Tag: sci-fi

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Solaris snaps up new and backlist titles by Aliya Whiteley

Solaris is thrilled to announce the acquisition of two brand new novels, and four backlist titles, by Arthur C. Clarke Award-nominated author Aliya Whiteley.

A meta coming of age tale of stories within stories, Three Eight One follows Rowena Savalas, a curator of the 21st century’s primitive internet in the year 2314, who stumbles upon a story posted online in the summer of 2024 that leads her to question her own life choices and whether the truth behind the story really matters at all.

Previously published by Unsung Stories, Solaris will also reissue The Beauty, The Loosening Skin, The Arrival of Missives and Greensmith, with a tenth anniversary edition of The Beauty to be published in Summer 2024.

Three Eight One will be released in January 2024. World All Languages Rights for Three Eight One and a second title and exclusive rights in all languages and territories for The Beauty, The Loosening Skin, The Arrival of Missives and Greensmith were acquired by David Moore from Max Edwards at Aevitas Creative Management. Titan will continue to sublicense North American English language rights to The Beauty, The Loosening Skin and The Arrival of Missives from Solaris, as they previously had from Unsung Stories.

Author Aliya Whiteley on the acquisition:

“It’s a delight and a reassurance to know that Solaris will be publishing my novels and novellas, starting with my latest novel of adventure and discovery, Three Eight One, from 2024. Many thanks to David Moore and all at Solaris for deciding to champion my stories into the future.”

Acquiring Editor David Moore:

“Aliya is a ferocious talent, creating some of the smartest, weirdest, most hauntingly beautiful stuff in genre at the moment, and it’s an honour to be a part of that. Three Eight One is a gorgeous book, a coming-of-age story that’s also a road trip that’s also an exploration of generational tension that’s also a meandering commentary on authorship and authenticity that’s also one of the coolest bits of metafiction you’ll read this year.”

Aliya Whiteley’s strange novels and novellas explore genre, and have been shortlisted for multiple awards including the Arthur C Clarke award, BFS and BSFA awards, and a Shirley Jackson award. Her short fiction has appeared in many places including Beneath Ceaseless Skies, F&SF, Strange Horizons, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Lonely Planet and The Guardian. She writes a regular non-fiction column for Interzone magazine.

For press enquiries please contact Jess Gofton, PR & Marketing Manager: jess.gofton@rebellion.co.uk.

For rights enquiries please contact Reitha Pattison, Rights Manager: reitha.pattison@rebellion.co.uk

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OUT NOW: The Death I Gave Him by Em X. Liu

We’re wishing The Death I Gave Him by Em X. Liu a very happy book birthday!

Shakespeare’s Hamlet is reimagined as a queer locked-room thriller in this debut novel from a dazzling new voice in SFF. Hayden Lichfield’s father is dead and over the course of 24 hours, in a lab on lockdown, he must discover the truth…

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Hayden Lichfield’s life is ripped apart when he finds his father murdered in their lab, and the camera logs erased. The killer can only have been after one thing: the Sisyphus Formula the two of them developed together, which might one day reverse death itself.

Hoping to lure the killer into the open, Hayden steals the research. In the process, he uncovers a recording his father made in the days before his death, and a dying wish: Avenge me …

With the lab on lockdown, Hayden is trapped with four other people—his uncle Charles, lab technician Gabriel Rasmussen, research intern Felicia Xia and their head of security, Felicia’s father Paul—one of whom must be the killer. His only sure ally is the lab’s resident artificial intelligence, Horatio, who has been his dear friend and companion since its creation. With his world collapsing, Hayden must navigate the building’s secrets, uncover his father’s lies, and push the boundaries of sanity in the pursuit of revenge.

“Oh, the tension! It will murder you.”—Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun

“The Death I Gave Him is the locked-room murder mystery queer Hamlet retelling of my dreams.”—Cassandra Khaw, author of The Salt Grows Heavy

“Liu’s prose cuts like a scalpel.”—Grace D. Li, author of Portrait of a Thief

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OUT NOW: The House of Saints by Derek Künsken

The House of Saints by Derek Künsken, the sequel to the critically-acclaimed The House of Styx, is out now!

The Venus Ascendant duology concludes in this stunning sci-fi family saga from the world of The Quantum Magician, where George-Étienne and his children fight to become one of the most powerful families the known galaxy has ever seen.

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George-Étienne and his children have formed The House of Styx, after finding a mysterious artefact on the surface of Venus herself. But with the discovery comes great risk, not only from a planet that kills with its very touch but also from the banks and powers of old Earth, who will stop at nothing to claim this new technology for themselves.

