Some new reviews

December 7, 2015 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

A couple of new snippet reviews around the ridges:

Over on Amazon, reader Ladi8ug loved The Aware, saying: This was a fantastic read! Lots of twists and turns and just a few easy to see plots to make you feel like you know what’s going on, then you are back to wondering what will happen next. I rarely give 5 stars, but this book deserved it.

And still on Glenda Larke, Goodreads reviewer Siavahda wrote a wonderfully detailed review of Havenstar which ends with: …this has gone straight onto my favourites shelf, and is going to get recced to everyone I know.

At Goodreads, reader Liz gave Cranky Ladies of History five stars and said: Thoroughly enjoyed it! Many of the stories had me looking for more information on these fascinating women. A great introduction to women in history.

We missed this lovely review of Pratchett’s Women on Amazon, courtesy of reader Syntia, when it written earlier this year: …not afraid to point out and analyze glaring problems with portrayal of female characters…

And this great line from a review of Guardian by Jo Anderton on Goodreads: …included many really visceral moments that I loved…

As always, thank you to all the wonderful readers who take the time to rate and review our books on Amazon, Goodreads and other forums – we appreciate each and every one!

New reviews!

April 19, 2015 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

A nice mix of new reviews to report – thank you as always to the amazing readers who take the time to share their thoughts.

In a truly wonderful review of Cranky Ladies of History over at Goodreads, Catherine Heloise notes (among lots of other lovely things) that: the truly impressive thing about this anthology was that there really were no weak stories. Every story was compelling and fascinating in a different way; some were strict historical fiction, others had a touch of fantasy, fairy tale, myth, or even science fiction to them, and all were ordered with a keen eye to the stories that surrounded them. I’m not sure how best to describe this, but in my experience, at least, it’s rare to find an anthology which is put together in such a satisfying way.

Over at Marianne de Pierres’ blog, Joelene Pynnonen reviews Insert Title Here, noting it has: …consistently astounding world-building. Story after story explores unfamiliar realms – and story after story succeeds in making those realms blindingly convincing. As the title suggests, the possibilities in these stories are endless, and some of the worlds are so lovingly rendered that they would be more suited to a novel.

In a lovely review of Phantazein in Aurealis #79, Deanne Sheldon-Collins calls the book: Atmospheric and lyrical, confronting but readable, it proves that even something not meant to exist can be worthwhile.

Cybelle over at Heroines of Fantasy discussed Guardian, calling it: “an outstandingly engaging read and works well as a stand-alone novel” and noting that “the pacing of this novel is impressive, and the characters are wonderfully rich”.

Recent Reviews

January 31, 2015 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

Thanks to the always-on-top-of-things VentureAdlaxre, we have our first review of Cranky Ladies of History (due out March 8)! Absolutely delighted to see she loved it, with a comprehensive five-star review! Among other things, she says of various pieces: “…a gentle and beautiful piece of writing…”, “…rich in culture and a joy to read…”, “…a light touch yet with a depth of thought…”.

A short review of Jo Anderton’s Guardian by reader John on Goodreads has this great line: This is sci-fi done right.

Alex Pierce reviews One Small Step, saying: …a who’s who of established and emerging Australian writers, too, which is a total delight.

Over at Beyond the Dreamline, Faith calls Splashdance Silver: definitely funny…a bouncy, airy charm.

News, reviews and NEW BOOKS!

September 7, 2014 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

Tsana at Tsana Reads and Reviews has lovely things to say about Guardian by Jo Anderton, including: I highly recommend it to fans of technological fantasy or just fantasy which differs from the mainstream. The worldbuilding is very original and one of the real strengths of the series. The magic is very structured; leading some to call the series science fiction. In that light, fans of slipstream and genre-bending fiction should find much to like here.

