We’ve just added three new titles to the early part of our 2009 schedule:

The Last Colony (John Scalzi) — the third and final novel in the main Old Man’s War sequence. Vincent Chong already has this one in his illustration queue, so it’s possible it will sneak onto our 2009 schedule. If possible, we plan to follow the entire Old Man’s War sequence of novels, including John’s latest, Zoe’s Tale, in a series of limited editions.

The Other in the Mirror (Philip Jose Farmer) — brings together three classic novels by Philip José Farmer: Fire and the Night, Jesus on Mars, and Night of Light. All three are united by one of SF’s central tropes, that of The Other.

Seven for a Secret (Elizabeth Bear) — a sequel to her strong-selling mosaic novel, New Amsterdam. This time around Sebastien faces 1930s London, caring for an aging Abby Irene, while facing his own ghosts, the remembrances of loves mortal–and immortal. And will facing the Chancellor’s secret weapon: a human child.

The latest issue of Subterranean Online continues with additional installments of Kilimanjaro, Mike Resnick’s triumphant return to his “Kirinyaga” universe. As readers of the serial discover, the rules for this utopia may be different than the one run by the witch doctor, Koriba, but the results are becoming distressingly familiar.

Also new to this issue The Secret History of the Last Colony, a piece of Old Man’s War fiction by John Scalzi–an outtake from an alternate version of his novel, The Last Colony, which is now out in paperback–and has just been announced as a SubPress limited edition.

Finally, we’ll start the new issue of Subterranean as soon as our Resnick serial is complete. We have on hand novelettes by Jay Lake, Chris Roberson (a Celestial Empire tale), short stories by Poppy Z. Brite and Campbell Award winner Mary Robinette Kowal, and a novella length audio by Alastair Reynolds.

Charles Ardai’s novel celebrating the Hard Case Crime line, Fifty-to-One, has just received a glowing review in 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.”

In addition, the nearly 20 full-color signature pages for the deluxe edition have begun arriving in our offices, with those by Charles Ardai, Stephen King, Max Allan Collins, Russell Hill, Seymour Shubin, and Donald Westlake now in hand.

Without further adieu, three glowing reviews from the new issue of Booklist:

Worlds of Weber (David Weber):
“The creator of Honor Harrington explains this volume’s heft by admitting that he likes to tell long stories, hence his many long novels and the fact that even his short stories aren’t very… they constitute a sampling of what a genius-level storyteller does between novels that is worth adding to most sf collections”

The Best of Michael Swanwick (Michael Swanwick):
“One of the best things about Swanwick’s storytelling is that it is always worth another read. This volume is the perfect package for assuring that his most rereadable fiction is always at hand.”

Summer Morning, Summer Night (Ray Bradbury):
“In the hearts and minds of Bradbury enthusiasts, Green Town, Illinois, is as treasurable in fantastic literature as Baum’s Emerald City or Lewis’ Narnia. Modeled after the author’s boyhood home of Waukegan, idyllic midwestern Green Town was the setting for Bradbury’s novels Dandelion Wine (1957) and Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) as well as a handful of short stories… Bradbury’s familiar poetic magic sings in every paragraph, reminding his readers why Green Town is worth visiting again and again.”

Just in from Publishers Weekly, much love for James P. Blaylock’s steampunk omnibus, The Adventures of Langdon St. Ives: “Long recognized as a master of steampunk fiction, Blaylock (The Man in the Moon) collects four short stories and two novels featuring indefatigable and unflappable Victorian scientist Langdon St. Ives in a deluxe omnibus edition profusely and masterfully illustrated by J.K. Potter… at once droll and horrific, these highly mannered tales are classic examples of this popular subgenre.”

A number of recent SubPress releases are selling very well, and expected to go out of print soon, including:

– The Best of Lucius Shepard (Lucius Shepard): Fewer than 300 trade copies remain, with the limited edition sold out prepublication

– Worlds of Weber (David Weber): Fewer than 400 of the 2000 copies printed remain, with several large distributor orders expected shortly.

