New Release Books by Simon Morden

Uncover the mysteries, wonders, and history of Mars—as close to an eye-witness perspective of the incredible Red Planet as any reader can get. The history of Mars is drawn not just on its surface, but also down into its broken bedrock and up into its frigid air. Most of all, it stretches back into deep time, where the trackways of the past have been obliterated and there is no discernible trace of where they started from or how they travelled, only where they ended up. From the planet’s formation 4.5 billion years ago, through eras that featured cataclysmic meteor strikes, explosive volcanoes and a vast ocean that spanned the entire upper hemisphere, to the long, frozen ages that saw its atmosphere steadily thinning and leaking away into space, planetary geologist Dr. Simon Morden presents a tantalizing vision of our nearest neighbour, its dramatic history, and astonishing present.

A novel of first contact from Philip K Dich award-winning author Simon Morden. Sent to Earth to explore, survey, collect samples and report back to its makers, an alien probe arrives in the middle of a warzone. Witnessing both the best and worst of humanity, the AI probe faces situations that go far beyond its programming.

Two centuries after the Earth fell to enigmatic alien machines known as the Visitors, humanity survives in sparse nomadic tribes. Macsen is an adventurer, undertaking hazardous quests for the captivating Hona Loy; quests that have made him a hero. Macsen never fails, but this time he crosses the path of a Jugger, one of the deadliest of all the Visitors. Can he find a way to defeat the alien and survive, or will it fall to his faithful companion Laylaw to return to the tribe with the tale of his noble death? In Macsen Against the Jugger, award-winning author Simon Morden delivers a masterpiece of excitement and clever story telling. One of four independent novellas by four different authors that form NewCon Novella Set 5: The Alien Among Us

Award-winning author Simon Morden''s stunning quest continues, unravelling magic and uncovering secrets on the way . . . LET''S FACE IT, NONE OF US DESERVE TO BE SAVED. Since escaping London''s inferno, Mary and Dalip have fought monsters and won - though in the magical world of Down, the most frightening monsters come from within. Now they hold the greatest of treasures: maps that reveal the way to the White City, where they can find the answers they''re looking for, and learn the secrets of Down. But to get there they must rely on Crows, who has already betrayed them at every turn. As they battle their way towards the one place in all of Down without magic, they must ask themselves how far they will go to find their way home. After all, if there''s one thing the White City offers those brave enough to enter, it''s more than they bargained for. SIMON MORDEN''S DOWN STATION WAS AN EXTRAORDINARY QUEST FOR MEANING AND IDENTITY. NOW HE''S LEADING US TO THE KIND OF TRUTHS THAT LEAVE US CHANGED.

Robert and Marianne Newton die within minutes of each other: he is killed on his doorstep, she is hit by a speeding car in broad daylight. Gideon Smith - the only witness - remembers nothing. Torsten Neubauer - a detective from Berlin - looks where his British colleagues dare not. He uncovers corruption reaching to the very top of government, a plot that is to end in a coup, and a man who slays his victims with cursed bullets. Gideon Smith holds the key to a mystery he doesn''t understand, despite the dead rising to explain it. Only he stands between a mad man and the end of the world. After a gap of ten years, Heart is available again.

A tense drama set in the depths of space. Aboard a ship that has travelled beyond the reach of human knowledge, Corbyn discovers he may not be as alone as he ought to be... An intense hard SF novella from Simon Morden (B.Sc. Hons., Sheffield, Ph.D, Newcastle), a bona fide rocket scientist with degrees in geology and planetary geophysics who also writes science fiction. Author of a dozen novels and collections, Simon won the 2012 Philip K. Dick Award. At The Speed of Light is one of his finest works to date. "Morden has a natural talent for a plot that keeps the reader guessing." - The Guardian (on Equations of Life) "An engrossing rollercoaster of a plot winds up with a solidly satisfying climax that leaves the reader craving more." - Publishers Weekly (on Arcanum) "Morden, against a gritty, utterly convincing backdrop, anticipates every consequence and wrings out surprise after surprise." - Kirkus (on Arcanum) "This is British sci-fi at its hard-boiled best." - The Guardian (on The Curve of the Earth) "Morden is a writer who delights in turning your expectations upside down." - ScienceFiction.com At The Speed Of Light is the second release in a new series of NewCon Press novellas. The series will be issued in sets of four, with each set featuring cover art by the same artist - one piece of artwork divided between the four covers.

Award-winning author Simon Morden joins Gollancz with a stunning SF quest across a vast world that mirrors every London ever built. Instead of fire, there was water. A wave slapped through the open doorway, and a gust of wind blew into the smoke-filled corridor, dragging a spiral of soot outwards and away. MARY. One slip away from prison, fighting to build herself a future from nothing. DALIP. The gentle son of a warrior tradition. A young man who must fight for independence from his family. STANISLAV. A fierce and capable man carrying the wounds of a brutal war. They left London in flames for a place where everything was different. A place that can uncover your secrets. A place haunted by a man called Crows . . .

It starts with a mystery: an old manor house is surrounded by an impenetrable bubble, and all that lives within it seems to wither and die. Investigating, the Army find two men inside the house: men who vanished some 100 years ago but who have now reappeared, and as young as the day they disappeared. There are rumours of a machine which could puncture the dimensions, allowing man to travel beyond the bounds of the Earth ... and for other things to travel here. Another day, another war. PRAISE FOR ANOTHER WAR: ''Reading like a UNIT-era ‘Doctor Who’ this is a ‘us = good, them = bad’ story with no new-age sensibilities to worry about ... a ‘Boy''s Own’ action adventure complete with tentacled monsters and baying mobs.'' Sue Davies, SFCrowsnest.co.uk ''This short novel is fast-paced, action-packed, and a page-turner. It is a mix of horror, time-travel, military action, suspense, and science-fiction, with a little bit of ancient history thrown into the mix. For the most part, Morden''s writing is concise and fluid. Many of the scenes, particularly the action sequences, are very well done, almost cinematic in scope. This book would actually make a really good summer blockbuster popcorn movie.'' Chris Welch, Hellnotes Shortlisted for the 2006 World Fantasy Award.

