The Gemmell Award 2011 and more 2011 Books, Redick, Rothfuss and Obreht (by Liviu Suciu)

The voting to select the shortlist in the three categories of The David Gemmell Award for fantasy 2011 - Legend (main), Morningstar (debut) and Ravenheart (cover art) is soon going to end, so I urge everyone to go and vote since it takes only several minutes and the lists are extensive enough to have something for every lover of the fantasy genre.

In the main category - Legend - I voted for Mark Newton's City of Ruin as the best fantasy I've read in 2010 which was both awesome and heroic. It was a hard decision since on the list there was my favorite fantasy of 2010, The Scarab Path by Adrian Tchaikovsky and another huge favorite, The Black Prism by Brent Weeks. But I decided that this year I will try and vote as close to "heroic" as possible and The Scarab Path while with lots of action is also very personal and The Black Prism is closer to an exuberant romp than to a "last stand, no holds barreled" type of book that City of Ruin turned out to be, so my choice - though I will note that both The Scarab Path and The Black Prism have their own versions of "the last stand" but integrated in a larger tapestry, while City of Ruin, well the title says it well.

In the debut category - Morningstar - there was no doubt in my mind since one fantasy debut last year truly blew me away, namely The Last Page by Anthony Huso and it has its own "last stand heroic defense" to match the award.

In the cover art category - Ravenheart - again no doubt since the cover of Chris Wooding's Black Lung Captain done by Stephane Martiniere is outstanding. It may not be a "heroic cover" but I think that recognizing original covers over run of the mill genre ones is important.

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This month I got four of the big hitter releases of 2011 for me and I read three of them (Naamah's Blessing which is currently my #1 all around book of 2011, Embassytown and The Wise Man's Fear for which see below), but the fourth one which I am currently about 1/3 in may take the prize since so far "The River of Shadows" is mind-blowing - exuberant but also dark and full of foreboding, crazily inventive and with the same great cast from the first two volumes.

Here is a quote explaining the title:

"The River is the dark essence of thought, for thought, more than anything else in the universe, has the power to leap between worlds. It belongs therefore to all worlds where conscious life exists. And yet strangely enough, consciousness tends to blind us to its presence. I have even heard it said that the more a world's inhabitants unlock the secret workings of the universe - its pulleys and gears - the deeper the River of Shadows sinks beneath the earth. Societies of master technicians, those who trap the energy of suns, and grow their food in laboratories, and build machines that carry them on plumes of fire through the void: they cannot find the River at all."

Fantasy at its best and of course the full review will come here sometime in April.

Edit: 3/14 I finished it and indeed it kept the awesomeness to the end; The last book The Night of the Swarm hopefully will put the exclamation mark on this superbly entertaining series, but you can read the first three books ending with this one for a complete experience.

Exuberant, crazy, inventiveness, great characters, action - this book has everything and it's full of sense of wonder too.

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Robert has reviewed The Wise Man's Fear for FBC and I have just finished it several days ago after almost two weeks of chugging at it while reading some 4-5 books in-between and I found it one of the most frustrating reads in recent memories.

Some of the best scenes in recent fantasy and superb nuggets of storytelling and action scattered among hundreds of pages of interminable self-indulgent writing. I would not want to spoil the book, but just to name one of the most egregious example is the overnight transformation of Kvothe from a boy shy and inexperienced with girls into an irresistible charmer with tons of conquests. And there is much more like that...

The last 100-150 pages are excellent though and I wish the book was like that end-to-end. Since The Name of the Wind explicitly promises that Kvothe's tale will contain a bunch of stuff while in The Wise Man's Fear we get very little from that, I am really curious how the author will manage to cram all in the last book assuming the series remains a trilogy. It could be done in 1000 pages for sure but I think it would need a much faster pace than in the first two books. We'll see!

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The Tiger's Wife is one the 2011 debuts that made a lot of waves - it is not sff though it tries to achieve some kind of mythic resonance as the blurb below shows:

The time: the present. The place: a Balkan country ravaged by years of conflict. Natalia, a young doctor, is on a mission of mercy to an orphanage when she receives word of her beloved grandfather’s death far from their home under circumstances shrouded in confusion. Remembering childhood stories her grandfather once told her, Natalia becomes convinced that he spent his last days searching for "the deathless man," a vagabond who claimed to be immortal. As Natalia struggles to understand why her grandfather, a deeply rational man, who go on such a farfetched journey, she stumbles across a clue that leads her to the extraordinary story of the tiger’s wife.

