One of our most original books: Childe Rolande by veteran horror and fantasy author Samantha Lee.
Showing posts with label Childe Rolande. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Childe Rolande. Show all posts
Monday, 2 September 2024
Tuesday, 30 July 2024
Childe Rolande and Elak, King of Atlantis
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| Published by Futura 1989 |
It's curious how Fate sometimes works in small ways. There are two
books I reviewed some years ago which had been published by other
imprints than my own - Futura Books and Pulp Hero Press respectively -
which I never thought at the time I would eventually reprint as Parallel
Universe Publications books.
The first was Samantha Lee's
Childe Rolande, which Futura published in 1989 and which I reviewed on
amazon in March 2022, not realising I would be reprinting this later
that year. This is a link to my original review on https://www.amazon.com/Childe.../dp/1739832655/ref=sr_1_1....
The other, of course, is Adrian Cole's
Elak, King of Atlantis, which I reviewed for Phantasmagoria magazine
not long after the book was first brought out by Pulp Hero Press. https://davidandrewriley.blogspot.com/.../my-review-of...
I don't know whether this will ever happen again, but twice, I'm sure, is strange enough.
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| Published by Pulp Hero Press 2020 |
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| Published by Parallel Universe Publications 2022 |
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| Published by Parallel Universe Publications 2024 |
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| Published by Futura 1989 |
Friday, 24 March 2023
This Sunday 2 PUP Books to be Reviewed on Big Hits Radio UK by Trevor Kennedy
Not one, but two Parallel Universe Publications books will be reviewed this Sunday, March 26th on Big Hits Radio UK by host Trevor Kennedy between 12 noon and 2 p.m.
The books are Samantha Lee's dark fantasy novel Childe Rolande and David A Riley's A Handful of Zombies: Tales of the Restless Dead.
Tuesday, 7 March 2023
Samantha Lee's Childe Rolande reviewed in the latest issue of Phantasmagoria
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Childe Rolande by Samantha Lee review in Phantasmagoria No 22 by John Gilbert:
WHEN I
FIRST reviewed Childe Rolande in 1989, talk of gender identity was as rare as literature discussing it and books featuring hermaphroditic central characters were even rarer. Storm Constantine had begun her series of Wraeththu novels in 1987 with The Enchantments of Flesh and Spirit, but
the
androgynous beings in her books were genetically altered and more akin to the “emo” and “goth” characters portrayed on screen and in the musical culture of those times.
Two years later in 1989, Samantha Lee’s Childe Rolande was published with little fanfare by New English Library in the UK but became a slow burn cult classic amongst fantasy and science fiction critics and devotees. Described as a “hermaphrodite” and “freak”, Childe Rolande is born into the fiercely matriarchal nation of Alba at a time when its fabric is crumbling. A prophecy says that one day a “Redeemer” will appear who will be “both one and the same”, and who will sweep away the age-old tyranny of Alba’s female rulers and bind the nation together in peace. Rolande fulfils all those qualifications.
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At the Dark Tower, Rolande must defeat the evil sorceress, Fergael, and unite the polarized kingdom if they are to fulfil their destiny. The book is written cleverly in the first person, so Lee doesn’t have to compare the main character to his/her gender. This allows Lee to step out of the political themes of the book and explore Alba, a kingdom ruled by any one part of its population. Childe Rolande also draws on poetic influences, particularly on Byron’s poem ‘Childe Roland to the Dark Tower Came’ which has drawn more than one contemporary author to its portentous portals. Samantha Lee’s classic is for all fantasy fans who want to understand human politics – and perhaps, those who maybe questioning their own sexuality – through the freedom of fantasy with enough allusions to play Umberto Eco’s game of hunt the reference.
A courageous, compassionate, innovative and intriguing novel when it was first published, it marks a milestone moment in the history of science fiction and fantasy and is today an example of what can be achieved in the genre fiction.
