New Releases 11/3/15

You can support The Update by clicking the banner to your right or the links below if you are purchasing through Amazon!

Hardcovers

Made to Kill: A Novel by Adam Christopher

It was just another Tuesday morning when she walked into the office--young, as I suspected they all might be, another dark brunette with some assistance and enough eye black to match up to Cleopatra. And who am I? I'm Ray, the world's last robot, famed and feared in equal measure, which suits me just fine--after all, the last place you'd expect to find Hollywood's best hit man is in the plain light of day.

Raymond Electromatic is good at his job, as good as he ever was at being a true Private Investigator, the lone employee of the Electromatic Detective Agency--except for Ada, office gal and super-computer, the constant voice in Ray's inner ear. Ray might have taken up a new line of work, but money is money, after all, and he was programmed to make a profit. Besides, with his twenty-four-hour memory-tape limits, he sure can keep a secret.

When a familiar-looking woman arrives at the agency wanting to hire Ray to find a missing movie star, he's inclined to tell her to take a hike. But she had the cold hard cash, a demand for total anonymity, and tendency to vanish on her own.

Plunged into a glittering world of fame, fortune, and secrecy, Ray uncovers a sinister plot that goes much deeper than the silver screen--and this robot is at the wrong place, at the wrong time.

Made to Kill is the thrilling new speculative noir from novelist and comic writer Adam Christopher.

Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger

If one must flirt...flirt with danger.

Lessons in the art of espionage aboard Mademoiselle Geraldine's floating dirigible have become tedious without Sophronia's sweet sootie Soap nearby. She would much rather be using her skills to thwart the dastardly Picklemen, yet her concerns about their wicked intentions are ignored, and now she's not sure whom to trust. What does the brusque werewolf dewan know? On whose side is the ever-stylish vampire Lord Akeldama? Only one thing is certain: a large-scale plot is under way, and when it comes to fruition, Sophronia must be ready to save her friends, her school, and all of London from disaster--in decidedly dramatic fashion, of course.

What will become of our proper young heroine when she puts her years of training to the test? Find out in this highly anticipated and thrilling conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Finishing School series!

Tales from the Loop by Simon Stålenhag

Simon Stålenhag’s Tales from the Loop is a wildly successful crowd-funded project that takes viewers on a surprising sci-fi journey through various country and city landscapes―from small towns in Sweden and the deserts of Nevada to the bitter chill of Siberia―where children explore and engage with abandoned robots, vehicles, and machinery large and small, while dinosaurs and other creatures wander our roads and fields. Stålenhag’s paintings and stories take place in an alternate version of Sweden in the ’80s and ’90s, primarily in the countryside of Mälaröarna, a string of islands just west of Stockholm, and how this reality came about: the development of the Loop, a large particle accelerator and the side effects of the massive project. These incredibly captivating works and accompanying text capture perhaps a not-too-distant reality that is both haunting and imminent: addressing the many ways developing technology and nature can create havoc and wonder in our world―plus, its impact on the next generation. This is the English edition of the first book in Swedish that sold out in its initial printing.

E-Books

Alt Hist Issue 8: The magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History edited by Mark Lord

The eighth issue of the popular magazine of historical fiction and alternate history contains six great new short stories. Alt Hist Issue 8 includes new stories in the Battalion 202 series set in the aftermath of a successful German invasion of Britain, as well as tales featuring bridge burning in the American Civil War, a secret mission against the Suez Canal in the World War One, a story that speculates what if the atom bomb hadn’t been dropped on Japan, and taking us back to the Middle Ages, a story that follows the dreams and reality of a peasant girl caught up in the brutal Hundred Years War.

Stories include:

Dewey Defeats Truman by Mark Devane
A Sword by Andrew Knighton
The Retreat Proceeded Orderly, at Least by Kenan Orhan
The Fullness and the Hollowness by Jonathan Doering
Small Miracles by Jonathan Doering
His Last Day by Richard Buxton

Surrounded by Enemies: A Breakpoint Novel by Bryce Zabel

What if Kennedy survived Dallas?

President John F. Kennedy has lived through the ambush in Dealey Plaza. America holds its collective breath, seeing its president nearly executed in broad daylight. But as the country marches on, the office of the President finds itself under a much more insidious type of fire. Political scandal, an endless war, and a country coming apart at the seams take the 1960’s in a terrifying new direction, and both John and his attorney-general brother, Bobby, struggle to stay ahead of their enemies, political and otherwise, and steer America toward a greater future.

Bryce Zabel is a master of the cover-up and the conspiracy, creating the Emmy-award winning series DARK SKIES. SURROUNDED BY ENEMIES is the first novel in the new Breakpoint series—each book exploring seminal moments in popular history and taking readers on a journey into a mirror world where events are both unexpected yet startlingly believable.