On finishing it I agree that the author can indeed write very well and I kept turning the pages till the end because of that but the story left me cold. The atmosphere is pitch perfect and it shows the author's Eastern European roots but ultimately the book can be summarized like : s..t happens especially for people unlucky not to be born in the affluent West, some people cope better, some less so and everyone dies in the end.

The book is not that dark in itself, but it is kind of pointless and a clear antithesis to the "can do" western ethos, so in that sense I found it a bit stereotypical: the people in Eastern Europe deserve their fate because the way they are, not because of circumstances and that message - however unintentional - is a bit annoying. I also found the Kipling gimmick just that, a gimmick that did not work for me in the least. I would stick with Milorad Pavic and Zoran Zivkovic, though I liked the author's prose enough to try another book by her especially if it has a more interesting story.

The Spirit Rebellion by Rachel Aaron (reviewed by Mihir Wanchoo)

Official Author Website
Read An Excerpt HERE
Order “The Spirit Rebellion” HERE
Read FBC Review of "The Spirit Thief"

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Rachel Aaron lives in Athens, Georgia with her family. She has graduated from University of Georgia with a B.A. in English Literature. She has been an avid reader since her childhood and now has an ever-growing collection to show for it. She loves gaming, Manga comics & reality TV police shows. She also blogs on a semi-regular basis on the Magic Districts website along with a host of other authors.

CLASSIFICATION: The Spirit Rebellion is a classical fantasy novel set in a medieval world; the book is similar to its predecessor and invokes tales popularized by Terry Brooks and David Eddings.

FORMAT/INFO: The Spirit Rebellion is 441 pages long divided over twenty-four numbered chapters. Narration is in the third person via many different characters such as Eli Monpress, Miranda Lyonette, Nico, Josef Liechten, Slorn & Duke Edward. The Spirit Rebellion is the second volume in a series of five books. November 1, 2010 marked the mass market and e-book publication via Orbit Books.

ANALYSIS: Rachel Aaron’s debut book “The Spirit Thief” won me over with its simplistic story and energetic pace. I was psyched to read “The Spirit Rebellion” and the rest of the series after reading the first novel. I did get my hands on the next book and I dove in anticipating another round of fun and further unveiling of the world of Eli Monpress.

The story begins with a prologue which is set many years into the past. It introduces readers to a small boy who is rebelling against the nature of his teachings and eventually runs away from his teacher. Also involved in the prologue is a very important character to the first book and who meets the boy. This meeting between the two figures is critical to the series and die-hard followers of the series will be able to figure out the identity of the boy.

Following the prologue readers are quickly brought into the current world just a few days after the events of “The Spirit Thief". Miranda is on her way back to the Spiritualist headquarters where her appearance is greeted rather rudely by the others. Miranda is also quickly presented with a choice that goes against her very nature.

On the other hand Eli and gang find themselves seeking company of an eccentric sort who can help them with Nico’s coat. Slorn is another intriguing character and is the person whom Eli turns to, for his remedies. They strike a deal to help each other out as Slorn wants a rather peculiar blade and Eli wants a new coat for Nico. The main plot kicks in with the introduction of Duke Edwards who’s the ruler of Gaol. He has a plan to catch to Moonpress and of course Eli can’t resist a trap which is specifically designed for him. Trouble begins when Eli, Josef and Nico arrive in Gaol and on another track Miranda also makes her way to the same place but for a different reason.

This book is similar to its predecessor in its style, content and prose. However, there are some major changes that weren't present in the first book. First, there is a slight shift of focus of the story from Eli to Miranda. Second is the ability to get readers to know and understand the characters in the story. Nico is another character whom we get to know about a bit more as in the first book we got to know her abilities and in this book the reader gets a proper understanding of her background and the future she faces. The third is that readers get to see a background of the world that the novel takes place in. We learn more about the League of Storms and why they are so worried about demons and demon seeds.