Childe Rolande is published by Parallel Universe Publications and is available to purchase from Amazon and other outlets. —John Gilbert
Phantasmagoria magazine
Amazon UK link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BXNBF1XK
Amazon USA link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BXNBF1XK
Friday, 24 February 2023
Two great fantasy books from Parallel Universe Publications
Late last year Parallel Universe Publications issued two great fantasy books:
Samantha Lee's dystopian dark fantasy Childe Rolande
Swords & Sorceries: Tales of Heroic Fantasy Volume 5
amazon.co.uk
Originally published by Futura Books in 1989, our new edition includes an Introduction by the author and a brand-new cover by talented Scottish artist Paul Mudie, who will be familiar to many for the iconic covers he created for the Black Books of Horror. There is also the added bonus of interior chapter headings by award-winning artist Jim Pitts.
Childe
Rolande has been optioned by Forlan Films for a proposed
TV series and is currently in pre-production development. See image below from their website.
amazon.co.uk
The contents are:
The Rotted Land by Charles Gramlich
Skulls for Silver by Harry Elliott
For the Light by Gustavo Bondoni
People of the Lake by Lorenzo D. Lopez
Free Diving for Leviathan Eggs by Tais Teng
The Black Well by Darin Hlavaz
Degg and the Undead by Susan Murrie Macdonald
The Mistress of the Marsh by David Dubrow
Silver and Gold by Earl W. Parrish
Bridge of Sorrows by Dev Agarwal
Prisoners of Devil Dog City by Adrian Cole
Wednesday, 22 February 2023
Childe Rolande by Samantha Lee
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Parallel Universe Publications is proud to have published Samantha Lee's groundbreaking post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel Childe Rolande as a paperback and kindle e-book.
Originally published by Futura Books in 1989, our new edition includes an Introduction by the author and a brand-new cover by talented Scottish artist Paul Mudie, who will be familiar to many for the iconic covers he created for the Black Books of Horror. There is also the added bonus of interior chapter headings by award-winning artist Jim Pitts.
Childe
Rolande has been optioned by Forlan Films for a proposed
TV series and is currently in pre-production development. See image below from their website.
Monday, 28 November 2022
Three new Parallel Universe Publications titles in just over a month
In just over a month Parallel Universe Publications has brought out three books in paperback and kindle.
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Originally published by Futura Books in 1989, our new version includes an Afterword/Introduction by the author and a brand-new cover by talented Scottish artist Paul Mudie, who will be familiar to many for the iconic covers he created for the Black Books of Horror. There is also the added bonus of interior chapter headings by award-winning artist Jim Pitts.
Childe Rolande has been optioned by Forlan Films for a proposed TV series and is currently in pre-production development.
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The contents are:
The Rotted Land by Charles Gramlich
Skulls for Silver by Harry Elliott
For the Light by Gustavo Bondoni
People of the Lake by Lorenzo D. Lopez
Free Diving for Leviathan Eggs by Tais Teng
The Black Well by Darin Hlavaz
Degg and the Undead by Susan Murrie Macdonald
The Mistress of the Marsh by David Dubrow
Silver and Gold by Earl W. Parrish
Bridge of Sorrows by Dev Agarwal
Prisoners of Devil Dog City by Adrian Cole
Of the eleven writers included this time, five hail from the United States, four from the United Kingdom, one from The Netherlands and one from Argentina.
All the interior art and the front and back covers are by Jim Pitts.
All four stories in this collection cover a wide range of tropes within the zombie genre.
Dead Ronnie and I is a tale of high adventure by plane and sea, with an abortive escape by our protagonist to the as yet untainted Isles of Scotland. This was originally published in Sanitarium Magazine No 44 in 2016.
His Pale Blue Eyes is probably the most traditional take of zombie stories today, featuring a young girl’s determined search for her parents during a zombie apocalypse. It’s a story, though, about conditioning and how what someone is taught can radically affect their behaviour. Is the horror in this the shambling undead or the girl herself? See what you think. This first appeared in Bite-Sized Horror edited by Johnny Mains for Obverse Books in 2011.