This savvy, fiercely intelligent novel, perfect for readers of Harry Turtledove, brings together elements of political thriller and page-turning history, enthralling readers with a sharply written take on the America that was, and the America that could have been.

WINNER OF THE 2013 SIDEWISE AWARD FOR ALTERNATE HISTORY

The Time Travel Chronicles edited by Crystal Watanabe

Time travel. Humanity has long imagined what it would be like to be able to create a time machine, what we might see if we could travel into the future, or be transported to the distant past. And what if it were possible to travel into our own, more recent past? Would we be able to change our present, or are we prisoners of predestination? Is fate what we make of it?

In this latest title in the acclaimed 'Future Chronicles' series of speculative fiction anthologies, fourteen authors confront the question of time travel and its consequences, exploring a landscape where past, present and future all become imaginable destinations.

"The Time Travel Chronicles" features stories by science fiction grandmaster Robert J. Sawyer (Calculating God), Amazon bestselling author Rysa Walker (the Chronos series), Best American Science Fiction notable Samuel Peralta (Faith), plus eleven more of today's top authors in speculative and science fiction.

To readers, authors and publishers...

Is your story going to be published in time for the next New Releases? Contact us at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

* * *

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update, a blogger on Amazing Stories and a Sidewise Awards for Alternate History judge. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the day when travel between parallel universes becomes a reality. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Learn how you can support his alternate history projects on Patreon.

New Releases 1/20/15

You can support The Update by clicking the banner to your right or the links below if you are purchasing through Amazon!

Paperbacks

Alt Hist Issue 7: The Magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History edited by Mark Lord

Alt Hist returns with the seventh issue of the popular magazine of historical fiction and alternate history. This is the biggest issue of Alt Hist so far and this time we have seven wonderful short stories for you—including two parts of the popular Battalion 202 series and stories from Alt Hist favourites Priya Sharma and Andrew Knighton. If you like historical fiction, then you are sure to love this issue of Alt Hist. Alt Hist Issue 7 features the following stories: “The Vivisectionist's Daughter” by Jason Kahn “Cold Flesh” by Andrew Knighton “The Independence Day” by Pavel Nikiforovitch “Heff in Dearborn” by Michael Fertik “Battalion 202: The Sheep and the Goats” by Jonathan Doering “Set Britain Ablaze” by Jonathan Doering “The Red Vortex” by Priya Sharma

Apparitions: Kenya (Volume 1) by LEO and Rodolphe

A young British agent is sent to Kenya to investigate strange events—UFO sightings, living dinosaurs...

Kenya, 1947. A hunting expedition led by American writer John Remington makes a startling encounter, and then vanishes without a trace. Shortly afterwards, Katherine Austin, agent of the British Secret Intelligence Service, arrives in Mombasa. Her mission: investigate a series of mysterious sightings and incidents, of which the disappearance of the Remington party could be the latest. Undercover as a teacher, courted by colleagues who may be working for competing secret services, she’s about to enter a whole new reality…

Legenderry: A Steampunk Adventure by Bill Willingham, Joe Benitez and Sergio Davilla

A mysterious woman named Magna Spadarossa searches the many kingdoms of her Steampunk world to find her missing sister, Sonja... but she's pursued by strange and dastardly villains. Thankfully, each glamorous airship, clockwork city, and primordial jungle hosts a brave hero to aid in her quest! Bill Willingham, the bestselling author of DC/Vertigo's Fables, reimagines the most iconic characters in the Dynamite stable in a self-contained Steampunk universe! Featuring Red Sonja, Vampirella, Green Hornet, Kato, Flash Gordon, The Phantom, Silver Star, Captain Victory, The Six Million Dollar Man, and Zorro... as you've never seen them before!

Three Princes by Ramona Wheeler

Lord Scott Oken, a prince of Albion, and Professor-Prince Mikel Mabruke live in a world where the sun never set on the Egyptian Empire. In the year 1877 of Our Lord Julius Caesar, Pharaoh Djoser-George governs a sprawling realm that spans Europe, Africa, and much of Asia. When the European terrorist Otto von Bismarck touches off an international conspiracy, Scott and Mik are charged with exposing the plot against the Empire.

Their adventure takes them from the sands of Memphis to a lush New World, home of the Incan Tawantinsuyu, a rival empire across the glittering Atlantic Ocean. Encompassing Quetzal airships, operas, blood sacrifice and high diplomacy, Ramona Wheeler's Three Princes is a richly imagined, cinematic vision of a modern Egyptian Empire.

The Untime by Hugh Ashton

The Untime; a mysterious and dangerous state, beyond our powers of conception. In the Paris of the 1890s, Jules Gauthier, a young journalist, enters the Untime with its discoverer, Professor Lamartine. What they find there could be the end of our Universe as we know it. When Lamartine disappears mysteriously, Gauthier, together with Agathe, Lamartine's daughter, and Lamartine's rival, Professor Schneider, must brave the terrors of the Untime, journeying through time and space.

