Category: Books
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Arisia 2020 Report, Day 1
I drove out to Boston on a sunny but cold January afternoon, left the car at the disintegrating Alewife garage, and rode the T to the good old Westin Waterfront hotel. Various delays en route and long lines at the hotel meant I barely had time to get my room, get my Arisia badge, and…
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Three Weeks Until THE INITIATE
My new novel The Initiate officially comes out on February 4 — although I've already got a box of copies, so it seems likely that some bookstores will get theirs in the next couple of weeks. Booklist will review it February 1, and the advance word is good. I'm allowed to quote a little snippet: "Cambias'…
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Why The Initiate?
My upcoming novel The Initiate (now available for pre-order) marks a big change for me. My three previous books have all been science fiction, mostly on the "hard-SF" side of the spectrum. The Initiate is a modern-day noir fantasy, with magic and demons and a secret society of wizards in Manhattan. Why the change? A…
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A Lovecraftian Chronology
For no very good reason I found myself making up an internal chronology of H.P. Lovecraft's horror stories. My guiding principle was that if a story doesn't have any time clues — and it's interesting to note that most of Lovecraft's stories do include specific dates — it takes place in the year in which…
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Philcon 2019!
This weekend I'll be attending the venerable PhilCon convention, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. That's near enough to Philadelphia that you can still get scrapple for breakfast, so I guess it qualifies. Here's my schedule. Stop by and say hi! Fri 6:00 PM in Executive Suite 623: READINGS — PAUL LEVINSON, APRIL GREY, JAMES CAMBIAS…
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Initiate Teaser #1
A little amuse-bouche to get you ready for the main course, which arrives in February — an excerpt from the beginning of my new modern fantasy novel The Initiate (now available for pre-order on Amazon, or at your friendly local bookstore): "It wasn't a bear, was it?" The voice on Samuel Arquero's phone was…
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Get Initiated!
My forthcoming novel The Initiate is now available for preorders from Baen Books. You can see the listing here. As you can see, there's cover art already — Sam has longer hair than I imagined him, but the lightning-dragon and the inimitable Isabella both play important roles in the story. I just handed in the final…
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Culinary/Literary Notes
I can usually eat something without telling the world about it, but tonight I made a grilled marinated Porterhouse steak with an heirloom tomato salad, followed by fresh-picked ripe strawberries and ice cream. All served up on the porch on a perfect evening. But that's not what I actually intended to post about today. Lately…
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Arkad’s World Review From Locus
The new Sage of Providence, Paul Di Filippo, wrote a very kind and perceptive review of Arkad's World. Somehow I missed it when it came out back in February, but he recently put it up on Facebook. You can read the full review here. Then you can go buy the book.
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Random Encounters: The Infinite Library
"The universe (which others call the Library) is composed of an indefinite and perhaps infinite number of hexagonal galleries, with vast air shafts between, surrounded by very low railings. From any of the hexagons one can see, interminably, the upper and lower floors. The distribution of the galleries is invariable. Twenty shelves, five long shelves…
The Cambias Digression 