Updates and More: Salvation's Reach. Children of the Sky. Blue Dragon. Kultus. The Night Eternal. Dead of Night.

It's no surprise that Dan Abnett's Gaunt's Ghosts series is a major hit for the Warhammer 40k author. The thirteenth book in the Gaunt's Ghosts series, and the second title in The Victory story arc, Salvation's Reach is long overdue. Because of medical issues that conflicted with Mr. Abnett's writing schedule, Salvation's Reach will finally hit the shelves on October 4th. For those fans out there, here's the newest synopsis below.

 The Ghosts of the Tanith First-And-Only have been away from the front line for too long. Listless, and hungry for action, they are offered a mission that perfectly suits their talents. The objective: the mysterious Savlation's Reach, a remote and impenetrable stronhold concealing secrets that could change the course of the Sabbat Worlds campaign. But the proposed raid is so hazardous, it's regarded as a suicide mission, and the Ghosts may have been in reserve for so long they've lost their edge. Haunted by spectres from the past and stalked by the Archenemy, Colonel-Commissar Gaunt and his Ghosts embark upon what could be their finest hour... or their final mission.

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What began in 1992 with A Fire Upon the Deep, Vernor Vinge continued it's story with A Deepness in the Sky seven years later. Now, twelve years after the second book in the Zones of Thought series, Children of the Sky is finally seeing the light of day. Here's the synopsis for it:

Ten years have passed on the Tines World, where Ravna Bergnsdot and a number of human children ended up after a disaster that nearly obliterated humankind throughout the galaxy. Ravna and the pack of animals for which the planet is named have survived a war, and Ranva has saved more than one hundred children who were in cold-sleep aboard the vessel that brought them.

While there is peace among the Tines, there are those among them -- and among the humans -- who seek power... and no matter the cost, these malcontents are determined to overturn the fledgling civilization that has taken root since the humans landed.

Children of the Sky hits shelves October 4th.

****

Blue Dragon is the conclusion to Kylie Chan's Dark Heavens trilogy, which started with White Tiger and continued in Red Phoenix. Although I have yet to pick up the second book in the trilogy, I'm excited to see what the third volume brings, and how Mrs. Chan manages to wrap-up the series. Below is the synopsis:

Martial arts, magic, demons and science.

The forces of Hell are poised to strike...

When Emma's relatives come to visit her, they are totally freaked out by what they learn... Emma's beloved, John Chen, is a 3,000-year-old Chinese god. Not only that, John is becoming weaker by the day. Demons pursue him relentlessly, hoping to use Emma and his child, Simone, as bargaining tools against him.

Emma battles to defend Simone as John's energy is drained by the effort of both living in the mortal world and protecing them. While Emma is nagged by doubts about her own nature, she must find the courage to go on...

****

Here's a first for Updates and More: a book featured from Solaris Press!

I've been patiently looking forward to seeing what Kultus is all about. Here's the synopsis for it:

Thaddeus Blaklok -- Mercenary, demonist, bastard and thug-for-hire -- is pressed into retrieving a mysterious key for his clandestine benefactors. Little does he know that other parties seek to secure this artefact for their own nefarious ends and soon he is pursued by brutal cultists, bloodthirsty gangsters, deadly mercenaries and hell spawned monsters, all bent on stopping him by any means necessary.

In a lightning paced quest that takes him across the length and breadth of the steam fuelled city of Manufactory, Blacklok must use his wits and his own demonic powers to keep the key from those who would use it for ill, and open the gates to Hell itself.

Kultus hits shelves on October 25th, just in time to scare the hell out of you for Halloween!

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Another title that will see publication just in time for Halloween, is The Night Eternal, the third and final book in the Strain Trilogy. Written by the dynamic duo author Chuck Hogan, and filmmaker Guillermo del Toro, I'm hoping for an explosive, dramatic ending. Not only did I love the first two books, but I'm a big fan of del Toro's work. Here's the full synopsis for The Night Eternal, which also hits shelves on October 25th:

It's been two years isnce the vampiric virus was unleashed in The Strain, and the entire world now lies on the brink of annihilation. There is only night as nuclear winter blankets the land, the sun filtering through the poisoned atmosphere for two hours each day -- the perfect environment for the propagation of vampires.

There has been a mass extermination of humans, orchestrated by the Master -- and ancient vampire possessed of unparalleled pwoers -- who selects survivors based on compliance.