Rachel Aaron has quintessentially channeled Terry Pratchett in her world, by making things as quirky as possible. This was a massive plus point for me as I was constantly looking forward to reading about the nature of the spirit world. The writing is just as smooth as the first book. What was particularly exciting to see was how she showed that while the characters face similar challenges from the previous volume, they are indeed mortal and their opponents are more dangerous than they were thought to be.

Negative points are negligible in the sense that these books are light classical fantasy books which utilize obvious tropes and don’t do anything new in terms of genre development. People who are expecting these books to announce the new face of fantasy will be disappointed. These books are meant to be light reads which will grab the reader's attention and have them asking for more of Eli, Nico and Gin.

Ultimately, I was as pleased with “The Spirit Rebellion” as I was with “The Spirit Thief". The back-to-back release schedule also helps a lot as the wait is reduced considerably and one gets to plunge merrily in this wonderful adventure. Overall, this was a rather excellent sequel and a very good book, setting up the third book rather nicely as Eli’s bounty looks all set to increase. Readers can expect one thing from the author: she will knock your socks off with her wild and exhilarating stories.

Hell's Horizon by Darren Shan (Reviewed by Mihir Wanchoo)

Official Author Website

Order the book HERE

Read an excerpt HERE

Read FBC review of Procession Of The Dead

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Darren O'Shaughnessy is the much acclaimed author of the "Saga of Darren Shan" and "The Demonata" series. He has previously taken various pen names such as D.B. Shan and Darren Shan which he now uses to differentiate between his adult and YA books. He was born in London but moved to Ireland during his childhood. He currently spends his time between living in the Irish countryside as well as in London. The first book in the "Saga Of Darren Shan" was made into a film called "Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant" and was released last year.

BOOK BLURB: In the City, The Cardinal rules, and Al Jeery is a loyal member of his personal guard. But when Al is pulled from his duties at Party Central to investigate a murder, an unexpected discovery leads him in a new direction, where his loyalties and beliefs will be severely tested.

Soon he is involved in a terrifying mystery that draws in the dead, the City's Incan forefathers, the imposing figure of The Cardinal, and the near-mythical assassin Paucar Wami.

Wami is a law unto himself, a shadowy, enigmatic figure who can apparently kill anyone he chooses without fear of punishment or retribution. And Al is about to find out that he has a lot more in common with Wami than he could ever have imagined...

FORMAT/INFO: The ARC of Hell’s Horizon is 278 pages long divided into six named parts which are further divided into twenty-six chapters with a prologue and epilogue. Narration is via first person and features Al Jeery exclusively, similar to the first book which featured Capac Raimi. This is the second book in the City trilogy. This book is set in the same timeline as that of the first book and in fact runs parallel with the events of the first book and references some events from the first book. This book can also be read as a standalone however due to the mentions of certain events from the first book, some new readers might be a bit confused.

January 5, 2011 marked the Hardback publication of Hell’s Horizon via Grand Central Publishing.

This book was first published in 2000 and was released under the same name. However the third part of this series was never published. This book has since then been re-written and re-edited and is now being re-released. The story is a bit different from its predecessor in the sense that this book is more of a crime mystery while the earlier one was rooted more in noir UF.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: Hell’s Horizon begins a bit differently than its predecessor as a murder occurs and we get to see who had a hand in it. We are then introduced to Al Jeery who is a lowly soldier in the Cardinal’s gang. He is recently divorced however is still happily in love with his ex-wife Ellen. When he returns from his fishing trip, he finds that there is a major upheaval going on in the Cardinal’s hotel as the murder of a young woman without the Cardinal’s know-how or consent is a major no-no! Al is caught between the Cardinal’s two security heads Ford Tasso and Frank Weld. However he soon gets a call from the Cardinal after an inadvertent discovery connects him rather morbidly to the event occurring in the prologue.

Al then gets his first proper meeting with the Cardinal who touches on his past and while enlightening him about his father; also gives him an offer which he cannot refuse [as to do so means certain death]. He agrees to do a “task” for the Cardinal and in the process becomes the man he was deemed to be. As he goes about his way in trying to figure out the why and how of the murder, he also runs into one of the Cardinal’s most feared weapons, Paucar Wami. Paucar however seems to interact with Al on a rather comradely note, which troubles him greatly as knowing Paucar and the legends associated with him, and not knowing the assassin’s thoughts makes him very wary and curious at the same time.

