Épisodes

  • "Probability Amplitudes": Elements in flux
    Nov 21 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in November: Short Story Smorgasbord.Nearly 65 short stories, available at no cost.Get your FREE copy of Warmonger by Monique Singleton!In the near future, France is ruled by an ultra-right minded president. The country is in chaos, the chasm between rich and poor is ever increasing. Unwittingly a beautiful woman becomes the catalyst that starts not only a new French Revolution but also the Third World War.But what is the role of the strange priest in all this? Who is he? Or more appropriately, what is he?An intense story full of international intrigue, unexpected twists and a mind-blowing finale.Download your free copy of Warmonger and emerge yourself in the Primal series. You will not regret it.Back in September, I reported a status of “First Draft” or “Final Draft” for 56% of the material intended for Probability Amplitudes, my upcoming collection.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.I’m finding this journey through my first book to be an exercise in refining my progress tracking. In this case, I’d based my estimates on a completed (or so, at 26,000 words, I thought) first draft of a story entitled “Fire From Heaven,” and my plans for its as-yet unwritten 20,000 word companion story, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short.”Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.Those of you who’ve read my article from October 7, or have purchased Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror, may be aware "Nasty, Brutish, and Short" turned out to be nowhere near 20,000 words. It ended up a “mere” 9779 words. And when I’d finished editing “Fire From Heaven,” I discovered it to be a 8722 word novelette hiding inside 26,000 words of a (to quote author Anne Lamott) “shitty first draft.” This sent approximately 7500 words right back into “New Material Required” status.But I’m happy about it. Because "Fire From Heaven" is better at 9779 words than at 26,000. Much better.I expect more course corrections like this as I work my way toward publication, but as long as they make the book better, bring them on!Current status: 47% of the material for Probability Amplitudes is in “First Draft” or “Final Draft” status.Questions or comments? Please share your thoughts!My latest novelette, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short,” now appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror.When the first expedition to the mysterious planet Janus takes a deadly turn, Lieutenant Carita Keahi must fight for survival against an alien ecosystem unlike anything humanity has ever encountered. As crew members fall victim to bizarre and lethal life forms, Keahi races against time to escape the dangers of this two-faced world. With mind-bending alien biology and gut-wrenching sacrifices, this tale of planetary exploration gone horribly wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. Prepare for a journey into the unknown that will challenge everything you thought you knew about life in the cosmos! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thecosmiccodex.com
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    2 min
  • Terms of service
    Nov 14 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in September: Free Fantasy & SciFi.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.A black hole is coming for Earth, but that is only the beginning of Miranda’s problems.Get a free sample of Without a World by Kristen Illarmo!Subscribe to Kristen's newsletter and receive special offers, new release details, and a welcome gift delivered right to your inbox.20% off for new readers!She thought life in the Trash Lands was bad, scraping for food and water, wishing she could blend into the sea of ash. But when she learns her mother was right, Earth will get sucked into a black hole, Miranda must trust in skills she never knew she had to get to a place she refused to believe existed. When she finds an idyllic new world, to Miranda’s surprise, she cannot turn her back on the suffering on Earth, but will she risk it all to save a doomed world? Without A World, the first book in the Kirasu Rising duology, delivers non-stop adventure as we race through space and alternate dimensions alongside a strong female protagonist. Fans of Marie Lu will love this action-packed science-fantasy duology.Last month, I had the privilege to participate in the Sturgeon Symposium at the University of Kansas.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.While we spent most of Thursday and Friday discussing the work of Samuel R. Delany, the highlight was the presentation of the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award for the best science fiction short story published last year.The jury selected "Tantie Merle and the Farmhand 4200" by R.S.A. Garcia.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.A native of Trinidad, Garcia has also won the Independent Publishers Book Awards Silver Medal for Best Scifi/Fantasy/Horror Ebook. Attendees at the conference had the opportunity to listen to her read her short story. As it takes place in Trinidad, hearing it in her Trinidadian accent was a special treat.You can read the story for free in its entirety at Uncanny.Questions or comments? Please share your thoughts!My latest novelette, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short,” now appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror.When the first expedition to the mysterious planet Janus takes a deadly turn, Lieutenant Carita Keahi must fight for survival against an alien ecosystem unlike anything humanity has ever encountered. As crew members fall victim to bizarre and lethal life forms, Keahi races against time to escape the dangers of this two-faced world. With mind-bending alien biology and gut-wrenching sacrifices, this tale of planetary exploration gone horribly wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. Prepare for a journey into the unknown that will challenge everything you thought you knew about life in the cosmos! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thecosmiccodex.com
