Subterranean Press is proud to announce the first new Langdon St. Ives adventure in nearly two decades!

A flaming meteor over the Yorkshire Dales, a long-lost map drawn by the lunatic Bill “Cuttle” Kraken, and the discovery of a secret subterranean shipyard beneath the River Thames lead Professor Langdon St. Ives and his intrepid friend Jack Owlesby into the treacherous environs of Morecambe Bay, with its dangerous tides and vast quicksand pits. They descend beneath the sands of the Bay itself, into a dark, unknown ocean littered with human bones and the remnants of human dreams. In this tale of murder, infamy, and Victorian intrigue, the tides of destiny shift relentlessly and rapidly as the stakes grow ever higher and the pursuit more deadly….

The Ebb Tide features a full-color wraparound dust jacket, black-and-white endsheets, and seven interior illustrations by J. K. Potter, who provided the splendid illustrations for The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives, the nearly 500 page omnibus of the gentleman scientist’s previous adventures.

John Picacio still has some details to finalize, and some finishing touches to wrap up, but here’s an early, slightly rough, look at the cover art for Dan Simmons’s magisterial new novel, Drood. Our edition has been completely designed and is currently being proofed. We should be sending it to our printer in roughly three weeks.

Given the strength of John’s work on Drood and Muse of Fire, we can’t wait to see what he comes up with The Terror, which is near the top of his work schedule.

We’ve just received the first copies of George R. R. Martin’s two volume limited edition of A Feast for Crows, and our first examination shows everything turned out wonderfully. We’ll be going through the books more closely in the morning, then sending limited and lettered sets out to have slipcases made. With a little luck, we’ll be shipping copies to our ever-patient (thank you!) customers in 4-5 weeks.

The backlog of new books is breaking up a bit…

Our shippers have sent out all copies of The Shadow of the Wind (Carlos Ruiz Zafon) as well as The Last Science Fiction Writer (Allen Steele). We expect all copies of the new novellas Kilimanjaro (Mike Resnick) and The Proteus Sails Again (Thomas M. Disch) to be en route to customers by Tuesday afternoon.

More as matters progress…

We couldn’t be happier… SubPress’ own Yanni Kuznia just received a starred review from Publishers Weekly for A Fantasy Medley, the anthology she edited with tales by Robin Hobb, Kelley Armstrong, Kate Elliott, and C. E. Murphy. As the review notes, “Four fantasy heavyweights contribute original tales featuring intriguing female protagonists to this enthralling anthology.”

On Seven for a Secret (Elizabeth Bear): “[Bear’s] superior prose will engage the interest of both new readers and fans of Abby and Sebastien’s earlier exploits.”

We’ve had a slight redesign to Neil Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, as the paper we originally ordered could no longer be manufactured. Here’s a first look at the mockup of how Neil’s instant classic for children and adults will look.

The special order marbled paper is at our printer, so we expect to receive finished books in the next two weeks, at which point we’ll immediately order the slipcases. If all goes according to plan, we should be shipping final copies of the numbered edition in February.

2009 is shaping up to be the year of Jack Vance. In addition to the mammoth tribute anthology, Songs of the Dying Earth, we have two new titles by the SF Grandmaster himself on our schedule.

– This is Me, Jack Vance! is, simply put, one of the most fascinating autobiographies to come out of the genre. Jack Vance has led a life of significant accomplishment and adventure, in addition to the many beloved tales he has written. Here, he shares his personal story with readers, both in text and an extensive photograph archive.

– Wild Thyme, Green Magic is a 360 page gathering of some of Vance’s best work, most of it out of print for decades — and none included in The Jack Vance Treasury. Here’s your chance to rediscover, once again, the world creating genius that has made Jack so beloved.

Both titles are deep into production, fully designed, and on schedule for publication this summer. One final thing to note: So as not to overburden Mr. Vance, we’ve asked him to sign only the lettered editions, which are certain to go fast.

Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s masterpiece, The Shadow of the Wind, is one of my favorite novels of the past decade, and it was a privilege to be allowed to publish a limited edition of it. Our edition is printed in two colors throughout, with duotone illustrations by Vincent Chong, and a “hidden” image on the back of the dust jacket. Shadow ranks as one of the two or three nicest books we’ve ever produced.

Limited Edition:

$75

Come join the gratuitous fun in Cherie Priest’s hillbilly monster mash, Those Who Went Remain There Still, replete with feuding families and the shade of Daniel Boone. Better bring your ax, and a shotgun might come in handy, too.

Limited Edition:

$40

Trade HC:

$25

Come join the celebration of Hard Case Crime’s 50th book, Fifty-to-One, penned by the imprint’s founder Charles Ardai. According to Publishers Weekly, “High-speed action and nonstop thrills highlight the 50th novel from Hard Case Crime… Ardai sets an impressive standard for the new wave of pulp crime fiction… Breathless action and entertaining characters make this a page-turner from start to finish.”

Limited Edition:

$45