Al is then forced to consider a lot of things about the City which he never bothered with, like the fog which goes and comes, the blind priests which people rarely see, the City’s Incan origins and the cult of the sun worshippers who seem to be linked inextricably with the murder and the girl. Entwined along with the plot threads are events from the first book as both the books occur along the same time frame. The reader gets to see a bit of the action from the first book in a different perspective, Capac Raimi gets spoken about and many characters refer to him however he does not make an active appearance. We also get to know how Al had an active hand in facilitating Capac’s meeting with the Cardinal. Lastly this book lays bare much of the Incan mythology associated with the series. We get a deeper understanding of who the priests are and what they are attempting to do, in the last book the focus was on Capac and the Cardinal, in this book a similar focus is provided on Al and Paucar Wami, we also get more time with minor characters from the last book like Ford Tasso, Frank Weld, etc.

The prose in this book is similar to that of the first, the city and characters hold your attention completely and the mystery is deepened with the overall addition to the Incan mythology, however this book is much different from the first in the sense that this is a murder mystery. The central thread revolves around why the girl was murdered and what does Al have to do with it! The other plot threads involve his connection to the city, with Wami and the other characters. The overall feel is again similar to that of the first with a gritty mysterious aura prevalent through out the book but by the end of this tale the reader is much more awakened to what is truly happening in the City.

Negative points for this book are that while the first one was a fast paced tale, this book trades in a bit of the pace for a deeper understanding of the plot. The first book had a very captivating narrator whereas in this case, the narrative struggles a bit from time to time as Al Jeery is thoroughly misplaced in his role as a detective but manages to hold his own when push comes to shove. This book reads more like a detective novel than an urban fantasy one; this isn’t bad as a lot of readers might enjoy this nuanced aspect of the tale. Darren Shan has taken a risk by not rehashing the first book and making the readers experience a different type of story while enhancing their understanding of the preceding story.

CONCLUSION: Earlier it felt like that this book was a bit of a letdown after the fast paced Procession Of The Dead however on a re-read this book is seemingly the stronger of the two in terms of character and plot development. Either ways the stage is set for the third and final book in the City trilogy, wherein we will get to see Capac Raimi & Al Jeery after the events of their respective stories and with the Priests not yet done with them. The City trilogy looks set to end in a tremendous fashion and I can’t wait to read what Darren Shan has planned for the finale!

"The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" by Mark Hodder (Reviewed by Liviu Suciu)

Official Mark Hodder Website
Order The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man HERE
Read FBC Review of The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack

INTRODUCTION/OVERVIEW: "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" is the second volume of a series that takes place in an alt-history England of the early 1860's with a steampunk flavor and features the colorful Victorian era personality, (Sir) Richard Burton as the main hero. In a distinctive turn from "real history", Burton accepts a commission to become a "special agent" of the king - among other changes Queen Victoria was assassinated in 1840 - while his young friend Algernon Swinburne is his sidekick; many notables like Darwin, Brunel and a very young Oscar Wilde have cameos and in this installment quite a lot of new faces are added of which I will mention only Herbert Spencer who is now a philosopher down on his luck and reduced to begging until he hooks up with Burton and Swinburne.

The blurb below gives a good idea of what the novel is about without being spoilery though I will only add that "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" contains considerably more than hinted there. As structure, the book is only partly self-contained in the sense that while it definitely solves its main thread and fleshes out a very consistent view of the imaginative universe of the author, it also ends on a clear to be continued note.

"Time has been altered, and Sir Richard Francis Burton, the king's agent, is one of the few people who know that the world is now careening along a very different course from that which Destiny intended.

When a clockwork-powered man of brass is found abandoned in Trafalgar Square, Burton and his assistant, the wayward poet Algernon Swinburne, find themselves on the trail of the stolen Garnier Collection—black diamonds rumored to be fragments of the Lemurian Eye of Naga, a meteorite that fell to Earth in prehistoric times.

