Patrice Sarath's Blog, page 28
August 17, 2012
Review of Spin the Sky by Katy Stauber
In this updated retelling of the Odyssey, the adventure takes place across several manmade orbital spheres in our solar system. All of the familiar adventures are here — the Cyclops, Calypso, the Sirens, etc., but with a science fiction twist. Cesar Vaquero is our Ulysses and Penelope is his long-suffering wife, but he’s a complex rogue with a humble and insecure streak, and she’s a strong character in her own right in this retelling.
Stauber does a fantastic job with Spin the Sky, and the best bits are not the retelling but how she reimagines the famous odyssey and hero’s return, creating new characters from the old archetypes. Possibly my favorite episode is the Calypso segment– very imaginative and compelling.
I read this in almost one sitting and laughed out loud several times. It’s not just a funny story, though — there’s heart and romance and unexpected depths, and warmth. This is Penny’s story as much as Ulysses too, and it works just right.
I had the same response to Revolution World, Stauber’s first book. She’s funny and inventive and knows how to pace the hell out of a novel. Highly recommended for all science fiction fans.
Giveaway for The Crow God's Girl
Please if you are interested in reading The Crow God's Girl, visit my website for information on how to get a paperback copy or the various places you can download an e-copy.
www.patricesarath.com
Thanks again and keep on reading!
Patrice
August 14, 2012
Giveaways and giveaway winner
First up: Congrats to Monica! You have won the large-print edition of The Unexpected Miss Bennet! Please email me through the contact form and I will send your book right out.
For The Crow God’s Girl:
I have two giveaways going on in different locations.
Author and editor Laura Anne Gilman is hosting a giveaway of a book a week on her livejournal, and this week it’s for a copy of The Crow God’s Girl. Comment over there for a chance to win.
The Goodreads giveaway contest for five copies of The Crow God’s Girl finishes up August 17. Goodreads will select five winners at random and I’ll send out the books.
There have been some lovely reviews of The Crow God’s Girl:
From Goodreads:
What comes next is not your typical portal story. Yes, it’s a medieval world, and yes, Kate is very much a modern teenager. And yes, there’s a cute guy. But there the story veers off into its own path, where the cute guy isn’t the real love interest. In fact, there is no real love interest, only a love possibility. And while Kate does aim to change the medieval world, Aeritan changes her just as much. –Beth Bernobich, author of the River of Souls series
This is a wonderful novel rich with great characters and a twisty, tension filed plot that hold tight right up until the end. A definite must read for fans of fantasy. –BookPrincess Sophia
And this one from Amazon is possibly my favorite so far. To have a reader so totally engaged that she states:
Oh and to say I hate Colar with every fiber of my being is an understatement. I don’t know what he was like in the previous two books, but judging from his behavior here I have NO IDEA why Kate fell in love with him. I can understand being forced into a position because of duty and loyalty to one’s kin. I can understand being pragmatic and realizing that sometimes one’s own desires will harm more than just themselves.
I get that.
What I don’t get is why Colar began to act like a complete lout as a result and then had the gall to act like Kate should feel appreciative!
That aside, this was a rollicking fun adventure. If you ignore the angsty I love him moments, it was a lot of fun. I really like the ‘Crows’, I wanted to know more about them. I wanted to know more about Aeritan. Sarath insisted on focusing on the woes of being Colar far too much and had Kate pine for him for far too long. She’s a tough chick! Once she comes into her own and starts thinking with her brain, she’s a force to reckon with. –Alexandra Cenni
August 10, 2012
The Crow God's Girl -- act now!
http://www.amazon.com/Crow-Gods-Books...
Here's what people are saying:
Reviews on Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/Crow-Gods-Books...
Reviews on Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15...
I do hope you enjoy The Crow God's Girl. Thanks for reading!
Patrice
August 7, 2012
A new Miss Bennet
The Unexpected Miss Bennet has come out in a large-print edition, and once again, the cover is lovely.
I was given a few copies so here is your chance to win a copy that is easy on the eyes, both literally and figuratively.
Tell me in the comments what you think of the three covers of Miss Bennet and I’ll pick a winner from the answers.
July 29, 2012
Armadillocon-Saturday and Sunday
I have total con brain but I will do my best to make this sound coherent. Starting from the end, Sunday afternoon my final panel was Private Space Development. With two NASA employees on the panel we had a far-ranging discussion of the commercialization of space travel, including the recently announced plans for asteroid mining (which I blogged about for the day job over here) and the proposed Mars colony reality show. One of the items under discussion was for a translunar trip with space tourists aboard. Awesome, right? But probably the future of space travel is not in tourism — too expensive, and all it would take is for one disaster a la Columbia or Challenger to put the kibosh on that. As Bill Frank pointed out, rockets try to blow you up. It’s what they do. And an explosion isn’t even the worst of it — a simple miscalculation and we have space tourists who, instead of going to the moon and circling around and coming home, end up on the wrong trajectory and sail endlessly out into the void…
It was fun stuff!
Earlier was the panel on book covers. John Picacio and Julie Dillon as well as Nightshade editor Jeremy Lassen, myself, and Rhiannon Frater discussed the future of book covers, the importance of a good book cover, and the marketing aspects of cover design. Rhiannon Frater has some fantastic covers on her books; you should check them out.
On Saturday I moderated a fun panel on SF/F mysteries. Listen, when you have Scott Cupp on a panel as well as Martha Wells, you have it covered. They both have a wealth of knowledge on mysteries, the history of the genre, examples of books that have successfully cross genres, and more.
I did my signing and my reading, went to the Broad Universe rapid fire reading (a great way to get a sample of a large number of writers), and got to hear a variety of other authors, including Matthew Bey, Aaron de Orive, and Kathy Kimbriel.
