New Releases – Poe, CBC Audio, Richard K. Morgan, Full Cast, S.M. Stirling, + MUCH MORE!

New Releases

Has it really been so long since we had a New Releases post? By the massive size of this one our last must have been a few light years back!

Audible Frontiers:

Audible Frontiers - Starship: Rebel, Book 4 by Mike ResickStarship: Rebel
By Mike Resnick; Read by Jonathan Davis
Audible Download – 8 Hours 45 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: December 16th 2008
The date is 1968 of the Galactic Era, almost three thousand years from now. The Republic, dominated by the human race, is in the midst of an all-out war with the Teroni Federation. Almost a year has passed since the events of Starship: Mercenary. Captain Wilson Cole now commands a fleet of almost fifty ships, and he has become the single greatest military force on the Inner Frontier. With one exception. The Republic still comes and goes as it pleases, taking what it wants, conscripting men, and extorting taxes, even though the Frontier worlds receive nothing in exchange. And, of course, the government still wants Wilson Cole and the starship Theodore Roosevelt. He has no interest in confronting such an overwhelming force, and constantly steers clear of them. Then an incident occurs that changes everything, and Cole declares war on the Republic. Outnumbered and always outgunned, his fleet is no match for the Republic’s millions of military vessels, even after he forges alliances with the warlords he previously hunted down. It’s a hopeless cause…but that’s just what Wilson Cole and the Teddy R. are best at.

The Ophiuchi Hotline
By John Varley; Read by Gabra Zackman
Audible Download – 7 Hours 55 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

Coyote: A Novel of Interstellar Exploration
By Allen Steele; Read by Peter Ganim, Allen Steele, Therese Plummer
Audible Download – 17 hours and 36 minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

Coyote Frontier: A Novel of Interstellar Exploration
By Allen Steele; Read by Peter Ganim, Allen Steele, Therese Plummer
Audible Download – 17 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

Coyote Rising: A Novel of Interstellar Revolution
By Allen Steele; Read by Peter Ganim, Allen Steele, Therese Plummer
Audible Download – 17 Hours 32 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

Galaxy Blues
By Allen Steele; Read by Mark Vietor
Audible Download – 10 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

After the Downfall
By Harry Turtledove; Read by Eric Michael Summerer
Audible Download – 17 Hours 55 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Audible Frontiers
Published: September 2008

AudioBookCase:

The man with the foreboding voice takes on Stevenson’s most foreboding work…

AUDIOBOOKCASE - The Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis StevensonThe Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
By Robert Louis Stevenson; Read by Wayne June
3 CDs – [UNABRIDGED?]
Publisher: AudioBookCase
Published: December 2008?
The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, (1886), has inspired analysis from a multiplicity of points-of-view, variously lauding it as a classic case study of good and evil, an examination of 19th century morals and psychological states, an inquiry into the essence of personality, personality disorder, and the nature of addiction. Of the work Stevenson himself said: “I send you herewith a Gothic gnome, interesting I think, and he came out of a deep mine, where he guards the fountain of tears.” And elsewhere: “Jekyll is a dreadful thing, I own, but the only thing I feel dreadful about is this damned old business of the war in the members. This time it came out; I hope it will stay in, in future.” Stevenson’s amiable style sets up an engaging personal rapport, sharing with the reader an enthusiasm and sense of wonder that remains today as rationale for the approbation of generations of admiring devotees worldwide.

Blackstone Audio:

Read by Michael Madsen, Sandra Oh, Edward Herrmann, and more (Blackstone commisioned this work done by the Hollywood Theater of the Ear)…

Blackstone Audio - The Maltese Falcon (Audio Drama)The Maltese Falcon
Based on the novel by Dashiell Hammett; Performed by a full cast
3 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – Approx. 3.1 Hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781433252495 (cd), 9781433252501 (mp3-cd)
The Maltese Falcon first appeared in the pages of Black Mask magazine in 1929. Almost immediately it was acknowledged as not only a great crime novel but an enduring masterpiece of American fiction. Sam Spade, its protagonist, is the archetypal tough, cynical P.I., “able,” as his creator explained, “to take care of himself in any situation, able to get the best of anybody he comes in contact with, whether criminal, innocent by-stander or client.” And what a client! – the irresistible and treacherous femme fatale Brigid O’Shaughnessy.

