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Queering Shakespeare: Tessa Gratton on Lady Hotspur

Lady Hotspur author Tessa Gratton is no stranger to adapting Shakespeare. She took on King Lear in her 2018 novel The Queens of Innis Lear, and with Lady Hotspur, she’s taken on Henry IV, Part I. Tessa joined us to talk adaptations, queer reimaginings, and her unconventional favorite Shakespeare play.


By Tessa Gratton

I’ve been obsessed with Prince Hal and his mirror/foil Hotspur ever since I studied Henry IV, Part I in a college class called “Weird Shakespeare” during my freshman year in 2000. For the final, another young woman and I performed their confrontation—broadswords and all. I played Hal—playful, self-loathing, ambitious Hal—and he’s never left me.

I’ve gone through phases where my obsession shifted to the forthright, blustering warrior Hotspur, or Hotspur’s sharp, passionate wife Kate Percy, and have taken every opportunity to see performances of Part I in particular, though any of the Henriad will do it for me. I’ve liked to imagine different endings to the play, wondered what would have changed had Hal and Hotspur met before the battle that destroyed Hotspur, or how Lady Percy might’ve acted to shift the arc of the story. I imagined Hal and Hotspur childhood lovers, now made enemies for the sake of their kingmaker fathers. Over the years I sought out some fanfic to read, toyed with rewriting scenes myself, and assumed someday I’d make a novel of my obsessions.

After finishing The Queens of Innis Lear, my feminist fantasy adaptation of my least favorite Shakespeare play, I was finally ready to adapt my most favorite Shakespeare play, and one thing was immediately obvious: Hal and Hotspur would be women, and lovers, and maybe I could take everything that I loved in the play and, well, make it gayer.

When writing a queer adaptation, the first thing I do is dig into the source material to find the queer space and threads of queerness that are already present. As it turns out, a lot of analysis of Henry IV, Part I includes queer readings, though not always overtly, or even intentionally. When you look at queer space as liminal space, and how space itself can be queered, you don’t even have to consider sexual desire or gender to find a queer reading.

The play is the story of Prince Hal, a reluctant heir to the throne, dragging himself out of the gutter to take up his father’s mantle and defeat the rebellious Hotspur. Hal exists in three spaces: the court, the taverns, and the countryside, each ruled by another character. His father, the king, represents court and chivalry, familial duty, and secularism. Falstaff, the drunken, fat former knight, represents the taverns and debauchery, survival, brotherhood, and importantly, imagination and humor. Hotspur represents the old world where the lord and land are one, and the more ancient religious kinds of duty and the chivalry of nature.

Hal was born into the court, fled to the taverns, and must confront the old world before he can triumph as a prince and earn his eventual crown. As a character he exists between these spaces, in the shadows, a trickster who alone has the capacity to go from debauchery to chivalry and back, from play to duty and back, and combine the skills he learns in each space to better perform in the others. His success at learning to maneuver through different spaces is shown when he superimposes the worlds of court and tavern over each other in the scene where he and Falstaff act out Hal’s meeting with the king, trading roles and jokes, and in that moment of queered space Hal is able to tell Falstaff a single true thing about their future; later, just before fighting Hotspur, Hal says to his rival, “all the budding honors on thy crest I’ll crop to make a garland for my head.” He will take onto himself everything that Hotspur was, by confronting and killing him. He will become Hotspur, taking over his space and triumphant identity.

This is just one possible queer reading of Hal, but it’s one I like because I’m interested in carving queer space within existing power structures, and so I used this reading specifically in developing my adaptation. Additionally, since I was setting the story in the same world as The Queens of Innis Lear, I also knew I wanted to use themes I’d begun pulling apart in my King Lear adaptation to continue investigating connections between power, patriarchy, and rebellion, and nature, relationships, and magic.

Except this time, I was going to center queer narratives.

That became my foundational goal: to adapt Henry IV, Part I with an eye toward integrating queer lives into narratives of power.

First of all, I took the men in the play and made them women or pushed them a lot closer toward woman on the gender spectrum, and did the reverse for the few women in the source material. Second, I gave nearly all the main characters some variety of queer desire.

When it came to building my world and story so that I could focus on queering narratives and structures of power, I returned to the queer analysis of Prince Hal as a trickster moving between spaces. My Hal is a young cis lesbian desperately in love with the bright warrior woman Hotspur, but she doesn’t know how to be what her mother needs her to be for the stability of their new order, nor can she remain debauched in the shadows with her Falstaff—Oldcastle, in my version.