E-books

King of the Cracksmen by Dennis O'Flaherty

The year is 1877. Automatons and steam-powered dirigible gunships have transformed the nation in the aftermath of the Civil War. Everything on the other side of the Mississippi has been claimed for Russia. Lincoln is still president, having never been assassinated, but the former secretary of war Edwin Stanton is now the head of the Department of Public Safety, ruling with an iron fist as head of the country’s military.

Liam McCool is a bad man, one of the best Irish cracksmen there is when it comes to robbery, cracking safes, and other sundry actives—until he was caught red-handed by Stanton. Those in the South who don’t fit into Stanton’s plans for the Reconstruction, and Stanton realizes Liam McCool is more useful doing his dirty work than sitting in a jail cell. But when his sweetheart, Maggie, turns up murdered, Liam McCool realizes he’ll do anything, even if it means getting way over his head with bloodthirsty Russians, to solve the crime.

The King of the Cracksmen is an explosive, action-packed look at a Victorian empire that never was, part To Catch a Thief, part Little Big Man. It’s steampunk like you’ve never seen it before, a murder mystery in a foreign world where no one is who they seem to be and danger lurks around every corner.

To fans, authors and publishers...

Is your story going to be published in time for the next New Releases? Contact us at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

* * *

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. Check out his short fiction. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Review: Alt Hist 5 edited by Mark Lord

Being a sub-genre of science fiction, you tend to see an occasional alternate history short story in a SF magazine. Still it does not happen as often as I would like. Are the editors to blame? Do they reject an inordinate amount of alternate history submissions? Or are the authors to blame? Does the lack of historical knowledge among SF writers prevent a larger short fiction library? Maybe it is the audience. They just aren't reading the stories.

That is why I like Alt Hist. It is probably the only publication out there that consistently publishes alternate history. That being said, the magazine could better be described as a publisher of alternative or weird history. Along with pure alternate history, there is steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel and even regular, old historical fiction. Still for those who like their speculative fiction having a historical flavor, you should check out Alt Hist.

The most recent issue (#5) is a solid entry with a few good stories. I didn't particularly enjoy "The Stiff Heart" by Meredith Miller, a tale of post-Civil War New England. It was an odd read that is overly poetic and can be confusing when the point of view changes to second person at one point. Another story you can pass on is "AD 1929" by Douglas W. Texter where F.T. Marinetti convinces Al Capone to go into politics. The portrayal of several historical figures and the era in general was so over the top that it entered the realm of implausibility.

Despite those goose eggs, there were still several good stories you could check out. "After Mary" by Priya Sharma was a unique tale of a Frankenstein-esque character and his "monster" with enough twists and turns that the ending is unexpected. "The Bridge" by Micah Hyatt was a neat story about the construction of a suspension bridge and its connection to a biblical horror.

Then there is "Rotten Parchment Bonds", another entry in Jonathan Doering's the Battalion 202 series that appeared in the previous issue of Alt Hist. It is another story happening in the same British town under occupation by the Germans in World War II. I can already hear the plausibility hounds barking, but it is an good story about how regular people deal with extraordinary circumstances. If you can suspend some disbelief, I think you might enjoy it. One wonders how many more entries we will see and whether Doering has plans for a full novel...

Although there are a couple of stories that can be skipped, Alt Hist 5 was still an enjoyable read. Hopefully more alternate historians will support this publication so we will not need to wait so long for the next issue.

* * *

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new short story "Road Trip" can be found in Forbidden Future: A Time Travel Anthology. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Preview: Alt Hist Issue 5 edited by Mark Lord

In the interest of full disclosure, I have received a review copy of Alt Hist Issue 5 edited by Mark Lord and will be posting a review in the near future. Here is the description from Amazon:

Alt Hist Issue 5 features stories covering a variety of historical periods from the 1800s to post-War USA. This issue includes five new original works of fiction including stories about Al Capone and Italian Futurism, the aftermath of the American Civil War, the real Frankenstein, the Bridge that consumes the souls of men, and the latest instalment in a series of stories about a successful Nazi invasion of Britain. Alt Hist is the magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History, published twice a year by Alt Hist Press. Stories featured in Alt Hist Issue 5: 

Priya Sharma’s “After Mary” is set in the mid-1800s and is the story a scientist with dreams of greatness who lives alone in his country house with only his assistant, Isobel, and servant Myles. Then his friend comes to the house and leaves a copy of Frankenstein, which changes everything. 

“AD 1929” by Douglas W. Texter is a story describing a meeting of artistic guile and criminal muscle. This is a tale of what might have happened if the Italian Futurist F.T. Marinetti had come to America and gone to work for Al Capone. 

