Powell’s new ‘alternative history, gonzo cyberpunk’ novel picked up by Solaris
Solaris is proud to announce it has commissioned the next book from one of the most exciting new voices in science fiction, Gareth L. Powell.
Ack-Ack Macaque will be published in January 2013. Based on a short story published in 2007, the author describes the story as ‘a fusion of alternate history and gonzo cyberpunk’.
In a world where France and Great Britain merged in the late 1950s, Powell has crafted an environment where nuclear-powered Zeppelins encircle the globe, electronic ghosts stalk the living, and a king lies dying; a world in which a half-brained woman struggles to solve a deadly riddle in order to regain her stolen soul, and a monkey sets about killing as many online gamers as possible, in order to avert Armageddon.
With the scale of Iain M. Banks and the intrigue of Alastair Reynolds, Powell’s The Recollection was published by Solaris earlier this year and brought a stunning breath of fresh air into epic science-fiction – an astounding novel about both personal human relationships and their place in the vastness of time and space.
“It’s a real thrill to discover a great new voice in SF,” said Jonathan Oliver, editor-in-chief of Solaris. “I was utterly blown away by Gareth’s The Recollection and Ack-Ack-Macaque will show again how diverse and incisive a writer Powell is.”
The event kicked off at 6pm with a reading from the first chapter of the book. This was followed by a quick question and answer session, and then a book signing.
I was gratified and relieved to see a decent turnout. I’d been worried that the rain might have put people off; but I needn’t have been anxious.
The staff at Forbidden Planet were excellent and welcoming, and made me feel right at home. In fact, they told me that in terms of book sales, this was their second most successful book event ever, after the launch of Surface Detail by Iain M Banks (apparently, he sold only 3 more copies of his book than I did of mine); and signed copies of the book will be available to order from any of their stores over the next few weeks.
After the main part of the event, we adjourned to The Brass Pig next door for a few drinks and some food. I got to chat to friends old and new, and had the great pleasure of meeting Ben Smith from Solaris Books, with whom I’d only previously corresponded via email.
I’d just like to say a big thank you to everyone who made the effort to come along tonight. Your presence was much appreciated, and I hope you all enjoy reading the book.
Ten freshly printed paperback copies of my novel The Recollection have just been delivered by courier. They have that new book smell. The covers and interior look great, and just the way I’d hoped they would. The designers and editors at Solaris Books have done a cracking job.
I will be signing copies of the book at the Forbidden Planet Megastore in Bristol on 25th August, from 6pm.
The final, typeset proofs of The Recollection have now been approved and sent back to Solaris Books. All necessary corrections have been made, and the book will go to print next week.
This morning the postman brought me a package from Solaris containing several hundred promotional bookmarks for my forthcoming novel, The Recollection.
The bookmarks feature the novel’s cover art on one side, and quotes from Paul Cornell and Colin Harvey on the other (see right).
I’ll be using them as giveaways at the various readings I have scheduled over the next couple of months, including:
In addition, I’m hoping that September will see further readings and a launch event for The Recollection; and I will be attending BristolCon on 22 October.
I’m pleased to say that I’ve just returned the final copy-edited version of The Recollection to Jon Oliver at Solaris Books, ready for publication in September.
“This seems to be a particular problem in fantasy and science fiction, where I have read many stories which open with several pages recounting the long and tedious history of some mythical kingdom or far-flung planet. This is the equivalent of opening a stage play by having a narrator recount the biography of the main character. It can be tedious and off-putting, and while the writer may think they are setting the scene, often all this exposition does is barrage the reader with a blizzard of (often barely pronounceable) names.
“If you want people to read what you write, you have to write about people. The world-building should always be secondary to the human story. If you concentrate on your characters and the interactions and relationships between them, the rest of the background will fall into place. “
