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Showing posts with label Tor Publishing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tor Publishing. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Contest Winners - Ghost Planet
I would like to thank Sharon Lynn Fisher for dropping by to share a little bit about balancing romance and science fiction in her new release, Ghost Planet. I’d also like to thank TOR Books and Sharon for sponsoring the giveaway of Sharon’s book.
The winners as selected by Rafflecopter:
CONGRATULATIONS!!
Winners... please email me at twimom227 (at) gmail (dot) com with your full name and mailing address so the publisher can send you the book. You have until Friday November 23, 2012 (end of day) to contact me. If I don’t hear from you by then, I will draw another winner.
Thank you and Happy Reading!
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Author Guest Post & Giveaway: Sharon Lynn Fisher
Hello Readers! Today I bring you science fiction/romance writer, Sharon Lynn Fisher. Sharon is the author of GHOST PLANET, recently published by Tor Books on Oct. 30, 2012. The book -- a two-time RWA Golden Heart finalist -- is a sci-fi/romance blend that offers a "fresh and fascinating take on the human-alien problem" (says author Linnea Sinclair).
Sharon lives in the Pacific Northwest, where she is hard at work on her next novel and battles writerly angst with baked goods, Irish tea, and champagne. You can visit her online at SharonLynnFisher.com.
Sharon is here today to share a little about Ghost Planet. Keep reading to learn more about Ghost Planet and enter to win a copy! GIVEAWAY details are below.
Please help me welcome Sharon to That’s What I’m Talking About.
Balancing Romance and Sci-Fi in GHOST PLANET
Nima’s review of GHOST PLANET (HERE) talked about how relationships always drive a story, and I’d have to agree with her about that. When I think of some of my favorite novels – A WRINKLE IN TIME, WATERSHIP DOWN, JANE EYRE, LORD OF THE RINGS – a sense of the characters’ relationships to each other are more vivid in my mind than the individual characters.
In WRINKLE, for example, as an adolescent I was really drawn to the strong bonds among the members of the Murry family. In fact the action of the story begins when the mother and children go dimension hopping to rescue the father.
This is especially true for romances, where the story would not work without a relationship at its core. My recently released science fiction romance GHOST PLANET is strongly driven by relationships from both the romance and sci-fi perspectives.
In the first chapter of the book, the heroine (Elizabeth) discovers she’s bound to the charming and sexy Irishman (Murphy) who was to be her supervisor. They are virtual strangers, and moreover he is required by a protocol he created to ignore her, so her top priority is to detach from him.
By degrees it becomes clear this is not going to be as easy as she’d hoped. And it may not be in her best interests, or the planet’s.
Elizabeth’s desperation to detach, and Murphy’s growing intellectual and romantic attachment to her, drive them to work together to understand the mysterious nature of her existence. It’s only then that they make real progress in unlocking the planet’s secrets (violently rocking the status quo in the process).
So GHOST PLANET is really driven by relationships on three levels – the professional relationship and romance between Elizabeth and Murphy, the overall state of ghost/colonist relationships on the planet, and how the symbiotic connections between these pairs impacts the planet itself -- ecology, climate, and even geological stability.
In that way GHOST PLANET became exactly the book I’d always wanted to write: One half romance, one half wonder, mystery, and adventure. And that’s exactly what draws me to science fiction romance – the opportunity to explore relationship dynamics against the backdrop of a speculative setting.
Romance has the idea of a soul mate. In GHOST PLANET, science fiction allowed me to take that concept one step further.
What are some of your favorite relationship-driven stories?
Thank you, Sharon for stopping by. It was a pleasure to chat with you! Keep reading for GIVEAWAY details!
You can find Sharon on line at
More on Ghost Planet (October 30, 2012):
When psychologist Elizabeth Cole arrives on a recently colonized planet to start a new job, she doesn’t expect to find her supervisor, Murphy, so incredibly attractive. She doesn’t expect to see alien beings, native to the planet, materializing as ghosts and following the “colonist” humans around. Most of all, she doesn’t expect to learn that Elizabeth Cole in fact died in a crash en route to this planet, and that she herself a reincarnated ghost-alien, connected symbiotically to Murphy—who, bound by the “Ghost Protocol” that he himself created, is not allowed to interact with or acknowledge Elizabeth in any way.
Confused, alone, and discounted as less than human, Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence and fight the blatant discrimination of the Ghost Protocol. But as she draws closer to the truth, she begins to realize that she is only a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet. Oppressed by her ghost status and tantalized by forbidden love, Elizabeth may just be the one to upset the planetary balance….