Believing the book’s vividly drawn characters and memorable dialogue cry out for theatrical treatment, Blackstone Audio commissioned this faithful dramatization by the award-winning Hollywood Theater of the Ear, in which a brilliant cast brings to life all the excitement and suspense of Hammett’s original in the playhouse of the mind.

The literary equivalent of taking deliriants in church…

The Three Stigmata of Palmer Eldritch
By Philip K. Dick; Read by Tom Weiner
6 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 6.8 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: September 2008
Not too long from now, when exiles from a blistering Earth huddle miserably in Martian colonies, the only things that make life bearable are the drugs. Can-D “translates” those who take it into the bodies of Barbie-like dolls. Now there’s competition: a substance called Chew-Z, marketed under the slogan “God promises eternal life. We can deliver it.” The question is: What kind of eternity? And who—or what—is the deliverer?

Sounding rather comic, and mainstream…

The Ghost In Love
By Jonathan Carroll; Read by Ray Porter
8 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 9.3 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: September 2008
Just after a man falls in the snow and hits his head on a stone curb, a ghost arrives to take his soul to the afterlife. But something strange occurs: the man doesn’t die. Flabbergasted, the ghost appeals to his boss for further direction and is instructed to stay with the man until the strange “problem” is worked out. But things get complicated when the ghost falls madly, deeply in love with the man’s girlfriend. Soon afterward, the man discovers he did not die when he was supposed to because, for the first time, human beings have decided to take back their fates from the gods.

Book 2 in Card’s SF version of the book of Mormon…

The Call Of Earth (Homecoming: Book 2)
By Orson Scott Card; Read by Stefan Rudnicki
9 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 10.5 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: September 2008
For millennia, the planet Harmony has been protected by the Oversoul, an artificial intelligence programmed to prevent thoughts of war and conquest from threatening the fragile remnant of Earth’s peoples. But as the Oversoul’s systems have begun to fail, a great warrior has arisen to challenge its bans. Using forbidden technology, the ambitious and ruthless General Moozh has won control of an army and is aiming it at the city of Basilica.

This sounds bizarre, interesting, and rather Russian…

The Sacred Book Of The Werewolf
By Victor Pelevin; Read by Cassandra Campbell
10 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 11.7 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: September 2008
A. Huli, beautiful and curiously foxlike, has the appearance of a luscious fourteen-year-old girl, the mind of a sly Buddhist monk, and an endearing habit of name-dropping all the famous people she’s met over the past 2,000 years. She works as a classy prostitute in Moscow’s premier hotels, until one client goes inexplicably and fatally berserk at the sight of her and she has to leave in a hurry. Forced to advertise on the Internet, she comes to the attention of an intelligence officer who also happens to be a werewolf.

CBC Audio:

It is pricey at $54.95 CDN, but, it’s got never before heard content, and 7 full CDs of radio drama goodness!

CBC Audio - Canadia: 2056 Season 2 Director’s Cut by Matt WattsCanadia: 2056 (Season 2 Directors Cut)
7 CDs – RADIO DRAMA
Publisher: CBC Audio
Published: December 2008
Product ID: ERART00259
Volume 2 of this entertaining sci-fi comedy series, written by one of Canada’s best-loved comedy writers, Matt Watts. The United States has launched an armada to destroy an alien threat. Canada sends the nation’s only publicly-funded spacecraft, The Canadia – a ship with a single purpose – to plunge the Americans’ toilets. Includes episodes 11-24.

Full Cast Audio:

Book 3 in the Unicorn Chronicles series…

Dark Whispers: Unicorn Chronicles
By Bruce Coville; Multi-cast narration
10 CDs – Approx. 10.25 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Full Cast Audio
Published: September 2008
Listen to a sample |MP3|
As the unicorns of Luster prepare for an invasion led by their ancient enemy, Beloved, a troubling new clue to the dangers they face is discovered in an ancient scroll. As a result, the queen must send her granddaughter—the human girl Cara Dianna Hunter—to the Valley of the Centaurs, in quest of an ancient story that may hold the key to survival for all of Luster.

