My new novel is out - published on Tuesday in the States, and today in the UK. It's the third in the Prefect Dreyfus sub-series and also a book in the Revelation Space universe. It's likely to be the last word on the RS universe for a bit, not because I'm fed up with it, but because I want to concentrate on standalones from now on.
There have been a few early reviews. Publisher's Weekly called it "a touching and spectacularly intricate sequel that also functions well as a standalone", while Booklist said "Reynolds pulls out all the stops ...readers’ fingernails will be left ragged."
The Daily Mail called it "an immersive, compelling, slow-burn space mystery" while SFX called it "a brilliantly realised melding of police procedural and hard SF".
That's it for now. I've not so far had any promotional activities offered to me but we'll see what eventuates. I'll also put up information on signed editions as and when there's something concrete to report.
best, and thanks to all who have pre-ordered.
Al R
Great, I'm looking forward to putting it on the https://ScienceFictionBookClub.org Reading List
ReplyDeleteMine's been shipped. Can't wait!
ReplyDeleteThanks for all the hard work! I'm about 1/3rd through it and enjoying it very much. Look forward to hearing news on your next book. BTW, I *love* standalone science fiction. ~Neal
ReplyDelete"Transtromer." Haha! First "Trollhattan," now this.
ReplyDeleteAmazing. When do we have a character called Örnsköldsvik, nicknamed Övik?
DeleteI just got my copy - looking forward to starting it!
ReplyDeleteSo far I have the ebook & the audiobook. I’ll keep an eye out for signed copies. I want to read it all at once, but also I don’t want it to end. ☺️
ReplyDeleteGot my copy on Monday!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to it! I've read the four Revelation Space books, and just finished The Prefect!
ReplyDeleteIt looks like Australia won't get physical copies until April 30th. I'll have to order it from overseas. 😔
ReplyDeleteJust arrived from B/N today. Late due to the weather.
ReplyDeleteReceived my hardcover copy shipped from the UK to Montreal in less than a week ! Looking forward to reading it. Also looking forward to the next new stand alone novel. Thanks for all the great work.
ReplyDeleteJust finished the Audible version, was nice to hear the same narrator. Very moving, great read. Hope you revisit the RS Universe at some point.
ReplyDeleteI've just finished it and wanted to say well done, I loved it! I have really enjoyed this series and although sad it's the end I know it's also nice to go out on a high before trying something new. Though I wouldn't say no to a Panoply tv show. Come on AppleTV, throw some of that money about and make another great sci-fi tv show :D
ReplyDeleteMachine Vendetta is the subject of today's Penny Arcade: https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2024/02/02/ultraswine
ReplyDeleteThanks, that's pretty funny.
DeleteYou can't buy that sort of publicity. It's also not the first time that Penny Arcade's Gabe has been shown to read your books, though the previous one is more about the covers: https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2022/05/09/books-and-their-covers
DeleteAnd the hyperpigs just keep on coming: https://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2024/02/05/infrahogs
DeleteToday I learned Penny Arcade still exists...
DeleteSomething has been bugging me...the name Hestia del Mar. Many years ago - probably 15 years or so - I played Eve Online for some time, and one of my toons was called...Hestia Mar. It's a name i remembered from a sci-novel set on Mars but i can't remember the title of the author.
ReplyDeleteIs there a connection?
Good catch - Hestia Mar is a character in Liz Williams' wonderful Winterstrike. I must have been subconsciously drawn to the name when I came up with the Hestia del Mar character in Elysium Fire. I wouldn't intentionally pinch a name like that but it shows the power of subliminal influences. It must have felt "right" as a name because I'd already encountered it.
DeleteDoes the character "Minty" have anything to do with the Leigh Bowery project of the same name?
ReplyDeleteNot to my knowledge, I only know of Leigh Bowery's work through their connection to The Fall.
DeleteThank you very much for Machine Vendetta, I dived back into The Prefect and Elysium Fire before it came out and it's been great to immerse myself in this world again. As it's a new book I'll try to avoid spoilers and simply say I'm sad that it's over! In more general terms though, I'm someone who first discovered your books through Revelation Space and its sequels where The Glitter Band was a twisted and decaying reminder of past glories, a former peak of human civilisation. So it's been fascinating to read the novels and short stories set during the glory years, to fill in some of the details of what was going on during that time. Far from smooth sailing, to say the least. Obviously there's a question of scale, where even a number of habitats nuked or turned into raw materials for manufacturing plants are a tiny fraction of the whole, and where we follow Panoply in dealing with the problems rather than the millions of inhabitants living happy lives. But it still makes me think of the power of nostalgia, of harking back to better years which may not have been quite as great as we remember.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to your future standalone novels. As I've started reading The House of Suns again, for the first time in many years, I've just encountered The Vigilance: a reminder of your many great ideas and thought-provoking subplots, enough to fill multiple universes.
I got delayed on starting so I'm only halfway through, but was delighted to see the Klausner Index make a return.
ReplyDeleteSo far, so awesome.
Just finished the book and rated 5/5 on Amazon. I loved it. I have to echo Ryan's sentiments and say I'm sad to see an end to Tom's arc, unless you've got something up your sleeve for his destination.
ReplyDeleteI think I've mentioned this before a long time ago, but I've always wondered about the economics of Ultra trade and lighthuggers.
Is it fair to assume that, at least during the Belle Epoque, a number of lighthuggers were still functioning as they were intended, as interstellar liners that carried passengers between star systems in addition to trading and carrying cargo?
If so, I wonder who could afford those berths. We know someone on the salary of a Prefect or, say, a constable couldn't afford them, and I doubt Minty could pay in berries! So is it fair to say liner lighthuggers are like the Titanics of interstellar crossings, the luxury way to travel? If they are, do most of them have the kind of entertainment and shopping facilities we caught a glimpse of in the NFI when they were dilapidated, long forgotten and unused? For some reason the idea fascinates me: the wealthy of the Belle Epoque enjoying the best in interstellar luxury travel, at least for the year or two it takes to accelerate before they take their sleeper berths.
Just finished Machine Vendetta - loved making another visit to the Glitter Band. Nice send off for Dreyfus. Nice twist near the end. Enjoyed the book very much.
ReplyDelete3 copies left of MACHINE VENDETTA Signed & Numbered First Edition over at Anderida Books - https://www.anderidabooks.co.uk/
ReplyDeleteRegretfully, I just finished Machine Vendetta. I say regretfully because I was enjoying it so much. I actually limited myself to reading 30 minutes a day because I wanted it to last awhile. Alas, all good things come to an end. I love the character Tom Dreyfus. So much in the mold of the classic British detective. I could almost imagine Endeavor Morse and Tom Dreyfus enjoying a pint together. I hope we see more Prefect novels with Hafdis and maybe see Dreyfus and Valery after they visit the Pattern Juggler worlds. Thank you, Mr. Reynolds, for the great joy I have in reading your books.
ReplyDeleteLoved it. Nice touch at the end...I expect they'll both go for a swim. I hope so. I'd like to see the old fella rejuvenated and back on station for a 4th time. The Glitter Band story is so far from over....
ReplyDelete