come to Borderlands to celebrate the release of Buckell's newest novel HURRICANE FEVER. A techno-thriller with slow believable ecological collapse and geo-politics that feel ripped right from the current political climate. From the publisher's website "Prudence 'Roo' Jones never thought he’d have a family to look after -- until suddenly he found himself taking care of his orphaned teenage nephew. Roo, a former Caribbean Intelligence operative, spends his downtime on his catamaran dodging the punishing hurricanes that are the new norm in the Caribbean. Roo enjoys the simple calm of his new life -- until an unexpected package from a murdered fellow spy shows up. Suddenly Roo is thrown into the center of the biggest storm of all.  Using his wits -- and some of the more violent tricks of his former trade -- Roo begins to unravel the mystery that got his friend killed. When a polished and cunning woman claiming to be murdered spy’s sister appears, the two find themselves caught up in a global conspiracy with a weapon that could change the face of the world forever." We were delighted when Tobias Buckell toured through Borderlands for his last book ARCTIC RISING.  Join us for what promises to be another great time!

Joe Abercrombie, HALF A KING (Del Rey, Hardcover, $26.00) Monday July 28th at 7:00 pm - Abercrombie's version of a coming of age novel, as only Joe Abercrombie can write it!  Blood, violence, intrigue and revenge all inform this newest novel.  Born with only one good hand, Yarvi is looked down upon by his family and people.  When his father dies, Yarvi is betrayed and sold into slavery: now the throne he never wanted has become his central goal.  Survival is his main focus, but as he gathers a collection of allies and grows into himself, Yarvi will prove that he is more than anyone anticipated -- more skilled, more strong-willed, more vicious, more vengeful, and much more than half a king.  Come to Borderlands and have your imagination set aflame in a totally new world by this author who has made fans of noted authors, cynical readers, and virtually anyone who enjoys a good story.

Glen Hirshberg, MOTHERLESS CHILD (Tor, Hardcover, $24.99) Saturday August 2nd at 3:00 pm - The brilliant Glen Hirshberg is not your typical horror writer, and MOTHERLESS CHILD is about as far as you get from a typical vampire novel.  From the publisher: "It's the thrill of a lifetime when Sophie and Natalie, single mothers living in a trailer park in North Carolina, meet their idol, the mysterious musician known only as 'the Whistler.' Morning finds them covered with dried blood, their clothing shredded and their memories hazy. Things soon become horrifyingly clear: the Whistler is a vampire and Natalie and Sophie are his latest victims. The young women leave their babies with Natalie's mother and hit the road, determined not to give in to their unnatural desires.  Hunger and desire make a powerful couple. So do the Whistler and his Mother, who are searching for Sophie and Natalie with the help of Twitter and the musician's many fans. The violent, emotionally moving showdown between two who should be victims and two who should be monsters will leave readers gasping in fear and delight." MOTHERLESS CHILD was originally published in a very limited edition from Earthling Publications, and sold out almost immediately.  We're happy that this novel can finally get the huge audience it deserves!

Katharine Kerr, SORCERER'S FEUD (Osel Books, Trade Paperback, $14.50) Saturday August 23rd at 3:00 pm - We're happy to welcome Katharine Kerr back to Borderlands!  Her newest novel is called SORCERER'S FEUD, the follow-up to SORCERER'S LUCK.  From the book description: "Art student Maya Cayescu has always had secrets to keep -- her mysterious disease that has turned her into something like a vampire, her father's obsession with ritual magic, her own talents for the occult.  Now, however, she has a secret far more dangerous than those: in self-defense, she killed a man with magic.  Can her lover, the wealthy, powerful runemaster Tor Thorlaksson, protect her from the consequences?  He has dangers of his own to face, because his family's evil past haunts him.  Worst of all, a powerful spirit from the mists of time is hunting Tor down, in hopes of taking him away from Maya and making him her own -- forever."  Don't miss this thrilling new title and the chance to meet Kit Kerr!

