While it’s more than a little gratifying to see Peacemaker on so many Most Anticipated SFF Books of 2014 lists, it’s also a little daunting. Not sure what kind of story people are expecting, but it was fun writing it, so hopefully it will be fun reading it.

I grew up on Zane Grey westerns and have tried to capture the same passion he had for the landscape, while writing a thoroughly MDP genre mashup. The SF is understated (in the first book at least), the romance is understated, the western tropes are overstated and the crime and fantasy aspects dominate.

If you’re looking for reference points for the story then you might find echoes of Mythago Wood, Light of the Western Stars, Gun with Occasional Music and some good paranormal fantasy (thinking Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs), but conceived and written original MDP style. 

Anyway, not that I’m collecting links or anything (???), but you’ll find PEACEMAKER mentioned on some of these great blogs:

• Publishers Weekly
• BuzzFeed
• SparkNotes Kirkus
• The Book Plank
• Fantasy Faction
• Shadow Hawk
• Tor.com
• A Fantastical Librarian
• Draumr Kopa
• Australian Women Writers Challenge

Thanks to everyone who featured my book. I’m excited for its release from Angry Robot in April/May and for some other great news that will accompany it.

Popping in to shares some links and news with y’all.

Firstly, PEACEMAKER is now with Angry Robot while they consider what editing needs to be done on it, which gives me time to start thinking about, and moving on to, book 2, DEALBREAKER. Muwahahaha! Boy, will that have some fun stuff in it. I got excited just writing the synopsis!

Meanwhile, I’ve been writing the first chapters of a crime novel that I’m DYING to get into full time. It’s all about Antiquities theft. Gorgeous yummy stuff.

Over at sonsofcorax, I blog about how I get inspiration for names in my fiction. Anyone who’s read the Sentients of Orion and Parrish Plessis will find this interesting.

Some people have been asking me where they can get copies of my new picture book Serious Sas and Messy Magda so I’ve just dropped in the BOOK DEPOSITORY link for you all.

And a little interesting titbit … Terri Sellen shared the link to this extraordinary phenomenon. It is so reminiscent of the stories in my Glitter Rose collection by Twelfth Planet Press, that I got goosebumps when I saw it. Which brings me to the fact that Glitter Rose will finally be available in e-book soon. Will let you know!

There’s been an increase in cop shows with female leads over the last few years and many of them have been pretty good: The Closer, Major Crimes, King, In Plain Sight, Saving Grace, Cold Case and Rizzoli and Isles come to mind. Poppy Montgomery in Unforgettable is another one to add to the list.

The wiki summary says:

Carrie Wells has hyperthymesia, a rare medical condition that gives her the ability to visually remember everything. She reluctantly joins the New York City Police Department’s Queens homicide unit after her former boyfriend and partner, Lt. Al Burns, asks for help with solving a case. The move allows her to try to find out the one thing she has been unable to remember, which is what happened the day her sister was murdered.

The use of Carrie’s (Poppy’s) hyperthymesia is an interesting hook, and there’s some strong romantic tension between her and her old boyfriend-now-boss, Al Burns. The stories are a little pedestrian but Carrie’s obsession with her sister’s murderer adds a darker and slightly disturbed layer to what otherwise, could be a pretty ordinary cop show. There’s something about Poppy’s Character, Carrie Wells, that resonates for me with Bo played by Anna Silk in Lost Girl. Both are confident, brave, sexy women who value their friends.

I haven’t seen Jane Curtin, who plays Dr Joanne Webster the gnarly Medical Examiner, since her days in 3rd Rock from the Sun, and her acting brings some extra piquancy to her role.

Having cancelled it after season 1, CBS commissioned a second series in which they ditched all of the cast except Carrie, Al and Dr Webster, and relocated the three uptown into much more opulent circumstances at NYPD headquarters. I haven’t had a chance to watch it yet, but I’ll be interested to see if shifting the show’s location from Queens robs it of its little bit of individuality.