HUGO'S 2014

Once again its time for the Hugo Awards.. they were streamed live from London over the weekend but in case you missed here are the results:

The Hugo Awards and John W. Campbell Award Winners

Best Novel

• Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Orbit)

Best Novella

• “Equoid”, Charles Stross (Tor.com, 09-2013)

Best Novelette

• “The Lady Astronaut of Mars”, Mary Robinette Kowal

Best Short Story

• “The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere”, John Chu (Tor.com, 02-2013)

Best Related Work

• “We Have Always Fought: Challenging the Women, Cattle and Slaves Narrative”, Kameron Hurley (A Dribble of Ink)

Best Graphic Story

• “Time”, Randall Munroe (XKCD)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form

• Gravity, written by Alfonso Cuarón & Jonás Cuarón, directed by Alfonso Cuarón (Esperanto Filmoj; Heyday Films; Warner Bros.)

Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form

• Game of Thrones: “The Rains of Castamere”, written by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, directed by David Nutter (HBO Entertainment in association with Bighead, Littlehead; Television 360; Startling Television and Generator Productions)

Best Editor, Short Form

• Ellen Datlow

Best Editor, Long Form

• Ginjer Buchanan

Best Professional Artist

• Julie Dillon

Best Semiprozine

• Lightspeed Magazine, edited by John Joseph Adams, Rich Horton, and Stefan Rudnicki

Best Fanzine

• A Dribble of Ink, edited by Aidan Moher

Best Fancast

• SF Signal Podcast, Patrick Hester

Best Fan Writer

• Kameron Hurley

Best Fan Artist

• Sarah Webb

The John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer
Award for the best new professional science fiction or fantasy writer of 2012 or 2013, sponsored by Dell Magazines. (Not a Hugo Award, but administered along with the Hugo Awards.)

• Sofia Samatar*

*2nd year of eligibility.


And time now for a shameless plug.

 My wife's first book "The Oracle of Ptah" which is a good read if I must say so myself is on sale in the Amazon Kindle Store.. the link:

Oracle of Ptah

"A Ugandan family, undercover in America, will do everything to protect their son, the prophetic Moon-Man-Child from the evil forces bent on stealing him."

2013 Nebula Awards Announced by the SFWA

Over the weekend the Science Fiction, Fantasy Writers of America came out with 2 firsts when it announced the 2013 Nebul Awards.

It named its first African American "Damon Knight Grand Master" ... Samuel R. Delany, a gifted writer who happens to be gay, and for the first time in the history of the awards all of the winners in the fiction catagories just happen to be women.
Here's a list of the winners and the nominees:

Novel

Winner: Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Orbit US; Orbit UK)
Nominees:
We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves, Karen Joy Fowler (Marian Wood)
The Ocean at the End of the Lane, Neil Gaiman (Morrow; Headline Review)
Fire with Fire, Charles E. Gannon (Baen)
Hild, Nicola Griffith (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
The Red: First Light, Linda Nagata (Mythic Island)
A Stranger in Olondria, Sofia Samatar (Small Beer)
The Golem and the Jinni, Helene Wecker (Harper)

Novella
Winner: ‘‘The Weight of the Sunrise,’’ Vylar Kaftan (Asimov’s 2/13)
Nominees:
‘‘Wakulla Springs,’’ Andy Duncan & Ellen Klages (Tor.com 10/2/13)
‘‘Annabel Lee,’’ Nancy Kress (New Under the Sun)
‘‘Burning Girls,’’ Veronica Schanoes (Tor.com 6/19/13)
‘‘Trial of the Century,’’ Lawrence M. Schoen (www.lawrencemschoen.com; World Jumping)
Six-Gun Snow White, Catherynne M. Valente (Subterranean)

Novelette
Winner: ‘‘The Waiting Stars,’’ Aliette de Bodard (The Other Half of the Sky)
Nominees:
‘‘Paranormal Romance,’’ Christopher Barzak (Lightspeed 6/13)
‘‘They Shall Salt the Earth with Seeds of Glass,’’ Alaya Dawn Johnson (Asimov’s 1/13)
‘‘Pearl Rehabilitative Colony for Ungrateful Daughters,’’ Henry Lien (Asimov’s 12/13)
‘‘The Litigation Master and the Monkey King,’’ Ken Liu (Lightspeed 8/13)
‘‘In Joy, Knowing the Abyss Behind,’’ Sarah Pinsker (Strange Horizons 7/1 – 7/8/13)