Kelli Stanley, CITY OF GHOSTS (Minotaur, Hardcover, $25.99) Saturday August 23rd at 5:00 pm - The third novel following Stanley's stunning CITY OF DRAGONS and CITY OF SECRETS takes us back to Miranda Corbie's ultra-noir San Francisco of 1940.  From the book description: "For the United States, war is on the horizon.  For Miranda Corbie, private investigator and erstwhile escort, there are debts to be paid and memories -- long-suppressed and willfully forgotten -- to be resurrected.  Enter the U.S. State Department and the man who helped Miranda get her PI license.  A man she owes.  A man who asks her to track a chemistry professor here in San Francisco whom he suspects is a spy for the Nazis. Playing along may get Miranda a ticket to Blitz-bombed England and answers about her past. . . if she survives.  Through sordid back alleys and art gallery halls, from drag dress nightclubs to a Nazi costume ball, Miranda's journey into fear takes her on the famed City of San Francisco streamliner and to Reno, Nevada, the Biggest Little City in the World. . . where she finds herself framed for a murder she never anticipated.  Forced to go underground, Miranda soldiers on alone, determined to find the truth about a murder, a Nazi spy, and her own troubling past."

Brent Weeks, THE BROKEN EYE (Orbit, Hardcover, $28.00) Thursday August 28th at 7:00 pm - We are thrilled to welcome Brent Weeks back to Borderlands!  THE BROKEN EYE continues Brent's Lightbringer Series, but it's very difficult to summarize the new book without spoilers.  So let's just say that you must come and meet Brent Weeks, one of the most successful and popular new fantasy writers.  He's also charming, did we mention that?  So don't miss this exciting opportunity to meet Brent and continue to explore the Lightbringer world!  (And, if you'd like to win the chance to be a Blackguard Captain, get cool prizes and hang out with Brent, see the News section above.)

Borderlands event policy - all events are free of charge.  You are welcome to bring copies of an author's books purchased elsewhere to be autographed (but we do appreciate it if you purchase something while at the event).  For most events you are welcome to bring as many books as you wish for autographs.  If you are unable to attend the event we will be happy to have a copy of any of the author's available books signed or inscribed for you.  We can then either hold the book(s) until you can come in to pick them up or we can ship to you.  Just give us a call or drop us an email.  If you live out of town, you can also ship us books from your collection to be signed for a nominal fee.  Call or email for details.


This newsletter is distributed monthly free of charge and may be distributed without charge so long all the following information is included.

Dispatches from the Border
Editor - Na'amen Tilahun
Assistant Editors - Jude Feldman, Alan Beatts
Guest Contributor - Mark W. Tiedemann

All contents unless otherwise noted are the property of Borderlands Books, 866 Valencia St.
San Francisco CA 94110
415 824-8203
http://www.borderlands-books.com
Comments and suggestions should be directed to editor@borderlands-books.com

*******

Short Newsletter

this is a short newsletter...,

Sunday, July 13, 2014

DISPATCHES FROM THE BORDER : March 2014 [Minor formating edits to create "clean" template?

Events and News from Borderlands Books

Editor's Note - We have started changing the way we reproduce and distribute this newsletter. The entire newsletter is posted and archived at our blog <http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/>. At the end of major features in this newsletter you'll find permanent links to those individual items.  These links can be convenient if you want to send just a single article or if you'd like to link to it from your website.