Graphic Audio:

Outlanders: Grailstone Gambit
By James Axler; Performed by a full cast
CDs – 6 hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: GraphicAudio
Published: September 2008

Superman: The Never-Ending Battle
By Roger Stern; Performed by a full cast
CDs – 6 hours [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: GraphicAudio
Published: September 2008

Recorded Books:

One of three Beart audibooks coming to Recorded Book’s new Sci-Fi imprint…

Undertow
By Elizabeth Bear; Read by Timothy Reynolds
9 CDs – 11.25 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Recorded Books
Published: September 2008
ISBN: 9781436119566
André Deschênes wants to escape his life as a hired assassin. He hopes to learn the art of conjuring, manipulating the odds of people’s lives. But a revolution is brewing in the city of Novo Haven, where an alien race is finally gaining ground, demanding they be treated as citizens. And before André moves on, he has a contract to fulfill.

For all your gaelic-nipponese needs look no farther than…

End Of The World Blues
By Jon Courtenay Grimwood; Read by James Yaegashi
12 CDs – 13.25 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Recorded Books
Published: September 2008
ISBN: 9781436147781
Iraqi war vet and part owner of an Irish pub in Tokyo, Kit Nouveau gave up on life a long time ago. But then his life is saved by a runaway, and Kit’s past might be the only thing that can save him from impending disaster.

The first in a series…

Greywalker
By Kat Richardson; Read by Mia Barron
10 CDs – 12.25 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Recorded Books
Published: September 2008
ISBN: 9781436124492
Seattle P.I. Harper Blaine is viciously attacked and murdered—but after exactly two minutes, somehow she returns to life. Now she’s seeing strange things all around her—dark visions from the shadow world—and living a normal life may no longer be possible no matter how hard she tries.

From the author who is also a book critic…

Nova Swing
By M. John Harrison; Read by Jim Frangione
8 CDs – 9.5 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Recorded Books
Published: September 2008
ISBN: 9781436124515
In this sci-fi noir, the physics-defying Saudade Event Site is a place to find strange landscapes and seemingly impossible physical phenomena—perfect for tourism. Into this environment comes Vic Serotonin, a “travel agent” whose newest client is a mysterious woman with a hidden agenda.

Asaro’s first audiobook for Recorded Books (several previous novels were published at Blackstone)…

The Ruby Dice
By Catherine Asaro; Read by Suzanne Toren
14 CDs – 17 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Recorded Books
Published: September 2008
ISBN: 9781436135245
War between the Eubian Concord and the Skolians has devastated the galaxy before. Now another epic clash is brewing, and the leaders of both empires might be powerless to stop it. Further complicating matters, both men hide shocking secrets that could spell their doom.

Tantor Media:

Morgan does Fantasy! I’m there…

The Steel Remains
By Richard K. Morgan; Read by Simon Vance
13 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 16 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: January 2009
EAN: 9781400109630 (cd), 9781400159635 (mp3-cd)
Epic fantasy is worked over in classic Richard K. Morgan style, producing this unique combination of noir themes and savage action involving characters you wouldn’t want to meet but will love to follow.

An older World Fantasy Award winning novel from Tantor Media…

Replay
By Ken Grimwood; Read by William Dufris
10 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 12 Hours 30 Minutes UNABRIDGED
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400110100 (cd), 9781400160105 (mp3-cd)
A time-travel classic in the tradition of Jack Finney’s Time and Again, Ken Grimwood’s acclaimed novel Replay asks the pro-vocative question: “What if you could live your life over again, knowing the mistakes you’d made before?”

You want alternate history? Bam!

The United States Of Atlantis (Book Two in the Atlantis Trilogy)
By Harry Turtledove; Read by Todd McLaren
13 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 16 hrs 30 min – Unabridged
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: December 2008
ISBN: 9781400107834 (cd), 9781400157839 (mp3-cd)
In the second book of the Atlantis trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Harry
Turtledove continues to rewrite the history of the world with the existence of an
eighth continent: Atlantis.