Meredith Miller is the author of “The Stiff Heart” which draws its title from a poem by Emily Dickinson. Meredith’s piece is a story about life under the surface, in New England in the 1870s where secrets and fears and desires sometimes refuse to behave properly. Not everyone joins in the self-satisfied complacency of this prosperous post-Civil War community. 

Micah Hyatt is the author of “The Bridge”. Throughout history men have risked their lives to achieve great feats of engineering: The pyramids of Giza. The Empire State building. The Panama canal. But those who build The Bridge risk their very souls. 

“Rotten Parchment Bonds”, the latest story in the Battalion 202 series by Jonathan Doering, features Harold Storey, a quiet man praying for a quiet life after the horror of the First World War trenches. But his prayers are cruelly crushed by the German Invasion of Britain in 1941. As a police officer he is forced to co-operate with Nazi officials and is thrown into moral turmoil by the accommodations that start to be made. But perhaps there is one good man amongst the enemy ranks?

Alt Hist Issue 5 currently has a 4.4 on Amazon and a 3.67 on Goodreads. Edi from Edi's Book Lighthouse reviewed the anthology saying " Mark Lord put together a well mix of stories which show the variety of alternate history. You get exactly what has been promised. It is a great opportunity to discover not so well known but promising alternate history authors." We will see if I will say the same thing...

* * *

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new story "The Enchanted Bean" can be found in Once Upon a Clockwork Tale from Echelon Press. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

New Releases 6/4/13

Hardcovers

Burdens of the Dead by Mercedes Lackey, Eric Flint and Dave Freer

Description from Amazon.

Sequel to Much Fall of Blood, book 4 in the Heirs of Alexandria series. Civilization at the crossroads. In an alternate Renaissance where magic works, a captain of Italian forces must deal with gods, goddesses and warfare in order to save his daughter at the siege of Constantinople—and prevent a new dark age.

In an alternate 15th century where magic still is part of life, the Holy Roman Empire rules Europe. Constantinople is under siege by the Venetians and their allies.  Hekate, Goddess of Crossroads, presides over the conflict and carnage as alternate visions of civilization collide.  And since Constantinople is the crossroad city of east and west, and it is here that Italian captain Benito Valdosta must deal with the powerful magical manifestation of the Weeping Woman, a disguised Hekate,  in order to save his daughter and to destroy the fleets of the Chernobog assembling in the Black Sea before they can cut into the soft underbelly of Europe.

With land battle, naval action, cunning assassinations, and heartbreak aplenty—not to mention the ongoing conflict between Lord of the Dead Aidonus and Benito for the love of a woman, civilization is at the crossroads and choices must be made that will bring victory and freedom for centuries to come—or a new Dark Age.

I Travel by Night by Robert McCammon

Description from Amazon.

I Travel by Night marks Robert McCammon's triumphant return to the sort of flamboyant, go-for-broke horror fiction that has earned him an international reputation and a legion of devoted fans. The terrors of the Dark Society, the gothic sensibilities of old New Orleans, and the tortured existence of the unforgettable vampire adventurer Trevor Lawson all combine into a heady brew that will thrill McCammon s loyal readers and earn him new ones as well.

For Lawson, the horrors that stalked the Civil War battlefield at Shiloh were more than just those of war. After being forcibly given the gift of undeath by the mysterious vampire queen LaRouge, Lawson chose to cling to what remained of his humanity and fought his way free of the Dark Society's clutches. In the decades since, he has roamed late nineteenth century America, doing what good he can as he travels by night, combating evils mundane and supernatural, and always seeking the key to regaining a mortal life.

That key lies with his maker, and now Lawson hopes to find LaRouge at the heart of a Louisiana swamp with the aid of a haunted priest and an unexpected ally. In the tornado-wracked ghost town of Nocturne, Lawson must face down monstrous enemies, the rising sun, and his own nature. Readers will not want to miss this thrilling new dark novella from a master storyteller.

Paperbacks

Alt Hist Issue 5: The Magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History edited by Mark Lord

Description from Amazon.

Alt Hist Issue 5 features stories covering a variety of historical periods from the 1800s to post-War USA. This issue includes five new original works of fiction including stories about Al Capone and Italian Futurism, the aftermath of the American Civil War, the real Frankenstein, the Bridge that consumes the souls of men, and the latest instalment in a series of stories about a successful Nazi invasion of Britain. Alt Hist is the magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History, published twice a year by Alt Hist Press. Stories featured in Alt Hist Issue 5: After Mary by Priya Sharma AD 1929 by Douglas Texter The Stiff Heart by Meredith Miller The Bridge by Micah Hyatt Battalion 202: Rotten Parchment Bonds by Jonathan Doering.

A Captain and a Corset by Mary Wine

Description from Amazon.

There's Trouble in the Skies...

