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Happy publication day End of the End

Today is a day that shall go down in legend, for it is the day that the apocalypse came… again!

Yes, we’re heading back to The Afterblight Chronicles with End of the End, which hits shops today (and you should totally go and buy. Go on, do it!)

Journal of the Plague Year brought you three tales from the first days of the Cull; now End of the End revisits old friends, years after their adventures, as they still struggle to shout their defiance against the darkness…

Fall Out, by Simon Guerrier

Jack Bedford may be the rightful King of Britain, but he’s going to have to work for it. Uniting the various tribes and communities that have formed since the Cull will be an uphill battle. Now, Heysham power plant, in Lancashire, has suffered a catastrophic meltdown, the aging safety mechanisms failing after years of neglect, and an emergency council is called to deal with the implications.

Children of the Cull, by Cavan Scott

He fought his way from a secure block in London, across the ocean to New York and eventually to a bunker under Lake Erie, destroying a vast cult in his search for his lover. She ran and bargained her way from Lake Erie across to Cuba and back to Vegas, looking for him in turn. The trails are cold, and there are enemies to fight. Until, in a secret lab conducting terrible experiments, their lives are thrown together one last time.

Flaming Arrow, by Paul Kane

Rob Stokes – the Hooded Man – has seen off Britain’s would-be conquerors, thrown his support behind the newly-restored Crown, and extended his peacekeeping force onto the Continent. He’s getting old, feeling like retiring. But trouble is brewing in the newly peaceful Britain. King Jack’s soldiers go armed with guns and armoured vehicles, even as Stokes’ Rangers disarm the people. Shots are fired. A fire is about to start…

End of the End is out now!
Buy: UK|US|Rebellion Store

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British Fantasy Award win for Solaris Books Editor-in-Chief


We are delighted to announce that End of the Road, edited by Solaris Books’ Editor-in-Chief Jonathan Oliver, has won the British Fantasy Award 2014 for Best Anthology!

An incredible anthology of original short stories by an exciting list of writers including the bestselling author Philip Reeve and the World Fantasy award-winning Lavie Tidhar.

Each step will lead you closer to your destination, but who, or what, can you expect to meet at journey’s end? Here are stories of misfits, spectral hitch-hikers, nightmare travel tales and the rogues, freaks and monsters to be found on the road. the critically acclaimed editor of Magic, End of The Line and House of Fear has brought together the contemporary masters and mistresses of the weird from around the globe in an anthology of travel tales like no other. Strap on your seatbelt, shoulder your backpack, or wait for that next ride… into darkness.

Praise for End of the Road:

“Jonathan Oliver has turned to the road story: a genre, as he explains in his insightful introduction, widely mined in film and literature alike… though the fifteen short fictions which follow show that the form has much more to offer… the road, and the road story, goes ever on. Would that we could go with it, for though it has its horrors, it’s replete with untold wonders as well.” – Tor.com

“An enriching and enjoyable example of the diversity and inventiveness that a themed anthology can offer. This is one book not to be missed” – This is Horror

“A rich tapestry of mythology and landscape to the stories. If you like weird stories or stories about change and discovery, then I’d definitely recommend picking up End of the Road.” – Fantastical Librarian

“The collection also has the superb factor of being from authors from across the globe. The variety and complexity is great, and I highly recommend this to anyone who has never got into the idea of short stories, as it would make an engrossing introduction.” – Nerds Feather

“The road indeed “goes on forever”… which is fine, because sometimes it’s the remarkable journey that make the the End of the Road worthwhile.” – Bob Milne, Beauty in Ruins

“All of the stories are excellent in their various ways, and taken together, they cover a wide range of time and a great diversity of culture” – David Harris via Goodreads

“I was not prepared for how much this anthology would break my heart so utterly.” – feux d’artifice

Featured guest posts by Jonathan Oliver:

5 Questions with Jonathan Oliver on SF Signal

Charles Tan Interviews Jonathan Oliver for the Shirley Jackson Awards

The Beginning of the End on Rising Shadow

The Road Less Travelled on Fantastical Imaginations

Awards:
British Fantasy Awards: Best Anthology 2014 (winner)
Shirley Jackson Awards: Best Anthology 2014 (shortlisted)
World Fantasy Awards: best Anthology 2014 (nominated – winners announced November 2014)

End of the Road, edited by Jonathan Oliver, is available online and from all good bookstores:

Order now UK | USDRM-free eBook

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‘End of the Road’ cover artist Nicolas Delort shortlisted for the Spectrum Fantastic Art Award

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever”
– John Keats and, um, Willy Wonka

Covers are something that we pride ourselves on here at Solaris Towers and we’re privileged to work with so many fantastic artists and designers, who make our books look beautiful on shelves while ensuring that the contents have the wrapping they deserve.

But just look at this. LOOK AT IT!

This was the cover for our short story anthology End of the Road, which came out last year – and we’re very happy to see that Nicolas Delort has been shortlisted for the Spectrum Fantastic Art Award for hiswork on this piece of artistic genius!

Good luck to all the nominees, but especially Nicolas … because we like him.