Short Story
Winner: ‘‘If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love,’’ Rachel Swirsky (Apex 3/13)
Nominees:
‘‘The Sounds of Old Earth,’’ Matthew Kressel (Lightspeed 1/13)
‘‘Selkie Stories Are for Losers,’’ Sofia Samatar (Strange Horizons 1/7/13)
‘‘Selected Program Notes from the Retrospective Exhibition of Theresa Rosenberg Latimer,’’ Kenneth Schneyer (Clockwork Phoenix 4)
‘‘Alive, Alive Oh,’’ Sylvia Spruck Wrigley (Lightspeed 6/13
)
Ray Bradbury Award for Outstanding Dramatic Presentation
Winner: Gravity
Nominees:
Doctor Who: ‘‘The Day of the Doctor’’
Europa Report
Her
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Pacific Rim

Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book
Winner: Sister Mine, Nalo Hopkinson (Grand Central)
Nominees:
The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, Holly Black (Little, Brown; Indigo)
When We Wake, Karen Healey (Allen & Unwin; Little, Brown)
The Summer Prince, Alaya Dawn Johnson (Levine)
Hero, Alethea Kontis (Harcourt)
September Girls, Bennett Madison (Harper Teen)
A Corner of White, Jaclyn Moriarty (Levine)

Kevin O’Donnell Jr. Service to SFWA Award: Michael Armstrong

2013 Damon Knight Grand Master Award: Samuel R. Delany 

2013 Special Honoree: Frank M. Robinson

The 2013 Nebula Awards were presented May 17, 2014 at the  SFWA’s 49th Annual Nebula Awards Weekend in San Jose, CA. 

Congratulations to all the winners and nominees.

The 2014 Hugo Awards Nominees

The finalists for this year's Hugo Awards and John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer were announced on Saturday 19 April 2014.
The shortlist announcement was streamed live from the UK to the web and conventions in the United States. The presentation can be watched again here: www.ustream.tv/hugo-awards. Our thanks go to Satellite 4, the British National Science Fiction Convention (Eastercon), Norwescon 37 and Minicon 49 for their support in making this unique event possible.
1923 valid nominating ballots were received and counted from the members of LoneStarCon 3, Loncon 3 and Sasquan. (1889 Electronic  and 34 Paper.)

BEST NOVEL (1595 ballots)

• Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie (Orbit US / Orbit UK)
• Neptune's Brood by Charles Stross (Ace / Orbit UK)
• Parasite by Mira Grant (Orbit US / Orbit UK)
• Warbound, Book III of the Grimnoir Chronicles by Larry Correia (Baen Books)
• The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson (Tor Books)

BEST NOVELLA (847 ballots)

• The Butcher of Khardov by Dan Wells (Privateer Press)
• “The Chaplain's Legacy” by Brad Torgersen (Analog, Jul-Aug 2013)
• “Equoid” by Charles Stross (Tor.com, 09-2013)
• Six-Gun Snow White by Catherynne M. Valente (Subterranean Press)
• “Wakulla Springs” by Andy Duncan and Ellen Klages (Tor.com, 10-2013)

BEST NOVELETTE (728 ballots)

• “The Exchange Officers” by Brad Torgersen (Analog, Jan-Feb 2013)
• “The Lady Astronaut of Mars” by Mary Robinette Kowal (maryrobinettekowal.com / Tor.com, 09-2013)
• “Opera Vita Aeterna” by Vox Day (The Last Witchking, Marcher Lord Hinterlands)
• “The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling” by Ted Chiang (Subterranean, Fall 2013)
• “The Waiting Stars” by Aliette de Bodard (The Other Half of the Sky, Candlemark & Gleam)

BEST SHORT STORY (865 ballots)

• “If You Were a Dinosaur, My Love” by Rachel Swirsky (Apex Magazine, Mar-2013)
• “The Ink Readers of Doi Saket” by Thomas Olde Heuvelt (Tor.com, 04-2013)
• “Selkie Stories Are for Losers” by Sofia Samatar (Strange Horizons, Jan-2013)
• “The Water That Falls on You from Nowhere” by John Chu (Tor.com, 02-2013)

Note: category has 4 nominees due to a 5% requirement under Section 3.8.5 of the WSFS constitution.