For Sophia Stevenson, there's no going back to the life she knew. She never asked for the powers that make her a precious commodity to the secret society of Illuminists—and their archenemies.

Captain Bion Donkova would give anything to possess the powers that have fallen in Sophia's lap. If only the beautiful, infuriating woman could stay out of trouble, he wouldn't have to keep coming to her rescue...

Bion and Sophia have friction to spare—and nothing fuels a forbidden passion better than danger...

Clockwork Fairy Tales: A Collection of Steampunk Fables edited by Stephen L. Antczak and James C. Bassett

Description from Amazon.

Combining the timeless fairy tales that we all read as children with the out-of-time technological wizardry that is steampunk, this collection of stories blends the old and the new in ways sure to engage every fantasy reader.…

Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Red Shoes,” New York Times bestselling author K. W. Jeter’s “La Valse” forges a fable about love, the decadence of technology, and a gala dance that becomes the obsession of a young engineer—and the doom of those who partake in it.…

In “You Will Attend Until Beauty Awakens,” national bestselling author and John W. Campbell Award winner Jay Lake tells the story of Sleeping Beauty—and how the princess was conceived in deception, raised in danger, and rescued by a prince who may be less than valiant.

The tale of “The Tinderbox” takes a turn into the surreal when a damaged young soldier comes into possession of an intricate, treacherous treasure and is drawn into a mission of mercy in national bestselling author Kat Richardson’s “The Hollow Hounds.”

In “The Kings of Mount Golden,” Hugo and World Fantasy Award nominee Paul Di Filippo tells the story of a young man’s search for his heritage and a mechanical marvel that lies at the heart of a sinister pact in this fascinating take on “The King of the Golden Mountain.”

Dead Iron: The Age of Steam by Devon Monk

Description from Amazon.

In steam age America, men, monsters, machines, and magic battle for the same scrap of earth and sky. In this chaos, bounty hunter Cedar Hunt rides, cursed by lycanthropy, carrying the guilt of his brother’s death. Then Cedar is offered hope that his brother may yet survive. All he has to do is find the Holder: a powerful device created by mad devisers—and now in the hands of an ancient Strange who was banished to walk this earth.

In a land shaped by magic, steam, and iron, where the only things a man can count on are his guns, gears, and grit, Cedar will have to depend on all three if he’s going to save his brother and reclaim his soul once and for all....

His Clockwork Canary: The Glorious Victorious Darcys by Beth Ciotta

Description from Amazon.

History is repeating itself.

For ambitious engineer Simon Darcy, winning Queen Victoria’s competition to recover lost inventions of historical significance is a matter of pride—and redemption. After all, it was Simon’s failed monorail project that left his family destitute, and winning the tournament would surely restore the Darcys’ reputation.

Simon sets his sights high, targeting no less than the infamous time-travel device that forever changed the world by transporting scientists, engineers, and artists from the twentieth century. The Mod technology was banned and supposedly destroyed, but Simon is sure he can re-create it.

His daring plan draws the attention of Willie G., the Clockwork Canary, London’s sensationalist reporter. Simon soon discovers that Willie is a male guise for Wilhemina Goodenough, the love of his youth, who left him jilted and bitter. He questions her motives even as he falls prey to her unique charm. As the attraction between the two reignites, Simon realizes that this vixen from his past has secrets that could be the key to his future…as long as he can put their history behind him.

To fans, authors and publishers...

Is you story going to be published in time for the next New Releases? Contact us at ahwupdate at gmail dot com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

* * *

Matt Mitrovich is the founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update and a blogger on Amazing Stories. His new story "The Enchanted Bean" can be found in Once Upon a Clockwork Tale from Echelon Press. When not writing he works as an attorney, enjoys life with his beautiful wife Alana and prepares for the inevitable zombie apocalypse. You can follow him on Facebook or Twitter.

Breaking News: Alt Hist Issue 2 currently free for Kindle

You have to love free alternate history.  Mark Lord just announced on Twitter that issue 2 of Alt Hist is currently free on Amazon for Kindle.  This issue features the following stories:


‘Long Nights in Languedoc’ by Andrew Knighton
‘The Apollo Mission’ by David X. Wiggin
‘Son of Flanders’ by William Knight
‘In Cappadocia’ by Ashley Rose Sullivan
‘The Orchid Hunters’ by Priya Sharma
‘Death in Theatre’ by Jessica Wilson
‘The Scarab of Thutmose’ by Anna Sykora
‘The Watchmaker of Filigree Street’ by N. K. Pulley

And reviews of:

Historical Fiction Writing: a practical guide and tool-kit by Myfanwy Cook
Ruso and the River of Darkness by R. S. Downie
Rome Burning by Sophia McDougall

So hurry up and get your issue before it is to late.