His investigation leads to involvement with the media sensation of the age: the Tichborne Claimant, a man who insists that he's the long lost heir to the cursed Tichborne estate. Monstrous, bloated, and monosyllabic, he's not the aristocratic Sir Roger Tichborne known to everyone, yet the working classes come out in force to support him. They are soon rioting through the streets of London, as mysterious steam wraiths incite all-out class warfare..."

ANALYSIS: "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" continues and expands on the The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack story with which the author debuted; in a quite changed world of 1862, Sir Francis Burton now king's investigator and his assistant Algernon Swinburne, plus a motley cast including beggar/philosopher Herbert Spencer, various policemen and special agents of the Crown have to deal with new threats to "life as we know it" different from the events in the first volume, but related in subtle ways .

Starting innocuously with a robbery, a chase and some interesting events, followed by an excursion into the seemingly supernatural when Burton is drawn into the investigation of a missing aristocrat supposed return, the novel explodes into full sf action in the last part ending on a great note that promises a lot to come.

As opposed to The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack which lacked balance for a good while, not knowing if it wanted to be Victoriana with grime and social commentary or steampunk adventure in which the action takes precedence, while seesawing between narrative modes and breaking the storytelling flow often, The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man is coherent and the author manages the transitions between narrative phases much better.

The Victoriana aspect of grime and social commentary is still there, but the steampunk adventure takes over in The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man and that suits the series well. There is still a bit of disconnect in the middle when the story jumps a little in time, jump that is quite abrupt breaking the flow of the story and the book reads almost like two episodes in a larger story, or maybe one episode and then its connection to the bigger picture.

The other main niggle of the series so far for me is that the main lead, Richard Burton is still a bit on the wooden side. He is not quite the stock action hero since his main character traits: middle aged "personality" with a storied though controversial past, a present in the thick in the action and somewhat troubled spirit combine to a complex image but the author does not quite pull the final step of fully humanizing him. Comparisons with two other similar characters from ultra-favorite series - Ian Cormac of Neal Asher's Polity and Stenwold Maker of Adrian Tchaikovsky's Shadows of the Apt - show that as series evolve there is clear scope for that and I hope we will see a "complete" Burton in the next installment.

This being said, "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" (A+, highly recommended) is an excellent book that almost fulfills the huge promise this series had for me when it was announced. There are the many "goodies" of which I mentioned some above, but you really need to read it for full appreciation. The author also expands considerably the universe of the series in terms of the "big picture" which is another huge plus and the mixture of sf and steampunk continues to work well in terms of coherence and suspension of disbelief.

I would like to mention that you can read "The Curious Case of the Clockwork Man" on its own since all the necessary backstory is skilfully inserted in the beginning and the series debut was a standalone in many ways. On the other hand this book clearly starts delving seriously into the big picture especially in the second half and with a little improvement in the structure and a more "humane" Burton, I see the next installment taking the series to the top-top A++ level of todays' sff since it sure has the potential for that.

The Informationist by Taylor Stevens plus bonus Q/A with the author (Reviewed by Mihir Wanchoo)

Official Author Website

Read the Prologue & first 2 chapters HERE

Order the book HERE

For a chance to win 5 copies of the book click HERE (Contest ends tomorrow)

Read an article about the author and her background HERE

AUTHOR INFORMATION: Taylor Stevens lives in Dallas, Texas with her children. She spent her formative years in a cult in various countries such as Mexico, Germany, Austria, France, Switzerland, Japan, and South Korea. As an adult she also lived in many parts of Africa which fuel certain events in this tale. Amidst her twenties she was able to get out of her oppressive surrounding and understand the world beyond the confines of the Children of God. She started writing after being inspired by the Jason Bourne series by Robert Ludlum with no serious background in writing other than having read and loved books by likes of Robert Ludlum, John Sanford & Iris Johansen. She quit her day job on getting a publishing offer for two books. This is her debut.

BOOK BLURB: Vanessa 'Michael' Munroe deals in information - expensive information - working for corporations, heads of state, private clients, and anyone else who can pay for her unique brand of expertise. Born to missionary parents in lawless central Africa, Munroe took up with an infamous gunrunner and his mercenary crew when she was just fourteen. As his protégé, she earned the respect of the jungle's most dangerous men, cultivating her own reputation for years until something sent her running. After almost a decade building a new life and lucrative career from her home base in Dallas, she's never looked back.