BEST RELATED WORK (752 ballots)

• Queers Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the LGBTQ Fans Who Love It Edited by Sigrid Ellis & Michael Damian Thomas (Mad Norwegian Press)
• Speculative Fiction 2012: The Best Online Reviews, Essays and Commentary by Justin Landon & Jared Shurin (Jurassic London)
• “We Have Always Fought: Challenging the Women, Cattle and Slaves Narrative” by Kameron Hurley (A Dribble of Ink)
• Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction by Jeff VanderMeer, with Jeremy Zerfoss (Abrams Image)
• Writing Excuses Season 8 by Brandon Sanderson, Dan Wells, Mary Robinette Kowal, Howard Tayler, and Jordan Sanderson

BEST GRAPHIC STORY (552 ballots)

• Girl Genius, Volume 13: Agatha Heterodyne & The Sleeping City written by Phil and Kaja Foglio; art by Phil Foglio; colors by Cheyenne Wright (Airship Entertainment)
• "The Girl Who Loved Doctor Who" written by Paul Cornell, illustrated by Jimmy Broxton (Doctor Who Special 2013, IDW)
• The Meathouse Man adapted from the story by George R.R. Martin and illustrated by Raya Golden (Jet City Comics)
• Saga, Volume 2 written by Brian K. Vaughan, illustrated by Fiona Staples (Image Comics )
• “Time” by Randall Munroe (XKCD)

BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION (LONG FORM) (995 ballots)

• Frozen screenplay by Jennifer Lee, directed by Chris Buck & Jennifer Lee (Walt Disney Studios)
• Gravity written by Alfonso Cuarón & Jonás Cuarón, directed by Alfonso Cuarón (Esperanto Filmoj; Heyday Films; Warner Bros.)
• The Hunger Games: Catching Fire screenplay by Simon Beaufoy & Michael Arndt, directed by Francis Lawrence (Color Force; Lionsgate)
• Iron Man 3 screenplay by Drew Pearce & Shane Black, directed by Shane Black (Marvel Studios; DMG Entertainment; Paramount Pictures)
• Pacific Rim screenplay by Travis Beacham & Guillermo del Toro, directed by Guillermo del Toro (Legendary Pictures, Warner Bros., Disney Double Dare You)

BEST DRAMATIC PRESENTATION (SHORT FORM) (760 ballots)

• An Adventure in Space and Time written by Mark Gatiss, directed by Terry McDonough (BBC Television)
• Doctor Who: “The Day of the Doctor” written by Steven Moffat, directed by Nick Hurran (BBC Television)
• Doctor Who: “The Name of the Doctor” written by Steven Moffat, directed by Saul Metzstein (BBC Televison)
• The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot written & directed by Peter Davison (BBC Television)
• Game of Thrones: “The Rains of Castamere” written by David Benioff & D.B. Weiss, directed by David Nutter (HBO Entertainment in association with Bighead, Littlehead; Television 360; Startling Television and Generator Productions)
• Orphan Black: “Variations under Domestication” written by Will Pascoe, directed by John Fawcett (Temple Street Productions; Space / BBC America)

Note: category has 6 nominees due to a tie for 5th place.

BEST EDITOR - SHORT FORM (656 ballots)

• John Joseph Adams
• Neil Clarke
• Ellen Datlow
• Jonathan Strahan
• Sheila Williams

BEST EDITOR - LONG FORM (632 ballots)

• Ginjer Buchanan
• Sheila Gilbert
• Liz Gorinsky
• Lee Harris
• Toni Weisskopf

BEST PROFESSIONAL ARTIST (624 ballots)

• Galen Dara
• Julie Dillon
• Daniel Dos Santos
• John Harris
• John Picacio
• Fiona Staples

Note: category has 6 nominees due to a tie for 5th place.

BEST SEMIPROZINE (411 ballots)

• Apex Magazine edited by Lynne M. Thomas, Jason Sizemore, and Michael Damian Thomas
• Beneath Ceaseless Skies edited by Scott H. Andrews
• Interzone edited by Andy Cox
• Lightspeed Magazine edited by John Joseph Adams, Rich Horton, and Stefan Rudnicki
• Strange Horizons edited by Niall Harrison, Brit Mandelo, An Owomoyela, Julia Rios, Sonya Taaffe, Abigail Nussbaum, Rebecca Cross, Anaea Lay, and Shane Gavin

BEST FANZINE (478 ballots)

• The Book Smugglers edited by Ana Grilo and Thea James
• A Dribble of Ink edited by Aidan Moher
• Elitist Book Reviews edited by Steven Diamond
• Journey Planet edited by James Bacon, Christopher J. Garcia, Lynda E. Rucker, Pete Young, Colin Harris, and Helen J. Montgomery
• Pornokitsch edited by Anne C. Perry and Jared Shurin

BEST FANCAST (396 ballots)

• The Coode Street Podcast Jonathan Strahan and Gary K. Wolfe
• Galactic Suburbia Podcast Alisa Krasnostein, Alexandra Pierce, Tansy Rayner Roberts (Presenters) and Andrew Finch (Producer)
• SF Signal Podcast Patrick Hester
• The Skiffy and Fanty Show Shaun Duke, Jen Zink, Julia Rios, Paul Weimer, David Annandale, Mike Underwood, and Stina Leicht
• Tea and Jeopardy Emma Newman
• Verity! Deborah Stanish, Erika Ensign, Katrina Griffiths, L.M. Myles, Lynne M. Thomas, and Tansy Rayner Roberts
• The Writer and the Critic Kirstyn McDermott and Ian Mond

Note: category has 7 nominees due to a tie for 5th place.

