New publications from Lisa Timpf!

SF Canada member Lisa Timpf’s short story “Into the Ring” and her poem “From Cat, To Fiddle” are included in NewMyths’ Neosapiens: Best of New Myths Volume III anthology, which launched November 1, 2022.

Her poem “After the Quest is Over” also recently appeared in Eye to the Telescope Issue 46, Quests.

Lisa is a retired HR and communications professional who lives in Simcoe, Ontario. Her poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and book reviews have been published in a number of venues, including Star*Line, Future Days, and Dogs of War. Lisa’s speculative haibun collection, In Days to Come, is available from Hiraeth Publishing.

You can find out more about Lisa’s writing at lisatimpf.blogspot.com.

Michèle Laframboise’s “I’ll be Moon for Christmas” published in Asimov’s Science Fiction!

SF Canada member Michèle Laframboise’s latest story, “I’ll Be Moon for Christmas”, lends a wistful holiday air to the Nov/Dec issue of Asimov’s Science Fiction magazine.

On the stage, four jazzmen undulated like pale algae fronds, sending up blues notes in the stale air of the Ribald Café.

The long moody harmonics spouted from the brass instruments joined the blue smoke ghosts rising from the make-believe cigs most patrons were using. The musicians were playing pitch perfect, of course, an instrumental rendition of “Fly Me to the Moon,” an oldie that always made the younger ones among us smile.

The interior decor was doing its best to make us forget where we were: lustrous vermilion drapes framing the scene, glossy leafy plants in every unused corner, the ceiling painted in a trompe-l’oeil illusion of rising skyrises through a glass roof, even with random flocks of pale gray doves flying overhead. The scents that mingled with the false tobacco were the typical blends of true coffee beans.

Read a longer excerpt here and subscribe to Asimov’s here.

This is Michele’s fourth story for Asimov’s. Read more about it at her website!

 

Weekends Can Be Murder by Arlene Marks now out!

SF Canada member Arlene Marks’ first paranormal murder mystery, Weekends Can Be Murder, has just been released by Brain Lag Publishing.

When murder mystery theatre becomes too real for comfort…

Firefighter Larry Holmes needs some time away. Out of other options, he agrees to take his cousin’s place at a crime fiction convention. Larry doesn’t like mystery novels, but he can enjoy the host resort’s amenities and stay out of the way. That plan goes out the window, however, when he arrives at the venue with the convention’s organizer, Selena Watt, and the close-knit Crime Club decides that with Holmes and Watt present, the game must be afoot.

Advance reviews have given this novel high praise:

“The story is brilliantly written. As a reader, I was lured in to the setting becoming one of the cast of characters.” – Bette Walker, Leacock Medal Award Chair

“I love the hunt for clues, the sleuthing for suspects, and I absolutely revel in the final solution. I definitely did my happy dance after reading Weekends Can Be Murder.” – J.M. Tibbott, author of The Pridden Saga series

“Georgian Bay provides an intriguing setting for this mystery within a mystery featuring a cranky old house, a cast of characters who aren’t what they seem and a talented bevy of amateur sleuths. Weekends Can Be Murder is a fun mash-up of haunted house, classic whodunnit and a gigantic game of Clue.” – Janet Kellough, Author of The Thaddeus Lewis Mystery Series

“A propulsive murder mystery with a haunting twist.” – Lori Crossan, Programs Coordinator at Collingwood Public Library

Arlene is the creator of the ongoing Sic Transit Terra space opera series, among other current and upcoming novels. Her short fiction has appeared in various publications, including H.P. Lovecraft’s Magazine of Horror, Polar Borealis, and Daily Science Fiction, and has most recently been gathered into a collection titled Imaginary Friends (May 2022, Brain Lag). Her website is thewritersnest.ca.

Get Weekends Can Be Murder at Brain Lag today!

New Flash Fiction from Rhea Rose!

Nothing stayed buried this Halloween! Crystal Lake Publishing’s Shallow Waters series, released Oct. 31st, contains “The Red Scarf” by SFC member Rhea Rose.

The publisher says: “This anthology is perfect for fans of Halloween books, flash fiction, scary stories, classic horror tropes, horror books, mystery thrillers, horror anthologies, and mystery and suspense flash fiction stories. With a bit of dark humor and candy sprinkled over the top.”

Rhea Rose has published many Canadian speculative short-fiction stories and poems. She is a four-time Aurora Award nominee and is the editor of Polar Starlight, an online zine of speculative poetry by Canadian authors.

Jes Battis’ The Winter Knight featured on Buzzfeed!

SF Canada member Jes Battis’ upcoming novel, The Winter Knight (April 2023) was recently featured in a Buzzfeed article on fantasy titles!:

“You’ll have to wait until spring 2023 to check out this fantasy/sci-fi/LGBTQIAP+ novel. Like Maas, the author pulls on favorite legends and lore and re-creates the narrative. The Winter Knight is a closer tie to Maas’ Crescent City, but once you know how that series is connected to ACOTAR the jump in time doesn’t seem that fantastical. Arthurian legends are given a fresh life in this upbeat queer urban fantasy, where the knights of the round table are alive in Vancouver. When one winds up suspiciously dead, Hildie, a Valkyrie and the investigator assigned to the case, needs to find the killer — and on her short list of suspects is Wayne, an autistic college student and the reincarnation of Sir Gawain. After finding himself at the scene of the crime, Wayne is pulled deeper into his own medieval family history, all while attempting to flirt with the charming dean’s assistant Burt — who also happens to be a prime murder suspect in Hildie’s investigation. Fallen knights, conniving runesmiths, and witches are pulled into the investigation while Wayne and Hildie struggle to find out the truth. The Winter Knight is fast-paced with queer and trans heroes and is decidedly a slow burn.”

Preorder The Winter Knight today!
And find Jes at jbattis.com.

Charon’s Gold by Skyla Dawn Cameron now out!

SF Canada member Skyla Dawn Cameron has just released of the sixth novel in her UF/adventure Livi Talbot series! Charon’s Gold sends Livi to the underworld.

Livi Talbot is no longer the woman she once was.

She has suffered great loss. She has been betrayed. And after failing to stop the greatest villain she has ever faced, she’s determined to never be blindsided again.

Her first priority is to rescue a suffering soul from the underworld itself. Though fellow adventurer Iluka Grantham is at her side to hunt down the gold coins that will allow her to cross the river Styx, entering the underworld through the deadly Pluto’s Gate in Turkey remains solely on her shoulders. Survival in the world of the dead isn’t guaranteed, even for Livi Talbot, and this journey will bring her face to face with her greatest failures, her biggest losses, and her inability to save those she loves.

And if she survives? The next goal is to go after every person responsible for the death that caused magic to bleed back into the human realm.

Even if they’re family.

Find Charon’s Gold HERE and find Skyla at skyladawncameron.com.