The current newsletter is also reproduced in full at our website, and is distributed via email. You can the current newsletter, and subscribe to the email version of at <http:///www.borderlands-books.com/>. THIS IS SLIGHTLLY MODIFED TEXT

Upcoming Author Events
Brandon Sanderson, WORDS OF RADIANCE (Tor, Hardcover, $27.99) Thursday, March 6th at 6:00 pm

Marie Brennan, TROPIC OF SERPENTS: A MEMOIR BY LADY TRENT (Tor, Hardcover, $25.99) Sunday, March 9th at 7:00 pm

Seanan McGuire, HALF OFF RAGNAROK (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, March 15th at 6:00 pm

Edith Maxwell, A TINE TO LIVE, A TINE TO DIE (Kensington, Hardcover, $24.00) Sunday, March 16th at 1:00 pm

Bruce DeSilva, PROVIDENCE RAG (Forge, Hardcover, $25.99) Sunday, March 16th at 3:00 pm

Nick Mamatas, Jim Nisbet, Sin Soracco, and Ken Wishnia: PM Press Crime Writers' Short-Fire Reading and Signing, Wednesday, March 19th at 7:00 pm

Dan Wells, RUINS (Balzer + Bray, Hardcover, $17.99) and Robison Wells, BLACKOUT (HarperTeen, Hardcover, $17.99), Friday, March 21st at 7:00 pm

Eileen Gunn, QUESTIONABLE PRACTICES (Small Beer Press, Trade Paperback, $16.00) Saturday, April 12th at 3:00 pm
Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/03/march-upcoming-events.html



News

* The New York Times comments on the recent trend of series books being released more quickly in order to satisfy "binge readers": http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/11/books/impatience-has-its-reward-books-are-rolled-out-faster.html?_r=1

* Fans of Pat Murphy's THE CITY, NOT LONG AFTER or Michaela Roessner's VANISHING POINT will especially appreciate these eerie photos of an empty San Francisco: http://www.thebolditalic.com/articles/4465-heres-what-sf-would-look-like-without-cars-or-people

* Neil Gaiman and Australia's Four Play String Quartet are coming to The Warfield June 25th.  Tickets are $40. http://blog.sfgate.com/bookmarks/2014/02/18/neil-gaiman-and-string-quartet-coming-to-s-f/

* Wonderful, creepy old photos out of context; especially for fans of Ransom Riggs, but haunting for everyone! http://theghostdiaries.com/old-mysterious-photos-that-will-haunt-your-dreams/

Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/03/february-news-roundup.html

From The Office

(Editor's note: since Alan is still busy doing construction -- if you've been in the store during the last month, you've probably heard the power tools --  I've asked some other staffers to contribute From the Office pieces for the next few months.  Don't worry; all the rest of us are just as opinionated as Alan, and he'll be back with his own special brand of analysis in a few months.  But meanwhile, enjoy a second guest piece from Jeremy Lassen, Borderlands' first (and longest continuous) employee.  (Please note that while Borderlands is probably the only bookstore in the world with its own SWAT team, and that Alan and I will personally back any of our employees in a street fight, their opinions are their own and don't necessarily represent the store. - Jude Feldman)

The Authors Who Put the “P” in “SF”

We had so much fun last time, I figured I would give it another go.  And since saying “Fuck Nick Hornsby” didn’t generate enough ire, I thought I would violate one of the first rules of polite society and talk politics.  Wait, wait, wait. . . . Not in the way that you think.  I’m not going to bore you with MY political views, or observations about various political theories and paradigms.  I’m going to bore you with observations about political thought as expressed in science fiction novels.

I’m not talking about the political views of the authors, although of course that may come up.  But if the author is genuinely interesting, what you think of as “their politics” may in fact not be.  Let’s start with good old Bob Heinlein as an example.  It’s really easy to base your perspective of an author’s personal politics on that first novel of theirs that you read.  If you read STARSHIP TROOPERS, clearly Heinlein was a fascist.  If you read STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND, well, he was a Leftist Cult-Hippie.  If you read THE MAN WHO SOLD THE MOON, you would think he was a libertarian, and if you read THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS, you could be pretty sure he was a bomb-throwing anarchist and revolutionary.

