(cover design and art: Melanie Ujimori/Jonathon Dalton. Art direction: Rhiannon Rasmussen-Silverstein)
Just a quick extra word: on Kobo (and on a bunch of other retailers), the Obsidian and Blood omnibus and the other Angry Robot editions (with the old covers) still show up for sale. I’d be all in favour if there hadn’t been a snafu: these editions are officially out of print. We’re still sorting that out, but in the meantime I’d be really grateful if you would take a look at the new editions? Thanks!
-My esssay “Pushing Back Against the Wall” is up, over at Lightspeed Magazine’s kickstarter for funding their special issue of “POC Destroy SF!” (edited by Nalo Hopkinson and Kristine Ong Muslim).
I am told I shouldn’t speak of this, because it makes me angry and unpleasant and unattractive, and is that what I really want to be, as an author?
-A Fantastical Librarian reviews The House of Shattered Wings
I loved The House of Shattered Wings. I found it immersive, delicious, and full of beautiful visuals. Definitely one I recommend.
-James Nicoll reviews Harbinger of the Storm (with new spiffy cover!)
Acatl’s problem is working out which of the dozens of competing schemes is causing the current crisis.
(I love this quote. It’s like my idea of court plotting in a nutshell :p)
And tonight I’m off to Margot Zhang’s bao class, aka finally mastering the art of little fluffy buns (thanks to the H and his Xmas present of a cookery class!)
So… I’ve been sitting on this for a while and was told there was actually no problem in announcing it! Pleased to announce that The House of Shattered Wings will be published in French by Fleuve Editions, with a translation by Emmanuel Chastellière.
More info when I have it.
(and I’ll go back to feeling unaccountably nervous about it. There’s something very different to selling a book in your home country, eep)
Just a quick update because people have asked: as you may know, the Obsidian and Blood rights have reverted to me. Have been busy with lots of things, but the plan is to release them as ebook soon-ish (it doesn’t all go through me so precise timeline to be confirmed later ^-^)
They’re going to have super new covers designed by Jonathon Dalton and Melanie Ujimori (with art direction by Rhiannon Rasmussen-Silverstein). To whet your appetite, here are a few of the glyphs Jonathon designed for the cover of Servant of the Underworld…
And finally, if you’re in the mood for more Dominion of the Fallen short fiction, I have a short story, “Against the Encroaching Darkness”, which is set during the Great Houses War and focuses on House Lazarus. It’s now out in issue 5 of Grimdark Magazine, which you can get here. And here’s a snippet and more info about the story, here.
So… you can now buy “Of Books, and Earth, and Courtship”, my story set in the universe of The House of Shattered Wings. It charts the first meeting between Selene and Emmanuelle–and the unexpected adventure they find themselves thrown into!
It is standalone, and you can read it without having read the book–in fact, if you’re not sure whether you’d like the book, you can get a peek at the universe that way (though fair warning: it’s more… light-hearted than the novel).
It’s available as an ebook from all major retailers (see below), at 0.99 or thereabouts–fluffy and cheap, what are you waiting for? *g*
What you get: a caper/adventure, a glimpse at the inside of House Harrier (near Grenelle in the 15e Arrondissement, for the curious)–and more Emmanuelle, Selene and Morningstar, of course. Magic, infiltration, and explosions! (well, a teensy little explosion).
In a Paris that never was, a city of magical factions where Fallen angels mingle with magicians, alchemists and witches…
Emmanuelle is the Fallen archivist of House Silverspires, and only wants a quiet life with her books. But when Selene, the latest student of Lucifer Morningstar, walks into the library, Emmanuelle finds herself drawn in an adventure to steal from another House. It’s a thrilling and dangerous task, but the most dangerous thing about it might just be Selene herself–aloof and resourceful, and unexpectedly attractive…
The Fallen came into the library of House Silverspires every morning, and every morning she would go into the stacks and come back with a pile of dusty books smelling of old, cracked leather, and sit down at the furthest table, staring at the books as if she could make them cooperate with a mere glance. By the looks of it–she was still sitting at the table hours afterwards, perhaps a third of the way into the first or second book–it was not going well.
Emmanuelle knew who she was, of course. Everyone did: Selene, Morningstar’s latest student–his latest pride, before he grew bored of her and cast her aside; as he had cast aside all his other students. She walked tall and straight; wearing men’s clothes, a set of black trousers and a swallowtail jacket, both impeccably pressed and arranged with a meticulousness that was more frightening than alluring.