The Six Degrees of Samuel Petrovitch: * Michael is an AI of incalculable complexity trapped under the remains of Oshicora tower. Petrovitch will free him one day, he just has to trust Michael will still be sane by the time he does. * Maddy and Petrovitch have trust issues. But Petrovitch is pretty sure she still loves him. * Sonja Oshicora loves Petrovitch too. But she''s playing a complicated game and it''s not clear that she means to save him from what''s coming. * The CIA wants to save the world. Well, just America, but they''ll call it what they like. * The New Machine Jihad is calling. But Petrovitch killed it. Didn''t he? * And the Armageddonists tried to kill pretty much everyone by blowing the world up. Now, they want to do it again. Once again, all roads lead back to Petrovitch. Everyone wants something from him, but all he wants is to be free . . .

An anthology of original stories; tales from the dark side, featuring Dark SF, Fantasy and Horror from: Adam Roberts Simon Morden E.J. Swift Jay Caselberg Emma Coleman Paul Kane Alex Dally McFarlane Marie O''Regan Paul Graham Raven Donna Scott Simon Kurt Unsworth Paula Wakefield James Worrad

Winner of the 2012 Philip K. Dick Award Theorem: Petrovitch has a lot of secrets. Proof: Secrets like how to make anti-gravity for one. For another, he''s keeping a sentient computer program on a secret server farm - the same program that nearly destroyed the Metrozone a few months back. Theorem: The city is broken. Proof: The people of the OutZone want what citizens of the Metrozone have. And then burn it to the ground. Now, with the heart of the city destroyed by the New Machine Jihad, the Outies finally see their chance. Theorem: These events are not unconnected. Proof: Someone is trying to kill Petrovitch and they''re willing to sink the whole city to do it.

Rome was the center of the most powerful empire the world had ever seen, but that didn''t stop it falling to Alaric the Goth, his horde of barbarian tribesmen and their wild spell-casting shamans. Having split the walls with their sorcery and slaughtered the inhabitants with their axes, the victors carved up the empire into a series of bickering states which were never more than an insult away from war. A thousand years later, and Europe has become an almost civilized place. The rulers of the old Roman palatinates confine their warfare to the short summer months, trade flourishes along the rivers and roads, and farming has become less back-breaking, all due to the magic, bestowed by gods, that infuses daily life. Even the barbarians'' gods have been tamed: where once human sacrifices poured their blood onto the ground, there are parties and picnics, drinking and singing, fit for decent people and their children. But it looks like the gods are going to have the last laugh before they slip quietly into ill-remembered obscurity. . .

WELCOME TO THE METROZONE Post-apocalyptic London, full of street gangs and homeless refugees. A dangerous city needs an equally dangerous saviour. Step forward Samuil Petrovitch, a genius with extensive cybernetic replacements, a built-in AI with god-like capabilities and a full armoury of Russian swear words. He''s dragged the city back from the brink more than once - and made a few enemies on the way. So when his adopted daughter Lucy goes missing in Alaska, he has some clue who''s responsible and why. It never occurs to him that guessing wrong could tip the delicate balance of nuclear-armed nations. This time it''s not just a city that needs saving: it''s the whole world.

Welcome to the Metrozone -- post-apocalyptic London of the future. While the rest of Britain has devolved to anarchy, the M25 cordon protects a decaying city filled with homeless refugees, street gangs, exiled yakuza, crooked cops and mad cults. And something else; something new and dangerous. Enter Samuil Petrovitch: a Russian émigré with a smart mouth, a dodgy heart and a dodgier past. He''s brilliant, friendless, cocky and -- armed only with a genius-level intellect, prototype cyberware and a prodigious vocabulary of Russian swear words -- might just be most unlikely champion a city has ever had. Welcome to the future. Mind the gap.

Samuil Petrovitch is a survivor. He survived the nuclear fallout in St. Petersburg and hid in the London Metrozone - the last city in England. He''s lived this long because he''s a man of rules and logic. For example: GETTING INVOLVED = A BAD IDEA. But when he stumbles into a kidnapping in progress, he acts without even thinking. Before he can stop himself, he''s saved the daughter of the most dangerous man in London. And clearly: SAVING THE GIRL = GETTING INVOLVED. Now, the equation of Petrovitch''s life is looking increasingly complex: RUSSIAN MOBSTERS + YAKUZA + SOMETHING CALLED THE NEW MACHINE JIHAD = ONE DEAD PETROVITCH. But Petrovitch has a plan - he always has a plan - he''s just not sure it''s a good one.

A millennium after the formidable war machines of the User cultures devoured entire civilisations and rewrote planetary geography, Earth is in the grip of a perpetual Dark Age. Scientific endeavour is strongly discouraged, while remnant technology is locked away - hidden by a Church determined to prevent a new Armageddon. This is the world to which Benzamir Michael Mahmood must return. A descendant of the tribes who fled the planet during those ages-old wars, he comes in pursuit of enemies from the far reaches of space. The technology he brings is wondrous beyond the imaginings of those he will meet, but can its potency match that of the Church''s most closely guarded treasure? For centuries it has lain dormant, buried in a lead-lined tomb deep beneath the flagstones of a remote Siberian monastery. But it is about to be unearthed, and the powers that will be unleashed may be beyond anyone''s capacity to control. Even a man as extraordinary as Benzamir . . .