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    2 min
  • Heinlein saw this coming
    Nov 5 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in September: Free Fantasy & SciFi.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.Indiana Jones meets Air Bud in this short tail of loyalty, responsibility, and adventure set in The Realm of Reason...Get your FREE copy of Seeker by August Niehaus.Opie works a boring government job so he can send money back home on Mars to his drug-addicted parents (who don't even remember their son is a cybernetic human-dog hybrid now). He's got a chip-slot in his tongue that allows him to speak any language that can be loaded onto silicon, and a sense of morality more true than any compass — making him the perfect errand boy for people like Section Chief Ferra Cain, head of the Human Authority Tactical Intelligence.When Cain summons Opie to the backwater planet of Shihar to act as guide for an expedition headed up by the native Shihari people, it seems like a pretty standard mission: don't let the Shihari get greedy. Don't let the mission go off the rails. DON'T let anyone take the payload.But as the mission wears on, it's the very things that made Opie the perfect spy that plant the seeds of doubt in his mind. As he ponders the right path, Opie will make choices that change the course of the mission — and his life.As the United States anticipates the possibility of our first black, female president, I want to share Robert A. Heinlein’s vision from nearly 45 years ago.His essay/short story hybrid “The Happy Days Ahead”/”’Over the rainbow—’,” included in the 1980 collection Expanded Universe, considers an eventuality where a black woman (based on Star Trek’s Nichelle Nichols,) is elected vice president. She then unexpectedly comes to power in the wake of concerns over the competency of her predecessor. Both before and after becoming president, she faces the bigotry of racism and sexism, but succeeds by serving the American people as a whole, refusing to cater exclusively to either side of the political divide or to any particular interest group.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.In the course of her administration, she faces economic, immigration, and environmental concerns, tackling each with bold initiatives, eventually winning re-election.One passage, in particular, stands out today. It’s Heinlein’s commentary on the latent power of women in American politics. I’ve never forgotten it, and over the past two years, I’ve started to see it realized. In the words of Heinlein’s Madam President:‘We women are a majority, by so many millions that in an election it would be called a landslide. And will be a landslide, on anything, any time women really want it to be. So women don’t need favors; they just need to make up their minds what they want—then take it.’Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.Happy election day, my fellow Americans! No matter your political philosophy or affiliation, please exercise your right to vote today.Update (11-6-24): And it’s still coming. Maybe we’ll get over the rainbow one day…Questions or comments? Please share your thoughts!My latest novelette, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short,” now appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror.When the first expedition to the mysterious planet Janus takes a deadly turn, Lieutenant Carita Keahi must fight for survival against an alien ecosystem unlike anything humanity has ever encountered. As crew members fall victim to bizarre and lethal life forms, Keahi races against time to escape the dangers of this two-faced world. With mind-bending alien biology and gut-wrenching sacrifices, this tale of planetary exploration gone horribly wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. Prepare for a journey into the unknown that will challenge everything you thought you knew about life in the cosmos! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thecosmiccodex.com
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    2 min
  • Speaking for the dead
    Oct 18 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in October: Fantasy & SciFi October Freebies.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.My latest novelette, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short,” now appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror.When the first expedition to the mysterious planet Janus takes a deadly turn, Lieutenant Carita Keahi must fight for survival against an alien ecosystem unlike anything humanity has ever encountered. As crew members fall victim to bizarre and lethal life forms, Keahi races against time to escape the dangers of this two-faced world. With mind-bending alien biology and gut-wrenching sacrifices, this tale of planetary exploration gone horribly wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. Prepare for a journey into the unknown that will challenge everything you thought you knew about life in the cosmos!For many decades, multiple Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award-winning author Harlan Ellison was the charismatic “bad boy” of science fiction. He could be antagonistic and uncompromising. He described himself as a “troublemaker, malcontent, desperado.” He readily resorted to legal action if he felt others had violated his rights. He is alleged to have assaulted fellow author Charles Pratt at a Nebula Awards banquet. He groped longtime friend Connie Willis onstage in front of the 2006 Hugo Awards audience.