I don’t usually post lots of links or stuff here, largely because I sort of look at stuff online, go ‘uh huh’, and move on to what I have to do during my day. But a couple things did show up online that I thought were worth pointing to.
First, as everyone has noticed, Gollancz has signed Alastair Reynolds to a ten book deal for lots and lots of $$s. This genuinely delights me. I first met Al in San Jose when he was being interviewed by Locus. I’d not long been appointed reviews editor of that journal, and had covered all of his books for the mag. I’ve loved his work, and we’ve kept in touch since, sharing our love for the music of Springsteen and Mark E’s Eels., and he’s also written some wonderful stories for me (and will be again soon). I can’t wait to see what the new deal will being, and am excited to get a chance to see his next one, Terminal World.
Second, venerable critic John Clute discusses Jay Lake’s novel Green over at Sci Fi Wire. Clute is always an interesting critic and he has some typically sharp things to say about Lake’s novel (which has a beautiful opening). I see Jay’s working on the sequel now, and look forward to talking to him about when we meet up for breakfast in Canada later this year.
Third, my very favorite poster on Tor.com, Jo Walton, discusses my very, very favorite Ian Banks novel, The Crow Road. As Jo rightly points out, it starts with one of the greatest first lines ever (“It was the day my grandmother exploded.”) and only gets better from there.