The World According to Wolverine & Spider-Man, by Matthew K. Manning & Daniel Wallace (Bantam)

Two interesting diversions for fans of the characters

THE WORLD ACCORDING TO WOLVERINE

Writer: Matthew K. Manning | Illustrations: Stephen Mooney

In The World According to Wolverine, Marvel Comics’ favorite stoic loner finally opens up on a range of topics that are close to his mutant heart. With helpful tips on everything from clawed combat to outdoor survival and dealing with the agony of adamantium implantation, this book will delight fans who want to learn how to be just like the headstrong hero. Also featuring Logan’s ruminations on an extremely long and checkered life, his global travels, and the art of picking the perfect partner, The World According to Wolverine will offer unparalleled insight into one of the most fascinating and mysterious characters in the Marvel Comics universe. The book will also come with a number of removable items, including a postcard from Madripoor, snapshots of Wolverine’s lost loves, a wanted poster for Dog Logan, an exclusive Wolverine poster, and much, much more.

THE WORLD ACCORDING TO SPIDER-MAN

Writer: Daniel Wallace | Illustrations: Mirco Pierfederici

It’s not easy being a Super Hero when you’ve got a steady job to hold down and girlfriend problems to deal with. Somehow, Peter Parker (aka Spider-Man) manages to do it while regularly saving New York City from a rogues’ gallery of super villains. In The World According to Spider-Man, the wisecracking hero spills the beans on how he balances his two lives and manages to keep his trademark sense of humor, even while he’s tangling with Doc Ock or the Green Goblin. The book comes with a wealth of incredible inserts, including clippings from the Daily Bugle, snapshots taken by Spidey on his adventures, a letter from Oscorp, a note from Mary Jane Watson, a page from Uncle Ben’s diary, schematics showing how the web-shooters work, and much, much more.

I hadn’t heard of these two books before they arrived in the mail. As a fan of both of these characters, but also one who hasn’t read as widely as I might of their varied exploits, these books proved rather fun and informative. They’re also pretty funny, and I think both Manning, Wallace and their illustrators have done a great job.

“The Incorruptibles” by John Hornor Jacobs (Gollancz)

An intriguing, well-executed fantasy with a difference

In the contested and unexplored territories at the edge of the Empire, a boat is making its laborious way upstream. Riding along the banks are the mercenaries hired to protect it – from raiders, bandits and, most of all, the stretchers, elf-like natives who kill any intruders into their territory. The mercenaries know this is dangerous, deadly work. But it is what they do.

In the boat the drunk governor of the territories and his sons and daughters make merry. They believe that their status makes them untouchable. They are wrong. And with them is a mysterious, beautiful young woman, who is the key to peace between warring nations and survival for the Empire. When a callow mercenary saves the life of the Governor on an ill-fated hunting party, the two groups are thrown together.

For Fisk and Shoe – two tough, honourable mercenaries surrounded by corruption, who know they can always and only rely on each other – their young companion appears to be playing with fire. The nobles have the power, and crossing them is always risky. And although love is a wonderful thing, sometimes the best decision is to walk away. Because no matter how untouchable or deadly you may be, the stretchers have other plans.

I’ve been looking forward to this novel for a good while. So, when it arrived last week, I knew I had to dive right into it. And so I did. And devoured it in just over a day. The novel starts off with quite a blizzard of new terminology and an unusual world, but I quickly settled into it. This is a very good fantasy story with a difference.

Books Received…

Featuring: Rachel Aaron, Tanya Huff, Charlie Human, John Hornor Jacobs, Matthew K. Manning, Rachel Pollack, Robert Rotstein, Kieran Shea, Taylor Stevens, Daniel Wallace

Upcoming: CALIFORNIA by Edan Lepucki (Little, Brown)

Hurt by Amazon, but Helped by the Colbert Bump?

