A. J. Blakemont

  • About the Author
  • Nonfiction
  • Fiction
  • Blog
  • Links
  • Privacy Policy
You are here: Home / Archives for Books / Fantasy

Fantasy and science fiction best sellers: March 2015

March 29, 2015 by AJ 2 Comments

Fantasy pictureEach month I will be analyzing science fiction and fantasy best seller and “best books of the month” lists.

New York Times Best Seller List

In March three fantasy books made it to the New York Times best seller list (adult fiction, hardcover):

THE BURIED GIANT by Kazuo Ishiguro (Knopf). In a semi-historical ancient Britain, an elderly couple set out in search of their son. From the author of Never Let Me Go and the Booker Prize-winning The Remains of the Day.

TRIGGER WARNING by Neil Gaiman (Morrow/HarperCollins). Stories and poems about the power of imagination.

DEAD HEAT by Patricia Briggs (Ace). Charles and Anna, married werewolves, must stop a dangerous Fae whom they encounter during what begins as a pleasure trip; Book 4 of the Alpha and Omega series.

Amazon.com, Best Books of the Month: Science Fiction & Fantasy

The Shadows: A Novel of the Black Dagger Brotherhood by J.R. Ward (NAL). Bloody war rages across the Forgotten Realms world in the third book of the Companions Codex, the latest series in R.A. Salvatore’s New York Times best-selling saga of dark elf Drizzt Do’Urden.

The Skull Throne (The Demon Cycle) by Peter V. Brett (Del Rey). The saga of humans winnowed to the brink of extinction by night-stalking demons.

A Blink of the Screen: Collected Shorter Fiction by Terry Pratchett (Doubleday). A collection of short fiction from Terry Pratchett, spanning the whole of his writing career from schooldays to Discworld and the present day.

Prudence (The Custard Protocol) by Gail Carriger (Orbit). Introducing the Custard Protocol series, in which Alexia Maccon’s daughter Prudence travels to India on behalf of Queen, country… and the perfect pot of tea.

Clash of Eagles (The Clash of Eagles Trilogy) by Alan Smale (Del Rey). This work of alternate history imagines a world in which the Roman Empire has not fallen and the North American continent has just been discovered.

Old Venus (Bantam). Sixteen all-new stories by science fiction’s top talents, collected by George R. R. Martin and Gardner Dozois.

Note: this is a selection, not the complete list.

B&N Best-Sellers in Science Fiction & Fantasy

Vision In Silver (Anne Bishop’s Others Series #3) by Anne Bishop (Penguin). The New York Times bestselling author of The Black Jewels Trilogy transports readers to a world of magic and political unrest – where the only chance at peace requires a deadly price.

A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab (Tom Doherty Associates). Kell is one of the last Travelers-magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel universes, connected by one magical city.

The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss (DAW). In this book, Patrick Rothfuss brings us into the world of one of The Kingkiller Chronicle’s most enigmatic characters. Full of secrets and mysteries, this is the story of a broken girl trying to live in a broken world.

Golden Son (Red Rising Series #2) by Pierce Brown (Random House). By the New York Times bestselling author of Red Rising. Golden Son continues the saga of Darrow, a rebel forged by tragedy, battling to lead his oppressed people to freedom.

Madness in Solidar (Imager Portfolio Series #9) by L. E. Modesitt Jr. (Tom Doherty Associates). The ninth book in the Imager series.

Half the World by Joe Abercrombie (Random House). New York Times bestselling author of Half a King, Red Country and the First Law trilogy: The Blade Itself, Before They Are Hanged, and Last Argument of Kings.

Note: this is a selection, not the complete list.

Filed Under: Fantasy, Science fiction Tagged With: best sellers, fantasy, science fiction, Terry Pratchett

Science fiction, fantasy, and horror book awards

March 29, 2015 by AJ 1 Comment

Hugo Award logo
Hugo Award logo

I’ve compiled for you a list of science fiction, fantasy, and horror book awards with descriptions and links to their websites.

Most prestigious awards in alphabetical order:

Arthur C. Clarke Award

The Arthur C. Clarke Award is the most prestigious award for science fiction in Britain. It is awarded every year to the best science fiction novel which received its first British publication during the previous calendar year. The Award is chosen by jury.

2014 winner announced at Sci-Fi London Film Festival, London, May 1, 2014

2014 winner: Ancillary Justice, Ann Leckie (Orbit)

List of Clarke Award winners 1987-2013

Bram Stoker Awards

The Bram Stoker Awards are the horror equivalent of the Nebulas, voted by members of the professional Horror Writer’s Association. They are notable for being awarded “for superior achievement” — not for “best” of the year.

2013 winners announced at World Horror Convention 2014, Portland, USA, May 10, 2014

2013 Stoker Awards winners | Lists of Stoker Awards winners 1988-2013

British Fantasy Society (August Derleth) Award

Administered annually by the British Fantasy Society (BFS). The shortlists for the awards are compiled from nominations submitted by members of the BFS. They are then voted on by BFS members only.

2014 winners announced at FantasyCon, York, England, September 7, 2014

History and list of BFS winners 1972-2014

British Science Fiction Association Award

Presented annually by the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), based on a vote of BSFA members and – in recent years – members of the British national science fiction convention.

2013 winners announced at Satellite 4 Eastercon, Glasgow, April 20, 2014

BSFA Winners 1969-2013

Hugo Award

The Hugo Award, also known as the Science Fiction Achievement Award, is given annually by the World Science Fiction Society (WSFS). All Awards are given for work in a given year. Individual works are eligible only in their first year of publication. Members of past and current years’ World SF Convention nominate up to five items per category.

