2017 turned out to be a bumper crop year for me with three works published.
Novel (young adult, science fiction): Exo (Scholastic, Jan 2017). Aptly described by VOYA as, “not the usual aliens-conquering-Earth plotline,” Exo is the story of Donovan Reyes, a human enhanced with alien biotechnology who is also the son of a collaborationist political leader on Earth a hundred years after alien conquest. School Library Journal says, “This action-packed novel asks readers to consider alien technology, what it means to be human or nonhuman, and the gray areas in war, where neither side is completely good or evil.”
Novel (adult, fantasy): Jade City (Orbit, Nov 2017). Gangster family saga that Liz Bourke at Tor.com described as “The Legend of Korra with Gangs of New York and a generous helping of Hong Kong action cinema” and NPR recommended as one the Best Books of 2017 calling it, “an instantly absorbing tale of blood, honor, family and magic, spiced with unexpectedly tender character beats.”
Novelette: “Old Souls” in Where the Stars Rise Anthology (Laksa Media, Oct 2017). Booklist calls this collection, “essential for anyone interested in the diverse and engaging possibilities of fantasy and science fiction.” My story was summed up well on SFBluestocking as, “an acerbically intelligent story involving reincarnation and an ancient grudge.” I’m making this work available on my website at this link for a short time.
(For those readers who are considering works for awards: I’m a dual Canadian-American citizen, so am eligible for the Aurora in addition to the Nebula, Hugo, Norton, etc.)
So many compelling works of science fiction and fantasy came out this year that it would take you until 2025 to read them all. A good starting point is the Nebula Suggested Reading List. Here’s a round-up of 2017 award eligibility posts by SFWA president Cat Rambo.
Looking forward, I’m expecting 2018 to be a little quieter on the publication front but wildly busy in terms of writing and events. I have one book scheduled for publication: Cross Fire, the sequel to Exo, which comes out at the end of May (and which you can already pre-order!). I assure you that as pear-shaped as things were for Donovan Reyes and the human race in general when Exo closed…they get worse in Cross Fire.
The trade paperback edition of Jade City will hit the shelves in June and it will contain bonus material including an author interview and an excerpt from Jade War, the second book in the Green Bone Saga. I’ll be at a number of events including Emerald City Comic Con, the Tucson Festival of Books, and WorldCon 76 in San Jose. Most importantly, I’ll be putting my head down and working on setting down the next part of the Kaul family’s story.