We’re delighted to see people talking about Tansy Rayner Roberts’ essay collections 50 Roman Mistresses and Pratchett’s Women, saying things like: “Thoughtful and entertaining“, “wonderfully useful and interestingly corrective“, and “makes learning history a fascinating experience“.

We’re counting down to the release of Phantazein, a new anthology of fantastical short stories (and poems), out in early October. We are launching the book in style at Conflux, the annual Canberra speculative fiction convention, 5.00pm Saturday 4 October. Come along if you can! What is Phantazein? Well, if you were one of those readers who enjoyed To Spin a Darker Stair but bemoaned the fact it was too short, Phantazein is TOTALLY the book for you!

Speaking of Conflux, FableCroft is hosting a pitching session for novels (also on Saturday, midday!) – we aren’t open to submissions, so it’s you’re only chance to hit us with your best book!

We really appreciate ratings and reviews on Goodreads and Amazon – a big thanks to our wonderful readers who share the love!

Reviews, interviews and things

July 15, 2014 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

Alex Stephenson has written a fantastic review of Guardian in Aurealis #72 – among other things, Alex says:

Guardian is a tremendously satisfying conclusion to an already celebrated series.

…Anderton is to be commended for her ability to create such rich and original settings.

A fitting end, or entry, to the trilogy, Guardian is as excellent as Anderton’s fans deserve. It is a pleasure to read modern science fiction driven by a female lead as strong and nuanced as Tanyana.

Thanks Alex! You can read the whole review (and new fiction and other things as well!) in the issue, just $2.99 at Smashwords.

Another review of Jo’s Veiled World books comes from Paul Bonamy on Goodreads, who calls them: “…an excellent series, and well worth reading.”

Jason Franks has interviewed Dirk Flinthart over at his blog, talking a lot about Path of Night and what’s coming up next. Don’t forget that while you wait for book 2 in the series, “Sanction”, a short story set after the events of Path of Night, is available super cheap from Amazon!

Did we mention that The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories won Best Collection at the Australian Shadows Awards last month? It DID! Nice double with the Aurealis Award – congratulations Jo!

Speaking of The Bone Chime Song and Other Stories Dave Versace reviewed the book on Amazon, saying it’s full of, “Beautiful, dark stories of humanity on the fringes of normality or the verge of extinction.” Much appreciated Dave!

Elanor Matton-Johnson gave Ink Black Magic by Tansy Rayner Roberts five stars on Goodreads, saying it’s, “A brilliantly batty romp…” – we agree! And Cissa on Amazon said, “VERY recommended, especially if you like surreal mash-ups.” Thanks Cissa!

Let us know if you review a FableCroft book on Amazon, Goodreads or your blog, and we’ll happily link to it!

Buzzing about Guardian

June 22, 2014 ~ Tehani ~ 1 Comment

Two weeks ago we launched Jo Anderton’s third Veiled Worlds novel, Guardian, to a great audience at Continuum (photos by Cat Sparks), and there’s been some lovely buzz about the book around the traps too!

Jo shares her Big Idea over at John Scalzi’s Whatever.

At SF Signal, Jo discusses what finishing a trilogy taught her about the creative process.

And the story behind Guardian over at Upcoming4Me!

Donna Hanson interviews Jo here.

And Alan Baxter does so here.

Ventureadlaxre gives a great first review of the book here, saying: “…strength and wit in the face of adversity…gives this novel the edge that makes you unable to stop reading…”

And even our amazing cover artist, Dion Hamill, has been spreading the word!

HUGEST thanks to the wonderful Tansy Rayner Roberts for doing such a fantastic job of launching the book into the world (loved the line “bibliophile search and rescue”!), as well as Alex and Katharine for being big help setting up and selling during the launch; to Justin from Slow Glass who has been a rock for convention sales and distribution; to Cat for the (as usual excellent) photos; to the brilliant Continuum X team for a great convention and a really awesome launch spot; and to the fabulous con-goers who came along and supported – you all rock!

