Ebook en oferta: Vurt, de Jeff Noon

En estos momentos se puede adquirir Vurt, de Jeff Noon, en formato electrónico por 1,49€ en Amazon España. 

Ésta es la sinopsis de la novela:

Take a trip in a stranger's head. Travel rain-shot streets with a gang of hip malcontents, hooked on the most powerful drug you can imagine. Yet Vurt feathers are not for the weak. As the mysterious Game Cat says, ‘Be careful, be very careful’. But Scribble isn't listening. He has to find his lost love. His journey is a mission to find Curious Yellow, the ultimate, perhaps even mythical Vurt feather. As the most powerful narcotic of all, Scribble must be prepared to leave his current reality behind.

Novedad: Half a King, de Joe Abercrombie

Ya está a la venta Half a King, la nueva novela de Joe Abercrombie, que inicia una trilogía juvenil titulada Shattered Sea. Ya he tenido la oportunidad de leer el libro y, aunque pronto publicaré una reseña completa, puedo adelantar que he me sentido bastante decepcionado. 

Ésta es la sinopsis del libro:

“I swore an oath to avenge the death of my father. I may be half a man, but I swore a whole oath.” 

 

Prince Yarvi has vowed to regain a throne he never wanted. But first he must survive cruelty, chains, and the bitter waters of the Shattered Sea. And he must do it all with only one good hand.

 

The deceived will become the deceiver.

 

Born a weakling in the eyes of his father, Yarvi is alone in a world where a strong arm and a cold heart rule. He cannot grip a shield or swing an axe, so he must sharpen his mind to a deadly edge.

 

The betrayed will become the betrayer.

 

Gathering a strange fellowship of the outcast and the lost, he finds they can do more to help him become the man he needs to be than any court of nobles could.

 

Will the usurped become the usurper?

 

But even with loyal friends at his side, Yarvi finds his path may end as it began—in twists, and traps, and tragedy.

The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2, edited by Gordon Van Gelder

(Disclaimer: English is my second language, so I want to apologize in advance for there may be mistakes in the text below. If you find any, please let me know so that I can correct it. I'd really appreciate it. Thanks.) 

Review Soundtrack: I suggest reading this review while listening to I'm My Own Grandpaw by Lonzo and Oscar (Spotify, Youtube). 

There is no denying that the table of contents of The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2, is simply impressive. Harlan Ellison, Robert Silverberg, Robert Heinlein, Gene Wolfe, Stephen King, Brian Aldiss... Looking at all those names it is impossible not to harbor great expectations for this collection. After having read it, I can say that the book (almost) lives up to all the hype.

In fact, the first 40% of the collection is nearly perfect. I enjoyed each and every one of the stories, and I eagerly read one after another. "The Third Level," by Jack Finney; "The Country of the Kind," by Damon Knight; "Green Magic," by Jack Vance; "The Prize of Peril," by Robert Sheckley... are all excellent stories. But I was especially delighted by "Narrow Valley" by R.A. Lafferty and, above all, by "The Anything Box" by Zenna Henderson. Henderson's story is sweet, surprising and touching and it is easily my favorite one among those included in the book. Simply marvelous. 

It is certainly curious how several of these stories focus on variations of the same topic, though they approach it quite differently. I'm thinking of the stories by Henderson, Finney, Lafferty, Ellison and even Silverberg, in which the characters are able to perceive something that might just not be there. I was very pleasantly surprised by this (possibly unintentional) connection among a number of really remarkable stories and it made enjoy them even more.      

After this first excellent half, the book becomes more uneven. The average quality is still good, and you can find some gems ("The People of Sand and Slag," by Paolo Bacigalupi, for instance, is one my favorite stories of the last few years), but there were others that I couldn't get into or that I simply didn't like or care for. Your mileage may very well vary, for I'm talking about very famous and beloved stories such as "The Lincoln Train" by Maureen F. McHugh or "Maneki Neko" by Bruce Sterling. 

The anthology, despite some weaker (in my humble opinion) stories, gives an excellent taste of the quality and variety of the tales that Fantasy & Science Fiction has been publishing over its 65 years of existence. The highest praise I can give to this book is that, even if it is by no means short, I finished it in less than four days (and that is a lot to say for me, since I am no fast reader).     

