Monthly Archives: April 2014

April 30, 2014 · 5:00 pm

Kirkus names The Enceladus Crisis among May’s best speculative fiction reads

The word spreads: Kirkus Reviews placed The Enceladus Crisis among the best speculative fiction reads coming out in May. Reviewer John DeNardo added that Enceladus may work well for fans of classic literature looking to branch out into science fiction and fantasy, noting that it’s the second book “in an exciting series of books described as ‘Horatio Hornblower in space.'” Which, really, is a pretty spot-on description.

Also worth noting: Tor.com listed The Enceladus Crisis among the month’s new releases as well, which is a great thing given that so many fans of SF/F read the site religiously.

Again, it’s worth noting that while Amazon and other online outlets have begun shipping The Enceladus Crisis to preorder customers, the book won’t be available in ebook or audiobook until May 6. And I don’t think it’ll be on bookstore shelves until then, either — but if you see it out there beforehand, do let me know!

#SFWApro

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April 29, 2014 · 10:09 am

New review of The Enceladus Crisis

For those who’ve seen the back cover of The Enceladus Crisis, it’s no secret that GeekDad rather liked the book. But it’s still nice to see the full review, which hit the Internet today. Reviewer James Floyd Kelly writes:

“Martinez delivers again…. This isn’t steampunk, okay? This is something new and unique and completely entertaining. Hard science fiction in one corner and Alchemy in the other. And the best part is when the worlds and characters come together…you’re in for a wild ride.”

Many thanks, Jim, for the kind words! As a geek-dad myself, I’m thrilled to be reviewed there! There’s less than a week to go before The Enceladus Crisis drops on May 6. You can preorder print and/or ebook copies on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, iTunes, Google Play or wherever fine books are sold. (Also, support your local bookseller! IndieBound can help you find the nearest one.) The audiobook edition is courtesy of the good folks at Audible. Also, tthe Goodreads giveaway wraps up next week as well, so if you’re of a mind to try to score a freebie, check it out. May 6! Did I mention May 6? Next Tuesday! #SFWApro

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April 24, 2014 · 6:30 pm

Going live with Skiffy and Fanty this Friday night

Now we’re working without a net. Live podcasting, people. It’s happening.

I’ll be a guest on the latest edition of Skiffy and Fanty‘s Torture Cinema this Friday at 10 p.m. EDT, and it’ll be done live via Google+ hangout. Stop by and enjoy us being silly, tipsy and generally disreputable while we dissect Highlander II: The Quickening in all its awful glory.

I was given the opportunity to choose the Torture Cinema entry by virtue of donating to S&F’s WorldCon fundraiser, and I took the “torture” bit to heart, as HIghlander II is a paragon of bad filmmaking. Seriously, it’s possibly the worst SF/F sequel ever, and certainly one of the worst overall films of all time.

And then Shaun invited me on to participate, probably to get back at me for picking it in the first place. I suppose that’s only fair.

Anyway, RSVP for the Google+ hangout and join us tomorrow night. The commenting function will be on, so you can comment and ask questions. And if you’re so inclined, stop by the fundraiser to help Skiffy and Fanty go to WorldCon. They’re nominated for a Hugo, and it’d be nice if they were there to pick it up in case they win.

#SFWApro

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April 22, 2014 · 5:47 pm

Two weeks until The Enceladus Crisis is out!

All right, then. It’s starting to get exciting.

The Enceladus Crisis lands on May 6, full of sailing-ships-in-space action and pan-dimensional shenanigans. Plus Saturn. I’m excited to see it out there and, judging by the reviews, I think it’s going to go well.

You’ll start to see me pop up on a variety of sites in the coming weeks, so I apologize in advance if you get a little me-fatigue. It happens, even to me. But I’ve got a nice variety of stuff coming, not simply just “hey, I wrote a book” posts and whatnot.

And I’ll be on podcasts too, starting with the Skiffy and Fanty Show’s Torture Cinema, which I record Friday. I supported the show’s fundraiser for WorldCon, and won the opportunity to name the next film to get the Torture Cinema treatment. Being a jerk, I gave them Highlander II: The Quickening. But I’ll be right there with them. It should be fun.

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April 19, 2014 · 5:43 pm

Look what I got in the mail

The Enceladus Crisis is in my house, and it’s fabulous. Of course, since I wrote it, I get first dibs on copies.

If you haven’t ordered yours yet, well…get on that! It’s available in ebook and print from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, IndieBound, iTunes, Google Play and…yeah, pretty much anywhere you like. And in audio from Audible, too. It comes out May 6, which is less than three weeks away. Which is…wow, coming very soon!