I kept two of the three spaces central to the play: court and taverns. The court is ruled by Hal’s mother the queen, who struggles to maintain a traditional, secular patriarchy when she herself has rebelled against it and has been betrayed by it, because she can’t imagine any other kind of power structure. The taverns are ruled by Lady Ianta Oldcastle, a lesbian and former-knight who has also been betrayed by those same power structures that harmed the queen. Ianta encourages debauchery and small playful rebellions because she no longer believes there is space for queer women in the halls of power, so queer women should focus on survival and find pleasure where and how they can.

But the third space is not merely the old world, the landscape, it is the island of Lear. For a hundred years power on Innis Lear has existed in direct opposition to Hal’s country Aremoria: on Innis Lear they do not rely on that old heteronormative institute of marriage for their lines of succession; their magic comes from a wilder, freer union between earth and wind and stars; genderfluid witches care for the forests; the dead are caught between life and heaven; the current rulers include a queen and her sister, an openly queer crown prince, and a transgender princess.

These are the landscapes Hal must map out for herself in my adaptation, must learn to commune with, finding ways to be herself, carving space for her friends and loved ones to claim identities outside the traditionally accepted without giving up any her/their power. It isn’t an option for her to burn everything down, but she is uniquely positioned to reframe the narrative of her entire country, if she can survive with her heart intact.

Lady Hotspur is a big, sprawling fantasy that delves in to the relationships and humor and politics of Henry IV, Part I that obsessed me for nearly twenty years. But throughout every round of writing and revision I tried to keep that core tension present: Hal and Hotspur loving and hating and loving and fighting each other. In the original text, Hal says to Hotspur that he will take everything Hotspur was and make it part of himself through necessary violence; in my adaptation, Hal says to her Hotspur, “What if I love you so well it changes the very landscape of our world?”

Both of these positions have a different relationship with power: one is patriarchal and consuming and violent; the other is queer and creative and playful. It’s that difference in approaches to power and the tension of possibility created in their clashing that is at the heart of what I was trying to do by centering queerness in my adaptation.

I hope I at least succeeded in writing a dramatic, wild, and passionate story that engages with the source material in new ways. It’s amazing to me that after twenty years of thinking about a four-hundred-year-old play I can still find so many threads and spaces to pull or inhabit, but I’m happy to be part of the long story of Shakespeare’s plays and what keeps them alive through new interpretations.

Order Your Copy of Lady Hotspur:

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Your Lady Hotspur Character Guide

Image Place holder  of - 85We are so incredibly, over-the-top, crazy-in-love with Lady Hotspur, Tessa Gratton’s next book. It’s set in the same magical, mysterious world as her most recent book, The Queens of Innis Lear, but this one takes place one hundred years later.

Noticed something about the titles? Yep, both The Queens of Innis Lear and Lady Hotspur are adaptations of Shakespeare plays. We’ve already seen what Tessa Gratton can do to the wild and vicious world of King Lear―now it’s time to step into her beautiful, powerful, gender-swapped, and queer Henry IV Part I. That’s right: gender-swapped *and* queer. We could not get any more hyped for these fierce warrior women falling in love with each other. 

Like every epic fantasy and Shakespeare play, keeping all those characters straight can be a lot. Here’s a breakdown of how the major characters of Henry IV Part I have been reimagined: who they were in the original play, and who they’ve been turned into at the beginning of Lady Hotspur. Don’t worry, it’s spoiler-free. We’re not monsters.

 

Character Transformations: King Henry IV Part I Lady Hotspur

Place holder  of - 3The current king who deposed his cousin Richard II with the help of the Percy family, after being banished for flimsy reasons  is turned into Queen Celedrix of Aremoria, an exiled noble who returned from unjust banishment to depose King Rovassos, with the help of the Persy family

Placeholder of  -56Henry IV’s heir who hangs out with drunks and thieves, but says it’s part of a plan to stun people with how kingly and capable he is later is turned into Hal Bolinbroke, a lady knight known for playing tricks and causing scandals, who is suddenly made heir to the kingdom when the mother she has not seen since childhood wins the crown. 