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Ellison also played an undeniably influential role in science fiction’s New Wave, beginning in the 1960s. While his many short stories may stand as his greatest contribution to the genre, a case can also be made for his editing of the anthologies Dangerous Visions, and Again, Dangerous Visions.Published in 1967, Dangerous Visions included over thirty stories, many by past and future Hugo and Nebula winners, including Ellison himself. It “…helped define the New Wave science fiction movement, particularly in its depiction of sex…” Science fiction author and critic Algis Budrys wrote of Dangerous Visions, "You should buy this book immediately, because this is a book that knows perfectly well that you are seething inside.” As editor, “Ellison received a special citation at the 26th World SF Convention for editing ‘the most significant and controversial SF book published in 1967.’”A second volume followed Dangerous Visions in 1972. Again Dangerous Visions won Ellison another special award for editing at the World Science Fiction Convention.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.A third volume, The Last Dangerous Visions, was “…announced for publication in 1973…” Ellison solicited stories from many authors, but never published the anthology in his lifetime. He died in 2018.Before Ellison’s death, J. Michael Straczynski, Babylon 5 creator and Ellison’s friend, agreed to serve as his literary executor. This responsibility included overseeing the long-delayed publication of The Last Dangerous Visions. After a further wait of over six years, more than a half-century since the release of Again, Dangerous Visions, the third volume finally shipped. My copy arrived in September.So far, the only short story I’ve read in The Last Dangerous Visions is A.E. van Vogt’s “The Time of the Skin,” because one does not simply ignore a previously unpublished van Vogt story.But the first thing I read was “Ellison Exegesis,” Straczynski’s interpretation of Ellison’s life in light of decades of undiagnosed and untreated mental illness. He doesn’t excuse his friend for what he acknowledges as inappropriate and outrageous behavior—but like a grown-up Ender Wiggin, the title character of Orson Scott Card’s Speaker for the Dead, he wants to give the reader a portrait of the whole man. As someone who also suffered from decades of undiagnosed and untreated mental illness, I found Straczynski’s account illuminating and deeply moving. I recommend it to anyone interested in Harlan Ellison or the history of science fiction, even those who were there, and think they know all they need to know about Ellison.You may be surprised.Questions or comments? Please share your thoughts!Club Codex is reading and discussing The Hieros Gamos of Sam and An Smith through the end of October.Follow along with my thoughts on this novel and contribute your own in the following thread:Click here for more details about Club Codex in 2024. Please join us! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thecosmiccodex.com
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    4 min
  • "Nasty, Brutish, and Short"
    Oct 7 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in October: Fantasy & SciFi October Freebies.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.As we have learned more about the difficulties of interstellar travel, writing believable stories set around other suns has become more challenging. This problem is a key part of the background in my new novelette, “Nasty, Brutish, and Short,” now appearing in Boundary Shock Quarterly 28: SF Horror, just in time for Halloween.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.When the first expedition to the mysterious planet Janus takes a deadly turn, Lieutenant Carita Keahi must fight for survival against an alien ecosystem unlike anything humanity has ever encountered. As crew members fall victim to bizarre and lethal life forms, Keahi races against time to escape the dangers of this two-faced world. With mind-bending alien biology and gut-wrenching sacrifices, this tale of planetary exploration gone horribly wrong will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page. Prepare for a journey into the unknown that will challenge everything you thought you knew about life in the cosmos!Here’s an excerpt:“Nasty, Brutish, and Short”by Brian Scott Pauls“In such condition, there is…continuall feare, and danger of violent death; And the life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short.”—Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan, i. xiii. 9Our team took an aero down to the surface. Janus possesses the sort of thick atmosphere a planet (or in this case, half of one) needs to host a lush ecology. Or fly a plane.