I knew that dog was really a ghost…

Sherlock Holmes Was Wrong (Reopening the Case of the Hound of the Baskervilles)
By Pierre Bayard; Read by John Lee
4 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – Approx. 4 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: December 2008
ISBN: 9781400109838 (cd), 9781400159833 (mp3-cd)
Eliminate the impossible, Sherlock Holmes said, and whatever is left must be the solution. But, as Pierre Bayard finds in this dazzling reinvestigation of The Hound of the Baskervilles, sometimes the master missed his mark. Using the last thoughts of the murder victim as his key, Bayard unravels the case, leading the reader to the astonishing conclusion that Holmes—and, in fact, Arthur Conan Doyle—got things all wrong: The killer is not at all who they said it was. Part intellectual entertainment, part love letter to crime novels, and part crime novel in itself, Sherlock Holmes Was Wrong turns one of our most beloved stories delightfully on its head. Examining the many facets of the case and illuminating the bizarre interstices between Doyle’s fiction and the real world, Bayard demonstrates a whole new way of reading mysteries: a kind of “detective criticism” that allows readers to outsmart not only the criminals in the stories we love but also the heroes—and sometimes even the writers.

These two novels will effect the masses who’ve played the videogame…

Mass Effect: Revelation (#1 in the Mass Effect Series)
By Drew Karpyshyn; Read by David Colacci
7 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 9 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400110056 (cds), 9781400160051 (mp3-cd)
From the New York Times bestselling author Drew Karpyshyn comes the thrilling first
official novel based on the BioWare video game Mass Effect.

Mass Effect – Ascension (#2 in the Mass Effect Series)
By Drew Karpyshyn; Read by David Colacci
8 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – Approx. 9 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: December 2008
ISBN: 9781400110049 (cd), 9781400160044 (mp3-cd)
It’s humankind versus a race of machines bent on harvesting organic life in this second official novel based on the BioWare video game.

Originally released by Durkin Hayes abridged, here’s the first unabridged version of this non-Dune Frank Herbert novel…

Tantor Media Science Fiction Audiobook - The White Plague by Frank HerbertThe White Plague
By Frank Herbert; Read by Scott Brick
16 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 20 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: 12/08/2008
ISBN: 9781400105656 (cd), 9781400155651 (mp3-cd)
The White Plague, a marvelous and terrifyingly plausible blend of fiction and visionary theme, tells of one man who is pushed over the edge of sanity by the senseless murder of his family and who, reappearing several months later as the so-called Madman, unleashes a terrible plague upon the human race—one that zeros in, unerringly and fatally, on women.

Wer’re wild and wooly about this one…

Tantor Media Alternate History Audiobook - The Breath Of God by Harry TurtledoveThe Breath Of God
By Harry Turtledove; Read by William Dufris
12 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – Approx. 15 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: 12/23/2008
ISBN: 9781400107841 (cd), 9781400157846 (mp3-cd)
Harry Turtledove, New York Times bestselling author of Opening Atlantis, presents more adventure in a Bronze Age that never was in this sequel to Beyond the Gap.

New series… merc chick with sword? SOLD!

Magic Bites (#1 in the Kate Daniels series)
By Ilona Andrews; Read by Renée Raudman
8 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 9 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: December 2008
ISBN: 9781400110308 (cd), 9781400160303 (mp3-cd)
Mercenary Kate Daniels cleans up urban problems of a paranormal kind. But her latest prey, a pack of undead warriors, presents her greatest challenge.

A paperbook, now audiobook, from the pre-World Of Warcraft era. The first Warcraft audiobook…

Warcraft, Book One – Day Of The Dragon
By Richard A. Knaak; Read by Dick Hill
9 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 11 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: 01/01/2009
ISBN: 9781400109869 (cd), 9781400159864 (mp3-cd)
An original tale of magic, warfare, and heroism based on the bestselling, awardwinning
electronic game from Blizzard Entertainment.

40 hours? Seriously? 40 hours? Seriously?