The future of humankind lies in the hands of a ragtag band of freedom fighters -- Dr. Eph Goodweather, Dr. Nora Martines, Vasiliy Fet, and Mr. Quinlan. It's their job to rescue Eph's son, Zack, and overturn this devastating new world order. But good and evil are malleable terms now, and the Master is most skilled at preying on the weaknesses of humans.

Now at this critical hour, there is evidence of a traitor in their midst... And only one man holds the naswer to the Master's demise, but is he one who can be trusted with the fate of the world? And who among themwill pay the ultimate sacrifice -- so that others may be saved?

****

And finally, the other title to see publication just in time for Halloween, is Jonathan Mayberry's Dead of Night. It hits bookshelves on the 25th  as well. Here's the synopsis from the back of the Advanced Reader's Copy: 

This is the way the world ends. Not with a bong... but a bite...

A prison doctor injects a condemned serial killer with a formula designed to keep his consciousness awake while his body rots. But before he can be buried the killer wakes up. Hungry. Infected. Contagious. Can two small town cops contain the plague before it spreads beyond all control?


Look for a full review of Dead of Night to be posted before the end of the month!


~Rodney

The Fall Book Review

Title: The Fall

Author(s): Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan

Publisher: HarperCollins

Pages: 308

ISBN: 9780061558221

The Fall is the much anticipated sequel to Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan's new vampire trilogy which began with The Strain.

The Fall begins only hours after the events of The Strain: with the fall of New York City. Now it's up for grabs, and fighting for it's control are the Old and New World Vampires. As war breaks out across New York, two small band of survivors, one including Eph Goodweather and Holocaust survivor-turned-vampire-hunter Abraham Setrakian, and the other, a group of gangbangers-turned-vampire-hunters are caught in the middle of the war. And with newly acquired knowledge of how the parasite works, Abraham must race to stop them. All the while as Eph fights to save the world, he also has to contend with his dead ex-wife, who's only purpose is to find and feed on their son, Zach.

As with most sequels, there's always the expectation for it to be better than the first; to surpass the first book in the series if only by a small margin. Unfortunately these hopes were dashed for me as I settled in to read The Fall. The first issue I had with it was the size. Unlike The Strain which was considerably larger in volume, The Fall is a sleek little novel. Granted, size doesn't matter, but I was expecting more. I loved the direction that del Toro and Hogan took the story in, but felt that it dragged out and bogged down with parts that didn't really seem necessary to the plot at hand, including several new point-of-views that served no purpose to the story.

However, I loved the fact that the story delved further into the back history of Abraham Setrakian's life. I also enjoyed and the concept of the two sides: Old and New World Vampires, fighting to stop The Master's deadly plot to essentially erradicate the human race. del Toro and Hogan up the thrills with several new game-changing introductions to the story that most readers won't see coming. Including a few jaw-dropping moments for myself.

Overall, The Fall was an alright read. Although it left much to be admired, it was an interesting read that left me at times on the edge of my seat, while also dropping surprises I'd never see coming. That's why I'm rating The Fall 7.5 TARDIS's out of 10. As negative as I've been, I can't wait to see what det Toro and Hogan due with book three, The Night Eternal which releases one year from now.

If you've already invested your time in The Strain and just haven't picked up The Fall yet, I'd recommend picking it up the next chance you get.

~Rodney

Podcast #3: Book Review for The Strain

Title: The Strain
Author(s) Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan
Publisher: Harper Collins
Pages: 401
ISBN: 9780061558238

A Boeing 777 arrives at JFK and is on its way across the tarmac, when it suddenly stops dead. All Window shades are pulled down. All lights are out. All communication channels have gone quiet. Crews on the ground are lost for answers, but an alert goes out to the CDC. Dr. Eph Goodweather, head of their Canary project, a rapid-response team that investigates biological threats, gets the call and boards the plane. What he finds makes his blood run cold.

In a pawnshop in Spanish Harlem, a former professor and survivor of the Holocaust named Abraham Setrakian knows something is happening. And he knows the time has come, that a war is brewing...

So begins a battle of mammoth proportions as the vampire virus that has infected New York begins to spill out into the streets. Eph, who is joined by Setrakian and a motley crew of fighters, must now find a way to stop the contagion and save his city -- a city that includes his wife and son -- before it is too late.

~ From the Cover of the Flap

Podcast #3: The Strain

You can buy it from these fine retailers: Barnes and Noble and Amazon.com

Hope you enjoy!

~The Sci-Fi Guys