Brandon Sanderson Bridges Video Games with “The Infinity Blade: Awakening”

Posted on October 24, 2011 by Dona Watson

God’s death didn’t do much to change the lives of the people of Drem’s Maw. In fact, most of them didn’t even know their deity had been slain.

So begins Brandon Sanderson’s new novella The Infinity Blade: Awakening, an e-book that bridges ChAIR Entertainment Group’s Infinity Blade video games made for Apple’s iOS 5 devices (iPod Touch, iPhone, and iPad). As a novelization related to video games, this book is a new type of venture for Sanderson, and yet he handles it with skill, as always.

If you have followed my blog for any length of time, it is no secret that I am a huge Sanderson fan and as such, snapped this e-book up within a few days of its release on October 3. I knew it would be a quick read and I was curious to see what it was like.

Because I had not played the video games, I was afraid I might have trouble following the plot, but I found that wasn’t the case. It’s obvious that the book begins at a point where a gamer would have beaten the first Infinity Blade game so in that vein, it read as if a new storyline had begun, which in effect is the case. I found that Sanderson wrote the book with his usual style, that is, with skill and humor. All in all, I found The Infinity Blade: Awakening a quick and entertaining read.

I would be amiss if I didn’t give you a synopsis of the book and I figure there is none better to do that than the publisher itself. As such, following is the official blurb:

Trained from birth in swordplay and combat, a young knight named Siris has journeyed to the Dark Citadel with a single purpose: fight through the army of Titans to face the tyrannical God King in one-on-one combat. This was his father’s sacred mission, and his father’s before him, going back countless generations in an effort to free their people from enslavement. But when Siris somehow succeeds where all those from his bloodline previously have failed, he finds himself cast into a much larger world, filled with warriors and thieves, ancient feuds and shifting alliances, Deathless immortals and would-be kings. His quest for freedom will take him on an epic journey in search of the mythical figure known as the Worker of Secrets — the one being in the world who can unravel secrets of the Infinity Blade.

Have you read The Infinity Blade: Awakening yet? If so, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Just leave me a note in the comments box below.

To purchase a copy of The Infinity Blade: Awakening for $2.99, here are links to Amazon and Barnes & Noble. (Available in e-book format only.)

Disclosure of Material Connection: At times, some of the links in my posts are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Cherie Priest’s “Boneshaker” Earned its Awards

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Dona Watson

Last night I finished reading Boneshaker, Book 1 in Cherie Priest’s series “The Clockwork Century.” I’ll admit I’m a little slow in jumping on the steampunk bandwagon so to make up for lost time, I thought it might be good to put the crème de la crème near the top of my reading list. When Tor Books offered ebook versions of three of its best steampunk novels on sale for $2.99, I could resist no longer. (The other two top-selling ebooks offered for $2.99 were The Affinity Bridge by George Mann and Mainspring by Jay Lake.)

So I bought Boneshaker, I read it, and I’m here to say that this book is definitely worthy of the accolades it has received, including the 2010 Locus Award in the Best Science Fiction Novel category and a nomination for the 2010 Hugo Award for Best Novel. While the book wasn’t the fastest paced book I’ve ever read, Ms. Priest combined plenty of plot elements and twists with imaginative and tight writing to create a book that I wasn’t willing to put down until I was finished.

Here’s the gist of the book. Boneshaker is set in Civil War era Seattle, a jumping off place for prospectors eager to make their fortunes in the frozen Klondike gold fields to the north. Enter Leviticus Blue, an inventor commissioned by Russians to build a machine capable of mining through solid ice — and the Boneshaker device was born. Unfortunately, on the machine’s test run, things go terribly wrong, resulting in the destruction of downtown Seattle and the release of a noxious gas that turns anyone who breathes it into a “rotter,” a stumbling, slavering undead being.

Speeding forward sixteen years, Briar Wilkes (Blue’s widow) and her son, Ezekiel, struggle to eek out a living outside the wall built to enclose the toxic part of the city. But Ezekiel, intent on clearing his father’s tarnished name and reputation, ventures into the old city, only to battle zombies, air pirates, criminal overlords and heavily armed refugees. And only Briar can save him.

For my more conservative readers, know that there is some mild swearing, but if that doesn’t deter you and you want to check out a book sure to become an American steampunk classic, I suggest you give Boneshaker a try.

For more info, see Barnes & Noble or Amazon.