Image Placeholder of - 55The famous knight, and leader of the English rebel forces against King Henry, with very poor impulse control is turned into Lady Hotspur, a famous knight with a hot temper, and part of Celeda’s rebellion. She is heir to the earldom of Perseria.

image-36203The man who was heir to the deposed Richard II is turned into Banna Mora, a young woman who was heir to the overthrown King Rovassos, and the former leader of the Lady Knights. Her mother was Innis Lear nobility, and her father was Aremoria nobility. Banna Mora and Hal have been close friends since childhood.

wp-image-36204Prince Hal’s surrogate father in the tavern world, a big-time drunk, cheat, thief, and scoundrel is turned into Lady Ianta Oldcastle, the mentor to the Lady Knights and best friend of the former King Rovassos. Ianta is widely known to enjoy partying a bit too much.

wp-image-36202The Earl of Worcester, Hotspur’s uncle and fellow rebel leader is turned into Duke Vindomata of Mercia, Lady Hotspur’s aunt and a part of Celeda’s rebellion. Vindomata is known as the King-Killer.

wp-image-36205The leader of Welsh rebels, father of Lady Mortimer is turned into the Earl Glennadoer, Innis Lear nobility. It is said that he can transform into a bear.

image-36209Owyn Glyndwr’s daughter is turned into Prince Rowan, nephew and heir to Queen Solas of Innis Lear, and Owyn Glennadoer’s son. Rowan is known as the Poison Prince.

 

Order Your Copy of Lady Hotspur:

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$2.99 Ebook Deal: The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

The ebook edition of The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton is on sale now for only $2.99! Order your copy today and get excited for Tessa’s next book, Lady Hotspur, on sale January 7.

Poster Placeholder of - 15About The Queens of Innis Lear:

Three Queens. One crown. All out war.

Gaela. Ruthless Commander.
I am the rightful heir of Innis Lear. No more will I wait in the shadows and watch my mother’s murderer bleed my island dry.

The King’s hold on the crown must end—willingly or at the edge of my sword.

Regan. Master Manipulator.
To secure my place on the throne, I must produce an heir. Countless times I have fed the island’s forests my blood. Yet, my ambition is cursed.

No matter what or whom I must destroy, I will wield the magic of Innis Lear.

Elia. Star-blessed Priest.
My sisters hide in the shadows like serpents, waiting to strike our ailing king. I must protect my father, even if it means marrying a stranger.

We all have to make sacrifices. Love and freedom will be mine.

Order Your Copy

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This sale ends on 12/31/19.

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Classic Tales, Modern Tellers: 5 Retellings to Check Out

Classic Tales, Modern Tellers: 5 Retellings to Check Out

By Alison Bunis

Everybody’s got their favorite classic novel. And these days, everybody’s got their favorite retelling of a classic novel, too. Personally, if we’re talking movies, I stand by Clueless until the end of time. If we’re talking books, though, there are so many incredible options that it’s pretty much impossible to choose just one. To help you out, here are five of my favorites! I tried to pick a wide range, but I’m not gonna lie, you guys, I like what I like. So let’s kick things off with my current favorite…

Lady Hotspur by Tessa Gratton

Lady HotspurGather ye round, my fellow Shakespeare nerds: Tessa Gratton has given us an incredible gift. She’s already reimagined King Lear as an entrancing fantasy novel with The Queens of Innis Lear.

Now she’s turned Henry IV Part I into a heart-stopping novel of betrayal, battlefields, and destiny, Lady Hotspur. Here’s a glimpse at the characters to give you a quick taste of what it’s about: 

Hal Bolinbroke: A lady knight known for playing tricks and causing scandals, Hal is suddenly made heir to the kingdom when the mother she has not seen since childhood wins the crown. She loathes being a Prince but yearns to live up to the wishes of everyone she loves best—even if that means sacrificing her own heart.

Banna Mora: Heir to the overthrown king, Banna Mora is faced with an agonizing choice: give up everything she’s been raised to love and allow a king-killer to be rewarded—or retake the throne and take up arms against Prince Hal, her childhood best friend.

Lady Hotspur: The fiery and bold knight who stands between these two fierce Princes, and whose support may turn the tides of the coming war and decide everyone’s fates.

Tessa Gratton’s lush, lyrical fantasy world is the perfect setting for this gender-swapped retelling. Mark your calendars, Shakespeare-loving friends: Lady Hotspur hits shelves in January!