GIVEAWAY Thank you, Sharon, for stopping by That’s What I’m Talking About. Sharon and Tor Books are graciously giving away three (3) copies of Ghost Planet. To be entered, please use the RAFFLECOPTER form below. As part of your entry, please leave a comment answering Sharon’s question: What are some of your favorite relationship-driven stories? You do not need to be a google friends connect follower of my blog, but it is always appreciated. Contest is open from November 8, 2012 until Wednesday November 14, 2012 at 12:01 AM EST. Contest is restricted to US and Canadian mailing addresses only. Three (3) winners will be selected from eligible entries. I am not responsible for items lost in the mail. If you have problems with the RAFFLECOPTER form, please email me at twimom227 (at) gmail (dot) com.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Labels:
Author Interview,
contest,
giveaway,
guest post,
Sharon Lynn Fisher,
Tor Publishing
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Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Review: River Road by Suzanne Johnson
River Road
Author: Suzanne Johnson
Release Date: Nov. 13, 2012
Publisher: Tor
Sentinels of New Orleans #2
ISBN: #978-0765327802
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Format(s): Hardcover (336 pgs), e-book
Book Source: Author
About the book:
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Hurricane Katrina is long gone, but the preternatural storm rages on in New Orleans. New species from the Beyond moved into Louisiana after the hurricane destroyed the borders between worlds, and it falls to wizard sentinel Drusilla Jaco and her partner, Alex Warin, to keep the preternaturals peaceful and the humans unaware. But a war is brewing between two clans of Cajun merpeople in Plaquemines Parish, and down in the swamp, DJ learns, there’s more stirring than angry mermen and the threat of a were-gator.
Wizards are dying, and something—or someone—from the Beyond is poisoning the waters of the mighty Mississippi, threatening the humans who live and work along the river. DJ and Alex must figure out what unearthly source is contaminating the water and who—or what—is killing the wizards. Is it a malcontented merman, the naughty nymph, or some other critter altogether? After all, DJ’s undead suitor, the pirate Jean Lafitte, knows his way around a body or two.
It’s anything but smooth sailing on the bayou as the Sentinels of New Orleans series continues.
What I’m talking about:
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The story opens with a meeting between our heroine, Drusilla Jaco (aka DJ) and the historical undead pirate Jean Lafitte. The scene is detailed beautifully, and I felt as if I was party to the entire interaction. Jean shares with DJ that 1) there are merfolks living in the New Orleans area, 2) there is something polluting the waters in the area, which is a threat to both pretes (preternatural beings) and humans, and 3) there is a brewing war between two of the mer-factions. Suddenly, DJ finds herself in the middle of a dangerous whodunit mystery with dangers at every turn.
Although I didn't read the first book, Royal Street, Ms. Johnson does a marvelous job of integrating past actions and world-building details into the current storyline. In addition, the descriptive detail provided is beyond marvelous. Similes and metaphors compliment sharp dialogue, fierce action and an intriguing mystery. When put all together, the author paints a richly illustrative image in my mind's eye.
Although one can jump in the series with River Road, there is a bit of a learning curve. The mythology is distinct, and although there are familiar characters such as shifters, wizards and merfolk, their origins and many of their characteristics are unique to Ms. Johnson’s series. I had to tweet the author a few questions during the course of reading the book.
Without going into a lot of detail about the different factions and pretes, I will mention a few things I liked a lot. First... I enjoyed the whole wizard congress political set up. It reminded me a bit of Harry Potter in that there is a very complex governing body for all things magical. I love that DJ even wears a pair of Harry Potter PJs! The reader gets a pretty good account of the backbone of the Elders and wizards about a third of the way through the book, and that helped a lot. The primary folks involved in this story are the sentinels (DJ and partner Alex) who seem to me like the inspectors and police of the supernatural world - especially in New Orleans where the doorway between our world and the “Beyond” is opened. In addition there are enforcers who are the military component - security, cleaning up messes, keeping things in line. Oh, by the way, humans know nothing about this world.
I am fascinated by the Elven. DJ is part elf on both sides of her lineage, something that apparently is very rare. We learn a few bits and pieces about this magical, secretive sect, only because DJ herself knows so little. There is much to be learned and some apparent nefarious plots yet to be revealed.
I am a fan our our heroine, DJ. She is girly, but tough. She doesn’t know everything, but works to figure it out. She is willing to rely on friends, but also will take charge of a situation. She makes mistakes and may whine a short time, but in the end is resilient!
One thing I didn’t quite get is her apparently extraordinary attractiveness. Don’t get me wrong, I adore her, but she has three alpha males practically drooling over her, as well as a couple of mermen who wouldn’t mind taking her home. First there is Jean Lafitte who appears to have some sort of plans for our heroine. He’s attracted to her, but it’s almost as if he means to capture and possess her as one of his treasures. He may be good looking and very humanlike - but in the end, he is dead.