2014 winners announced at LonCon 3, London, UK, August 17, 2014

Hugo winners 1953-2014

John W. Campbell Memorial Award

The Award was created to honor the late editor of Astounding Science Fiction magazine, which is now named Analog. Campbell, who edited the magazine from 1937 until his death in 1971, is called, by many writers and scholars, the father of modern science fiction. Nominations come from the science-fiction publishers as well as individual jurors. Nominations are usually requested in December, and the jurors read and debate the merits of these books through April. This process produces a list of finalists based on jurors’ rankings, and the final decision is made after vigorous debate on the merits of the finalists during May.

2014 winners announced in June 2014

List of Campbell Memorial winners 1973-2014

The Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award is the short fiction counterpart of the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for best novel of the year.

Locus awards

Presented to winners of Locus Magazine’s annual readers’ poll. There are many categories, including Science Fiction Novel, Fantasy Novel, Young Adult Book, First Novel, etc.

2014 winners announced in Seattle, USA, June 28, 2014

List of Locus 2014 winners | Lists of Locus winners 1971-2014

Nebula Awards

The Nebula Awards are the Oscars of the SF/F field, awards presented by professionals to professionals. The Nebula Awards are voted on, and presented by, active members of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Since 1965, the Nebula Awards have been given each year for eligible novels published in the United States during the two previous years.

There are several associated awards: Ray Bradbury Award, Andre Norton Award, SFWA Grand Master Award, and SFWA Awards.

2013 winners announced in San Jose, USA, May 17, 2014

2014 nominations and list of Nebula 2000-2013 winners | Lists of Nebula 1966-2013 winners

Philip K. Dick Award

The Philip K. Dick Award is given to the best original paperback published each year in the US. Each year the five judges read as much of the paperback original SF as they can get, or can stand, and then deliberate and choose nominees, that are announced in January each year, and the winners, who are announced in late March or early April at a ceremony at Norwescon. The judges then nominate their own successors. Only writers or academics are eligible to be judges.

2014 winners announced at Norwescon 37, SeaTac, USA, April 18, 2014

List of PKD 1983-2014 winners

Shirley Jackson Awards

In recognition of the legacy of Shirley Jackson’s writing, and with permission of the author’s estate, the Shirley Jackson Awards have been established for outstanding achievement in the literature of psychological suspense, horror, and the dark fantastic. The awards are given for the best work published in the preceding calendar year. The Shirley Jackson Award are voted upon by a jury of professional writers, editors, critics, and academics, with input from a Board of Advisors.

2013 winners announced at Readercon, Burlington, USA, July 13, 2014

List of Shirley Jackson 2007-2013 winners

World Fantasy Awards

The World Fantasy Awards, associated with the annual World Fantasy Conventions, were established as a fantasy counterpart to the SF-oriented Hugo and Nebula Awards. They differ from those awards in significant ways, primarily in that winners are determined by judges — though two places in each category on the final ballot are determined by votes from convention members.

2014 winners announced at World Fantasy Convention, Washington, USA, November 9, 2014

List of WFA 1975-2014 winners

In addition to the awards listed above we can also mention the following, less known awards:

  • David Gemmell Award (heroic fantasy)
  • The Kitschies: The Red Tentacle, The Golden Tentacle, etc.
  • Mythopoeic Award (fantasy)

To this already impressive array of awards we need to add the Goodreads Choice Awards that has separate categories for science fiction, fantasy, and horror books.

Literary awards come in all shapes and sizes – some are prestigious, others are less known; some involve a panel of judges, others are decided by readers. However, each of those awards has a role in the publishing ecosystem. In my view, they are useful not because of their effect on sales, but because they give exposure to books and talented authors who might have remained unnoticed. Now brace yourselves for the book awards season – it starts in April!

* * *

Subscribe to my newsletter!

Filed Under: Awards, Fantasy, Horror, Science fiction Tagged With: Arthur C. Clarke, awards, Bram Stoker, fantasy, horror, John W. Campbell, Philip K. Dick, science fiction, Shirley Jackson, Theodore Sturgeon

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter

About the Author

A. J. Blakemont is a novelist and essayist interested in speculative and gothic fiction. He is also passionate about music, history and its mysteries. He grew up in Paris where he studied literature. He lives near London and he is a member of the Society of Authors.

Blog Categories

  • Alternative cultures (3)
    • Events (2)
  • Books (20)
    • Awards (2)
    • Classics (4)
    • Fantasy (12)
    • giveaways (1)
    • Horror (8)
    • Science fiction (15)
  • Cinema (1)
  • History (5)
    • Literature (5)
  • Travel (2)
    • UK (2)

Tags

Anne Rice Arthur C. Clarke awards best sellers Bram Stoker classic Cthulhu deep-sea exploration Dracula Edgar Allan Poe fantasy fashion Frankenstein Gothic H. G. Wells Herman Melville history Horace Walpole horror I Am Legend Jane Austen John Polidori John W. Campbell Jules Verne Lord Byron Lovecraft Matthew Lewis mirror souls paranormal Philip K. Dick photos romanticism sci-fi science fiction Sheridan Le Fanu Shirley Jackson Terry Pratchett Theodore Sturgeon Theophile Gautier time travel True Blood urban fantasy vampires Walter Scott Whitby

Copyright

© A. J. Blakemont, 2014-2021.
A. J. Blakemont is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Copyright © 2022 · Agency Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in