From humble origins, The House of Styx is determined to become one of the most powerful families in the known galaxy or die trying.

“Künsken’s skillful narrative weaves together tension, wonder, and emotional depth… [his] visionary storytelling ensures that readers will be captivated until the very end.”—SciFiNow

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OUT NOW: A Second Chance for Yesterday by R. A. Sinn

We’re wishing A Second Chance for Yesterday by R. A. Sinn a very happy book birthday!

Fans of The Time Traveler’s Wife and In Five Years will adore this time-twisting standalone tale of family, redemption and queer love from a historian and futurist brother and sister writing duo.

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Nev Bourne is a hotshot programmer for the latest and greatest tech invention out there: SavePoint, the brain implant that rewinds the seconds of all our most embarrassing moments. She’s been working non-stop on the next rollout, even blowing off her boyfriend, her best friend and her family to make SavePoint 2.0. But when she hits go on the test-run, she wakes up the next day only to discover it’s yesterday. She’s falling backwards in time, one day at a time.

As things spiral out of control, a long-lost friend from college reappears in her life claiming they know how to save her. Airin is charming and mysterious, and somehow knows Nev intimately well. Desperate and intrigued, Nev takes a leap of faith. A friendship born of fear slowly becomes a bond of deepest trust, and possibly love. With time running out, and the whole world of SavePoint users at stake, Nev must learn what it will take to set things right, and what it will cost.

“The authors infuse this plausible near future with clever science and heartwarming explorations of love and second chances. At the heart of this brilliant sci-fi conundrum is a deeply human story.”—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Fascinating and compelling.”—Booklist

“A gripping and thought-provoking take on time travel, entangled with an emotional thread that will crack your heart open.”—Ren Hutchings, author of Under Fortunate Stars

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Solaris acquires haunting literary sci-fi by Lorraine Wilson

Solaris is thrilled to announce the acquisition of We Are All Ghosts in the Forest by Lorraine Wilson.

The internet is dead and its ghosts haunt us all. In a world without electronics and barely any politics, photojournalist Katerina flees to her grandmother’s village and a life of herbal medicine and beekeeping. When a wordless young boy is mysteriously entrusted into her care and rumours of harvest failure and a rampant digital disease start to swirl, they must escape into the dubious safety of the forest amidst accusations of witchcraft to search for the truth behind the disease.

We Are All Ghosts in the Forest will be released in November 2024. English Language UK/BC excluding Canada Rights were acquired by Amanda Rutter from Robbie Guillory at Underline Literary Agency.

Author Lorraine Wilson on the acquisition:

“I am truly delighted to be joining Solaris – they work with an amazing array of authors and are doing really exciting things across speculative fiction, so it will be an honour to become part of that. Amanda is a fantastic champion to have for my books and I know they are in the best possible hands with her. I have to confess I absolutely adore the characters and world in We Are All Ghosts In The Forest, so I cannot wait to see this story come to life under Solaris’ care, and to then be able to share it with readers. I feel like Orlando and Stefan are going to steal some hearts!”

Acquiring Editor Amanda Rutter:

“From the moment I started We Are All Ghosts in the Forest, I knew I was reading something special – it haunted me every time I wasn’t able to read it, and I couldn’t wait to get back to it. The beauty of the prose drew me in first, and then the warmth and hope of the character relationships had me all-in. I’ve been aware of Lorraine’s work for a while, and was thrilled to realise that this novel was just as special as what I had seen before, with themes of loss, love and belonging. I am delighted to welcome Lorraine to Solaris and can’t wait to bring We Are All Ghosts in the Forest to the reading public.”

A conservation scientist and third culture Scot, Lorraine Wilson lives by the sea writing stories influenced by folklore and the wilderness. She has a PhD from the University of St. Andrews but left academia and turned to writing due to disabling illness. Her debut novel, the dystopian thriller This Is Our Undoing, was a multi-award finalist. The follow up, a dark folkloric mystery The Way The Light Bends, was longlisted for the BSFA Best Novel award; and her third book, Mother Sea has recently released. It is an exploration of motherhood, climate change and belonging, and was called ‘complex, rich and beautifully crafted’ by Claire North, author of The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August. Lorraine has been stalked by wolves and befriended pythons, she also runs the Rewriting The Margins mentorship scheme for marginalised writers.

For press enquiries please contact Jess Gofton, PR & Marketing Manager: jess.gofton@rebellion.co.uk.

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OUT NOW: The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan

We’re wishing The Ten Percent Thief by Lavanya Lakshminarayan a very happy book birthday – it’s out now in North America!

