Dark Corridor by Jennifer Rahn now out!

SF Canada member Jennifer Rahn’s new release from Bundoran Press is a science fiction law enforcement adventure and the second, stand-alone novel set in the Sphairan Universe. Dark Corridor follows the career of Special Investigator Adynn Sheffield as she pushes back against the crime lords who have destroyed the last of her family. After being pulled from a case, she’s assigned to discover the route through which tech, unlike anything anyone has seen before, is suddenly coming through the black markets. Having grown up on a rough world, she’s savvy to the workings of the drug and pirate trades, however political machinations and her own recklessness force her to go rogue and join forces with corporations of dubious repute and space Vikings.

Dark Corridor’s fast prose delivers an imaginative and evocative look at an invasive cyberpunk world.”   –Derek Künsken, author of The Quantum Magician

Jennifer is also happy to announce that the first two novels in the Legends of Temlocht fantasy series have been re-released by Dragon Moon Press.

Wicked Initiations begins the series with the tale of Vladdir, King of the underground Temlochti State, when he is cast out into the Desert as his kingdom is invaded by Aragoths — strange soldiers controlled by the Sorcerer Ilet, who has made no demands and is destroying everything without reason. On the brink of losing everything, Vladdir gives in to a curse that fills him with cannibalistic desires, and gains him access to the capricious, dark magic of the Desert. With his new powers, he overwhelms the nearly indestructible Aragoths — but finds that Ilet was not the Aragoth commander at all. His true enemy is the mysterious Desert Priest, who taps into Vladdir’s curse to ensure the King will never know peace, and to make him pay for the near obliteration of the Aragoths with all he holds dear.

In the second volume, The Longevity Thesis, Desert orphan Antronos is subjected to dark magic that force-merges him with reptiles. Considered exotic by some, repulsive by others, he finds acceptance and respect in the underground civilization of the Temlochti State when he earns the right to practise medicine. Wishing to further his achievement, he enters a graduate program studying longevity.

Duped into an act of murder, Antronos must fight to prevent more harm to his rich and powerful clientele—some of whom he feels connected to, perhaps from a previous life. Desperate to prevent losing the family he never knew he had, Antronos must outsmart Sen Vernus, the most devious and evil professor in the University’s history and unravel a curse that has spanned generations.

Jennifer Rahn is a scientist and author living in Calgary. She is on Twitter (@jennrahn), Instagram (jjrahn70) and Facebook (@rahnbooks).

Sarah Tolmie’s The Little Animals

SF Canada member Sarah Tolmie has recently released a new novel, The Little Animals.

Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, a quiet linen draper in Delft, has discovered a new world: the world of the little animals, or animalcules, that he sees through his simple microscopes. These tiny creatures are everywhere, even inside us. But who will believe him? Not his wife, not his neighbours, not his fellow merchants—only his friend Reinier De Graaf, a medical doctor. Then he meets an itinerant goose girl at the market who lives surrounded by tiny, invisible voices. Are these the animalcules also? Leeuwenhoek and the girl form a curious alliance, and gradually the lives of the little animals infiltrate everything around them: Leeuwenhoek’s cloth business, the art of his friend Johannes Vermeer, the nascent sex trade, and people’s religious certainties. But Leeuwenhoek also needs to cement his reputation as a natural philosopher, and for that he needs the Royal Society of London—a daunting challenge, indeed, for a Dutch draper who can’t communicate in Latin.

Publishers Weekly’s starred review says:

Tolmie intricately weaves together the best of historical and weird fiction in this delicate tale of science and miracles…Tolmie balances careful characterization with rich historical detail, subtle humor, and energetic prose. Her central characters are suffused with color, and her prose captures the joys and uncertainties of life-changing discoveries. This delightful novel is not to be missed.

The Little Animals is available in trade paperback and ebook from
Aqueduct Press and its partner bookstores and distributors
amazon.com/amazon.ca
Barnes & Noble

And Sarah has more exciting news! She was recently one of seven finalists for Canada’s Griffin Poetry Prize, one of Canada’s most prestigious literary awards. Sarah’s The Art of Dying, published by McGill-Queen’s University Press, was praised by the jury as a “multifaceted meditation on mortality beneath its deceptively simple lyric surface.” The author herself was singled out as an “irreverent feminist” in the tradition of Dorothy Parker and Stevie Smith. “The Art of Dying” is available through McGill-Queen’s University Press , Indigo, Amazon, and Barnes & Noble.

And even more news! Sarah’s poem, “Ursula Le Guin in the Underworld” (On Spec issue 107 vol 28.4) is nominated for the Aurora Award in the Best Poem/Song category. Find out how to vote here.

Sarah is an Associate Professor in the English Department of the University of Waterloo. She received her PhD at Cambridge. Her work with virtual reality and dance explores links between movement and proprioception the body’s sense of itself and its limits in space and narrative and poetic structures and pathways.

