On May 7, I was in Calgary for the joint book launch of the first two titles of the Shadowpaw Press Spring/Summer list, The Downloaded by Robert J. Sawyer and The Traitor’s Son by the late, great Dave Duncan. Both are now available everyhwere, as well as, of course, directly from Shadowpaw Press.
Here’s more about them both:
The Downloaded by Robert J. Sawyer
192 pp · $19.95 CAD · $14.95 USD · ISBN: 978-1989398999
Available through bookstores everywhere, or directly from Shadowpaw Press!
The new novel by Canada’s top Science Fiction writer
In 2059, two very different groups have their minds uploaded into a quantum computer in Waterloo, Ontario.
One group consists of astronauts preparing for Earth’s first interstellar voyage. The other? Convicted murderers, serving their sentences in a virtual-reality prison.
But when disaster strikes, the astronauts and the prisoners must download back into physical reality and find a way to work together to save Earth from destruction.
The Downloaded debuted in a six-month exclusive window as an Audible Original narrated by Academy Award-winner Brendan Fraser, promoted by national TV and radio ad campaigns. This print edition is coming out immediately after Audible’s exclusivity ends and is being supported by a six-city cross-Canada author book tour.
Reviews
“Hope wins out in this triumph of a postapocalyptic tale from Hugo and Nebula award winner Sawyer . . . Sawyer keeps the stakes climbing ever higher as he toggles between the perspectives of his disparate cast. A smattering of droll humor breaks up the gloom and plot twists aplenty keep the pages flying. Sci-fi fans will eat this up.”―Publishers Weekly (Starred Review)
“The Downloaded absolutely sizzles with fascinating ideas. You want space travel, a ruined Earth, virtual worlds, a cast of relatable characters, and a glimpse into the labyrinth of human destiny? Look no further: this book has all that and more.”―Robert Charles Wilson, Hugo Award-winning author of Spin
“The Downloaded is a wonderful demonstration of Sawyer’s deep understanding of―and compassion for―people, regardless who or what they are, or even what they have done. It’s a rare and potent humanity that elevates his work high above the rest.”―Julie E. Czerneda, Aurora Award-winning author of To Each This World
“In The Downloaded, Sawyer proves he’s not just a master at using science fiction to address social issues but also a master at portraying diverse characters.”―James Alan Gardner, Theodore Sturgeon Award-winning author of Commitment Hour
“The Downloaded is a wicked-smart thrill ride from start to finish. I loved it.”―Sylvain Neuvel, bestselling author of A History of What Comes Next
“One of the best SF novels I’ve read in years.”―Allen Steele, Hugo Award-winning author of Coyote
About the Author
Robert J. Sawyer―“the dean of Canadian science fiction,” according to the CBC, and a Globe and Mail and Maclean’s bestseller―is the only Canadian to have won all three of the world’s top awards for best science-fiction novel of the year: the Hugo, the Nebula, and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award. A member of both The Order of Canada and The Order of Ontario, Rob has won more Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Awards (“Auroras”) than anyone else in history. The ABC TV series FlashForward was based on his novel of the same name; The Downloaded is his twenty-fifth novel. A popular TEDx and keynote speaker with over 700 radio and TV interviews under his belt, Rob physically lives in Mississauga and in cyberspace he’s at sfwriter.com.
The Traitor’s Son by Dave Duncan
Available through bookstores everywhere, or directly from Shadowpaw Press!
346 pp · $26.99 CAD · $19.99 USD · ISBN: 978-1989398913
“They know the world is dying, but they hope not in their lifetimes. Meanwhile, they’re top dogs and will do anything to stay that way.”
Doig Gray is fifteen when his father is killed in a mining accident, which Doig comes to realize was no accident. Torn from his mother and sister, Doig is sent off to college, his every movement monitored in case he has inherited his dissident father’s unacceptable attitudes . . . or passwords. Doig has nothing but his own sense that there’s something desperately wrong with the world―and a last name that evokes the assumption that he’s destined to be the next traitor-hero.
The Traitor’s Son is a science fiction novel about a colony world where everything that could go wrong already has. Stuck on the wrong world at the wrong site, with the wrong leaders, the colony is doomed to extinction unless immediate steps are taken to correct―everything. But 500 years of hiding from the reality of their situation has created an unchallengeable status quo―and the Accident Squad, determined to ensure it remains that way.
The Traitor’s Son is a fast-paced SF adventure in the best tradition of Duncan’s Hero, West of January, and Eocene Station.
Praise for Dave Duncan
“Dave Duncan writes rollicking adventure novels filled with subtle characterization and made bitter-sweet by an underlying darkness. Without striving for grand effects or momentous meetings between genres, he has produced one excellent book after another.“―Locus Magazine
“Duncan is an exceedingly finished stylist and a master of world-building and characterization.”―Booklist
“Dave Duncan has long been one of the great unsung figures of Canadian fantasy and science fiction, graced with a fertile imagination, a prolific output, and keen writerly skills.”―Quill & Quire
“When you’re looking for a good adventure, Dave Duncan is a sure thing . . . [with] his sly and fast-paced plotting, his ability to construct intriguingly different worlds, and his knack for quick and entertaining characterization and dialogue.”―Eclectic Ruckus
About the author
Born and raised in Scotland, Dave Duncan moved to Calgary, Alberta, after graduating from university to take up his thirty-year career as a geologist. As the oil boom faltered in the 1980s, he sold his first novel and switched careers to become one of the most prolific and popular Canadian authors of science fiction and fantasy, with more than sixty-five traditionally published novels. Early in his career, he was producing books so fast his publisher could not keep up, so he wrote a fantasy trilogy under the name Ken Hood for a different house and a historical novel about the fall of Troy as Sarah B. Franklin. Duncan won the Aurora Award for Best Novel in 1990 and again in 2007 and was inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame for lifetime achievement in 2015. Duncan was awaiting final edits on The Traitor’s Son when he died on October 29, 2018.