Black Leviathan by Bernd Perplies

Black LeviathanBuckle up, everybody, because Black Leviathan is the Herman Melville classic Moby Dick—but with dragons. You heard me. Moby Dick. Except instead of whales, it’s dragons, instead of “Call me Ishmael,” dragons, and instead of chapters on whaling technique, more dragons. And don’t worry, the revenge stuff is still in there. Seriously, what more do you need? 

In the coastal city Skargakar, dragon-hunting powers the economy. Dragons are used in everything from clothing to food, while airborne ships hunt them in the white expanse of a cloud sea, the Cloudmere. Lian does his part carving the kyrillian crystals that power the ships through the Cloudmere, but when he makes an enemy of a dangerous man, Lian ships out on the next vessel available. But he chooses the wrong ship. The fanatic captain, Adaron, hunts the Firstborn Gargantuan—and he is prepared to sacrifice everything for revenge.

You know what they say… revenge is a dish best served with dragons. (This particular dish comes out February 25th, 2020.)

Nottingham by Nathan Makaryk

NottinghamMost authors retelling a classic start with their favorite book, story, legend, myth…Not Nathan Makaryk. He saw all the things he hated about the Robin Hood legend, and he just had to rewrite the whole thing into an epic novel that examines who’s really the hero or villain of a story. Think less Men-In-Tights and more historically-accurate Game of Thrones.

The setup is a political nightmare: King Richard is half a world away, fighting for God and his own ambition. Back home, his country languishes, bankrupt and on the verge of anarchy. People with power are running unchecked. People without are growing angry. And in Nottingham, one of the largest shires in England, the sheriff seems intent on doing nothing about it. But don’t worry, Robin Hood and his Merry Men are here to save the day! Steal from the greedy rich and give to the poor! …Not really. Nothing is that simple in this world. Instead, the lives of six people—Arable, a servant girl with a secret, Robin and William, soldiers running from their pasts, Marion, a noblewoman working for change, Guy of Gisbourne, Nottingham’s beleaguered guard captain, and Elena Gamwell, a brash, ambitious thief—become intertwined. And a strange story begins to spread…

Briar Rose by Jane Yolen 

Briar RoseNo list about retellings is complete without including a fairy tale reimagining. It’s kind of a rule. And Jane Yolen’s Briar Rose, a historically sensitive retelling of Sleeping Beauty set amid forests patrolled by the German army during World War II, is a terrifically moving, graceful entry into the fairy tale retelling genre.

It starts off with a tale being passed down through the generations: Since childhood, Rebecca has been enchanted by her grandmother Gemma’s stories of Briar Rose, a young girl who arrived at a castle controlled by an evil army in the Polish forest during the summer of 1942. As Gemma tells it, Briar Rose was corrupted by dark deeds and choked by poisonous mist, and plunged into a deep sleep in the castle that soon came to be known as Chełmno extermination camp. Becca would have sworn the stories were made up, but on her deathbed Gemma extracts from Becca a promise to fulfill three impossible requests: find the castle, find the prince, and find the spell-maker. Her vow sends Becca on a remarkable journey to uncover the truth of Gemma’s astonishing claim: She is Briar Rose.

Miranda and Caliban by Jacqueline Carey

Miranda and CalibanAnother Shakespeare retelling? Yes. Let’s go there with Jacqueline Carey’s gorgeous retelling of The Tempest. We all know the tale of Prospero’s quest for revenge, but what about Miranda? Or Caliban, the so-called savage? In Miranda and Caliban, Jacqueline Carey gives us their side of the story: the dutiful and tenderhearted Miranda, who loves her father but is terribly lonely. And Caliban, the strange and feral boy Prospero has bewitched to serve him. The two find solace and companionship in each other as Prospero weaves his magic and dreams of revenge. Always under Prospero’s jealous eye, Miranda and Caliban battle the dark, unknowable forces that bind them to the island even as the pangs of adolescence create a new awareness of each other and their doomed relationship. 

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New Releases: 3/26

Happy New Releases Day! Here’s what went on sale today.

A Memory Called Empire by Arkady Martine

Place holder  of - 39Ambassador Mahit Dzmare arrives in the center of the multi-system Teixcalaanli Empire only to discover that her predecessor, the previous ambassador from their small but fiercely independent mining Station, has died. But no one will admit that his death wasn’t an accident—or that Mahit might be next to die, during a time of political instability in the highest echelons of the imperial court.