In Apex City, formerly Bangalore, humanity’s relationship with technology and each other in this stunning dystopian mosaic novel from a dazzling new talent.

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Nothing has happened. Not yet, anyway. This is how all things begin.

Welcome to Apex City, formerly Bangalore, where everything is decided by the mathematically perfect Bell Curve.

With the right image, values and opinions, you can ascend to the glittering heights of the Twenty Percent – the Virtual elite – and have the world at your feet. Otherwise you risk falling to the precarious Ten Percent, and deportation to the ranks of the Analogs, with no access to electricity, running water or even humanity.

The system has no flaws. Until the elusive “Ten Percent Thief” steals a single jacaranda seed from the Virtual city and plants a revolution in the barren soil of the Analog world.

Previously published in South Asia only as Analog/Virtual, The Ten Percent Thief is a striking debut by a ferocious new talent.

“A new masterpiece” — SciFiNow

“As satisfying as it is clever” — Publishers Weekly

“Lakshminarayan expertly packages a warning that will only get more relevant with time” — STARBURST Magazine

“Impressive” — SFX

“Playful and crushing in equal measure” — FanFiAddict

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OUT NOW: Frontier by Grace Curtis

A very happy book birthday to Frontier by Grace Curtis—it’s out now in North America!

A stranger must journey across the unwelcome landscape of a ravaged Earth to be reunited with the woman she loves in this sapphic sci-fi western for fans of Becky Chambers and The Mandalorian.

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In the distant future most of the human race has fled a ravaged Earth to find new life on other planets. For those who stayed a lawless society remains. Technology has been renounced, and saints and sinners, lawmakers and sheriffs, travelers and gunslingers, abound.

What passes for justice is presided over by the High Sheriff, and carried out by his cruel and ruthless Deputy.

Then a ship falls from the sky, bringing the planet’s first visitor in three hundred years. This Stranger is a crewmember on the first ship in centuries to attempt a return to Earth and save what’s left. But her escape pod crashes hundreds of miles away from the rest of the wreckage.

The Stranger finds herself adrift in a ravaged, unwelcoming landscape, full of people who hate and fear her space-born existence. Scared, alone, and armed, she embarks on a journey across the wasteland to return to her ship, her mission, and the woman she loves.

Fusing the fire and brimstone of the American Old West with sprawling post-apocalyptic science fiction, Frontier is a heartfelt queer romance in a high noon standoff set against the backdrop of our planet’s uncertain future.

“Curtis oozes charm and humour in this pacey debut, which will be devoured by fans of Fallout and Firefly” — Tamsyn Muir, NY Times bestselling author of The Locked Tomb series

“A delightfully inventive sci-fi western” — Kate Dylan, author of Mindwalker

“Full of action and adventure, but never forgets its heart” –– Beth Revis, NY Times bestselling author of Across the Universe and Star Wars: The Princess and the Scoundrel

“I’m officially a member of the Grace Curtis fan club!” — Amie Kaufman, NY Times bestselling author of llluminae

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Romance recommendations from the Rebellion team!

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Whether you’re loved up, mourning a relationship that’s ended or just looking forward to tomorrow when all the Valentine’s chocolate will be on sale, we the Rebellion team want to share some of our favourite literary romances with you—just in case you’re looking for something book-shaped to curl up with…

Amanda Rutter, Commissioning Editor | Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey

The romance between Phèdre nó Delaunay and Joscelin Verreuil is a slow burn, escapees-to-lovers, forbidden affair, and it took my breath away the first time I read it—indeed, every time I read it! What I found masterful about Carey’s writing was that, no matter Phèdre’s affairs with others or her role as a courtesan, it felt as though she would only fit with Joscelin, that his was the only soul that truly matched hers. And the other romantic element of this novel that bowled me over was the freedom, respect and gentleness of ‘Love As Thou Wilt’, a central concept of the whole series. Love is celebrated in whatever form it comes.

Amy Borsuk, Editor | Juniper and Thorn by Ava Reid

Even though it’s a horror novel, there’s a heartfelt romance at the centre of this story. Witch Marlinchen falls in love with the prima ballerina Sevas after sneaking out of her father’s creepy, decrepit home and seeing him at the opera. I’m so used to the gorgeous male love interest turning out to be the monster, the source of the woman protagonist’s downfall, particularly in horror/fantasy novels. So it was refreshing to have the romance be the protagonist’s source of safety and salvation! Their shared bond, and their wild passion, make for an exhilarating read in the midst of a very dark story.