Until now.

A Texas oil billionaire has hired her to find his daughter who vanished in Africa four years ago. It's not her usual line of work, but she can't resist the challenge. Pulled deep into the mystery of the missing girl, Munroe finds herself back in the lands of her childhood, betrayed, cut off from civilization, and left for dead. If she has any hope of escaping the jungle and the demons that drive her, she must come face-to-face with the past that she's tried for so long to forget!

CLASSIFICATION: The Informationist is a thriller set in Africa with a strong female protagonist. Personally I felt it had the charismatic prose of Tess Gerritsen’s books combined with the deadly pace of Barry Eisler.

FORMAT/INFO: The Informationist is 307 pages long in Hardcover format, divided over a Prologue, twenty-three numbered chapters, and an Epilogue. The book is set in third person solely via the protagonist Vanessa “Michael” Munroe. This is the first book in the series featuring Vanessa. It reads like a standalone and at the end of the book, the reader does get a complete story.

March 8, 2011 marks the North American Hardcover publication of The Informationist via Crown Publishing, an imprint of Random House.

OVERVIEW/ANALYSIS: The Informationist is Taylor Stevens’s debut book and I happened upon it thanks to the ever excellent ITW site which devotes a special eye on upcoming thriller writers. The book blurb sounded very exciting and it seemed the kind of thriller which I do like to try on every once in a while.

The book focuses on Vanessa “Michael” Munroe, the titular protagonist, who will get you the required information for the right amount of money no matter how irretrievable it might appear to be and no matter where it’s ensconced. After finishing off an assignment and getting ready for a vacation, she’s contacted by her contact/handler Kate Bredeen. Kate informs her about a high profile offer to search for a missing girl and the clincher for the deal is that she gets paid just to listen and (possibly) decline the case. She decides to meet the father Richard Burbank and after listening to the particulars, agrees to take on the case as she sees it as free money especially when the end result is getting information whether Emily (the missing girl) is truly dead. One of the main reasons spurring her decision is; that the girl has supposedly gone missing in the continent of Africa which also happens to be an area which Vanessa/Michael is well acquainted with, as her entire childhood was spent living amongst various African nations. She soon manages to pick up new information which reveals a small but delicate trail for the girl and the people who disappeared with her.

She is also joined by Miles Bradford, who is rather forced upon her by her employer but manages to prove himself to be a decent backup. Things begin to look up as they manage to get further evidence of Emily’s trail however they are soon betrayed and Vanessa is left to fend for herself. Thus begins a long myriad stream of events which will see her come to terms with her past and face a frenemy whom she thought, she had left way behind. She also has to locate the mole on her side and plug the leak and finally discover the truth about Emily’s disappearance.

This book was an amazing read for me as it’s very rare to find such polished thrillers from debut writers. The book completely grabs the reader from the start and never lets go and this is mainly due to the enigma that is the protagonist. Vanessa is a psychologically scarred individual who has taken quite some pains to mask her past. She is a loner and thoroughly dangerous individual however Taylor Stevens makes the reader cohabitate her mind and makes you feel her pain, her thought process and finally experience her indomitable will, ultimately she is showcased in such a way that the reader empathizes with her throughout the tale. The majority of the book is set in various regions of Africa and the author paints a very vivid and realistic environment, the readers who are totally unfamiliar with the social conditions of Africa will not have any problems sinking in and understanding how different life can be. These plus points enthrall the reader and make the tale that much more relishing.

The prose is competent and the characters are very realistically drawn out. Not only is Michael portrayed so brilliantly but we also get a very rounded view of the other characters present as well. In the climax, there were a couple of twists which I did not see coming and the author can rest easy as her plot continuously shifts and will keep the readers on their toes. Many comparisons will arise with Steig Larsson's books due to the similar nature of the protagonists however I can't comment much on it due to my unfamiliarity with Lisbeth Salander.

Negative points for me were almost minuscule, there were a couple of situations which seems a bit too incredible however this is a thriller book and so can be easily overlooked. Vanessa's past is laid bare rather brutally and some readers might find it bit too dark. Also there are some qualities attributed to her which might be a bit perplexing for the reader to believe, however truth is sometimes stranger than fiction and one must definitely keep in mind that almost all fiction is partly inspired by people and events in the real world.