Now, Mahit must discover who is behind the murder, rescue herself, and save her Station from Teixcalaan’s unceasing expansion—all while navigating an alien culture that is all too seductive, engaging in intrigues of her own, and hiding a deadly technological secret—one that might spell the end of her Station and her way of life—or rescue it from annihilation.

NEW IN PAPERBACK

A Dog’s Journey by W. Bruce Cameron

Image Placeholder of - 89Audiences are invited along on A Dog’s Journey, the next chapter of the beloved bestselling series by author W. Bruce Cameron. The family film told from the dog’s perspective serves as the much-anticipated follow-up to the soulful story of one devoted dog who finds the meaning of his own existence through the lives of the humans he teaches to laugh and love.

After searching for his purpose through several eventful lives, Buddy is sure that he has found and fulfilled it. Yet as he watches curious baby Clarity get into dangerous mischief, he is certain that this little girl is very much in need of a dog of her own.

When Buddy is reborn, he realizes that he has a new destiny. He’s overjoyed when he is adopted by Clarity, now a vibrant but troubled teenager. When they are suddenly separated, Buddy despairs—who will take care of his girl?

The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton

Poster Placeholder of - 11Three Queens. One crown. All out war.

Gaela. Ruthless Commander.
I am the rightful heir of Innis Lear. No more will I wait in the shadows and watch my mother’s murderer bleed my island dry.

The King’s hold on the crown must end—willingly or at the edge of my sword.

Regan. Master Manipulator.
To secure my place on the throne, I must produce an heir. Countless times I have fed the island’s forests my blood. Yet, my ambition is cursed.

No matter what or whom I must destroy, I will wield the magic of Innis Lear.

Elia. Star-blessed Priest.
My sisters hide in the shadows like serpents, waiting to strike our ailing king. I must protect my father, even if it means marrying a stranger.

We all have to make sacrifices. Love and freedom will be mine.

To Right the Wrongs by Sheryl Scarborough

Placeholder of  -78Erin Blake has one goal for summer vacation: leave behind her reputation as the girl whose mom was murdered, and just be normal girl enjoying her first real romance.

Unfortunately — or maybe fortunately for a mystery fanatic — her hot new boyfriend has an unsolved murder in his own past. When Journey was a baby, his father was convicted of the murder of a teenage runaway and sent to prison.

Journey barely remembers his father, but he’s been researching the case and something doesn’t add up. His father had no reason to kill anyone, much less a teenager, and he’s always maintained his innocence. Journey’s convinced he was framed.

Hopefully, he and Victor, the former FBI crime scene expert, will be able to prove it. But if Journey’s father didn’t do it, that means somebody else did— and after getting away with it for sixteen years, that person could be more dangerous than ever.

So, Erin and her friends are under strict orders not to meddle in the case…but that’s easier said than done.

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Start a Discussion with The Queens of Innis Lear Reading Group Guide

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The erratic decisions of a prophecy-obsessed king have drained Innis Lear of its wild magic, leaving behind a trail of barren crops and despondent subjects. Enemy nations circle the once-bountiful isle, sensing its growing vulnerability, hungry to control the ideal port for all trade routes.

The king’s three daughters—battle-hungry Gaela, master manipulator Regan, and restrained, starblessed Elia—know the realm’s only chance of resurrection is to crown a new sovereign, proving a strong hand can resurrect magic and defend itself. But their father will not choose an heir until the longest night of the year, when prophecies align and a poison ritual can be enacted.

Refusing to leave their future in the hands of blind faith, the daughters of Innis Lear prepare for war—but regardless of who wins the crown, the shores of Innis will weep the blood of a house divided.

Did you devour Tessa Gratton’s retelling of Shakespeare’s King Lear? Want to talk about it with your friends or bookclub? Well, gather together your favorite #FearlessWomen and discuss a different acclaimed science fiction or fantasy novel every month. We’ll get you started with a few questions about The Queens of Innis Lear!

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Want to take the Reading Group Guide with you? Download it here.

Don’t forget to join the conversation online by sharing your thoughts—and the #FearlessWomen hashtag—on Twitter and Instagram.

Order Your Copy

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Follow Tessa Gratton on Twitter, Instagram, and on her website.

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On the Road: Tor/Forge Author Events in June

Tor/Forge authors are on the road in June! See who is coming to a city near you this month.

