Publisher Description
New epic fantasy in the grand tradition—including a never-before-published Song of Ice and Fire story by George R. R. Martin! Fantasy fiction has produced some of the most unforgettable heroes ever conjured onto the page: Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian, Michael Moorcock’s Elric of Melniboné, Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Classic characters like these made sword and sorcery a storytelling sensation, a cornerstone of fantasy fiction—and an inspiration for a new generation of writers, spinning their own outsize tales of magic and swashbuckling adventure. Now, in The Book of Swords, acclaimed editor and bestselling author Gardner Dozois presents an all-new anthology of original epic tales by a stellar cast of award-winning modern masters—many of them set in their authors’ best-loved worlds. Join today’s finest tellers of fantastic tales, including George R. R. Martin, K. J. Parker, Robin Hobb, Scott Lynch, Ken Liu, C. J. Cherryh, Daniel Abraham, Lavie Tidhar, Ellen Kushner, and more on action-packed journeys into the outer realms of dark enchantment and intrepid derring-do, featuring a stunning assortment of fearless swordsmen and warrior women who face down danger and death at every turn with courage, cunning, and cold steel. FEATURING SIXTEEN ALL-NEW STORIES: “The Best Man Wins” by K. J. Parker, read by John Lee “Her Father’s Sword” by Robin Hobb, read by Katharine McEwan “The Hidden Girl” by Ken Liu, read by Kim Mai Guest “The Sword of Destiny” by Matthew Hughes, read by Elliott Hill “‘I Am a Handsome Man’ Said Apollo Crow,” by Kate Elliott, read by Steve West “The Triumph of Virtue” by Walter Jon Williams, read by Elliott Hill “The Mocking Tower” by Daniel Abraham, read by Richard Brewer “Hrunting” by C. J. Cherryh, read by John Lee “A Long, Cold Trail” by Garth Nix, read by Nicholas Guy Smith “When I Was a Highwayman” by Ellen Kushner, read by Kirby Heyborne “The Smoke of Gold Is Glory” by Scott Lynch, read by Ralph Lister “The Colgrid Connundrum” by Rich Larson, read by Mark Deakins “The King’s Evil” by Elizabeth Bear, read by Julia Whelan “Waterfalling” by Lavie Tidhar, read by Mark Deakins “The Sword Tyraste” by Cecelia Holland, read by Steve West “The Sons of the Dragon” by George R. R. Martin, read by Ralph Lister And an introduction by Gardner Dozois, read by Arthur Morey
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About the Authors
George R. R. Martin sold his first story in 1971 and has been writing professionally ever since. He spent ten years in Hollywood as a writer-producer, working on The Twilight Zone, Beauty and the Beast, and various feature films and television pilots that were never made. In the mid ’90s he returned to prose, his first love, and began work on his epic fantasy series, A Song of Ice and Fire. He has been in the Seven Kingdoms ever since. Whenever he’s allowed to leave, he returns to Santa Fe, New Mexico, where he lives with the lovely Parris, a big white dog called Mischa, and two cats named Augustus and Caligula, who think they run the place.
Robin Hobb was born in California but grew up in Alaska, where she learned to love the forest and the wilderness. She has lived most of her life in the Pacific Northwest and currently resides in Tacoma, Washington. She is the author of the Rain Wilds Chronicles, the Farseer trilogy, the Liveship Traders trilogy, and the Tawny Man trilogy. Her books under the pseudonym Megan Lindholm include Wizard of the Pigeons, The Windsingers, and Cloven Hooves. She is also the author of The Inheritance, a collection of stories written under both names. Her short fiction has won the Asimov’s Readers’ Award and been a finalist for both the Nebula and Hugo awards.
Garth Nix, born in Melbourne, Australia, is a novelist whose books have won the Aurealis Awards for Best Fantasy Novel, Best Young Adult Novel, and Best Children’s Novel. His books have appeared on the bestseller lists of Publishers Weekly, the Guardian, and the Australian, and his work has been translated in forty languages.
Scott Lynch is a writer of fantasy novels. He has also
worked as a freelance writer, dishwasher, waiter, web
designer, marketing writer, office manager, and prep cook. He lives in New Richmond, Wisconsin.