New Releases 5/29/2012

New Paperbacks/E-books

The Janus Affair by Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris

Description from Amazon.

Evildoers beware! Retribution is at hand, thanks to Britain's best-kept secret agents!!

Certainly no strangers to peculiar occurrences, agents Wellington Books and Eliza Braun are nonetheless stunned to observe a fellow passenger aboard Britain's latest hypersteam train suddenly vanish in a dazzling bolt of lightning. They soon discover this is not the only such disappearance . . . with each case going inexplicably unexamined by the Crown.

The fate of England is once again in the hands of an ingenious archivist paired with a beautiful, fearless lady of adventure. And though their foe be fiendishly clever, so then is Mr. Books . . . and Miss Braun still has a number of useful and unusual devices hidden beneath her petticoats.

New E-books

Broken Souls Volume I by Alex Davidson

Description from Amazon.

Icarus and Kay are Steamworkers. To put it simply, they make sure the city they live in has power by taking care of the steam generators. However, there is another: Donna. She appeared out of nowhere, and nobody knows why. So, for the past three years, Icarus and Kay have been spending their free time figuring out who she is.

Then, on the night of their first breakthrough, she disappears. This launches the two of them into a mystery that they must solve, and which they must not tell anybody about, or it could get them killed.

In the first volume of this serialized novel, the boundaries of steampunk have changed in this world where not even the rich have cars, the Holocaust never happened, and a single dictator rules the world.

Each volume of Broken Souls is about 7,500-8,000 words long, amounting to around 35-40 8x11 pages

Confederate Star Rises by Richard Small

Description from Amazon.

A dark and disturbing vision of the future causes Confederate General A. P. Hill to change a key event of the American Civil War, resulting in a dramatic alteration of General Robert E. Lee’s 1863 Pennsylvania campaign. With Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson still in command following the Battle of Chancellorsville, he leads his Corps to victory at the first Battle of Gettysburg before setting out to gain control of much of central Pennsylvania. Arrayed against him is the Pennsylvania militia of the Department of the Susquehanna commanded by Union General Darius Couch, who is hounded by a frustrated and overbearing President Abraham Lincoln of the United States. General Jackson succeeds in crossing the Susquehanna River at Wrightsville, and then marches north towards the Pennsylvania state capital, setting the stage for the climactic battle of Harrisburg in the small town of Middletown, where the brave but inexperienced Pennsylvania militia confronts the hardened veterans under the great “Stonewall” Jackson.

Duty: A Retelling of Waterloo by Michael Seeley

Description from Amazon.

Wellington is crushed. Napoleon is back. Ireland waits.

A redirected order changes the course of the Waterloo campaign and all of time in this novel of alternate history. Caught in the madness is Captain Aiden Rowe, an Irishman and patriot who fled his homeland after the murder of his parents. Now, with France's enemies retreating, and Napoleon rising again, Rowe will return home.

But he won't be going to Ireland alone. Along with a boon companion, Killian O'Meara, and cutthroat spy James Blackbrook, Rowe will bring the armies of France and the cries of freedom to a fiery island waiting for revolution.

As Napoleon crushes his enemies on the Continent, Ireland starts her own revolt. Through it all, Rowe and O'Meara struggle to keep their humanity in the carnage that arises after Waterloo is won.

DUTY is 85,000 words long and specifically formatted for Kindle with an active table of contents.

The Gilded Cage by Edmund Price

Description from Amazon.

Romania, the former Roman Empire, is a developing nation under one-party rule in a world where where the Japanese language and Asian culture predominates.

Into the autonomous city of Mona steps Mainland policeman Marcus Sabratus. He rescues an expatriate woman from the theft of her money purse and puts both their lives onto a new path. Can he succeed in bringing Monan policing techniques back to the Mainland and can he overcome the cultural and bureaucratic obstacles to be united with his new love?

Set in an alternate universe quite similar to our own, "The Gilded Cage" is a love story set around cross-cultural themes and an examination of what varies and what is truly constant in human affairs. The story of Marcus continues in "Tourists Welcome" and "Rotten to the Core?"

Soldier Boy by Azita Crerar

Description from Amazon.

17-year old Kathleen finds herself whisked 60 years in the past to the scene of a famous battle outside her town of Middleford. She also finds love and romance. Now she must choose between life in the past and life in the present.

New Magazines

Alt Hist 4 edited by Mark Lord

Description from Amazon.

Alt Hist Issue 4: The Magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History contains seven top-quality stories from a variety of genres: horror, alternate history and fantasy, as well as straight historical fiction, including four stories set during World War II. If you’re looking for something other than World War II then we also have two stories from the Nineteenth Century and one from the Middle Ages.

The six stories featured in Alt Hist Issue 4 are:

‘Restless’ by Dylan Fox set in the 1860s onboard a fleet of British ironclad warships steaming towards China.