Demetra Brodsky, Dive Smack

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Saturday, June 23rd
Mysterious Galaxy
San Diego, CA
2:00 PM

Sue Burke, Semiosis

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Saturday, June 16th
Milwaukee Public Library
Milwaukee, WI
2:00 PM

W. Bruce Cameron, A Dog’s Way Home

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Saturday, June 9th
Barnes & Noble
Honolulu, HI
1:00 PM

Jacqueline Carey, Starless

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Tuesday, June 12th
Mysterious Galaxy
San Diego, CA
7:30 PM

Wednesday, June 13th
Borderlands Books
San Francisco, CA
6:00 PM

Thursday, June 14th
The Printed Garden
Sandy, UT
7:00 PM

Saturday, June 30th
Kazoo Books
Kalamazoo, MI
2:00 PM

Spencer Ellsworth, Starfire: Memory’s Blade

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Saturday, June 16th
University Bookstore
Seattle, WA
5:30 PM
Also with Joseph Brassey.

Candice Fox, Crimson Lake

Friday, June 8th
Huntington Beach Library
Huntington Beach, CA
12:00 PM

Matt Goldman, Broken Ice

Tuesday, June 12th
Once Upon A Crime
Minneapolis, MN
7:00 PM

Sunday, June 24th
Poisoned Pen
Scottsdale, AZ
2:00 PM

Tuesday, June 26th
Book Carnival
Orange, CA
7:30 PM
Also with Paddy Hirsch.

Wednesday, June 27th
Book Soup
West Hollywood, CA
7:00 PM

Thursday, June 28th
Bookshop West Portal
San Francisco, CA
7:00 PM

Tessa Gratton, The Queens of Innis Lear

Friday, June 15th
Blue Valley Library
Overland Park, KS
5:30 PM
Also with Dhonielle Clayton, Zoraida Cordova, and Justina Ireland.

Paddy Hirsch, The Devil’s Half Mile

Tuesday, June 6th
Solid State Books
Washington, D.C.
7:00 PM

Wednesday, June 6th
Mysterious Bookshop
New York, NY
6:30 PM

Thursday, June 7th
The Harvard Coop
Cambridge, MA
7:00 PM

Wednesday, June 13th
Southshore Center
Excelsior, MN
7:00 PM
Literature Lovers’ Night Out – also with Liam Callahan, J. Courtney Sullivan, and Sarah Healy, hosted by Excelsior Bay Books.

Thursday, June 14th
The Grand Banquet Center
Stillwater, MN
7:00 PM
Literature Lovers’ Night Out – also with Liam Callahan, J. Courtney Sullivan, and Sarah Healy, hosted by Valley Bookseller.

Thursday, June 21st
Copperfield’s Books
Heraldsburg, CA
6:00 PM

Tuesday, June 26th
Book Carnival
Orange, CA

Friday, June 29th
Mysterious Galaxy
San Diego, CA
7:30 PM

Saturday, June 30th
Skylight Books
Los Angeles, CA
5:00 PM

Michael Moreci, The Throwaway

Wednesday, June 20th
The Book Cellar
Chicago, IL
7:00 PM
Also with Greg Hickey, Paula Carter, and Kirk Landers.

C. L. Polk, Witchmark

Tuesday, June 26th
Magers & Quinn
Minneapolis, MN
7:00 PM

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#FearlessWomen at Left Bank Books

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Left Bank Books and Archon present an SF STL and Tor #FearlessWomen event on Thursday, May 10th at 7 PM, with authors Tessa Gratton, Sue Burke, and K. Arsenault Rivera, who will sign and discuss their new books The Queens of Innis Lear, Semiosis, and The Tiger’s DaughterFind more information about the event here.

Inspired by Shakespeare’s King Lear, dynasties battle for the crown in Tessa Gratton’s debut epic adult fantasy, a story of deposed kings and betrayed queens for fans of Red Rising and Queen of the Tearling. The Queens of Innis Lear brings to life a world that hums with ancient magic, and characters as ruthless as the tides.

Sue Burke’s Semiosis is a sweeping SF epic of first contact that spans generations of humans struggling to survive on an alien world. Colonists from Earth wanted the perfect home, but they’ll have to survive on the one they found. They don’t realize another life form watches . . . and waits.