Then we have cousins Jake and Alex Warin. Alex is a true, born shifter and DJ’s best friend. I don’t know their history from the first book, but Alex was awfully flirtatious, jealous and a tad possessive for “just friends.” I really liked him, but I was constantly worried that his behavior is more due to competition with his cousin than honest feelings for DJ.
Jake on the other hand is loup-garou (made werewolf). Based on dialogue and memories, it is clear that Jake and DJ were on the verge of something special prior to Hurricane Katrina and Jake turning were. His anger and her guilt kept them apart until the beginning of River Road. With time and forgiveness, the pair seem to have a few sparks. However, Jake’s inability to control his wolf kept things moving slowly. I felt for Jake, and want to see him whole and healed. But honestly, I'm not sure who would be the best romantic interest for DJ. Alex is really making a case for himself, and the way things ended... well, I’m anxious to see what is next for our group.
In the end I have to say I really enjoyed River Road! The primary plot is an absorbing mystery and a pretty good one at that. I will admit I didn't know whodunit. And while I am not a fan of love triangles, I appreciate DJ's confusion and the romantic story line is well played thus far. There is much more to learn about DJ and her powers, the elves and DJ’s new neighbor. My interest is certainly piqued!!
My Rating:
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Loved it - enthusiastically recommend (A)
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Review: Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher
Ghost Planet
Author: Sharon Lynn Fisher
Release Date: Oct. 30, 2012
Publisher: Tor Science Fiction
ISBN: #978-0765368973
Genre: Science Fiction Romance
Format(s): Paperback (352 pgs), e-book
Book Source: NetGalley
About the book:
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Psychologist Elizabeth Cole prepared for the worst when she accepted a job on a newly discovered world—a world where every colonist is tethered to an alien who manifests in the form of a dead loved one. But she never expected she'd struggle with the requirement to shun these "ghosts." She never expected to be so attracted to the charming Irishman assigned as her supervisor. And she certainly never expected to discover she died in a transport crash en route to the planet.
As a ghost, Elizabeth is symbiotically linked to her supervisor, Murphy—creator of the Ghost Protocol, which forbids him to acknowledge or interact with her. Confused and alone—oppressed by her ghost status and tormented by forbidden love—Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence.
But her quest for answers lands her in a tug-of-war between powerful interests, and she soon finds herself a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet…a struggle that could separate her forever from the man that she loves.
What Nima’s talking about:
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I haven’t enjoyed a book this much in a long time. Sharon Lynn Fisher’s Ghost Planet grabbed me into one of those book trances that leaves you unable to do laundry, sleep, or function in the real world until you finish. When forced to put the book down, you walk around in a book bubble thinking about the plot and how it might twist and turn until you can pick it up again. This is when you decide pancakes are awesome for dinner so you can go back to your comfy spot and slip back into the emotions of the book.
I love science fiction and have never felt that it should exclude romance. Relationships always drive a story whether it’s between warring factions, governments, scientists, or star crossed lovers. Where would Star Wars be without Hans and Leia? Ghost Planet blends them seamlessly and this is a story where neither the science nor the romance takes a backseat to the other. They both hold their own in a way that as they interact, they are each become more. The sum is greater than its parts. The science is also approachable for those of us who didn’t major in molecular biology.
More than anything, this is a book about perspective. Like Gulliver’s Travels everything seems crystal clear—until you have the advantage of seeing the situation from another position. The light from a new angle makes you question what you were sure you knew about these characters. Fisher does this beautifully as she takes your hand and leads you precisely where she wants you to go. And you go.
My insides did experience a little niggle which I identified as echoes of Stephenie Meyer’s The Host. Unquestionably it is a completely different premise, but in many ways, Fisher created what I wanted The Host to be. It’s a tighter read with better action…and sex. We get the intimacy both emotionally and physically. It’s a more complete story.
I have only two real criticisms of this book. This first is that after a gripping first half, the pace slows slightly before picking up again for the climax. Meyer’s book suffered the same flaw, but Fisher doesn’t let it wallow for hundreds of pages. Perhaps the Ghost Planet’s climax is better for it. The second criticism is the title. It’s unfortunate because when I type it into search engines; I get over 1,300 references to other media including music, phantom planets, even the movie “Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol.” This book is too unique for such an unremarkable name.
In the end there were some minor unanswered questions for me and I hope very much that Fisher will turn this into a series. I will read them. I will even pre-order them and that’s saying a lot.
Nima’s Rating:
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Personal favorite - a must read (A+)
Purchase Info:
Labels:
5 stars,
Nima Review,
romance,
sci-fi/fantasy,
Sharon Lynn Fisher,
Tor Publishing
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