I’m a huge fan of Stephen Colbert, and I’ve always found his show amusing. A few years back, I believe, he first mentioned the phenomena of the “Colbert Bump”, which saw some authors and musicians enjoying a spike in sales after appearing or featuring on his show. Last night, while checking Facebook, I came upon a mention of Edan Lepucki’s novel, California, having received a bump, too. I’m sad to say I hadn’t clocked the novel before I saw the article – whether this is an example of how well celebrity endorsements work, or just my general oblivious aspect, who knows. Anyway, it sounds interesting, so I thought I’d feature it here. It appears to be another recent example of “literary dystopia” fiction. Here’s the synopsis…

The world Cal and Frida have always known is gone, and they’ve left the crumbling city of Los Angeles far behind them. They now live in a shack in the wilderness, working side-by-side to make their days tolerable in the face of hardship and isolation. Mourning a past they can’t reclaim, they seek solace in each other. But the tentative existence they’ve built for themselves is thrown into doubt when Frida finds out she’s pregnant.

Terrified of the unknown and unsure of their ability to raise a child alone, Cal and Frida set out for the nearest settlement, a guarded and paranoid community with dark secrets. These people can offer them security, but Cal and Frida soon realize this community poses dangers of its own. In this unfamiliar world, where everything and everyone can be perceived as a threat, the couple must quickly decide whom to trust.

A gripping and provocative debut novel by a stunning new talent, California imagines a frighteningly realistic near future, in which clashes between mankind’s dark nature and deep-seated resilience force us to question how far we will go to protect the ones we love.

California will be published in the US in early July 2014, by Little, Brown. It is not available on Amazon, as they continue to strong-arm all Hachette US imprints. I couldn’t find any details about a UK publisher. Here’s hoping it comes to these shores soon, though. It’s available for request via NetGalley. The author is on Goodreads and Twitter.

Below is a still from The Colbert Report, in which the host promoted California, and urged viewers to buy the novel, and also offered the URL to buy the book from Powell’s Books. “We’re going to prove I can sell more books than Amazon,” he said. Oregon Live also had a video clip (US-only, sadly).

Upcoming: THE SHADOW’S CURSE by Amy McCulloch (Corgi)

The action-packed sequel to The Oathbreaker’s Shadow

I really enjoyed Amy McCulloch’s debut novel, and have been itching to get my hands on the follow-up, to find out what happens next for Raim et al. After finishing The Oathbreaker’s Shadow, I thought I’d figured out a possible upcoming twist, so I really want to know if I was right…

Here’s the synopsis:

Raim is no closer to figuring out the meaning of the broken vow that sentenced him to exile for life. But with his former best friend now a tyrannical Khan who is holding the girl Raim loves captive, he finds it hard to care. Every day, he and Draikh learn more about their powers, but it quickly becomes clear that he will never be able to stop Khareh and free Wadi unless he can free himself from the ultimate taboo of his people. Reluctantly, Raim begins the long journey down to the dangerous South, to find the maker of his oath.

In Khareh’s camp, Wadi is more than capable of devising her own escape plan, but she’s gradually realizing she might not want to. The more she learns about Khareh, the more confused she becomes. He’s done unquestionably bad things, horrific even, but he’s got big dreams for Darhan that might improve their dire situation. What’s more, rumours of a Southern king massing an army to invade Darhan are slowly gaining ground. Only if the Northern tribes can come together under a single ruler will they have the strength to fight the South – but what if that ruler is an impulsive (albeit brilliant) young man, barely able to control his ever-growing power, and missing the one part of him that might keep him sane?

Whoever conquers the desert, wins the war. And the secret to desert survival lies in Lazar, which is set to become the heart of a great battle once again.

The Shadow’s Curse is due to be published in July 2014 by Corgi in the UK and Canada; and on August 15th in Australia and New Zealand.

Also on CR: Interview with Amy McCulloch

Audio Review: “Bonkers: My Life in Laughs” by Jennifer Saunders (Audible / Viking)

An excellent, amusing memoir

“As the steady march of time takes its toll on my memory and the vultures circle, I thought I should have a stab at recollecting how it all happened…”

Jennifer Saunders’s brilliant comic creations have brought joy to millions for three decades. From Comic Strip to Comic Relief, from Bolly-swilling Edina in Absolutely Fabulous to Meryl Streep in Mamma Mia, her characters are household names.

But it’s Jennifer herself who has a place in all our hearts. This is her funny, touching and disarmingly honest memoir, filled with stories of friends, laughter and occasional heartache – but never misery.

From her childhood on RAF bases, where her father was a pilot, to her life-changing encounter with a young Dawn French, on to success and family, the book charts her extraordinary story, including the slip ups and battles along the way.