CONCLUSION: This was a very fast paced book and Taylor Stevens marks herself out with her strong protagonist as well her flair for a crisp plot. A very good debut which will soon lead to comparisons with top thriller writers like Steig Larsson, Lee Child and Barry Eisler. However a couple of facts mustn’t be gleaned over, Taylor Stevens is a newbie with almost no background in writing/literature and also coupled with a turbulent past and limited education, therefore her literary debut becomes doubly admirable for these facts. Grab this book and dive in for an exceptional thrill ride that is The Informationist!

Bonus Q/A with Taylor Stevens

1] For the benefit of readers, could you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself?

A) My background is, perhaps, a little unusual for a novelist, in that I was born and raised into the Children of God, an apocalyptic religious cult that believed education beyond sixth grade was a waste of time and didn’t allow access to television and books from the outside. In place of schooling, the majority of my adolescence was spent begging on city streets at the behest of cult leaders, or as a worker bee child, caring for the many younger commune children, washing laundry and cooking meals for hundreds at a time.

2] How did you get started in writing? & could you share with us your experience of getting published?

A) The writing experience started something like this: I’m going to write a book. It will be fiction, and it’s going to take place in Africa. A couple of used writing guides became my Bible, and an old laptop that was now seeing its third continent, my everyday companion. So began a journey that started out as nothing more than a way to take back stolen childhood dreams, and which eventually grew into a three-book deal with Crown.

When the manuscript was finished and as good as I could possibly get it, I set out on the next step of finding a literary agent. I scoured blogs from agents, editors and professional writers in order to understand the publishing industry, and quickly realized that, like everything else, I would be forced to go the hard road. I wasn’t in a position to attend writers’ conferences to meet agents in person to pitch a book. Neither was I well read enough to track down the agents or editors of authors whose books I liked. I didn’t know anyone who knew anyone even remotely connected to publishing: I had no referrals, and no foot in the door. My only option, really, was to cold query agents by email, which, if you believe the naysayers, is impossible.

3] What was the spark of inspiration which lead to the genesis of "The Informationist"? How long have you been working on it, and how much has it evolved from its original idea (if any)?

A) My initial desire in developing THE INFORMATIONIST, before there were characters, or plot, or any idea really of what I would write, was to bring to life some of the foreign and exotic worlds I’d lived in, and Vanessa Michael Munroe, chameleon and predator, a woman with her own brand of morality and a take-no-prisoner’s form of justice, gradually came alive as a result of the demanding environments she was thrown into. In all, it took about two years to finish, and it evolved quite a bit along the way, both because I didn’t have a story in mind when I set out, and also because I learned the mechanics of writing fiction as part of the experience of working on THE INFORMATIONIST.

4] On your website you mention that you feel that pacing and structure are two weak points in your writing arsenal, after reading your book frankly I’m surprised you feel so. What makes you think that this might be the case?

A) Because I get to see my first drafts before anyone else does. There are a lot of unsung heroes in the publishing industry who play a role in nurturing a book through its many phases, and I’ve been very fortunate to receive the kind of feedback that improved upon what I feel are my weaker points.

5] What are you aiming for with this book?

A) I consider myself an entertainer, and my ultimate goal is for my readers to feel that the hours spent on THE INFORMATIONIST were worth the time and money. I don’t deliberately set out to create social commentary or convey a message, but if something deeper is drawn from my work, I guess that’s a bonus.

6] Who are your literary idols and what are the types of books which you like to read?

A) Robert Ludlum will probably always be my favorite if only because it was when reading the last of the Bourne Trilogy that I decided to write fiction. I craved to create these things, these people, these worlds and stories in the way that Ludlum could create them, and one thing I knew was that the life I had led up to that point provided me with plenty of material on which to draw. Vanessa "Michael" Munroe, and THE INFORMATIONIST, are the fulfillment of that desire.

7] What are your plans for the future? What are you writing currently and what can you tell us about your next release “The Innocent”?

A) THE INNOCENT, the second installment in the Michael Munroe series, draws heavily on my childhood of having been raised within The Children of God. Although the story is fiction, it’s based on truth and probably the closest I’ll ever get to writing an autobiography.