In the con suite — ah, the con suite! — there were many excellent and varied discussions including today’s on race and empire in Dungeons & Dragons, the unconscious assumptions of race especially, and more.
So I am home, exhausted, and exhilarated. The home con is always so much fun.
July 28, 2012
Armadillocon 34: Friday night
From Twitter: After 2 pretty stupid
#armadillocon panels, thanks to@PatriceSarath for moderating a thoughtful panel on writing strong female characters.
Well, it’s what I strive to do.
Armadillocon this year started at the pizza lunch at Mangia on Friday afternoon. I took off from work and had lunch with about 15 other congoers including organizer Lawrence Person, Steven Gould, Fred Stanton, Urania and Cynthia Fung, and a host of others. Mangia pizza is pretty good — their carnivore is enormous and it is exactly what it sounds like.
After that it was just a matter of being like a little kid while at work, waiting for the final bell. Got up to the con, did a turn around the dealer room, met with friends, and caught up with the workshop people. Everyone said it was fantastic this year. So I say again, if you are a writer who wants to get to the next level, think about the Armadillocon writers workshop. Although they may skip 2013 because of Worldcon being in San Antonio next year and there likely won’t be an Armadillocon since most of the organizers will be running Worldcon.
A. Lee Martinez was toastmaster and gave a wry and humorous speech about what it means to be a writer, the hell that is bookstore signings, and more fun. Best part: talking with another person playing on X box who found out he was a writer:
Other gamer: I’ve never played against a famous person before.
Alex: You still haven’t.
My first panel was on How Would an Alien Presence on Earth Affect our Society, and we didn’t really go there. We talked a lot about movies.
My next panel was much better: Writing a Strong Female Protagonist, with Michael Bracken, Kathy Kimbriel, Chloe Neill, Rhiannon Frater, Jaime Moyer and myself. What happens when you get a bunch of thoughtful writers on a meaty subject who have plenty to say? A really solid panel with a lot of great commentary and excellent questions from the audience.
There was a fire drill early on in the evening, so we were all ushered outside of the building and then came back in to watch a waterfall streaming down inside the atrium from one of guest rooms. Someone had set off the sprinkler system. There were firefighters.
My panels today include SF/F Mysteries and a Reading. I may show up at my signing in the morning too but I want to see a bunch of other panels so I might not, you know. However, if you are at the con and you want something signed, please track me down, and come to my reading at 5:30. I’ll also have books for sale too. And there are a couple in the dealers room at Adventures in Crime and Space.
July 23, 2012
A new YA — Darkbeast
I snagged an ARC of the first book in a younger YA series called Darkbeast, by Morgan Keyes. It’s a solid addition to the roster of good YA out there; fast-paced with plenty of adventure.
From the back of the book:
In Keara’s world, every child has a darkbeast—a creature that takes dark deeds and emotions like anger, pride, and rebellion. Keara’s darkbeast is Caw, a raven. Caw is her constant companion, and they are magically bound to each other until Keara’s 12th birthday. For on that day Keara must kill her darkbeast—that is the law. Refusing to kill a darkbeast is an offense to the gods, and such heresy is harshly punished by the feared Inquisitors.
And so Keyes puts her plot into motion. The book asks a lot of its young protagonist, and I could see it being taught in fifth or sixth grade language arts, much like the classic The Giver by Lois Lowry. Younger YA tends to get lost in the older stuff aimed at teens. This is a wonderful entry in the genre.
Now to find a young reader to give it a proper review, because really, these are the readers who matter. So if you know anyone who is 10-12 who would like to review Darkbeast for their blog or for Goodreads or any other review site, let me know in the comments. I’ll pick someone who would like to share their thoughts and send them the copy.
July 20, 2012
ArmadilloCon Schedule
My ArmadilloCon schedule. It’s an interesting mix. The con has not scheduled readings or signings. I will post my reading schedule as soon as I know it. I will have copies of The Crow God’s Girl for sale as well, and you should be able to find my other books in the dealer’s room. The full con schedule is here.
Friday
How Would an Alien Presence on Earth Affect Our Society?
Fri 8:00 PM-9:00 PM San Marcos
M. Bey, R. Eudaly, L. Person*, P. Roberts, P. Sarath
A classic “what if” scenario discussed by a panel of writers and scientists.
Writing a Strong Female Protagonist
Fri 10:00 PM-11:00 PM Trinity
M. Bracken, R. Frater, K. Kimbriel, J. Moyer, C. Neill, P. Sarath*
The challenges of writing a tough-yet-relatable heroine.
Saturday
SF/F Mysteries
Sat 2:00 PM-3:00 PM Sabine
S. Cupp, M. Fletcher, J. Hall, R. Rogers, P. Sarath*
A discussion of good examples of this mixed subgenre and the special challenges of writing it.
Sunday
Book Covers: Today and Tomorrow
Sun 11:00 AM-Noon Sabine
J. Dillon, R. Frater, J. Lassen, J. Picacio, P. Sarath
How does a cover artist balance creative impulses with the imperative to create a cover that sells books? What are the notable successes and failures? How will the emerging e-Book segment change the importance and nature of cover art?
Private space development: For real?
Sun 2:00 PM-3:00 PM San Marcos
S. Compton, B. Frank, J. Gibbons*, A. Jackson, B. Mahoney, P. Sarath
A number of companies – including several with Texas connections – are offering or planning new ways to launch satellites, cargo, and passengers to space.
July 18, 2012
Goodreads giveaway
Hey guys, just a quick post to let you know that Goodreads is running a giveaway for The Crow God’s Girl. I’m giving away a copy each of the paperback to five lucky winners! So sign up — there’s already 150 entries — for a chance.
Goodreads Book Giveaway
The Crow God’s Girl
by Patrice Sarath
Giveaway ends August 17, 2012.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