All in all, I highly recommend reading The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction, Volume 2. Those fans that are more veteran would surely have already read (probably many times) timeless  (no pun intended) classics such as "- All You Zombies -" by Robert A. Heinlein or "Jefty is Five" by Harlan Ellison, but I'm sure they won't regret the chance of reading them once again. And those who still haven't enjoyed these and all the other stories included in the book are certainly in for a treat.

(You can also read this review in Spanish at El Fantascopio/También puedes leer esta reseña en español en El Fantascopio)

Ebook gratuito: Murmullos en el cielo, de José Antonio Suárez

En estos momentos se puede descargar gratuitamente en Amazon España el ebook Murmullos en el cielo, de José Antonio Suárez. Ésta es su sinopsis:

Año 1998: Estados Unidos ha invadido Europa. 

Después de una guerra de desgaste que dura ya tres años, la resistencia del viejo continente intenta organizarse y planea un contraataque fulminante para anular al ejército estadounidense. 

David Brell, expulsado de Los Ángeles a raíz de la aplicación de las nuevas leyes americanas de extranjería, aterriza en Aurora, incipiente metrópoli afincada en el corazón de la selva boliviana, para trabajar en un bufete de abogados. Uno de sus compañeros le venderá una vieja radio alemana por un precio simbólico. Sólo quedan cinco unidades como ella en todo el mundo, y en su interior se oculta una tecnología revolucionaria que terceras personas están muy interesadas en conseguir. 

Su adquisición cambiará radicalmente la vida de David y su familia. Y quizás el destino del mundo entero.

Ebook en oferta: La era de huesos, de Samantha Shannon

Hasta el día 15 de este mes se puede adquirir La era de huesos, de Samantha Shannon, al precio promocional de 3,79€ en Amazon España o de 3,99€ en Kobo.

Ésta es su sinopsis:

En el año 2059, un siniestro régimen totalitario domina el planeta y los pocos clarividentes son perseguidos por delincuentes. Lo que no saben las masas es que sus dirigentes se han aliado con una fuerza aún más insidiosa, asentada en una ciudad secreta. 

Paige Mahoney, de 19 años, trabaja para una poderosa organización del hampa londinense. Paige es fuerte, rápida y tiene un don excepcional: es capaz de entrar en los pensamientos de los demás. En esta sociedad represiva cualquier acto de espiritismo ya es ilegal. Pero Paige comete alta traición por el simple hecho de respirar. 

En un mundo en el que los sueños están prohibidos, una joven luchará por su libertad, su vida y el futuro de la humanidad.

Ebooks de Orbit en oferta

La estrategia comercial de Orbit es, cuando menos, divertida. Después de la polémica decisión de no incluir en el Hugo Voter Packet sus tres novelas nominadas al premio, ahora las rebajan a 2,99€ junto con el primer libro de la serie The Wheel of Time (que está al completo en el Hugo Voter Packet, pero por cortesía de Tor). En fin. 

Estos son los títulos en oferta:

• Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Amazon ES, Kobo)
• Parasite, Mira Grant (Amazon ES, Kobo)
• Neptune's Brood, Charles Stross (Amazon ES, Kobo)
• The Eye of the World, Robert Jordan (Amazon ES, Kobo)

  

Novedad: The Rhesus Chart, de Charles Stross

Hoy se pone a la venta The Rhesus Chart, la quinta novela de la serie The Laundry Files, de Charles Stross. 

Ésta es la sinopsis del libro:

As a newly appointed junior manager within the Laundry—the clandestine organization responsible for protecting Britain against supernatural threats—Bob Howard is expected to show some initiative to help the agency battle the forces of darkness. But shining a light on things best left in the shadows is the last thing Bob wants to do—especially when those shadows hide an occult parasite spreading a deadly virus. 

Traders employed by a merchant bank in London are showing signs of infection—an array of unusual symptoms such as superstrength and -speed, an uncanny talent for mind control, an extreme allergic reaction to sunlight, and an unquenchable thirst for blood. While his department is tangled up in bureaucratic red tape (and Buffy reruns), debating how to stop the rash of vampirism, Bob digs deeper into the bank’s history—only to uncover a bloodcurdling conspiracy between men and monsters...