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.What it doesn’t have is a moon. It’s got something a lot more exotic and terrifying—a micro black hole. This singularity occupies a geostationary orbit, circling its planet once every 38 hours, the length of a Janusian day. As it revolves, it spews out Hawking radiation—gamma rays, for the most part.Beacon played no role in the choice of our first target. We didn’t know it existed until we arrived in-system. The Ibn Battuta only discovered it because one of their astronomers decided to point a gamma ray telescope at Keid Ab, the exoplanet we had come to investigate.Even without an unidentified gamma source, standard operating procedure suggested only one ship approach the new world at first. “Suggested,” because you don’t write hard-and-fast rules for explorers 16 light years away and 182 years in the future. Still, the precaution made sense.But which ship? The two captains worked it out between themselves. Maybe they played Rock Paper Scissors. In any case, the Zheng He drove in toward Janus while the Ibn Battuta stayed in the outer system, refining deuterium for the ships’ depleted tanks.After reaching Keid Ab, we made it our priority to investigate Beacon. It didn’t take long to determine someone had constructed it.First, no one has ever discovered a natural microscopic black hole.Second, thousands of minuscule, identically sized, perfectly spherical comets fed mass to Beacon on a regular basis.The Zheng He’s astronomers determined each micro comet—just the right size, spaced just far enough apart—added the same amount of mass to the black hole as it would lose to Hawking radiation before the next comet arrived. Their orbits all intersected the local kuiper belt. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble making sure the tiny black hole would be around for a long, long time.Our physicists’ best guess as to the purpose of Beacon saw it as a power generator—an elaborate machine for converting ice from the fringes of the Keid A system into high-energy gamma rays for the Janusians.Only it seemed there were no Janusians. At least, no intelligent Janusians. Not any more. Not for perhaps twelve thousand Earth years.Our satellites and probes had no trouble locating the surface-based receiving station—a large dish antenna embedded in what used to be a mountain peak. It lay directly below Beacon, right where it should have been.But whatever orbital infrastructure had originally harnessed the gamma rays to generate power and transmit it to the surface had vanished. The black hole orbited alone, undetectable except for its lethal output.That’s how “Keid Ab” became “Janus.” Due to the hellish amount of radiation pouring out of Beacon, Janus was half dead, half alive. The side drenched in gamma rays appeared sterile. The opposite side teamed with life. Janus, the two-faced Roman god of duality, seemed like a good match.We didn’t know for sure what had happened to the orbital station that must have existed. But the surface of Janus offered clues. Both hemispheres showed the remains of blast craters.The aero swooped in.As soon as we’d dropped low enough to get a good look, Nabih grunted,“Looks like the bio team was right, Martin. The place is a jungle.”“‘Jungle...
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    8 min
  • The next question
    Sep 26 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in September: Free Fantasy & SciFi.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.Get your FREE copy of Passageway!“Philosophically, the universe has really never made things in ones. The Earth is special and everything else is different? No, we've got seven other planets. The sun? No, the sun is one of those dots in the night sky. The Milky Way? No, it's one of a hundred billion galaxies. And the universe - maybe it's countless other universes.”—Neil deGrasse TysonChosen by mystical warriors to protect a parallel Earth from a catastrophic future, a young man must push his mental and physical abilities to the limits if he is to help save mankind. As seventeen-year-old Darwin McQuaid flees high-school bullies, he is saved by an enigmatic stranger; an indigenous teenage warrior who was born 500 years in the past.Strong and powerful, Daruk possesses an intelligence that exceeds his rugged youthful appearance, and Darwin is drawn to learn more about him. Surprisingly, the high-school junior discovers that the mysterious warrior has a connection to an old family friend—an elderly indigenous shaman called Uncle His. As the physical attraction intensifies between Darwin and Daruk, the warrior reveals a secret—that he and Uncle His are Guardians of the Passageway and are destined to protect the crossroads of three parallel universes, three Earths, each 500 years apart.Discovering worlds he never knew existed, along with an untapped power within himself, can the young man become the warrior needed to defend this ancient world from corrupt invaders?Or will the death and danger of a more primitive time prove to be too much for this 21st-century teen?For over forty years, from 1978 until 2019, the Campbell Conference, named for the long-time Astounding/Analog science fiction magazine editor John W. Campbell, “provided a setting for intelligent discussion about SF.”Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Starting in the early 1980s, the Center for the Study of Science Fiction, directed by University of Kansas science fiction author and scholar James Gunn, hosted the conference. This included presenting, each year, the John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, and eventually the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award for best short story, the latter in honor of celebrated science fiction author Ted Sturgeon.The Sturgeon Award takes the form of a symbol combining a question mark and an arrow. It's a version of a symbol Sturgeon recommended to his readers to remind them of what he considered an important analytical process: “Ask the next question.” Few people have been able to articulate such sound and succinct advice for writing and reading good science fiction.Several events coincided to bring the conference to a close.