BEST FAN WRITER (521 ballots)

• Liz Bourke
• Kameron Hurley
• Foz Meadows
• Abigail Nussbaum
• Mark Oshiro

BEST FAN ARTIST (316 ballots)

• Brad W. Foster
• Mandie Manzano
• Spring Schoenhuth
• Steve Stiles
• Sarah Webb

JOHN W. CAMPBELL AWARD FOR BEST NEW WRITER (767 ballots)

Award for the best new professional science fiction or fantasy writer of 2012 or 2013, sponsored by Dell Magazines (not a Hugo Award).

• Wesley Chu
• Max Gladstone *
• Ramez Naam *
• Sofia Samatar *
• Benjanun Sriduangkaew

*Finalists in their 2nd year of eligibility.

NEW SERIES: THE OUTLAW KING

 Just read a couple of books by author S.A. Hunt. that had me turning pages until I got to the end .
The first book in the series is The Whirlwind in the Thorn Tree.
Protagonist Ross Brigham comes home after a tour of duty in Afghanistan...and is hit by heart wrenching life changes, with no warning his wife takes him to a home that's empty except for Ross's meager possessions, she's moved out, then his mother calls to tell him  his father has died unexpectedly.
 Ross goes home for the funeral to discover just how popular his father's fantasy series is with its fans
After the huge funeral, Ross investigates his father's death, accompanied by two of his father's fans--film student Sawyer and Florida beachcomber Noreen. Together, they discover a passage that leads them to the desolate reaches of Destin, the outlaw-infested parallel world in Ed's gunslinger novels. There they meet the Kingsmen, the warrior gunslinger caste of Destin and find themselves the target of a plot by the Muses themselves to bring the final act of humanity to a close.

 Inspired by the classics he grew up with such as A Wrinkle in Time and The Neverending Story, and evocative of Stephen King's fantasy-western epic The Dark Tower, the first volume of S. A. Hunt's The Outlaw King is the beginning of a series spanning from modern-day Earth to the sands of an exotic parallel world, where a climactic battle will take place on the shores of consciousness...and challenge the rules of the written word itself.

 I have to give this book 4 and a half stars, it would have been 5 if the author had gotten to the action on Destin sooner. I have to admit this one kept me reading well into the wee hours and fired me up to buy book 2... Law of the Wolf (The Outlaw King) and jump into it as soon as I finished the first book.

 The protagonists of The Whirlwind in the Thorn Tree (4 and a half stars) are led across the desert to confront their mysterious antagonist from book 1 by the Outlaw King himself, the wizened gunslinger Normand Kaliburn. When one of their own is captured and taken beyond the Wildlands to the heart of the Antargata K-Setra, our heroes will learn the true origins of Ed Brigham's fantasy world... and that incredible revelation will shatter everything they thought they knew about the secret world of Destin.

This one also kept me up well into the night. I am anxiously awaiting the next book in the series.

 Both of these books are available in Kindle editions and aren't that expensive, but I found my self receiving a hell of a lot of bang for my buck.  

Hunt has done a great job of world building creating non human races that live alongside humans, and of creating a society that's a mix of steampunk, the wild west and modern times. 

 As I said I can't wait for he next volume in the series and the further adventures of Ross Bingham and his friends. Its like coke or heroin...the first taste is free (if you get the kindle edition) and then you have to buy the rest (not that I mind), I just want my next fix from Mr. Hunt.

 New Year, new books.. just finished a peek at Stephen Leigh's upcoming release IMMORTAL MUSE, due out March 5th.
In an email the author says: Here's an advance peek at some of what Romantic Times will be saying in their March newsletter, where IMMORTAL MUSE will be designated a Top Pick!  "Mythology, alchemy, and fantasy all combine in Leigh's IMMORTAL MUSE, creating the perfect combination for readers looking for their next stellar read."  Hey, we'll take that! You can read the entire full review in RT in March.
As a fan I was able to get a look at the first chapter, and I'll tell you its got my interest... More a little later.
  I'm what some people would call a"bookaholic" and as such I've built of a good sized collection. I find there's nothing quite as satisfying as a physical book, but I have a secret vice.. I have become a "kindle" addict. I got one because it was handy for school, then I started getting novels, and I must say I found a few gems in the 99cents pile and have managed to build up quite the collection, including a umber of free books through Book Bub.com
Check it out next time I'll have a couple of reviews