‘Kleine Menschen’ by Eric Jackson is a historical fantasy story set in World War II Germany.

‘Feast of Faith’ by Shane Rhinewald explores the struggles of common soldiers during the First Crusade who don’t have enough to eat.

‘Three Months of Summer’ by Svetlana Kortchik is a love story that happens during the German occupation of Ukraine in 1942.

‘The Stork’ by George Piper is a backwoods horror that will scare and surprise you.

‘Battalion 202: A Blinded Falcon’ and ‘Battalion 202: Into the Darkness’ by Jonathan Doering are two alternate history stories about the resistance to a German invasion of Britain.

To fans, authors and publishers...

Do you want to see your work given a shout out on our New Releases segment? Contact Mitro at ahwupdate@gmail.com.  We are looking for works of alternate history, counterfactual history, steampunk, historical fantasy, time travel or anything that warps history beyond our understanding.

*      *      *

Mitro is founder and editor of Alternate History Weekly Update. When he is not busy writing about his passion for alternate history, he spends his time working as a licensed attorney in the state of Illinois and works toward being a published author himself one day.

Weekly Update #44

Editor's Note

Not only did we break our page view record again last month, we also surpassed 5000 page views in one month.  Our new record now stands at 5504 and that was during the shortest month of the year.  Thanks again to the contributors and readers who helped make this possible.

I hope you guys enjoyed the guests posts from Jordan Harbour and Brian Daugherty.  Remember, if you would like to guest post or even become a full-time contributor, just contact me at ahwupdate@gmail.com.

And now the news...

Submissions Wanted

Theresa Meyers posted on Twitter that Tor.com wants four original speculative fiction: SF, fantasy, horror, alternate history or related genres, as long as the stories are under 12,000 words.  Now I could not find the exact post she was referencing, but Tor.com does have a submissions guideline that you can check out if you are interested in submitting one of your stories to them.

You could also try On Fiction Writing's writing contest: The Flip Side.  They are looking for an alternate history or alternate reality story under 2,500 words by September 1.  The downside: there is an entry fee of $10.  If that does not stop you, good luck.

In other writing news, Mark Lord, editor of the Alt Hist magazine, announced on his blog that the last story for Alt Hist #4 has been selected.  We can expect to see that issue sometime after April.  If you are interested in submitting a story to Alt Hist, you can enter your story for the chance to appear in #5 by going to the submissions page.

What if you want to be a part of the publishing industry, but are not interested in being a writer?  Well Chronicle Books is looking for an editorial assistant.  You can apply here.

Teramis' New Podcast

Deborah Teramis Christian (who posted a series of articles on this very blog) announced that she is starting a new podcast.  You can learn more about it below:

I've been wanting to do this since I started the Lizard Lair blog, but I was so tied up with book obligations for so long that I didn't see my way clear to starting a whole new endeavor on top of all that. Now that Splintegrate is finally in-house at Tor (and sorry, I've received no word back yet on that front so I can't update you yet in that regard) - as I say, now that that's (mostly) off my plate, I am finally able to move on to the podcasting I've had planned for a long time.

I'm regarding these podcasts as a shorthand version of things I don't want to write up long-form at my blog. The theme of my show will reflect my underlying interest in the question of "what if?", focusing on futurism and change and the challenges this presents to us all as we (like in the Chinese curse) live "in interesting times." Also of course I won't neglect my sf/f interests, and the areas of writing, gaming, world building and general thinkishness that I have already staked out at the blog. 

Now, this all brings me to you. 

I'd like to talk about things you specifically want to hear about. And so, I am hereby formally inviting you, if you are interested, to send me questions, topics, comments, rants, and strong opinions about anything you'd like me to engage with in my upcoming podcasts. I can't promise that I will be able to answer all comments/questions on the air, but I will do my best to fit them into some show where they're appropriate. (I'm not dealing with religion or politics, though, so those will be non-starters unless we are talking about them in a fiction-related sense.)

Also, if I may attribute your comment to you by name, I'd love to do so. People would much rather hear a question from "Sharon in San Francisco," than from "someone I know from the internet." So if you do write, let me know if and how I may identify you in the program. If you'd rather not be publicly identified, no problem (I know there are times for all of us when we'd rather not be out there that way). I'm soliciting your name only if you're comfortable with that.

Those interested should contact Teramis at her blog, Notes From the Lizard Lair.

Links to the Multiverse

Articles

2012 Arthur C Clarke Award Submissions by Shana at Torque Control. (Several alternate history works were submitted, check it out).

The Common Denominator – The “Superfly Effect” (Hulk Hogan, Nick Bockwinkle, WWE, AWA, Roddy Piper, Bob Backlund, The Iron Sheik) by Ralph Hardin at Inside Pulse.

Books and Short Stories

Alternate History Lessons in Boilerplate and Frank Reade by James Floyd Kelly at Geek Dad.