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.During her acceptance speech for the 2019 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, Jeanette Ng accused Campbell of being a fascist, “[e]xalting in the ambitions of imperialists and colonizers, settlers and industrialists.” She challenged the sf community to reconsider honoring him as it had in the past. Analog subsequently announced it would rename its award to the Astounding Award for Best New Writer, and the Center for the Study of Science Fiction renamed the Campbell Conference the Gunn Center Conference.A year later, COVID-19 developed into a global pandemic, complicating in-person gatherings. But Gunn’s death the same year dealt a more significant blow to the future of the conference.In 2022, the KU faculty took over the Center for the Study of Science Fiction, which had previously been governed by a separate board of directors. Retaining the responsibility for presenting the Sturgeon Award each year, the Center replaced the Campbell Conference with the Sturgeon Symposium."Stars in Our Pockets: Celebrating Samuel R. Delany" is the topic of this year’s Sturgeon Symposium, honoring Delany’s “lasting impact on science fiction, speculative fiction, and literary criticism.” This seems appropriate, as Sturgeon is one of the sf writers Delany most recommends.The Sturgeon Symposium is scheduled for October 24-25, 2024, with both online and in person (on the KU campus) elements. The cost is only $25.00, with student and need-based fee waivers available.I plan to attend. Please join me if you can!Register here for the Sturgeon Symposium.Club Codex is reading and discussing The Hieros Gamos of Sam and An Smith through mid-October.Follow along with my thoughts on this novel and contribute your own in the following thread:Click here for more details about Club Codex in 2024. Please join us!My latest novelette, “Long Night On the Endless City,” appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 26: Tomorrow’s Crimes:On the vast ring habitat Ouroboros, Jel ...
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    4 min
  • What sf authors does an sf legend recommend?
    Sep 19 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in September: Free Fantasy & SciFi.Seventy science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.For a chance to live, would you leave everything you know behind?Get your FREE copy of If I Go!Home with his overwrought older sister as a deadly flu pandemic sweeps the globe, sixteen-year-old Daniel is scared and out of his depth. Unable to reach his parents, his only source of comfort as the world falls apart are his faithful pets. When a chance to escape the flu is dangled before him, Daniel is confronted with an agonizing choice that will change his life forever.On September 10, I had the honor of watching a live virtual lecture by Samuel R. Delany, presented by the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC.)Hosted by SAIC assistant professor Dr. Kirin Wachter-Grene, the conversation with Delany ran for over an hour-and-a-half. Most of the discussion focused on his background growing up as a dyslexic, gay, black man in New York City, including references to multiple books in which he delves into this history.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Of particular interest to sf readers, however, is the answer to a question about what science fiction authors Delany himself reads. It surprised me to learn Delany has never read much science fiction, and still doesn’t do so today. But regarding those authors whom even he finds compelling, he recommended two—Joanna Russ and Ted Sturgeon.Born in 1918, Hugo and Nebula award-winner Sturgeon published his first science fiction story in 1939 and continued writing for over four decades. Of his theme, he said, “I think what I have been trying to do all these years is to investigate this matter of love, sexual and asexual.” This may well be the attraction for Delany, who has written so much on the subject of sex himself.Feminist and Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award-winning author Russ was born in 1937. Raised, like Delany, in New York City, she published her first short story in 1955. In the SAIC lecture, Delany discussed how he and Russ carried on a long correspondence, currently being compiled for publication as a three volume series. Given Delany’s first-hand experience of racism, and Russ’ first-hand experience of sexism, it’s understandable why they might have had quite a lot to share with one another.Delany is the subject of the third annual Sturgeon Symposium, hosted by the Gunn Center for Science Fiction at the University of Kansas from October 24-25. He plans to attend.Club Codex is reading and discussing The Hieros Gamos of Sam and An Smith through the end of September.Follow along with my thoughts on this novel and contribute your own in the following thread:Click here for more details about Club Codex in 2024. Please join us!My latest novelette, “Long Night On the Endless City,” appears in Boundary Shock Quarterly 26: Tomorrow’s Crimes:On the vast ring habitat Ouroboros, Jel and her synthetic companion Marcus search for Arja, the third member of their triad. This quest leads them to a cryptic technology cult with questionable motives. When they suffer a vicious attack, Marcus and Jel join forces with one of Ouroboros’most renowned computer and robotics experts to get to the bottom of the mystery.This thought-provoking sf tale explores artificial intelligence, religion, and the ties that bind families together in a fast-paced story full of action, intrigue, and heart.Questions or comments? Please share your thoughts! This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.thecosmiccodex.com