Pandora’s Star
By Peter F. Hamilton; Read by John Lee
32 CDs or 4 MP3-CDs – 40 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Audio
Published: 11/17/2008
ISBN: 9781400107643 (cd), 9781400157648 (mp3-cd)
Set in the twenty-fourth century, this epic novel of a human-extraterrestrial war
engineered by an unknown omniscient being is by the bestselling author of The
Reality Dysfunction and Fallen Dragon.

Against The Tide Of Years (#2 in the Nantucket series)
By S.M. Stirling; Read by Todd McLaren
17 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 20 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: 11/17/2008
ISBN: 9781400106806 (cd), 9781400156801 (mp3-cd)
George R. R. Martin hailed S. M. Stirling’s bestselling novel Island in the Sea of Time as “an utterly engaging account of what happens when the isle of Nantucket is whisked back into the Bronze Age.” Now the adventure continues with Against the Tide of Years. Book two in the Island in the Sea of Time trilogy

On The Oceans Of Eternity (Book #3 in the Nantucket series)
By S.M. Stirling; Read by Todd McLaren
23 CDs or 3 MP3-Cds – 28 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: January 2009
EAN: 9781400106813 (cd), 9781400156818 (mp3-cd)
Award-winning science fiction author Harry Turtledove hailed Island in the Sea of Time as “one of the best time travel/alternative history stories I’ve ever read,” and Jane Lindskold called Against the Tide of Years “another exciting and explosive tale.” Now the adventures of the Nantucket islanders lost in the time of the Bronze Age continues with On the Oceans of Eternity.

The Scourge of God: A Novel of the Change (#5 in the Emberverse series)
By S.M. Stirling; Read by Todd McLaren
15 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 18.5 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: September 2008
EAN: 9781400106820 (cd), 9781400156825 (mp3-cd)
Rudi MacKenzie continues his trek across the land that was once the United States of America. His destination: Nantucket, where he hopes to learn the truth behind the Change that rendered technology across the globe inoperable. During his travels, Rudi forges ties with new allies in the continuing war against the Prophet, who teaches his followers that God has punished humanity by destroying technological civilization. And one fanatical officer in the Sword of the Prophet has been dispatched on a mission: to stop Rudi from reaching his destination by any means necessary.

Crusade (Destroyermen: Book 2)
By Taylor Anderson; Read by William Dufris
12 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 15 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400108077 (cd), 9781400158072 (mp3-cd)
The second novel in the Destroyermen trilogy finds the crew of the USS Walker in
alliance with the peaceful Lemurians against the warlike Grik when another, more
familiar foe joins in the fray. Book two in the Destroyermen trilogy.

Kushiel’s Scion
By Jacqueline Carey; Read by Simon Vance
22 CDs or 3 MP3-CDs – 28 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400109524 (cd), 9781400159529 (mp3-cd)
National bestselling author Carey opens a new trilogy set in the same extraordinary
world as her extended New York Times bestseller, Kushiel’s Avatar.

Sunshine
By Robin McKinley; Read by Laural Merlington
13 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 16 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400110087 (cd), 9781400160082 (mp3-cd)
In her first novel for adults. the Newbery Medalist and bestselling author pens an exciting, beautifully written, erotic addition to the popular vampire genre.

Embrace The Night
By Karen Chance; Read by Cynthia Holloway
13 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 16 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Published: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400108190 (cd), 9781400158195 (mp3-cd)
In this third entry in the popular Cassandra Palmer series, Cassie is forced to travel back in time to retrieve an ancient book of spells—although doing so could spell disaster for the world.

Trading In Danger (#1 in the Vatta’s War Series)
By Elizabeth Moon; Read by Cynthia Holloway
11 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – Approx. 14 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
EAN: 9781400108275 (cd), 9781400158270 (mp3-cd)
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
The first of the acclaimed Vatta’s War books, the exciting military science fiction series that features a swashbuckling spaceship-captain heroine who mixes commerce with combat.