Find more of Sarah’s poetry and fiction at her website.

A Magical Inheritance by Krista D. Ball

SF Canada member Krista D. Ball’s 22nd published book is a historical fantasy. “A Magical Inheritance” is the first in the Ladies’ Occult Society series. Miss Elizabeth Knight received an unexpected legacy upon her uncle’s death: a collection of occult books. However, when one of the books begins talking to her, she discovers an entire world of female occultist history opened to her—a legacy the Royal Occult Society had purposely hidden from the world.

However, the magic allowing the book to speak to Miss Knight is fading and she must gather a group of female acquaintances of various talents. Together, they’ll need to work to overcome social pressures, ambitious men, and tyrannical parents, all to bring Mrs. Egerton, the book ghost, back.

“If you like fantasy of manners, books featuring friendships between women, or books about sorting books, this is a book you’re going to want to check out.”                – https://waytoofantasy.com/

Krista is a Canadian science fiction and fantasy author. She was born and raised in Newfoundland, Canada where she learned how to use a chainsaw, chop wood,and make raspberry jam. After obtaining a B.A. in British History from Mount Allison University, Krista moved to Alberta, Canada where she currently lives.

Like any good writer, Krista has had an eclectic array of jobs throughout her life, including strawberry picker, pub bathroom cleaner, oil spill cleaner upper, and soup kitchen coordinator. These days, when Krista isn’t software testing, she writes in her messy office. She loves company! Come visit at http://kristadball.com or follow her on Twitter .

Purchase “A Magical Inheritance” at on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo, and support Krista’s Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/kristadb1.

And the nominees are…

This year’s Aurora Award ballot has just been announced. Several SF Canada members are nominated as finalists (their names are in capitals below).

The Aurora Awards are nominated by members of the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association. Voting on this ballot runs from August 3th to September 14th. The awards ceremony will be held at Can-Con in October.

Congratulations to all nominees!

Best Novel
Armed in Her Fashion by Kate Heartfield, ChiZine Publications
Graveyard Mind by Chadwick Ginther, ChiZine Publications
One of Us by Craig DiLouie, Orbit
They Promised Me The Gun Wasn’t Loaded by James Alan Gardner, Tor
The Quantum Magician by Derek Künsken, Solaris Books and Analog Science Fiction and Fact
Witchmark by C. L. Polk, Tor.com Publications

Best Young Adult Novel
Children of the Bloodlands: The Realms of Ancient, Book 2 by S.M. Beiko, ECW Press
Cross Fire: An Exo Novel by Fonda Lee, Scholastic Press
The Emerald Cloth by Clare C Marshall, Faery Ink Press
Exit Plans for Teenage Freaks by ‘Nathan Burgoine, Bold Strokes Books
Finding Atlantis by J.M. Dover, Evil Alter Ego Press
Legacy of Light by Sarah Raughley, Simon Pulse
The Sign of Faust by Éric Desmarais, Renaissance Press
Timefall by Alison Lohans, Five Rivers Publishing

Best Short Fiction
A Hold Full of Truffles by Julie E. Czerneda, Tales from Plexis, DAW Books
Alice Payne Arrives by Kate Heartfield, Tor.com Publications
Critical Mass by Liz Westbrook-Trenholm, Shades Within Us: Tales of Migrations and Fractured Borders, Laksa Media
For A Rich Man to Enter by SUSAN FOREST, InterGalactic Medicine Show, Issue 62
Gods, Monsters, and the Lucky Peach by Kelly Robson, Tor.com Publications

Best Graphic Novel
Crash and Burn by Finn Lucullan and Kate Larking, Astres Press
FUTILITY: Orange Planet Horror by Rick Overwater and Cam Hayden, Coffin Hop Press
It Never Rains by Kari Maaren, Webcomic
Krampus Is My Boyfriend! by S.M. Beiko, Webcomic
Woman World by Aminder Dhaliwal, Drawn and Quarterly

Best Poem/Song
Echos by Shannon Allen, By the Light of Camelot, Edge
How My Life Will End by Vanessa Cardui, Shades Within Us: Tales of Migrations and Fractured Borders, Laksa Media
Osiris by Leah Bobet, Uncanny Magazine
Trips to Impossible Cities by SANDRA KASTURI, Amazing Stories Magazine, issue #2, Winter 2018
Ursula Le Guin in the Underworld by SARAH TOLMIE, On Spec issue 107 vol 28.4

Best Related Work
By the Light of Camelot edited by J. R. Campbell and Shannon Allen, Edge
Disabled People Destroy Science Fiction edited by DOMINIK PARISIEN and Elsa Sjunneson-Henry, Uncanny Magazine
Gaslight Gothic: Strange Tales of Sherlock Holmes edited by J. R. Campbell and Charles Prepolec, EDGE
Shades Within Us: Tales of Migrations and Fractured Borders edited by SUSAN FOREST and LUCAS K. LAW, Laksa Media
We Shall Be Monsters: Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein 200 years on edited by Derek Newman-Stille, Renaissance Press