The truth about Heinlein’s politics is probably slightly more complicated than “He’s X.”  (Go ahead and read the recent biography, ROBERT A. HEINLEIN IN DIALOGUE WITH HIS CENTURY: THE AUTHORIZED BIOGRAPHY by William H. Patterson, Jr. if you want to get a detailed, nuanced view of the man.)  What the above spread of novels really demonstrates is Heinlein’s willingness to take a political idea or conceit and run with it, creating a whole narrative around its bones.  He wasn’t the only one doing this of course.  "Astounding" editor John W. Campbell famously would provide his “top producers” with a seed of an idea, telling them to “write me a story based on X.”  If you look really closely science fiction’s Golden Age fix-up novels, you can see the parallel novels that Heinlein, Clark, Asimov, and others wrote at Campbell’s behest, exploring the seed of an idea in very different ways.

The opposite of Heinlein is the author who mines one political idea or conceit repeatedly.  And I don’t mean that as an author being repetitive or simplistic.  I mean he or she dreams up a detailed political structure, and then runs it through the grinder a few dozen times, exploring it, and its relationship to other systems in exquisite detail.  The author who stands out in this regard is the recently deceased Iain M. Banks.  His series of Culture books share a single “post scarcity utopia” setting ruled by benevolent AI's.  Banks is probably the most prolific utopianist of the late 20th century, in that he was constantly picking at the edges of his detailed utopia, seeing were and how it breaks down and why, or what morality is or should be, in different contexts.

He was very much concerned with ideas of free will, and the conflict between that, and state power.  He was interested in the lies individuals and states tell themselves about the use of power and violence, both on an individual level (USE OF WEAPONS) and on a broader cultural level (PLAYER OF GAMES).  Where does “white man’s burden” begin, if you are a culture of all-knowing, all-seeing AI’s, and when does the carefully crafted “non-intervention” rule (ala "Star Trek"’s Prime Directive) get violated and thrown out the window?  It helps that despite all the teeth-gnashing and gaming of political theory and power, at his core, Banks is a really fun, and funny writer.  So when things get too grim or serious, there’s always a wise-cracking spaceship to lighten things up.

The polar opposite of Banks may be Neal Asher.  If you ever want to see how an author’s individual politics inform their fictional exercises in world building, one should compare the post scarcity utopias of Banks with the post scarcity utopias of Asher’s Polity series. They are both ruled by benevolent AI's.  But the questions they pose, and what is defined in opposition to this setting couldn’t be more different.  The misguided revolutionary often serves as the plot point or fulcrum that tips the narrative in a Polity book.  And much like Banks, Asher has a secret weapon that prevents his narratives from bogging down in  polemic.  Asher has an incredible sense of pacing, and does really incredible action set pieces. You may sometimes catch glimpses of the author’s true political views while reading his books, but shit is blowing up so spectacularly, you usually don’t have time to notice.

Speaking of Asher, and forms. . . . His recent Owner series puts the metaphorical shoe on the other foot.  It's dystopic in nature instead of utopian, and focus on revolution and overthrowing an established order. This revolutionary narrative is a classic one in science fiction -- THE MOON IS A HARSH MISTRESS was mentioned above, and Roger Zelazny’s LORD OF LIGHT is another early work that comes to mind.  Some of the questioning of power and methods that were so prevalent in Banks' Culture series probably had some roots in Zelazny’s novel.

Sometimes, these revolutionary narratives can span multiple volumes, as is the case with Pierce Brown’s recent debut, RED RISING.  Piers Anthony repeatedly played around with revolutionary narratives, from his early Cthon novels, to Phaze series, to his Bio of A Space Tyrant series.  (Incidentally, and as a warning, I think it’s easy to say that Anthony’s work is sometimes weirdly focused on issues of forced servitude, and nudity, amongst other things.  I mean, he was no John Norman, but holy crap -- my shorthand name for the Space Tyrant series is “Bio of a Rape Tyrant” -- EVERYBODY is raped in the first book of that series.)

Some might consider Zelazny’s Amber series or Herbert’s DUNE to be revolutionary narratives, but those tend more towards changing the protagonists' place in the established political order, rather than overthrowing it altogether.  I think the thing that is most interesting about these revolutionary narratives is how they have evolved as part of the long science fiction conversation.  While early revolutionary narratives are often simple dystopian settings with revolutionary heroes, later works examine the problems associated with revolutionary movements and leaders.