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    3 min
  • Against the empire
    Sep 7 2024
    My novelette, An Illicit Mercy, is part of a new promotion in August and September: Thoughtful Science Fiction.Nearly 35 science fiction and fantasy books, available at no cost.Get your exclusive copy of the short story When Traitors Fall by Abby J. Reed.250 years before a ship crashed onto a blood soaked planet . . .After the Solterans invaded his galaxy, Emil Lopez is one of the last remaining cadets in the Avonley Defense Academy. All he wants is to make a name for himself and prove to the world he is no traitor. Unlike his parents.When the Solterans attack the ADA, Humanity's final stronghold, Emil is paired with the famous Captain Young for the epic battle. Emil's chance to make a difference, and a name for himself, skyrockets. Until he must choose between the loyalty he's always prized and the legacy he's always longed for, at a steeper cost than he ever dreamed.Interstellar empires, despite their scientific implausibility, are perennial favorites in science fiction, and this year’s Hugo Awards are no exception. Novels featuring this fan-favorite trope won in two literary award categories. A third honors an author who has imagined an empire which may be more earthbound, but is just as fantastic.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Best NovelSome Desperate Glory, by Emily TeshWorld Fantasy and Astounding award-winner Emily Tesh grew up in London and currently teaches classics in the UK.The Macmillan website describes Some Desperate Glory in this way:While we live, the enemy shall fear us.Since she was born, Kyr has trained for the day she can avenge the murder of planet Earth. Raised in the bowels of Gaea Station alongside the last scraps of humanity, she readies herself to face the Wisdom, the powerful, reality-shaping weapon that gave the majoda their victory over humanity.They are what’s left. They are what must survive. Kyr is one of the best warriors of her generation, the sword of a dead planet. When Command assigns her brother to certain death and relegates her to Nursery to bear sons until she dies trying, she knows she must take humanity's revenge into her own hands.Alongside her brother’s brilliant but seditious friend and a lonely, captive alien, Kyr escapes from everything she’s known into a universe far more complicated than she was taught and far more wondrous than she could have imagined.Thanks for reading The Cosmic Codex! This post is public so feel free to share it.Best SeriesThe Imperial Radch trilogy by Ann LeckieHugo, Nebula, and Arthur C. Clarke award-winner Ann Leckie has created a complex universe of sentient warships, “zombie” crews, and an absolute ruler difficult to kill because they inhabit multiple bodies at the same time.The Hachette website describes Ancillary Justice, the first book in the series.On a remote, icy planet, the soldier known as Breq is drawing closer to completing her quest.Breq is both more than she seems and less than she was. Years ago, she was the Justice of Toren — a colossal starship with an artificial intelligence linking thousands of corpse soldiers in the service of the Radch, the empire that conquered the galaxy.An act of treachery has ripped it all away, leaving her with only one fragile human body. And only one purpose — to revenge herself on Anaander Mianaai, many-bodied, near-immortal Lord of the Radch.Astounding Award for Best New AuthorXiran Jay ZhaoBSFA Award winner Xiran Jay Zhao was born in China and immigrated to Canada as a young child. They began writing at 15 and published their first novel, Iron Widow, in 2021.Zhao’s win this year is especially significant. In 2023, they were inexcusably blocked from contention for the Astounding Award at the 81st World Science Fiction Convention in Chengdu, China. The Hugo Award administrators made this unjust decision to avoid offending Chinese censors.The Penguin Random House website includes the following summary for Iron Widow:The boys of Huaxia dream of pairing up with girls to pilot Chrysalises, giant transforming robots that can battle the aliens that lurk beyond the Great Wall of China. It doesn’t matter that the girls die from the mental strain.When 18-year-old Zetian offers herself up as a concubine-pilot, it’s to assassinate the ace male pilot responsible for her sister’s death. But when she gets her vengeance, it becomes clear that she is an Iron Widow, a rare kind of female pilot who can sacrifice males to power up Chrysalises instead.To tame her frightening yet valuable mental strength, she is paired up with Li Shimin, the strongest male pilot in Huaxia, yet feared and ostracized for killing his father and brothers. But now that Zetian has had a taste of power, she will not cower so easily. She will take over instead, then leverage their combined strength to force her society to stop failing its women and girls. Or die trying.Club Codex is reading and discussing The Hieros Gamos of Sam and An Smith...
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    5 min