And so we are out in the world. All pre-order copies have been sent, so if you have not yet received one, please let me know! Everyone else, please ask your local bookstore to order copies if they don’t have them on the shelf, or purchase from your favourite online bookseller (obviously we recommend Slow Glass Books for print copies!).

Book launch! Guardian by Jo Anderton!

May 30, 2014 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

Join the FableCroft Publishing team at Continuum X in Melbourne to launch Jo Anderton‘s new Veiled Worlds novel, GUARDIAN. Tansy Rayner Roberts will officiate proceedings, Jo will be there to sign books, and there will be prizes, treats and special launch prices available!

We’ll be in “The Big Top” following the Fan Fund Auction and would love to see you there – let us know you’ll be coming by joining the Facebook event page or by commenting below.

FableCroft will have a presence in the Dealer Room most of Saturday and Sunday of the convention, with Slow Glass Books stocking our publications on Friday and Monday – come say hi!

Guardian has landed!

May 20, 2014 ~ Tehani ~ Leave a comment

The advance copies of Jo Anderton’s new novel Guardian have landed! We’re super excited to see them, because they are GORGEOUS! You can pre-order print copies from all your favourite physical and online retailers, but we are still honouring our pre-order special price (with BONUS ebook content!) which is the absolute cheapest way to get the book! Special pre-order offer ends on June 6, as the book will be officially launched at Continuum in Melbourne that weekend. So get in quick, for the best price (and exclusive Veiled Worlds content delivered straight to your email!).

PRE-ORDER Guardian by Jo Anderton, with exclusive bonus ebook (ended 5/6/14)

Linky goodness!

May 11, 2014 ~ Tehani

The award-winning Starship Sofa podcast have worked their podcasty magic on another story from One Small Step – this time, Suzanne J Willis’ story “Number 73 Glad Avenue” has hit the airwaves – take a listen!

Marianne de Pierres’ novel Peacemaker is going to be made into an interactive game! The origins of the Peacemaker series are in the short story “Virgin Jackson”, which was reprinted in FableCroft’s Australis Imaginarium anthology in 2010!

Pozible have posted an interview with us about our Cranky Ladies crowdfunding campaign. Check it out here.

Jo Anderton’s forthcoming book Guardian has been sent to the printer! Official launch will take place at Continuum in Melbourne during the June long weekend. It’s not too late to pre-order your copy (ebook or print) for special introductory price and get bonus exclusive Veiled Worlds content!

The voting for NAFF (National Australian Fan Fund) closes TODAY, and I’m running, with my fan hat on! The fund supports an Australian fan to attend the National Science Fiction and Fantasy convention in Australia (this year that’s Continuum), and I’m really looking forward to being able to attend in that capacity, should I be successful! I can hardly ever get to panels when I go to cons, and being there as NAFF delegate would mean I can do the full convention experience — I’ve also got lots of fun ideas for fundraising for NAFF (part of the delegate’s responsibility), which I’m looking forward to. You can find more information here, and once you’ve read about each candidate, if you’ve got $5 to spare for a vote, it would be appreciated (you don’t have to vote for me — the other candidate is also very worthy, or you can vote to hold over funds for the following year).

Speaking of Natcon, if you are a member of Continuum, or were a member of Conflux last year, you have Ditmar Awards voting rights! It’s a great ballot, so please exercise your democratic rights 🙂 We have posted some free fiction and discounts on our nominated books and stories, to help you make an informed choice 🙂

Look, a book (cover)!

April 30, 2014 ~ Tehani

We’re almost ready to go to print on Guardian, Jo Anderton’s new novel, and we just got the final cover art through last night! I know Jo couldn’t wait to share it (she seems to like it…) and I’ve finally had a chance to pop it here as well!

Guardian cover — Original art by Dion Hamill, design by Amanda Rainey

Don’t forget, you can still pre-order Guardian for a special price and receive exclusive bonus Veiled Worlds content — more details here.