Richard Morgan comes to mind with his third Takashi Kovacs novel, WOKEN FURIES.  I think the gangster/surfer/revolutionaries in that novel are some of the most iconic in science fiction, and the type of ambivalent exploration of their charisma and violence in pursuit of political goals is positively Banksian in its nuance and thoughtfulness.  Morgan had earlier covered similar territory with his novel MARKET FORCES, which followed the dystopian setting/revolutionary hero narrative, but ultimately turned it on its head.  The alternatives to the hyper-capitalism of MARKET FORCES were presented as ineffectual, and the idea of charismatic revolutionary leaders was undermined in a stunning narrative turn.

Another contemporary SF author who has exploded the charismatic revolutionary leader motif is China Miéville.  His Bas Lag novels THE SCAR and IRON COUNCIL are different but equally powerful examinations of revolutionary movements.  China's work is interesting for a couple of reasons.  First, he’s using a fantasy motif.  Admittedly Banks and Zelazny ostensibly used fantasy motifs in science fictional settings, so this doesn’t place Miéville's work too far outside of the discussion.

The other thing that stands out with China is that he's oftentimes referred to as a POLITICAL author, and explicitly a leftist author. Which is ultimately kind of funny, as his fiction isn’t any more overtly political than that of either his contemporaries, or his antecedents.  There been far bigger leftists in the genre (Eric Flint, Steven Brust and Will Shetterly immediately spring to mind, although obviously there are others), and many conservative authors' political or economic views are presented in significantly more overt terms.  I think China is a victim of both timing and a really good marketing campaign by his publishers -- much was made of his nascent political aspirations as a Communist Party candidate for Parliament by his publishers, and this was during the rule of two extremely conservative governments in the US and UK, when leftists were being overtly marginalized in the political discourse.  If you didn’t like the Bush Regime, or the Blair administration, China Miéville was your science fiction guy, so to speak.

Another author who has used fantasy motifs to explore political systems and ideology in a really interesting way is Peter Higgins. His fantasy police procedural WOLFHOUND CENTURY is a stunning debut. What sets his world building apart is that instead of using a traditional feudalistic fantasy setting, he sets up a Stalanistic-style authoritarian regime.  I’ve seen some sources mistakenly characterize this as alternate history, which it explicitly is not.  It’s fantasy, with a social and political system that you’ve never seen in fantasy pages before.  I’m eagerly looking forward to the 2nd book in this series, TRUTH AND FEAR.

Oddly enough, Glen Cook has also written some really great revolutionary narratives, using fantasy and SF-inal setups.  That’s right.  The Garrett Files and Black Company guy has some serious revolution going on.  Actually, his Darkwar Trilogy is an incredibly interesting explosion of the genre.  It’s a science fiction novel with a fantasy motif, and it tells the story from the point of view of (SPOILER ALERT) the evil dictator.  About halfway through the second book, one begins to suspect that our protagonist isn’t the hero who will release her people from bondage. . . she’s actually the dark overlord that needs to be overthrown.  I think this early Cook trilogy stands as one of his most fascinating and nuanced narratives.  Plus, it's about a matriarchal society of anthropomorphic dog people who fly through space in psionically powered wooden space ships.  I mean, seriously, go back and read that sentence again.  I’m not kidding.  And it works.  Really, really well. The Darkwar Trilogy. Oh, so good.

Cook's other fantasy/revolutionary work is the two-book Dread Empire prequel, collected in A FORTRESS IN SHADOW.  This follows the rise of a theocratic revolutionary movement in a desert setting, amongst a group of feudal nomadic tribes.  It also plays around with the idea of charismatic leaders, and, specifically, religious fundamentalism.  This one is quite amazing as well.