New alternate history story sold by Mike Resnick.

Review of “Electrica” by Sean McMullen done by Lois Tilton at Locus.

Review of The Tales of Alvin Maker by Orson Scott Card done by Fabulous Realms.

Online Alternate History

Chapter 4 of Lord of Mountains by S. M. Stirling.

The Sideways Multiverse Club at Tribe.

An Unexpected Union: A 1983 Doomsday Tale by mdc1957 at FanFiction.net.

Video Games

Gotham By Gaslight Video Shows Canceled Elseworlds Batman Game by Spencer at Siliconera.

Media

Altoids Alternate History at glossy.

WIP -- Alternate History Rendering by Shaw Driscoll.

* * *

Mitro is founder, editor and contributor of Alternate History Weekly Update. When he is not busy writing about his passion for alternate history, he spends his time working as a licensed attorney in the state of Illinois and dreams of being a published author himself one day.

Weekly Update #30

Editor's Note

Broke our monthly page view record and have surpassed 4000 page views for this month.  Will announce the new record next month when this month ends and we have the final page view count.

In the near future I will be reviewing The Phoenix Gambit by Douglas McDonough. If you want to learn more about the book, you can check out the press release.  In the meantime, I am going to finish my Revisiting Alternate Worlds theme of articles and finally write the third Airship Update since the votes on the recent poll have been overwhelmingly affirmative that I should continue writing more updates.  So stay tuned for that.

I also got my first readers from Malta and Luxembourg.  Welcome!

And now the news...

New Releases: Resistance

The film Resistance, based on the novel of the same name by Owen Sheers, was released last Friday to audiences in the United Kingdom.  The film stars Michael Sheen, Iwan Rheon and Kimberley Nixon.  It is set in 1944 and follows a group of women in an isolated Welsh village who have to deal with the sudden disappearance of their husbands and the arrival of German invaders.  While the idea of a successful German invasion of Britain in World War II is generally thought to be implausible (fun fact: it was an Operation Sea Lion timeline that first received the alien space bats tag) the fact that they are making a film based on an actual alternate history book is still something you do not see every day.

Reviews of the film have been generally plausible.  Peter Bradshaw at The Guardian gave the film 3 out of 5 stars and called it "an eerie counter-factual fantasy story set in 1944 when the Germans have invaded Britain, is an overwhelmingly bleak, yet atmospheric film." Sarah Crompton at The Telegraph said that "the small British movie Resistance really deserves to be seen", especially since it is only being screened in 13 theaters.

One can only hope that the movie gets a wider release and perhaps is shown across the pond here in the United States.  Meanwhile, if any of my UK readers have seen the film, please contact me and I would be willing to post your review of the film.

Print Edition of Alt Hist Issue 3 Now Available

Earlier this month I reported that Alt Hist 3 was published, but that was only the e-book version.  For those who still prefer non-digital publications (hah) you can now get the print edition of Alt Hist 3.  Those interested can find copies at Amazon and Lulu.

For those who do not know, Alt Hist 3 includes two stories about the American Civil War, one about the great Nikola Tesla, a tale of post-war revenge set in Dublin and a compelling story about the early years of the space race.

Links to the Multiverse

Articles

6 Terrifying Real Speeches That Were Thankfully Never Given by Jacopo della Quercia at Cracked.

Sunstones and skraylings: a bit of alternate history by Anne Lyle.

Interviews

Kate Elliott at The Ranting Dragon.

Online Alternate History

Her Guarding Arm: A 1983 Doomsday Tale by mdc1957.

Books

6 alternate-history novels by Molly Driscoll at the Christian Science Monitor.

Book Review of 11/22/63 by Stephen King done by Errol Morris at The New York Times.

Book Review of The Guns of the South by Harry Turtledove done by Respectful Empiricist at Respectful Shorts.

Book Review of The Immorality Engine by George Mann done by Jim Trageser at North County Times.

Media

Alternate Histories by Matthew Buchholz at Etsy.

Breaking News: Alt Hist Issue 3 Published

The latest issue of Alt Hist: the Magazine of Historical Fiction and Alternate History is available as an ebook. Free previews of each story can be found at the Current Issue page if you are interested in checking them out.  The print version should be available in December.  In the meantime, you can find the ebooks at Smashwords, Amazon.com or Amazon.co.uk.

Alt Hist 3 includes two stories about the American Civil War, one about the Nikola Tesla, a tale of post-war revenge set in Dublin, and a compelling story about the early years of the space race.

•‘A Light in the Darkness' by Ian Sales
•‘Dublin Can Be Heaven’ by Séamus Sweeney
•‘Riders on the Storm’ by Arlan Andrews
•‘Bummers’ by Matthew Warner
•‘To The Stars’ by Brooks Rexroat