Marque And Reprisal (#2 in the Vatta’s War Series)
By Elizabeth Moon; Read by Cynthia Holloway
11 CDs or 2 MP3-CDs – 13 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400108282 (cd), 9781400158287 (mp3-cd)
This action-packed sequel to Trading in Danger is the second installment in Nebula Award-winning author Moon’s military science fiction series featuring Kylara Vatta, who must save her family from ruin.

Valor’s Choice (Book One in the Confederation Series)
By Tanya Huff; Read by Marguerite Gavin
10 CDs or 1 MP3-CD – 12 Hours 30 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Tantor Media
Published: November 2008
ISBN: 9781400109920 (cd), 9781400159925 (mp3-cd)
Listen to a sample MP3
In the distant future, humans and several other races have been granted membership in the Confederation—at a price. They must act as soldier/protectors of the far more civilized races who have long since turned away from war.

Posted by Jesse Willis

Review of Already Dead by Charlie Huston

SFFaudio Review

Science Fiction Audiobook - Already Dead by Charlie HustonAlready Dead
By Charlie Huston; Read by Scott Brick
8 CDs – 9 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
ISBN: 9781433235795
Themes: / Horror / Hard-boiled / Detective / noir / Vampires / Zombies /

I lent this audiobook to a friend. Later, listening to me waxing enthusiastic over the book, he said in a dubious tone, “That’s the book where the zombies and vampires are fighting?”

Hardly.

It is true that vampirism is a key element of detective Joe Pitt’s character as practically everything he does entails watchful details to stay alive and undetected for what he is. Already Dead is, first and foremost, heart and soul, a hard-boiled detective novel. One might be forgiven for thinking that Charlie Huston is merely another author taking advantage of the recent trend featuring vampires as key characters in fiction. However, they would be dead wrong. What becomes very clear is that Huston is taking advantage of this fantastical setting to examine good versus evil, rising to humanity versus sinking to the level of animals, the societal urge to define oneself by the group one joins, and, of course, what constitutes true love. It is no surprise then to find that some of the greatest intentional evil is perpetrated not by vampires but by mere human beings. All of these themes are set forth for us in crackling dialogue that hearkens back to the best of Raymond Chandler and Billy Wilder, who one is irresistibly reminded co-wrote the screenplay for the film-noir classic Double Indemnity. In fact, a scene toward the end of the book between Joe and his girlfriend Evie is a noir-style dialogue masterpiece that sends thrills through the listener and that would not be out of place in that movie.

The nub of the story is that Joe Pitt is hired to track down the runaway teenage daughter of a wealthy couple. He delves deeper into the case and increasingly complex and sordid details come to light. Naturally, this is set against a background of New York City vampirism which is the result of catching a virus. The zombies also are the result of a virus, albeit quite a different one which robs the victim of any brain power and leaves them with an insatiable urge for human flesh. It is through tracking down a zombie in order to dispose of it before regular human attention is drawn to the existence of various virus-challenged individuals that Joe is drawn into the case. A loner, Joe must walk a careful line between the Coalition, the Enclave, and various other gang-like power brokerages that exist in vampire society, all of which are interested in some aspect of the investigation. Joe’s girlfriend, Evie, is a regular human infected with HIV, who knows nothing about Joe’s infection. The mutual affection and the need between two such lonely people makes an interesting contrast when one considers Joe’s virus is keeping him alive while Evie’s will eventually kill her.

I have read descriptions comparing Huston to Elmore Leonard and that didn’t ring true until considering The Society, which always made me giggle. (Yes, giggle. Deal with it.) The Society is made up of progressive vampires who are committed to diversity and look forward to the day when vampires are accepted in society as merely another minority. Joe occasionally winds up in their custody and the scraps of conversation he overhears before they realize he is conscious are always humorous. Consider the fact that zombies are termed “Victims of Zombification” as per The Society vote. All conversation halts when someone mistakenly uses the politically incorrect “zombie” until they can be patiently corrected. Extremely Elmore Leonard-esque indeed.