Finally, I want to touch one of science fiction’s greatest political movements. The feminist science fiction novels of the 60’s, 70's, and 80's are one of the genre’s very important contributions to society and literature.  Like other forms of popular entertainment, and entertainment for “kids”, SF was allowed to explore issues and take up agendas that were incredibly socially divisive.  Polite society often didn’t talk about these things, or only talked about them in very circumspect terms.  And at a time when really overt and detailed examinations of the patriarchy and gender relationships were completely marginalized, the science fiction genre was putting them in front of 12-year-old girls and boys alike.  It’s easy to under-appreciate how subversive these novels were, and to fail to recognize what a big part of the science fiction genre they were.  They were mainstream, and sitting on the newsstand racks, and being printed in 100,000+ copy print runs.  They were not marginalized or off in a ghetto. They were at the center of science fiction.

I was recently in an online discussion with a woman who felt that the written science fiction genre was just a boy's club, and that Gene Rodenberry and his feminist-influenced utopian "Star Trek" series didn’t really come out of that written science fiction tradition.  I was gobsmacked by this.  Perhaps this perception is reflective of a regression that took place in science fiction, and society at large.  Feminism was turned into a dirty word and SF’s feminism was glossed over or ignored, and the genre did become a bit of a boy's club in the 80's and afterwards.  Because of this, its easy to see why SF fans of a certain age might think that SF is “just a boy's club.”

I will probably go on at length in some future forum, but let me throw out some names.  Some of the earliest pioneers include writers like Leigh Brackett, Judith Merril, and Kit Reed.  Ursula K. Le Guin is a recognized giant; others like Pamela Sargent  and James Tiptree, Jr. came out of that New Wave era of feminist SF, and writers like Sheri S. Tepper and Octavia Butler continued on with the tradition through the 80’s. Marion Zimmer Bradely’s Darkover fiction, as well as her more broadly known Mists of Avalon series also stand out as works that are explicitly part of the feminist tradition.  And currently there is a whole new generation of writers who are embracing and exploring this science fiction tradition.

Science fiction has never followed the dictum that one doesn’t talk about politics. It’s almost always been about politics, one way or the other. And our oft-divided, (does anyone remember the great WorldCon schism over the Vietnam War? That makes today’s Twitter fights look like schoolyard bickering by comparison) big-tent community of readers and writers will always be looking at political ideas -- they way they were, the way they are, the way they can be, and the way they should be. That’s one of the strengths of the genre.

-Jeremy Lassen


Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-authors-who-put-p-in-sf.html

Top Sellers At Borderlands

Hardcovers
1. The Waking Engine by David Edison
2. Red Rising by Pierce Brown
3. Pandemic by Scott Sigler
4. The Martian by Andy Weir
5. A Darkling Sea by James Cambias
6. What Makes This Book So Great by Jo Walton
7. Dreamwalker by C.S. Friedman
8. V-S Day by Allen Steele
9. Seven Wild Sisters by Charles de Lint
10. Neptune's Brood by Charles Stross

Mass Market Paperbacks
1. Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
2. The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
3. The Long War by Stephen Baxter and Terry Pratchett
4. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
5. Red Seas Under Red Skies by Scott Lynch
6. Who Fears Death? by Nnedi Okorafor
7. Frost Burned by Patricia Briggs
8. A Dance With Dragons by George R.R. Martin
9. Great North Road by Peter F. Hamilton
10. Wise Man's Fear by Patrick Rothfuss

Trade Paperbacks
1. Annihilation by Jeff Vadermeer
2. Hyperbolye and a Half by Allie Brosh
3. Miss Peregrin'e Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
4. Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan
5. Indexing by Seanan McGuire

Permalink - http://borderlands-books.blogspot.com/2014/03/february-bestsellers.html

Book Club Info

The QSF&F Book Club will meet on Sunday, March 9th at 5 pm to discuss EMBASSYTOWN by China Mieville.  Please contact the group leader, Christopher Rodriguez, at cobalt555@earthlink.net, for more information.

The Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Club will meet on Sunday, March 16th at 6 pm to discuss AMONG OTHERS by Jo Walton.  The book for April is THE GODS THEMSELVES by Isaac Asimov.  Please contact bookclub@borderlands-books.com for more information.

Upcoming Event Details

Brandon Sanderson, WORDS OF RADIANCE (Tor, Hardcover, $27.99) Thursday, March 6th at 6:00 pm - Join us to meet one of our very favorite fantasy writers, the incredibly talented Brandon Sanderson!  Having done the seemingly impossible and completed Robert Jordan's near-legendary Wheel of Time series, Brandon's now hard at work on his own massive epic, The Stormlight Archive.  WORDS OF RADIANCE is volume 2, the followup to WAY OF KINGS, and in it the story grows even more complex and compelling.  Don't miss this event! (Please note, this event begins at 6pm, an hour earlier than usual.)

Marie Brennan, TROPIC OF SERPENTS: A MEMOIR BY LADY TRENT (Tor, Hardcover, $25.99) Sunday, March 9th at 7:00 pm - Don't miss this opportunity to meet Marie Brennan and enjoy the continuing adventures of the remarkable Victorian naturalist Lady Trent!  From the book description: "Attentive readers of Lady Trent’s earlier memoir, A NATURAL HISTORY OF DRAGONS, are already familiar with how a bookish and determined young woman named Isabella first set out on the historic course that would one day lead her to becoming the world’s premier dragon naturalist.  Now, in this remarkably candid second volume, Lady Trent looks back at the next stage of her illustrious (and occasionally scandalous) career."

Seanan McGuire, HALF OFF RAGNAROK (DAW, Mass Market, $7.99) Saturday, March 15th at 6:00 pm - Seanan McGuire's events are always a wild party, and you're invited!  We're happy to host the super-prolific author as she presents the newest InCryptid novel.  This one's narrated by Verity's brother Alex, and includes a whole host of new characters and also some old friends. "When Alex Price agreed to go to Ohio to oversee a basilisk breeding program and assist in the recovery of his psychic cousin, he didn't expect people to start dropping dead. But bodies are cropping up at the zoo where he works, and his girlfriend--Shelby Tanner, an Australian zoologist with a fondness for big cats--is starting to get suspicious.  Worse yet, the bodies have all been turned partially to stone . . . . The third book in the InCryptid series takes us to a new location and a new member of the family, as Alex tries to balance life, work, and the strong desire not to become a piece of garden statuary. Old friends and new are on the scene, and danger lurks around every corner.  Of course, so do the talking mice."

Edith Maxwell, A TINE TO LIVE, A TINE TO DIE (Kensington, Hardcover, $24.00) Sunday, March 16th at 1:00 pm - We're delighted to welcome Edith Maxwell to the store!  This is a new cozy series to die for: "It's harvest time in Westbury, Massachusetts, and novice farmer Cameron Flaherty hopes to make a killing selling organic produce. A colorful Locavore Club belongs to Cam's farm-share program. But when a killer strikes on her property, her first foray into the world of organic farming yields a bumper crop of locally sourced murder.  To clear her name, Cam has to dig up secrets buried deep beneath the soil of Produce Plus Farm. And when the police don't make progress in the case, she has to catch a murderer whose motto seems to be, 'Eat Local. Kill Local.'"

Bruce DeSilva, PROVIDENCE RAG (Forge, Hardcover, $25.99) Sunday, March 16th at 3:00 pm - We're eagerly anticipating meeting Bruce DeSilva, a rising talent whose new novel asks a very difficult ethical question. . . "Inspired by a true story, PROVIDENCE RAG finds Mulligan, his pal Mason, and the newspaper they both work for at an ethical crossroad. The youngest serial killer in history butchered five of his neighbors before he was old enough to drive. When he was caught eighteen years ago, Rhode Island's antiquated criminal statutes --never intended for someone like him -- required that all juveniles, no matter their crimes, be released at age twenty-one. The killer is still behind bars, serving time for crimes supposedly committed on the inside. That these charges were fabricated is an open secret; but nearly everyone is fine with it -- if the monster ever gets out more people will surely die. But Mason is not fine with it. If officials can get away with framing this killer they could do it to anybody. As Mason sets out to prove officials are perverting the  justice system, Mulligan searches frantically for some legal way to keep the monster behind bars. The dueling investigations pit the friends against each other in a high-stakes race against time -- and snares them in an ethical dilemma that has no right answer."