K. Arsenault Rivera’s lush new epic historical fantasy series evokes the ambition and widespread appeal of Patrick Rothfuss and the vivid storytelling of Naomi Novik. The Tiger’s Daughter is the story of an infamous Qorin warrior, Barsalayaa Shefali, a spoiled divine warrior empress, O-Shizuka, and a power that can reach through time and space to save a land from a truly insidious evil.

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On the Road: Tor/Forge Author Events in May

Tor/Forge authors are on the road in May! See who is coming to a city near you this month.

George Beahm, The Military Science of Star Wars

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Tuesday, May 1st
Fountain Bookstore
Richmond, VA
6:30 PM

Phillipa Bornikova, Publish and Perish

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Saturday, May 19th
Page One Bookstore
Albuquerque, NM
4:00 PM

W. Bruce Cameron, A Dog’s Way Home

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Wednesday, May 2nd
Octavia Books
New Orleans, LA
6:00 PM

Lara Elena Donnelly, Armistice

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Tuesday, May 22nd
Astoria Bookshop
Queens, NY
7:00 PM

William Gear, This Scorched Earth

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Wednesday, May 2nd
Wind City Books
Casper, WY
6:00 PM

Friday, May 4th
Tattered Cover
Denver, CO
7:00 PM

Saturday, May 5th
Next Page Books & Nosh
Frisco, CO
4:00 PM

Tessa Gratton, The Queens of Innis Lear

Thursday, May 10th
St. Louis Public Library – Schlafly Branch
St. Louis, MO
7:00 PM
Fearless Women panel – hosted by Left Bank Books, also with Sue Burke and K. Arsenault Rivera.

Thursday, May 17th
The Raven Book Store
Lawrence, KS
7:00 PM

Sarah Gailey, American Hippo

Thursday, May 24th
WORD Bookstore
Brooklyn, NY
7:00 PM

Neal Griffin, By His Own Hand

Sunday, May 6th
Readers Realm
Montello, WI
1:00 PM

Tuesday, May 8th
Once Upon A Crime
Minneapolis, MN
7:00 PM

Saturday, May 12th
Mysterious Galaxy
San Diego, CA
10:00 AM
Part of Mysterious Galaxy’s 25th Birthday Bash Book Signing

Caitlin R. Kiernan, Black Helicopters

Tuesday, May 1st
Savoy Bookshop and Café
Westerly, RI
7:00 PM

Saturday, May 5th
Lovecraft Arts & Sciences
Providence, RI
6:00 PM

Mark Oshiro, Anger Is a Gift

Tuesday, May 22nd
The Strand
New York, NY
7:00 PM
Also with Tiffany Jackson, in conversation with Dhonielle Clayton.

Wednesday, May 23rd
Busboys and Poets
Washington DC
6:00 PM
In conversation with Jason Reynolds.

Saturday, May 26th
Murder By the Book
Houston, TX
4:30 PM
In conversation with Caleb Roehrig.

Sunday, May 27th
Murder By the Book
Houston, TX
2:00 PM

Tuesday, May 29th
Barnes & Noble
Los Angeles, CA
7:00 PM
In conversation with C.B. Lee.

Wednesday, May 30th
Oakland Public Library
Oakland, CA
12:00 PM
Books provided by Laurel Books.

Thursday, May 31st
Anderson’s Bookshop
Naperville, IL
7:00 PM

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Download the #FearlessWomen Summer Sampler today!

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#FearlessWomen Summer Sampler Meet this summer’s #FearlessWomen! These are the authors who are shaping new blockbuster worlds—and re-shaping our own. Highlighting major titles from bestselling authors V. E. Schwab, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Jacqueline Carey as well as titles from acclaimed and debut authors such as Mary Robinette Kowal, Tessa Gratton, Sam Hawke, and Robyn Bennis, we think you’ll love the stories these #FearlessWomen have to tell.

This free #FearlessWomen Sampler features the first 20 to 30 pages from each of the following titles:

  • The Queens of Innis Lear by Tessa Gratton
  • Death Doesn’t Bargain by Sherrilyn Kenyon
  • By Fire Above by Robyn Bennis
  • Vicious by V. E. Schwab
  • Starless by Jacqueline Carey
  • City of Lies by Sam Hawke
  • The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal

Plus, keep an eye out on the #FearlessWomen hashtag on Twitter, because we’ll be putting together a sampler of the Fall #FearlessWomen soon! Featuring excerpts from the following titles:

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Download Your Free Copy

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