Matt Forbeck's Blog, page 57

Vegas Knights for Japan

 As part of the Genre for Japan fundraiser (which aims to raise money for the Japan Tsunami Appeal run by the British Red Cross), I've put up my only spare Advance Readers Copy of Vegas Knights. Make the high bid on it, and I'll personalize it for you and ship it off to wherever you happen to be.

The bidding has already started, and it runs through Sunday, April 3. The Vegas Knights ARC is currently up to £32.34, or about $52 at current exchange rates. Here's hoping it can go even higher, but if not, I'm plenty pleased with that.

Either way, stop by Genre for Japan and check out all the items up for bid. Highlights include a bundle of over 30 Angry robot ebooks, including both Vegas Knights and Amortals too.

Vegas Knights Hits the USA!

Vegas Knights officially hits shelves in the USA today! It's been out in the UK since the start of the month, and it's been racking up loads of rave reviews. If you'd like to a free sample before you dive in, I have the first five chapters or available for you to check out.

You can buy the Vegas Knights at stores all around the English-speaking world right now, and I've assembled a short list to make it easy for you to find it, no matter where you might be. Buy early, and buy often! And if you've already enjoyed the book, please don't be shy about telling your friends and neighbors. Thanks!

Off in Singapore

I realize it's been quiet around here the past week or so, and there's a fine reason for that. I left for Singapore on March 18, and I've been there. I'm working on an unannounced video game for Ubisoft Singpore, which means, yes, I've been sent on an secret mission to the Far East.

I'm having a great time here, with a truly excellent team of brutally talented game developers. They not only place a high value on story and what I can bring to the game with it, but they've also been wonderful hosts and become good friends. In my time off, I've managed to get out and see a great deal of this beautiful city, eaten more types of food than I can count, and seen many wild and wonderful things, including groups of wild monkeys and a nighttime skyline formed by the lights of the massive cargo ships encircling the shore.

Still, I'm looking forward to heading home at the end of the week. I miss my wife and kids, and I cannot wait to sleep in my own bed again. Once I get back, I'll continue to work with the team by remote, though, and with luck I'll be back out this way again someday soon. Ever since the quads were born, I've cut way down on my business trips, and it feels good to be back out on the road again, even if only for a while.

Librarian Love for Vegas Knights

Over at the Fluidity of Time, Jo the librarian raves about Vegas Knights. She says many kind things about the book, including:

If you like books with a lot of action, quick dialogue, and a consistently fast pace, this is up your alley. If you're a fan of Harry Potter, I think you'll get a kick out of the story, although a love of magic isn't required to enjoy this read. And if you've enjoyed a trip to Vegas? Definitely pick this up. I had pre-ordered this book for my library, and now I'm just waiting until it gets here so I can get it in the hands of our patrons. Yes, yes, I'm a book pusher…. But this book was so much fun that I want lots of people to read it!

Vegas Knights is already available in the UK in print and as an ebook worldwide. Print copies hit the US on March 29!

Comings and Goings

I'm sad to report that I won't be able to make it to C2E2 this week, nor will I be at Gary Con or 3Con as planned. While I had looked forward to coming out to those shows, I instead accepted a gig writing a computer game that's going to take me to Singapore for a couple weeks. If you were planning to meet up with me at any of those conventions, I do hope you understand.

To help make up for that, I have added Odyssey Con to my slate of shows. It runs April 8–11, and I'll be there for at least that Saturday and maybe more. I'm also going to attend my friend Brad Beaulieu's release party for his brand-new novel The Winds of Khalakovo at the Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee on April 23. That's the date of Shakespeare's birth and death, so here's hoping the Bard is out watching over Brad for that celebration.

Hope to see you on the road!

The "Remix the Robot" Contest: Let Me Kill You

My fine and generous overlords/publishers at Angry Robot just announced a brand-new contest on their website, called "Remix the Robot." As you might already know, the mighty John Anealio recently recorded a new song called "Angry Robot," which I helped him write. The tune started out as the lead-in for the Angry Robot podcast hosted by the multitalented Mur Lafferty, but it's grown into its own song, the lead track on John's still-free-to-download The Robot E.P.

This tickled the Angry Robot folks so much, they decided to set up a contest. All you have to do is remix "Angry Robot," using the original tracks files that John's posted, and send it in. The Angry Robots, John, and I will listen to them all and pick the best. The creator of the winning mix gets a spot in my yet-to-be-announced next novel with Angry Robot, in which I promise to kill your fictional doppelganger in an especially gruesome way.

All you aspiring musicians and dapper DJs get your act on over to the Angry Robot site for all the details. And please spread the word! You have until April 1st — no fooling!

The Acoustic Angry Robot

The ever-talented John Anealio just released this video of him performing an acoustic version of the song "Angry Robot," which I co-wrote with him. It's so cool it had me bouncing off the walls!

Don't forget, you can still download the original version for free. What's stopping you? Just juke your way around the Angry Robot and grab your prize.

Betwixt Loves Vegas Knights

Over at Betwixt, Benito Corral gives Vegas Knights a glowing review. As he states up front, it didn't hurt that the book pushes a lot of his buttons, in the best way. As he says in the full review:

I feel as if I had sat at a happy hour with Matt Forbeck one night and we talked about some of my favorite things — great books, magic, Las Vegas, caper movies, zombies — and then he turned up the next day with THIS!  Vegas Knights is one of the best Urban Fantasy books I've read in a long time; it's cleverly written, fast paced and wonderfully fresh.

Thanks, Benito!

Being My Own Boss, at Booklife

Over at Booklife.com, the ever-inquisitive Jeremy L.C. Jones interviews me about the ups and downs of the freelancing life and even manages to work in a reference to the opening scene of Amortals. We cover topics ranging from what my typical day is like and why I love the way I work. Check it out.

More Praise for Vegas Knights

Over at Spoiler Alert!, Voxael has a mixed reaction over Vegas Knights, but in the end he gives it a strong thumbs up.

It may not have rocketed straight into place as My Favouritest Book Ever! but there's more than enough here for me to say quite truthfully that I enjoyed the ride — strong, easily distinguishable characters, pop-culture references liberally scattered all over the place, a genuinely intriguing twist on the standard Urban Fantasy set-up and most of all, a writer who wasn't afraid to write a fantasy story where every obstacle wasn't surmounted with the equivalent of hurling fireballs at it.

Also, Gareth Wilson at Falcata Times posted his review of Vegas Knights on his blog, even though he'd already posted it at Amazon.co.uk. Gareth's one of those savvy reviewers who goes out of his way to cross-post his reviews in multiple places. That helps the reviews — and the books they cover, of course — get more exposure. After all, if you're already on Amazon.com, you're more likely to read the reviews there than run over to a different site to see what people have to say about a particular book. If the review appears in both places, more people can read it more conveniently, and that's better for us all. Thanks, Gareth!