– Kull: Exile of Atlantis (Robert E. Howard): We’re down to our last 200 or so copies of the regular limited edition, and 5 copies of the deluxe limited.

On the preorder front, we do not expect to have copies of the following titles beyond publication:

– Songs of the Dying Earth Limited Edition — includes a stunning, 26,000 word novella by Dan Simmons, as well as shorter tales by a number of sf’s luminaries.

– The Chronicles of Master Li and Number Ten Ox (Barry Hughart): The limited edition will be sold out on publication, with the signed trade hardcover — following a starred review in Publishers Weekly — likely to follow shortly thereafter.

– Gardens of the Moon (Steven Erikson): Michael Komark has turned in 90% of the finished art, with the rest due next week, at which point we’ll rush this title into production. Over 350 of the 500 copy limited edition has been reserved.

It’s a bit like flights lining up for runways around here the past few weeks, with titles already in hand and ready to ship, and en route to our offices. Here’s a brief recap of the flight plan:

Kull: Exile of Atlantis (Robert E. Howard): We’ve just finished shipping roughly 90% of the indiviudal orders (regular limited and deluxe) for our first Howard volume, and are plugging away at the bookstore and distributor orders. We’ve also started proofing the designed version of The Best of Robert E. Howard, volume one: Crimson Shadows, and should be releasing it late this year or early next. Look for it to go up for preorder soon.

The Jack Vance Reader (Jack Vance): The slipcases for the limited edition have arrived. This one’s next up in our shipping queue.

His Majesty’s Dragon (Naomi Novik): We’e just received the traycases for the lettered edition. HMD will ship as soon as The Jack Vance Reader is out the door.

Yellow Dog (Charles de Lint): The deluxe hardcovers have just arrived in our offices. Look for them to ship sometime next week.

Finally, next week, we should also be picking up the three Tim Powers novels that make up his Fisher King trilogy (Last Call, Expiration Date, Earthquake Weather).

We’ll post more as the shipping progresses.

The first of our Dresden Files limited editions took a huge step closer to publication this week, as Vincent Chong turned in the cover for Jim Butcher’s Storm Front. Vinny is hard at work on the interior illos. As soon as he completes those, we’ll be sending the book to the printer. As we’ve mentioned before, we don’t expect to have copies of Storm Front for wholesalers or large online retailers, so your only option on this one is ordering direct from SubPress.

We’re also pleased to show off the cover for Caitlin R. Kiernan’s first ever sf collection, A is for Alien, with a cover by the unmistakable, remarkable Jacek Yerka. To the best of our knowledge, this is only third time Yerka art has graced a US cover for a non-art book. Enjoy the cover, for now, and wait for A is for Alien to appear in the new year.

Green Man Review just weighed in — quite generously, thanks! — on a couple of our titles.

Summer Morning, Summer Night (Ray Bradbury): “It is best not to come to Summer Morning, Summer Night expecting miracles. They’re here, of course, but tucked inside small pleasures and gossamer wisps of story, barely noticed until you’ve already read past them. Instead, it’s best read like an afternoon’s conversation over drinks with a long-lost friend, reveling in the individual moments and memories for their own sake.”

Ubik: the Screenplay (Philip K. Dick): “The chance to watch a master trim down his work to what he considers the essentials for translation to another medium is not one to be dismissed lightly. By bringing the script back into publication after a more than twenty year hiatus, Subterranean is giving readers a rare and fascinating treasure.”

Our edition of Neil Gaiman’s new novel, The Graveyard Book, is working its way toward publication. We’ve finished the design and proofreading of the book, and are busy finalizing our choices for the cloth on the limited edition and slipcase, while Neil and Dave fit the signature pages into their ultra-busy schedules. As soon as those items are taken care of, we’ll be ready to send the book straight to the printer.

Just a reminder: we don’t expect to have copies of The Graveyard Book to send to wholesalers or large online retailers.