I originally checked the hardback out of the library but it failed to hold my interest for reasons I cannot now remember. However, the narrative fairly blazes alive the second one hears the world-weary Joe Pitt voiced by Scott Brick. My admiration grew as a suave mob boss, The Society leader Terry exhorting Joe to “be cool,” a loving mother who is nonetheless a lush, and a host of other characters all sprang instantly to life with subtle but masterful voicing. I didn’t realize the narrator was the well-known Brick, whose occasional blogging and podcasting I have followed with interest. Listening to this book I realized how skillful he is at his trade. I’m now a fan, not only of author Charlie Huston, but also of Scott Brick.

Highly recommended.

Warning: The language and situations are explicit although not to an unnecessary degree in most cases. This is a modern, gritty novel and listener discretion is advised.

Posted by Julie D.

Review of The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury

SFFaudio Review

The Halloween Tree (audio drama) by Ray BradburyThe Halloween Tree
By Ray Bradbury; Performed by a full cast
2 CDs – 2 hours – [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
ISBN: 9781433232145
Themes: / Fantasy / Halloween / Death / Religion / Time Travel / Witchcraft / Paganism /
What is Halloween? How did it start? Where, why, what for? Witches, cats, mummy dust, haunts… it’s all there in the country from which no one returns. Would you dive into the dark ocean, boys? Would you fly in the dark sky?

This review may be a little out of season, but it was with relatively recent memories of carving jack-o’lanterns and taking my costumed children out to trick-or-treat that I listened to The Colonial Radio Players dramatized adaptation of The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury. This neat little tale is ostensibly for children and young adults, but it contains an illuminating look into the origins of Halloween as well as an honest exploration of our own cultural view of death, that greatest of all mysteries.

The Halloween Tree opens with eight young boys gathered together on Halloween night to go trick-or-treating. A ninth boy, Pipkin, is notably absent from the group, and when he finally emerges from his house it’s apparent something is terribly wrong: He’s pale, moving gingerly, and clutching at a lancing pain his side. But the call of Halloween is too strong and he joins his friends. Later we learn that Pipkin is suffering from an acute bout of appendicitis.

The boys decide to go trick-or-treating at a haunted house, and there they encounter the ghostly, skeletal, white-haired Mr. Moundshroud. Moundshroud takes the boys to see The Halloween Tree. En route they have to cross a deep ravine, which proves to be a metaphor for the Valley of Death, and Pipkin fails to reach the other side. When the boys call to him, his pumpkin light goes out and he vanishes from sight.

Moundshroud offers to take the boys on a dreamlike trip back through time in order to save Pipkin. Along the way he reveals the origins of Halloween and its association with death. The boys travel back to ancient Egypt and view that culture’s reverence of the dead, including its great pyramid-tombs, mummies, and the worship of the sun god Osiris, murdered each night by his jealous brother only to rise again the next morning. They are whisked away to pre-Christian Europe and encounter the cowled, scythe-wielding Samhain, the druidic god of death from which Halloween derives its origins.

The boys witness the extinction of the druids and their religion at the hands of the murdering Romans, whose polytheistic approach to religion is itself eradicated by the coming of Christ. “Now the Christians come and cut the Romans down—new altars, boys, new incense, new names,” Moundshroud says. Here I’ll mention that The Halloween Tree includes a subversive view of Christianity, as the boys witness the persecution of innocent witches in the dark ages in the name of Christ.

The boys’ journey continues to 16th century Paris and Notre Dame Cathedral and finally to Mexico for the Day of the Dead celebration. Their strange, dreamlike trip not only reveals the origins of Halloween, but also illuminates our own view of death here in the United States—cemeteries are lonely, cold places, and when someone dies we turn our attention to moving on and forgetting, rather than remembering and honoring our deceased loved ones. When contrasted with Bradbury’s bright description of The Day of the Dead, our cultural reaction to death seems stunted and sad in comparison:

By every grave was a woman kneeling to place gardenias, or azaleas, or marigolds, in a frame upon the stone. By every grave knelt a daughter, who was lighting a new candle, or lighting a candle that had just blown out. By every grave was a quiet boy, with bright brown eyes, and in one hand a small papier-mâché funeral parade, glued to a shingle, and in the other hand a papier-mâché skeleton head, which rattled with rice or nuts inside.

