Love in Vain

by Lewis Shiner

 ISBN 978-0-9586856-9-6

 Lettered Edition tpb (26 signed copies): Aus$88.00 / US$65
 Limited Edition tpb (700 signed copies): Aus$37.40 / US$30
 Pre-order here

 Shipping June 2008
 
 Suspense/Mystery/Science Fiction/Horror
 

Lewis Shiner's acclaimed collection, featuring the best stories by the World Fantasy Award-winning writer. This edition includes two stories previously uncollected in the sold out Subterranean Press edition.

 + Perfidia*
 + Love in Vain (read online here)
 + His Girlfriend's Dog
 + White City
 + Language
 + Mystery Train
 + The War At Home
 + Kidding Around
 + Steam Engine Time (read online here)
 + Scales
 + Wild For You
 + Sticks (read online here)
 + Match (read online here)
 + Oz
 + Gold
 + Secrets
 + Jeff Beck
 + The Best Part of Making Up
 + Dirty Work
 + Flagstaff (read online here)
 + The Tale of Mark the Bunny (read online here)
 + Primes*
 + Castles Made of Sand (read online here)

*This edition also includes the novelette "Primes" and novella "Perfidia", not previously collected in any edition.

Reviews

"Raw emotion, exquisite story construction, an ability to defy categorization by using whatever 'genre' suits his artistic needs are the hallmarks that cause Shiner's latest collection to...shine. Much like T.C. Boyle in his short work, Shiner invokes a wry magic in exploring human frailty and strengths. Moving assuredly through all time zones, he taps into a rich vein. Highlights include "White City," a historical fantasy in which a fanatical Tesla banishes night from the world; "Gold," another historical conceit about Lafitte's buried treasure on Galveston Island; "Match," a brilliant examination of father/son conflict; "Sticks" and the title story, both of which analyze the pain of mistaking sex for love, also echoed by two short shorts, "My Girlfriend's Dog" and "Language." Also notable is a new story, a fable for adults and children, "The Tale of Mark the Bunny," whose plea, "Give what you can. Take what you need," certainly hits home. The other stories, equally entertaining, never miss a beat in this harmonious gathering, hitting every dark and light note needed. Never before collected in one volume, these stories show why Shiner, a World Fantasy Award winner and author of the outstanding novels Say Goodbye and Glimpses, as well as editor of the pacifist anthology When the Music's Over, has become a virtuoso word musician."

—Publisher's Weekly (starred review)

Pre-orders available here.

Note: Australian dollar prices quoted inclusive of GST.

LEWIS SHINER began his career as a science fiction writer, identified early on with cyberpunk, and later wrote more mainstream novels, often with magical realism and fantasy elements. He was formerly a resident of Texas (and a member of the Turkey City Writer's Workshop), and now lives in North Carolina. Several of his novels have rock music as a theme or main focus, especially the musicians of the late 1960s; for example, and the great never-recorded albums of The Doors, Brian Wilson, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix in Shiner's 1993 novel Glimpses. Say Goodbye (1999) focuses on a fictional up and coming female musician and her subsequent fall back down. Slam (1990) is immersed in skate punk and anarchist culture, and is a rocket ride tale of a guy that just cannot win.

He can be found online at http://www.lewisshiner.com