Nick Mamatas, Jim Nisbet, Sin Soracco, and Ken Wishnia: PM Press Crime Writers' Short-Fire Reading and Signing, Wednesday, March 19th at 7:00 pm - We love stimulating, subversive, and local PM Press!  PM tends toward the outstanding, radical, activist, and experimental (Terry Bisson edits their Outspoken Authors Series) and their crime fiction is no different.  We're happy to welcome a bunch of PM's crime writers for an evening of rapid-fire reading and signing.  We know you'll want to meet Nick, Jim, Sin, and Ken!  RSVP on the Facebook events page if you like: https://www.facebook.com/events/498491736940077/

Dan Wells, RUINS (Balzer + Bray, Hardcover, $17.99) and Robison Wells, BLACKOUT (HarperTeen, Hardcover, $17.99), Friday, March 21st at 7:00 pm - We're excited to welcome the Wells brothers to Borderlands!  Dan's newest book is RUINS, the followup to FRAGMENTS, and the end of the Partials Sequence. "Kira, Samm, and Marcus fight to prevent a final war between Partials and humans in the gripping final installment in the Partials Sequence, a series that combines the thrilling action of THE HUNGER GAMES with the provocative themes of BLADE RUNNER and THE STAND." Joining Dan this time around is Robison Wells, whose new book is BLACKOUT.  From the book description: "Laura and Alec are highly trained teenage terrorists. Jack and Aubrey are small-town high school students. There was no reason for their paths to ever cross.  But now a mysterious virus is spreading throughout America, infecting teenagers with impossible superpowers -- and all teens are being rounded up, dragged to government testing facilities, and drafted into the army to fight terrorism.  Suddenly, Jack, Laura, Aubrey, and Alec find their lives intertwined in a complex web of deception, loyalty, and catastrophic danger -- where one wrong choice could trigger an explosion that ends it all."

Eileen Gunn, QUESTIONABLE PRACTICES (Small Beer Press, Trade Paperback, $16.00) Saturday, April 12th at 3:00 pm - We are always thrilled to welcome the talented Eileen Gunn to the store!  QUESTIONABLE PRACTICES is her new short story collection.  From the book description: "Good intentions aren’t everything.  Sometimes things don’t quite go the way you planned. And sometimes you don’t plan. . . . This collection of sixteen stories (and one lonely poem) wittily chart the ways trouble can ensue.  No actual human beings were harmed in the creation of this book.  Stories from Eileen Gunn are always a cause for celebration. Where will she lead us? “Up the Fire Road” to a slightly alternate world.  Four stories into steampunk’s heart. Into the golem’s heart. Yet never where we might expect."

Borderlands event policy - all events are free of charge unless otherwise stated.  You are welcome to bring copies of an author's books purchased elsewhere to be autographed (but we do appreciate it if you purchase something while at the event).  For most events you are welcome to bring as many books as you wish for autographs.  If you are unable to attend the event we will be happy to have a copy of any of the author's available books signed or inscribed for you.  We can then either hold the book(s) until you can come in to pick them up or we can ship to you.  Just give us a call or drop us an email.  If you live out of town, you can also ship us books from your collection to be signed for a nominal fee.  Call or email for details.


Dispatches from the Border
Editor - Jude Feldman
Assistant Editor - Alan Beatts

All contents unless otherwise noted are the property of
Borderlands Books
866 Valencia St.
San Francisco, CA  94110
415-824-8203
http://www.borderlands-books.com

Comments and suggestions should be directed to editor@borderlands-books.com