Halloween, this odd, out-of-place holiday that has persisted through the ages, and remains with us now as a night to beg for candy in a costume, is revealed as an ancient ritual denoting the end of the harvest season and the onset of cold winter, of night, and of death. Its origins trace back thousands of years and span multiple cultures. “Four thousand years ago, one hundred years ago, this year, one place or time, but the celebration’s all the same—the Feast of Samhain, the Time of the Dead Ones, All Souls, All Saints, the Day of the Dead, El Dia de los Muertos, All Hallows, Halloween,” Bradbury writes.

In the end the boys are presented with a difficult choice to bring Pipkin back from the dead, one that involves a paganistic sacrifice to the dark gods. I won’t spoil the ending. But there’s a great line where one of the boys asks Moundshroud, “Will we ever stop being afraid of the night and death?” Moundshroud (who may be death himself, or the spirit of Halloween) replies reassuringly, “When you reach the stars, boy, yes, and live there forever, all the fears will go, and death himself will die.”

I had a few minor quibbles with the presentation of the story. The Colonial Radio Theatre presentation at times relies too heavily on unnecessary sound effects and crashing music that threatened to overwhelm the story, although the voice of Moundshroud, Jerry Robbins, was excellent, as were the production values. The tale also contained a bit more whimsy (a giant kite that whisks the boys back through time, etc.) than I typically like, but Bradbury is such a gifted, poetic writer that it mostly works.

Death may be our greatest mystery, but Bradbury is not afraid to look into its cold, impenetrable depths in search for meaning. The Halloween Tree illuminates the subject with a ghostly pumpkin candle whose light remained with me long after the tale was over, which is one sure mark of a good book.

Posted by Brian Murphy

Recent Arrivals from Blackstone Audio: Bradbury, Card, Dick

SFFaudio Recent Arrivals

Three of the finest writers ever, from Blackstone Audio!

The Halloween Tree (audio drama) by Ray BradburyThe Halloween Tree
By Ray Bradbury; Performed by a full cast
2 CDs – 2 hours – [AUDIO DRAMA]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
ISBN: 9781433232145

The Ships of Earth by Orson Scott CardThe Ships of Earth (Homecoming, Book 3)
By Orson Scott Card; Read by Stefan Rudnicki
10 CDs – 12 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
ISBN: 9781433218866

Valis by Philip K. DickValis
By Philip K. Dick; Read by Tom Weiner
7 CDs – 8 hours – [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Published: 2008
ISBN: 9781433253782

Posted by Scott D. Danielson

The SFFaudio Podcast #009

Podcast

The SFFaudio PodcastThe SFFaudio Podcast #009 – is a podcast that’s cool for kids and disturbing for adults! We don’t set the bar high enough.

If you were a super hero who would you be?

Me? I’d be like Batman, but with less hypocrisy.

Topics discussed include:
Escape Pod, John Joseph Adams, Seeds Of Change, The Living Dead, Brilliance Audio, epic Fantasy, Wizards First Rule, Terry Goodkind, Legend Of The Seeker, HBO, Tru Blood, Charlaine Harris, Foundation, Mercedes Lackey, Sam Tsouvias, Recorded Books, Elantris, Brandon Sanderson, L. Ron Hubbard, Danger In The Dark, The Iron Duke, Blackstone Audio, The Halloween Tree, Colonial Radio Theatre, Ray Bradbury, Something Wicked This Way Comes, Korean ghosts, Valis, Philip K. Dick, spiritual Science Fiction, The Graveyard Book, Neil Gaiman, Coraline, LibriVox.org, ALAN E. NOURSE, Star Surgeon, Scott D. Farquhar, Short Science Fiction Collection Vol. 008, Tobias Buckell, JJA’s review, Orson Scott Card, Gene Wolfe, METAtropolis, The Aeneid, Batman vs. Superman, Friedrich Nietzsche, Master Morality and Slave Morality, Sleeping Beauty, Ross MacDonald, Audio Partners, The Zebra-Striped Hearse,

Posted by Jesse Willis