The Book Plank

Sleeping Beauty by Mark Lawrence, Broken Empire #2.5 This 10,000 word story covers a period between the end of the 'early thread' in Emperor of Thorns and the start of the 'now' thread in King of Thorns. It's really a bit of fun, prompted by a challenge from a reader to warp the tale of Sleeping Beauty around that of young Jorg Ancrath. I may have thrown another fairy tale or two into the mix...     Mark Lawrence is one of my current favorite writers of fantasy, I devoured his Broken Empire series and his latest book Prince of Fools in matter of moments, they are just awesome to read. Since the next book in the Red Queens War is due somewhere next year I was looking if Mark had written any short stories in his Broken Empire series and lucky me I stumbled upon two. Sleeping Beauty which is set between King and Emperor and Select Mode which is set between Prince and King . So what better way to indulge myself once again in a Broken Empire story! Sleeping...

 Media Alert: Coming soon from Titan Books: Ghosts of Manhattan Ghosts of Manhattan (A Ghost Novel) , the thrilling new arrival in the ever-popular George Manniverse [ September 2014, Titan Books ]. 1926, New York. Jazz. Flappers. Prohibition. It’s the roaring twenties but not as history remembers it. Coal-powered cars line the streets of Manhattan, while zeppelins and biplanes occupy the skies. And the US is locked in a bitter cold war with a British Empire that still covers half of the globe. This is the alternate vision of the most opulent era of New York. It’s a darker version of history. One steeped in fantastical steampunk innovations and a dark undercurrent of supernatural treachery. Organized crime rules the streets, with speakeasies on every corner. And while a run-down police force battles mobsters and their protection rackets, the “Lost Generation” is drinking away the recent nightmares of the World War. It’s a society on the brink of destruction, where a...

No Hero by Jonathan Wood, Arthur Wallace #1 "What would Kurt Russell do?" Oxford police detective Arthur Wallace asks himself that question a lot. Because Arthur is no hero. He's a good cop, but prefers that action and heroics remain on the screen, safely performed by professionals. But then, secretive government agency MI37 comes calling, hoping to recruit Arthur in their struggle against the tentacled horrors from another dimension known as the Progeny. But Arthur is NO HERO! Can an everyman stand against sanity-ripping cosmic horrors? No Hero actually escaped my attention when it was first released by Titan Books, it is that I saw the release of the sequel, Yesterday's Hero , which is out later this year that I found out that it was the second book in the Arthur Wallace series. Reading the synopsis of No Hero promised a lot of fun, last year I had the pleasure to read Guy Adams' The Clown Service which also goes about a secret service agency set in En...

Extract: The Abyss Beyond Dreams   One of the most established voices in current Science Fiction, Peter F. Hamilton, will return to his critically acclaimed Commonwealth universe. His latest book, The Abyss Beyond Dreams , which is set to be released on the 9th of October later this year will take place between the The Commonwealth Saga and the Void Trilogy. Below you can find the synopsis of the book and yes an early EXCERPT! Synopsis: When images of a lost civilization are 'dreamed' by a self-proclaimed prophet of the age, Nigel Sheldon, inventor of wormhole technology and creator of the Commonwealth society, is asked to investigate. Especially as the dreams seem to be coming from the Void - a mysterious area of living space monitored and controlled because of its hugely destructive capabilities. With it being the greatest threat to the known universe, Nigel is committed to finding out what really lies within the Void and if there's any truth to the...

Excerpt: Our Lady of the Streets Our Lady of the Street s is the third and final book of The Skyscraper Throne Trilogy. The adventures of Beth and Pen started in The City's Son and continued in the sequel The Glass Republic. Our Lady of the Streets was released on the 7th of August earlier this year by Jo Fletcher. Below you can find the synopsis and an excerpt of Our Lady of the Streets , read through it and onc again you will be amazed with what Tom Pollock devises in his story the supernatural creatures are a blast to read about. The first book was a great starter and Tom Pollock really out did himself with The Glass Republic , I have high hopes for the conclusion which I will plan to read very soon. Synopsis of Our Lady of the Street : Ever since Beth Bradley found her way into a hidden London, the presence of its ruthless goddess, Mater Viae, has lurked in the background. Now Mater Viae has returned with deadly consequences. Streets are wracked by convulsions as m...