Author: Soniah Kamal (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Allison & Busby Genre: Romance, satire, adaptation When Alys’s family is invited to the wedding of the century in their town, her mother, the indomitable Mrs Binat, excitedly coaches her five unmarried daughters on the art of husband hunting. Alys’s eldest sister Jena quickly catches the eye of … Continue reading REVIEW: Unmarriageable – Soniah Kamal
Why do I need an agent? What do they even do? There are a lot of reasons why people might not want to explore getting a literary agent. For some, it's just another gatekeeper to getting their writing to a publisher, another hoop to jump through which can seem exhausting and unnecessary. For others, the … Continue reading BLOG: Publishing Questions – Why do I need a Literary Agent?
Author: Catherynne M. Valente (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Corsair Genre: Sci-fi, humour, EUROVISION IN SPACE EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU SING A century ago, the Sentience Wars tore the galaxy apart and nearly ended the entire concept of intelligent space-faring life. In the aftermath, a curious tradition was invented-something to cheer up everyone who was … Continue reading REVIEW: Space Opera – Catherynne M. Valente
Author: Cassandra Parkin (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Salt Genre: Short stories, modern fairy tales, magic realism In contemporary America, an un-named college student sets out on an obsessive journey of discovery to collect and record the life-stories of total strangers. The interviews that follow have echoes of another, far more famous literary journey, undertaken long … Continue reading REVIEW: New World Fairy Tales – Cassandra Parkin
During my publishing experience, as with any job I've had, I've come across a certain amount of jargon. I'm still picking up a lot of it, but through my training and various opportunities I've been given over the last few years, I've learned some stuff that I think is really cool. I've put together a … Continue reading DIRECTORY: Publishing Jargon-Buster
Author: Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Allen & Unwin Genre: Humour, contemporary fiction Just before her twenty-seventh birthday, Jazzy hatches a plan. Before the year is out, she and her best girlfriends will all have spectacular weddings to rich ang moh - Western expat - husbands, with Chanel babies to follow. As Jazzy - razor-sharp … Continue reading REVIEW: Sarong Party Girls – Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan
Author: R.F. Kuang (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Harper Voyager Genre: Fantasy, historical fiction (ish) See Also: The Poppy War Rin is on the run… Haunted by the atrocity she committed to save her people, addicted to opium, and driven by the murderous commands of Phoenix, the vengeful god who has blessed Rin with her fearsome power. … Continue reading REVIEW: The Dragon Republic (Poppy War #2) – R.F. Kuang
Author: Alexander Dan Vilhjálmsson (website / twitter) UK Publisher: Gollancz Genre: Fantasy, urban fantasy Sæmundur the Mad, addict and sorcerer, has been expelled from the magical university, Svartiskóli, and can no longer study galdur, an esoteric source of magic. Obsessed with proving his peers wrong, he will stop at nothing to gain absolute power and knowledge, especially of … Continue reading REVIEW: Shadows of the Short Days – Alexander Dan Vilhjálmsson
August! This year seems to be flashing by so quickly, but I have to say I have been enjoying the nice weather. More time to sit in the garden and read my books. Have you had any good books set aside for the summer? Or are you saving them up for holiday reading? REVIEWS Legend … Continue reading BLOG: June and July Round-Up
Author/Artist: John Allison (twitter / website) and Lissa Treiman (twitter) UK Publisher: Boom! Genre: Graphic novel, humour, contemporary fiction Susan, Esther, and Daisy started at university three weeks ago and became fast friends. Now, away from home for the first time, all three want to reinvent themselves. But in the face of hand-wringing boys, personal … Continue reading REVIEW: Giant Days, 1-2 – John Allison, Lissa Treiman