The smart, sensible thing to do–and Emmanuelle was nothing if not practical—would have been to stay away. To smile, and show Selene the way into the stacks, and see her out every morning. To go back to her cataloguing and repairs of old books, and sorting the odd fight between archivists. But… but Selene smelled of patchouli and freshly-cut grass, and walked with the grace of a queen, her face oddly expressionless–what would it look like, if it creased into a smile? And, day after day, Emmanuelle found her gaze drawn towards the depths of the library, and the silent struggle at the table–until one day she found herself smearing glue across the first page of a beautifully illuminated manuscript, instead of efficiently dabbing it on the top of the spine.
So you can now buy The House of Shattered Wings both in the US and the UK–I thought it was high time to round up a few of the things that have been going on with the novel, just in case you’re feeling indecisive (or if you want to know more!).
Gripping (…) De Bodard aptly mixes moral conflicts and the desperate need to survive in a fantastical spy thriller that reads like a hybrid of le Carré and Milton, all tinged with the melancholy of golden ages lost.
Will grab readers and force them to pay attention to the amazing writing and the phenomenal characters (…) It’s a whirlwind, it’s heartbreaking and it’s one of the best fantasy novels of 2015.
A fascinating Paris of decay and cruelty. Phillippe is a marvel of a character, unreliable as a narrator but compelling in his flaws and his deep well of homesickness.
Especially haunting(…) convey(s) a visceral sense of immediacy (…) a surprising but compelling murder mystery, which plays out according to the supernatural terms de Bodard has laid out so evocatively.
Grimly prosaic (…) wrapped up in intrigue and politics (…) comes closer to the blunt, grounded violence of Game Of Thrones than the high gothic fantasy it outwardly resembles (…) a grim story with high-flown conventions, but by finding so much ugliness even in supernatural beauty, de Bodard makes both seem more compelling, and more concrete.
The year’s best urban fantasy by far (…) takes a whole hoard of over-familiar fantasy tropes and turns them, evidently effortlessly, on their collective head (…) There’s an intelligence—and, yes, an elegance—to The House of Shattered Wings that is as rare and precious as angel essence.
One of the most unusual and absorbing books I’ve read in years (…) a vivid sense of remembered splendour and grandeur (…) a powerful novel that sinks deep into the reader’s psyche, taking you into a world so rich and characters so compelling that they linger for months after turning the last page. Don’t miss it.
a novel that is not easy to put down (…) has has some incredible moments that will leave you wanting more (…) a thrilling, gripping read, that will leave you wanting another hit of angel essence.
So… I’m on a plane so I can’t really do much except fret (and write book 2!), but in the meantime, today is the release day for The House of Shattered Wings in the US, from Roc Books. So happy book day to everyone who was kind enough to preorder it or who’s going to pick up a copy soon–hope you enjoy!
Welcome back to Shattered Wings Thursdays, the weekly feature of art related to The House of Shattered Wings. 12 days to release of the Roc hardcover edition (and 14 days to the Gollancz trade paperback). Eep. Almost there!
Paris Saint-Lazare, cour du Havre en 1919, old postcard
Today: second-to-last of the magical factions (well, at least those I have space for :p)
Lazarus is an interesting faction: first, because it’s a recently founded House (it was founded shortly before the war), and second, because all its heads of Houses have been human. There are no rules that say a House has to be headed by a Fallen, but nevertheless it tends to happen, because Fallen are longer-lived and have a better natural aptitude for magic.
Lazarus is currently headed by Claire, a sixty-year-old woman with a grandmotherly attitude (and if you think that means nice you need a refresher course about grandmothers ^^). The colors of the House are brown and green, its arms are an antlered man emerging from a cavern, and its motto is “Firma nunquamque lapsa” (“Steady never falling”). Its philosophy of life can best be summed up as “divide to reign.” House Lazarus knows it will never be as strong or as powerful as other Houses, and therefore thrives on encouraging discord.
Notable characters from Hawthorn: Claire, the head of the House; Eric, her bodyguard and lover.
So… by the magic of Rafflecopter, the following people have won a signed hardcover of The House of Shattered Wings:
-Peter S K
-Michelle Clarke
-Jessie M
Congratulations!
Yeah, I added a third hardcover as there were so many entries! Really delighted at the enthusiasm for this.
If you feel like you missed out: the RT Book Reviews giveaway of 5 ARCs is still on-going here. (and even if you don’t, there’s an extra excerpt with the giveaway, featuring geeky alchemist Madeleine and Head of House Hawthorn Asmodeus).
One of the darkest and strangest fantasies I’ve ever read, containing the creepiest villain ever, the appalling Asmodeus, it haunts you long after you’ve finished it.
(yes, the same Asmodeus that’s in the excerpt. Isn’t life fun? 🙂 )