Hans Christian Andersen (1805–1875) was born in Odense, Denmark, the son of a poor shoemaker and a washerwoman. As a young teenager, he became quite well known in Odense as a reciter of drama and as a singer. When he was fourteen, he set off for the capital, Copenhagen, determined to become a national success on the stage. He failed miserably, but made some influential friends in the capital who got him into school to remedy his lack of proper education. In 1829 his first book was published. After that, books came out at regular intervals. His stories began to be translated into English as early as 1846. Since then, numerous editions, and more recently Hollywood songs and Disney cartoons, have helped to ensure the continuing popularity of the stories in the English-speaking world.
About the Narrators
Mark Edwards write
psychological thrillers. His first solo novel, The Magpies, topped the Kindle chart in the UK. He has coauthored
four novels with Louise Voss: Catch Your
Death (a #1 bestseller in the UK), Killing
Cupid (chosen by Peter James as his book of 2012), All Fall Down, and Forward
Slash. After a career that has taken in everything from picking broad beans
and answering complaint calls for a rail company to teaching English in Japan and
being a marketing director, Mark currently writes full time. He lives in the
West Midlands with his wife, three children, and a ginger cat.
Arthur Morey has won three AudioFile Magazine “Best Of” Awards, and his work has garnered numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards and placed him as a finalist for two Audie Awards. He has acted in a number of productions, both off Broadway in New York and off Loop in Chicago. He graduated from Harvard and did graduate work at the University of Chicago. He has won awards for his fiction and drama, worked as an editor with several book publishers, and taught literature and writing at Northwestern University. His plays and songs have been produced in New York, Chicago, and Milan, where he has also performed.
Julia Whelan is a novelist, screenwriter, lifelong actor, and multiple award-winning audiobook narrator. She graduated with a degree in English and creative writing from Middlebury College and Oxford University. She is a former child actor who has appeared in multiple films and television shows.
Kim Mai Guest is an award-winning voice actor for audiobooks and video games. She can also be heard on television shows, such as G.I. Joe: Renegades, Batman: the Brave and the Bold, and Avatar, and in movies such asChill Out Scooby Doo and Dead Space: Aftermath. Her video game work includes Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy, and The Lord of the Rings.
Kirby Heyborne is a musician, actor, and professional narrator. Noted for his work in teen and juvenile audio, he has garnered over twenty Earphones Awards. His audiobook credits include Jesse Kellerman’s The Genius, Cory Doctorow’s Little Brother, and George R. R. Martin’s Selections from Dreamsongs.
Cassandra Campbell has won multiple Audie Awards, Earphones Awards, and the prestigious Odyssey Award for narration. She was been named a “Best Voice” by AudioFile magazine and in 2018 was inducted in Audible’s inaugural Narrator Hall of Fame.
Ralph Lister is an actor, voice actor, and AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator. He spent fifteen years in London theater before moving to the United States to focus on film and television. He has held numerous roles in Shakespeare and modern dramas, as well as starring roles in independent films. His voice and character work can be heard in Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearland 13 Going On 30. He lives in Los Angeles.
Neil Hellegers grew up in New Jersey and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a BA in theater arts and a minor in psychology before getting an MFA in acting from the Trinity Rep Conservatory in Providence, Rhode Island. He moved to New York City in 2003 and, since then, has made a career of theatrical performance, percussion, theater education, and audiobook narration. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.
Steve West, the winner of multiple Earphones Awards for narration, is an international actor who has starred on London’s prestigious West End stage, including productions of Mamma Mia! and Oh, What a Night! He is widely known for his television and film work in both the United States and the UK, and he has performed for Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. He hosts his own television show for the UK live from Los Angeles.
Nicholas Guy Smith, an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator, is a highly rated and diverse voice-over actor who has been heard in feature films, television commercials, and video games. He has voiced characters for Disney, Warner Brothers, Universal, and the Cartoon Network.
Neil Hellegers grew up in New Jersey and attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he earned a BA in theater arts and a minor in psychology before getting an MFA in acting from the Trinity Rep Conservatory in Providence, Rhode Island. He moved to New York City in 2003 and, since then, has made a career of theatrical performance, percussion, theater education, and audiobook narration. He currently lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son.
Katharine McEwan is an English-born actress and an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator. Her theater credits include Private Lives at Long Beach Playhouse, The Verdi Girls at Laguna Playhouse, Night Mother at Stage Lee Strasberg, and Hamlet at the Next Stage. She has also appeared in numerous independent and Hollywood films.