Ben Smith, Head of Film, TV & Publishing | The Spare Man by Mary Robinette Kowal

Good romance is hard to do, and mainstream science fiction spent a long time trying to avoid it. Happily in the present day we’re in a golden age for genre romance. One of my favourite authors writing about relationships now is Mary Robinette Kowal, because she tells stories not of romance being found between two strangers, but romance being an ongoing well-spring for her couples. In both The Calculating Stars and The Spare Man, she has couples who have already gotten together before the book begins, and whose relationships are into the ‘ever after’ part of the story that few care to write. That she makes the romance real and vital is wonderful to read, and is possibly even more inspiring than any meet-cute about the first flush of romance.

Casey Davoren, Senior Digital Marketing & Social Media Executive | Love & Gelato by Jenna Evans Welch

This book is wonderfully enamoured with hope, love and every other cute, light-hearted feeling one can come up with. But most importantly, it’s a tale about strength and healing, about enduring despite everything that life throws your way. That no matter how many heartbreaks or failures you endure, no matter how many of those moments-that-will-blow-your-composure exist or how many times you’re thrown off balance, they’ll soon evaporate and things will move in a better direction. Love & Gelato has so much charm, heart and romance at its core that I flew through the book.

Jess Gofton, PR and Marketing Manager – Fiction and Non Fiction | Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake

As cliché as it is, I’m a sucker for a romance starring someone who has to return to the small town they grew up in. When I’m feeling slumpy or a bit down I can always count on a contemporary romance to cheer me up, and this book is one of so many sapphic romances now available for readers to dive into. I love the relationship between Delilah and Claire, but I also love the wider relationships this novel explores, from Delilah’s prickly interactions with her stepfamily to Claire’s determination to prevent her unreliable ex from breaking their daughter’s heart. Definitely one to consider picking up as we head into spring!

Olivia Hicks, Graphic Novel Editor | Jem and The Holograms by Kelly Thompson and Sophie Campbell

An oldie but a goldie. One of the greatest comics gems and possibly the greatest comic book adaptation ever? If you’re into romance comics, then Jem and the Holograms is a landmark series. This is the editorial team that launched Kelly Thompson as a mainstream name, gave us gag-worthy visuals from Sophie Campbell, and provided early comics work for the now legendary Jen Bartel and Yoshi Yoshitani, among others. Alongside all of the truly outrageous fashions, songs and high stakes drama that is familiar to fans of the original 1980s tv show, this comic had a truly delightful queer romance develop between Stormer and Kimber (they’re members of rival bands! They couldn’t possibly!), just for those of us who have shipped those two since the “Kimber Goes Solo” episode. It’s just a nonstop super sweet ride, coloured perfectly by Victoria M. Robado, and you can find it all in the first two volumes of the series.

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Solaris to publish The Immortality Thief sequel, The Unkillable Princess

Solaris is thrilled to announce the acquisition of The Unkillable Princess by Taran Hunt, sequel to the much-loved The Immortality Thief.

Linguist Sean Wren and his found family of misfits return to salvage data in another sci-fi adventure when someone from Sean’s past unexpectedly returns, seeking aid. The Unkillable Princess will be released in 2025.

World All Languages Rights were acquired by Amy Borsuk from Hannah Bowman at Liza Dawson Associates.

Author Taran Hunt on the acquisition:

“I’m delighted to work with the wonderful team at Solaris on the sequel to The Immortality Thief. Sean Wren is a character very dear to my heart, and I look forward to continuing his story and the story of those closest to him!”

Acquiring Editor Amy Borsuk:

“I’m so excited to work with Taran on the next stage of her thrilling Kystrom Chronicles! The Unkillable Princess promises to be as fun and suspenseful as The Immortality Thief, with a good helping of new challenges for Sean and probably more puns.”

Taran Hunt is the author of The Immortality Thief. She studied physics in college and loves languages. If she could have a swordfight aboard a spaceship, she would. She works in theatre in New York, where she lives with her partner and their increasingly round cat.

For press enquiries please contact Jess Gofton, PR & Marketing Manager: jess.gofton@rebellion.co.uk

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Six Solaris authors longlisted for the BSFA Awards!

We’re beyond delighted that six Solaris authors have been longlisted for this year’s British Science Fiction Association Awards!

Presented annually since 1970, the awards are voted on by members of the BSFA and members of the national science fiction convention, Eastercon. The winners will be announced at this year’s Eastercon, held at the Birmingham Metropole from 7 – 10 April 2023.

Best Short Fiction

Best Novel

The vote for the shortlists is now open until 19 February! For more information about the awards and how you can take part, click here.

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