On another note, congrats to all the Hugo and Campbell award nominees! This was my first time voting, and I was excited to see some of my choices make the short list. There were many worthy nominees, and I look forward to reading them. I recognize that there are some nominees that are controversial, and since I keep well upwind from controversy, I’m just going to focus on the works and the good stuff. And that’s all I got to say about that.

#SFWApro

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April 16, 2014 · 5:50 pm

Enceladus Crisis review and Goodreads giveaway!

While I was heading back home after our sojourn in Reykjavik — literally, I may have been off the coast of Greenland — Amazing Stories ran a review of The Enceladus Crisis that included very nice things. Reviewer Matt Mitrovich, who also runs the Alternate History Weekly Update, said:

Martinez’s writing style improved dramatically since the last book and I look forward to seeing how it will continue to evolve in the next book…. It was a great adventure tale that combined elements of a spy thriller with that of a space opera, with a bittersweet ending reminiscent to The Empire Strikes Back. I recommend Enceladus, and the series as a whole.

Thanks, Matt! I was especially encouraged by his comment on the writing. I’m still relatively new when it comes to fiction, so signs of improvement are most certainly a good thing.

Also worth noting: if you’re a member of Goodreads, you can enter The Enceladus Crisis giveaway there. We have 10 copies of the book up for grabs. The giveaway ends on May 6, which also happens to be the book’s release day. So go forth and enter!

Finally, I spotted The Enceladus Crisis on Apple’s iBookstore. It also includes a chance to download a sample of the book, and a decent sized one at that. So if you’re an Apple ebook customer, or just want to peek at the sample, check it out!

#SFWApro

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April 14, 2014 · 9:00 pm

Iceland is freakin’ gorgeous

As promised, after yesterday’s stupid Twitter pics, I thought I’d share some of my better photos from our Iceland trip. These are all nature shots, because frankly, this island is gorgeous and it’s the best thing to share with you since I can’t shove Icelandic food through the Internet for you to try.

Iceland is volcanic, and it’s also being pulled apart by the North American and European tectonic plates. So you have mountains and volcanoes and geothermal goodness, along with some beautiful springs and falls and streams.

What you don’t have is trees. Before the island was settled around 870 A.D., it was much more forested. A millennium of settlement, along with the need for shelter and warmth, pretty much decimated the forests. They’re working on reforesting the place, but it’s going to take time. Right now, most forests are barely taller than I am. A common joke here goes:

“What do you do if you get lost in an Icelandic forest?”

“Stand up!”

Anyway, it’s a gorgeous place. And without further commentary, here’s some pretty pictures. Continue reading →

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April 14, 2014 · 1:30 pm

The Enceladus Crisis audiobook now available for pre-order on Audible

Just saw this today, though it may have been up there for a while. I couldn’t say, because I’ve been frolicking amongst the fjords here in Iceland. As one does.

Anyway, I’m pleased to report that the audiobook version of The Enceladus Crisis, the sequel to The Daedalus Incident, is now available for pre-order up on Audible.com. I’m also incredibly happy that the two narrators of Daedalus are back for Enceladus. Bernard Clark and Kristin Kalbli did a great job with the first one. Can’t wait to see how they tackled the second book.

The audiobook will be released on May 6, just like the print and (most of) the e-book versions. In addition to Audible, you can also order the audio edition on Amazon.

Enceladus is mere weeks away! Hope you guys enjoy it!

#SFWApro

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April 14, 2014 · 1:00 am

Stupid Twitter pics from Iceland

And now, for your amusement, a collection of my dumbest/funniest Twitter pics from Iceland. This might be a partial grouping, because I’m not leaving until Tuesday and may be inspired to inflict more on my followers. Follow me on Twitter if you want to see whether I’m feeling clever again later. (Note: Actual cleverness not guaranteed.)

I’ll probably do a proper picture posting before I head off, one with far better images and more serious commentary. The country is just gorgeous, and I took a lot of nature photos with the digital camera instead of my two-year-old iPhone 4S.

For now, on with the show:

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April 13, 2014 · 6:13 am

Iceland is for writers

As I mentioned earlier this week, I’m in Iceland while my wife Kate attends the Iceland Writers Retreat. The retreat organizers were kind enough to include partners and kids in their more social activities and tours. Even though I’m not participating in the retreat’s workshops, I’ve found plenty of Icelandic fuel for my writer-mind.

A very old book in the library of Iceland’s presidential residence.

The Icelandic people are immensely proud of their literary heritage, and rightly so. They were the scribes of the Viking Age, committing the Sagas to print and providing a written history and folklore of the Scandinavian peoples. Icelandic, while today spoken by just 330,000 souls, give or take, is considered the language most like that of the old Vikings. (Geographic isolation will do that.)

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