To visit the author’s web site, click here:
http://www.cheriepriest.com/

“Star Wars: The Complete Vader” Hits Shelves Oct. 18

Posted on October 12, 2011 by Dona Watson

Next week a new book hits shelves — Star Wars: The Complete Vader goes on sale October 18, 2011. This collector book published by Random House is priced at $60 and I expect will be added to many fans’ personal libraries. Curious? Here’s a synopsis from the publisher:

Star Wars: The Complete Vader is the definitive book on the history, myth, and cultural impact of Darth Vader. From his early development in the first Star Wars film by George Lucas, to the new legends created in comics, video games, and novels, to his ongoing appearances on everything from television commercials to bedspreads, Vader presents a complete view in all his incarnations as the Dark Lord of the Sith. Going beyond the films to cover his further adventures in the Star Wars Expanded Universe, the book combines new insight with exclusive interviews and photographs from the Lucasfilm Archives. Interactive reproductions of rare memorabilia fire the imagination, while pages packed with never-seen-before images explore the world’s endless fascination with the notorious Darth Vader.

About the Authors:

Ryder Windham is a former editor of Star Wars comics and has written more then fifty Star Wars books, including Jedi vs. Sith: The Essential Guide to the Force and The Rise and Fall of Darth Vader. He is also and instructor and the Certificate Advisor for the Comic and Sequential Art Certificate Program at Rhode Island School of Design Continuing Education.

Peter Vilmur is the co-author of The Star Wars Vault and The Star Wars Poster Book, both written with Stephen J. Sansweet. He has written for Star Wars Insider magazine, StarWars.com, and IndianaJones.com, and is currently an editor at Lucas Online.

Here’s the link to the publisher’s page: Star Wars: The Complete Vader

Focusing on “Ganymede” by Cherie Priest

Posted on October 3, 2011 by Dona Watson

One of the most anticipated books published in September 2011 is Ganymede by Cherie Priest. As part of the “Clockwork Century” series, Ganymede follows books 1 and 2, Dreadnought and Boneshaker, which was nominated for a Nebula and Hugo Award, won the Locus Award for best sci-fi novel, and was named Steampunk Book of the Year by Steampunk.com. (In fact, as I’m writing this, I find that Ganymede is actually Steampunk.com‘s book of the day, so feel free to pop over there for even more info on this book.)

In fact, here’s another little tip: Barnes & Nobel just put the Boneshaker e-book up for only $2.99. To get your copy, click here on my Barnes & Noble affiliate link.

Anyways, for now, here’s the publisher’s blurb on Ganymede:

The air pirate Andan Cly is going straight. Well, straighter. Although he’s happy to run alcohol guns wherever the money’s good, he doesn’t think the world needs more sap, or its increasingly ugly side-effects. But becoming legit is easier said than done, and Cly’s first legal gig — a supply run for the Seattle Underground — will be paid for by sap money.

New Orleans is not Cly’s first pick for a shopping run. He loved the Big Easy once, back when he also loved a beautiful mixed-race prostitute named Josephine Early — but that was a decade ago, and he hasn’t looked back since. Jo’s still thinking about him, though, or so he learns when he gets a telegram about a peculiar piloting job. It’s a chance to complete two lucrative jobs at once, one he can’t refuse. He sends his old paramour a note and heads for New Orleans, with no idea of what he’s in for — or what she wants him to fly.

But he won’t be flying. Not exactlly. Hidden at the bottom of Lake Pontchartrain lurks an astonishing war machine, an immense submersible called the Ganymede. This prototype could end the war, if only anyone had the faintest idea of how to operate it…. If only they could sneak it past the Southern forces at the mouth of the Mississippi River… If only it hadn’t killed most of the men who’d ever set foot inside it.

But it’s those “if onlys” that will decide whether Cly and his crew will end up in the history books, or at the bottom of the ocean.

To visit the author’s web page, click here:
http://www.cheriepriest.com/

New book trailer for Michael Duncan’s “Shadows”

Posted on September 28, 2011 by Dona Watson

For my lovers of inspirational fantasy fiction, Shadows, a new book by Michael Duncan, is coming out October 1, 2011. Here’s the official blurb and a just-released book trailer:

A stolen text…

When the Book of Aleth is stolen, Aaron, captain of the Royal Guard, is ordered by Emperor Therion to reclaim the ancient tome. The mission thrusts Aaron into a world he’s never known — a world of elves and dwarves, races long thought extinct; a world where everything he has known and believed is a lie.

A secret past…

Forced to challenge his long-held beliefs, Aaron and his companions, two soldiers of the Royal Guard and two men of the Dwarvish kingdom of Brekken-Dahl, set out on a quest to recover the Book. Aaron resolves to discover the truth, and rescue the empire he is sworn to protect.

For more info, here’s the author’s website:
http://www.michael-duncan.net/books.html

Do you have a favorite inspirational fantasy book or series? I love to hear from you. On September 30, I will have a drawing for a $5 Starbucks card. For every blog post you comment on, you will receive one entry. If you don’t want to miss a post, make sure to subscribe to my RSS or email feeds here.