I have been a fan of Saunders’s ever since I was a kid, and my father introduced me to Absolutely Fabulous. The series, which is excellent and everyone should watch, had a lasting impact on my family’s and my own lexicon. Countless times we have made comments to each other, instinctively knowing its origin. Hilarity ensues, strangers shuffle away. Anyway, I picked up Bonkers, and although it started off a little strangely, I thought it was a brilliant, honest, amusing memoir from one of Britain’s greatest comics.

Upcoming US Edition: THE VIOLENT CENTURY by Lavie Tidhar (Thomas Dunne/St Martin’s Press)

I am a big fan of Lavie Tidhar’s The Violent Century. Unusual and gripping, it is one of my favourite novels from last year. [Review.] Until recently, though, it was only available in the UK, published by Hodder and PS Publishing (limited edition). Now, though, Thomas Dunne Books/St. Martin’s Press will be releasing it in the US! It will be published in late February 2015. Mark your calendars!

There is that rather nice new cover, too – I like the way they kept the core elements of the UK cover (Brandenburg Gate, silhouetted fellow in trench-coat and hat, rubble in foreground), but also made it distinct.

Here’s the synopsis…

They’d never meant to be heroes.

For seventy years they guarded the British Empire. Oblivion and Fogg, inseparable friends, bound together by a shared fate. Until one night in Berlin, in the aftermath of the Second World War, and a secret that tore them apart.

But there must always be an account… and the past has a habit of catching up to the present.

Now, recalled to the Retirement Bureau from which no one can retire, Fogg and Oblivion must face up to a past of terrible war and unacknowledged heroism – a life of dusty corridors and secret rooms, of furtive meetings and blood-stained fields – to answer one last, impossible question: What makes a hero?

Interview with GRAEME SHIMMIN

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Graeme Shimmin?

I’m spy thriller novelist, and the author of the award-winning novel A Kill in the Morning. I also run a website where I review spy thrillers and advise aspiring authors about writing and getting published.

Your debut novel, A Kill in the Morning, is due to be published in June by Transworld. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader?

A Kill in the Morning is an action-packed, fun spy thriller that has been compared to Robert Harris’s Fatherland and Ian Fleming’s Thunderball – if you like classic spy thrillers, you’ll love it.

“Prince of Fools” by Mark Lawrence (Voyager UK / Ace Books)

A new trilogy, a hero, and still just as good…

The Red Queen is old but the kings of the Broken Empire fear her as they fear no other.

Her grandson Jalan Kendeth is a coward, a cheat and a womaniser; and tenth in line to the throne. While his grandmother shapes the destiny of millions, Prince Jalan pursues his debauched pleasures. Until he gets entangled with Snorri ver Snagason, a huge Norse axe man, and dragged against his will to the icy north.

In a journey across half the Broken Empire, Jalan flees minions of the Dead King, agrees to duel an upstart prince named Jorg Ancrath, and meets the ice witch, Skilfar, all the time seeking a way to part company with Snorri before the Norseman’s quest leads them to face his enemies in the black fort on the edge of the Bitter Ice.

Experience does not lend Jalan wisdom; but here and there he unearths a corner of the truth. He discovers that they are all pieces on a board, pieces that may be being played in the long, secret war the Red Queen has waged throughout her reign, against the powers that stand behind thrones and nations, and for higher stakes than land or gold.

Mark Lawrence returns with the first in a great new trilogy set in the same world as his critically-acclaimed Broken Empire trilogy. As long-time readers of the blog will know, I really enjoyed Lawrence’s debut, Prince of Thorns. He is without doubt one of the best new fantasy authors, and if you like your fantasy dark, twisty, and very well-written, then you really do need to give his work a try. Prince of Fools introduces us to a new pair of heroes – Prince Jalan and his Viking companion, Snorri. I really enjoyed this novel.

Books Received (May/June)…

A quieter couple of weeks, thankfully. This gives me some (miniscule) hope of catching up a little bit…

Featuring: Samit Basu, Joanna Briscoe, Troy Denning, Kevin Hearne, Hugh Howey, Bruce McCabe, Sandra Newman, Karin Slaughter, Anne Thayer, Angus Watson, Louise Welsh