Best Visual Presentation
Bao, written and directed by Domee Shi , Pixar Animation Studios
Deadpool 2, written and produced by Ryan Reynolds, Twentieth Century Fox
Murdoch Mysteries, 2018 episodes, Peter Mitchell and Christina Jennings, Shaftesbury Films
Travelers, Season 3, Brad Wright, Carrie Mudd, John G. Lenic, and Eric McCormack, Peacock Alley Entertainment
Wynonna Earp, Season 3, Emily Andras, Seven24 Films Calgary

Best Artist
Lily Author, cover art for Polar Borealis Magazine #8, Dragon Lab
Samantha M. Beiko, covers for Laksa Media
James F. Beveridge, cover art for Tyche books
Roger Czerneda, cover for Tales from Plexis, DAW Books
Dan O’Driscoll, covers for Bundoran Press
Lynne Taylor Fahnestalk, cartoons for Amazing Stories Magazine

Best Fan Writing and Publications
Adios Cowboy, Adam Shaftoe
Books and Tea, Christina Vasilevski
Constructing the Future, Derek Newman-Stille, Uncanny Magazine
Mars vs. Titan, RON S. FRIEDMAN, Quora
She Wrote It But…Revisiting Joanna Russ’ “How to Suppress Women’s Writing” 35 Years Later, KRISTA D. BALL
Travelling Tardis, Jen Desmarais, JenEric Designs

Best Fan Organizational
SANDRA KASTURI, chair Chiaroscuro Reading Series: Toronto
Derek Künsken and MARIE BILODEAU, co-chairs, Can*Con, Ottawa
Matt Moore, MARIE BILODEAU, and Nicole Lavigne, co-chairs, Chiaroscuro Reading Series: Ottawa
Randy McCharles, chair, When Words Collide, Calgary
Sandra Wickham, chair, Creative Ink Festival, Burnaby, BC

Best Fan Related Work
S.M. Beiko and Clare C. Marshall, Business BFFs (Podcast)
Kari Maaren, ChiSeries Toronto, monthly musical performances
Derek Newman-Stille, Speculating Canada
Joshua Pantalleresco, Just Joshing (Podcast)
EDWARD WILLETT, The Worldshapers (Podcast)

New issues of Polar Borealis!

Numerous SF Canada members have work in the two most recent issues of Polar Borealis, edited by SF Canada member Richard Graeme Cameron.

Issue #9 (Feb-Mar 2019) includes cover art by Akem, a poem by Andrea Schlecht, and stories by Robert Dawson, Geoffrey Hart, and Robert Runté.

Issue #10 (Apr-May 2019) features poems by Rhea Rose, Neile Graham, and Colleen Anderson. Stories include works by Ron Friedman and Matthew Bin. And there’s an article by Robert Runté.

Download both issues for free at Polar Borealis and show your support of this Canadian SF magazine via the GoFundMe.

Eye to the Telescope Issue 32 (Sports and Games)

SF Canada member Lisa Timpf recently served as guest editor for the Sports and Games issue of Eye to the Telescope.

Eye to the Telescope, a quarterly online journal, began publishing science fiction, fantasy, horror, and other speculative poetry in 2011, under the auspices of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Poetry Association.

Issue 32 leads off with SF Canada member’s Colleen Anderson’s “The Briar Witch”.

Lisa Timpf obtained a Bachelor of Physical Education degree from McMaster University, and subsequently attended Dalhousie University where she studied Sport History at the Master’s level, never quite managing to complete her thesis. Though knee problems have slowed her down, in her younger years, Lisa played a number of sports including hockey, field hockey, softball, volleyball, and ball hockey, to name a few. Lisa also enjoys games of strategy, like chess and Settlers of Catan. Just after she retired in 2014, List started writing speculative poetry and fiction. The opportunity to serve as editor of the “Sports and Games” issue of Eye to the Telescope allowed her to explore the intersection of two interests: sports and speculative poetry. Lisa’s own writing has appeared in a number of venues, including Star*Line, Neo-opsis, Liquid Imagination, New Myths, and Scifaikuest.

Colleen Anderson has been twice nominated for the Aurora Award in poetry. She has co-edited Tesseracts 17 and Playground of Lost Toys, which was nominated for a 2016 Aurora Award. Alice Unbound: Beyond Wonderland is her first solo anthology (Exile Editions, April 2018). Over 150 of her poems have seen print in such venues as Grievous Angel, Polu Texni, The Future Fire, Polar Borealis and many others. Her fiction collection, A Body of Work was published by Black Shuck Books, UK last fall, and her poetry chapbook Ancient Tales, Grand Deaths and Past Lives is available through Kelp Queen Press.