By contrast Right For You Now, originally published in Weirdbook Zombie Annual No 3 in 2021, harks back to the original concept of the zombie in Voodoo-haunted Haiti, though this tale is set in present-day Britain. It’s a combination of a crime story, revenge, and a man’s obsessive fascination with age-old practices.
Our final tale, Romero’s Children, is more in the way of a science fiction story. The zombies here are certainly the most different. For a start off they are not dead but have been granted near immortality by a drug that swept the world with its promise to stop aging. Alas for those caught up in the frenzied demand to use it, though, its side effects were such that they would have been better off dead. This story appeared in 2010 in The Seventh Black Book of Horror edited by the late Charles Black and was subsequently picked up by American editor Paula Guran for her 2012 anthology Extreme Zombies.
Friday, 21 October 2022
Childe Rolande by Samantha Lee - now published as a paperback and kindle e-book
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Parallel Universe Publications is proud to announce that we have published Samantha Lee's groundbreaking post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel Childe Rolande as a paperback and kindle e-book.
Originally published by Futura Books in 1989, our new version includes an Introduction by the author and a brand-new cover by talented Scottish artist Paul Mudie, who will be familiar to many for the iconic covers he created for the Black Books of Horror. There is also the added bonus of interior chapter headings by award-winning artist Jim Pitts.
Childe Rolande has been optioned by Forlan Films for a proposed TV series and is currently in pre-production development.
Childe Rolande – The Myth and the Legend
Childe Rolande, Hermaphrodite and Freak, is born into the fiercely matriarchal society of Alba at a time when the fabric of the nation is crumbling.
Rolande fulfils all the technical requirements of an ancient Prophesy which promises that one day a ‘Redeemer’ will arise who will be ‘the one and the both’, and who will sweep away the age-old tyranny of Alba’s female rulers to ‘bind the nation together in peace’.
The hopes and dreams of Alba’s downtrodden males are centred on this mystical being, whose eyes hold the wisdom of the ages and who can reputedly change into an eagle at will.
Can Rolande live up to their expectations, wrest the antlered throne from the Warlord of the Clans, drive the evil Sorceress, Fergael from her stronghold in the Dark Tower, and unite the polarised Kingdom?
From a review written by John Gilbert for Fear magazine in 1989.
“The book is written cleverly in the first person so Lee doesn’t have to equate the principal player with his/her gender. This also allows Lee to step out of the book’s politics and, in the Land of Alba, show that a kingdom ruled by any one part of the population can condemn the other elements to slavery. Childe Rolande also draws on poetic influences, particularly on Byron’s poem ‘Childe Rolande to the dark tower came’... In this book, however, there are enough poetic parallels to play that wonderful game so beloved of Umberto Eco, hunt the allusion. It’s a game that, if well played, will pay off for any lover of the fantasy genres and those interested in the politics of humanity, as pressed through the freedom of fantasy.”
Monday, 17 October 2022
Samantha Lee's novel Childe Rolande to be published by PUP
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Childe Rolande has been optioned by Forlan Films for a proposed TV series and is currently in pre-production development.
Childe Rolande will be available as a paperback and, for the first time ever, a kindle e-book.
Samantha is now at work on a sequel which will form the basis for a second season. More details of this exciting project will be revealed soon.
We are considering the publication of a limited edition hardcover edition signed by the author. The cost would be £25 plus p&p. If you are interested please email us with no obligation at:
paralleluniversepublications@gmx.co.uk
Childe Rolande – The Myth and the Legend
Childe Rolande, Hermaphrodite and Freak, is born into the fiercely matriarchal society of Alba at a time when the fabric of the nation is crumbling.
Rolande fulfils all the technical requirements of an ancient Prophesy which promises that one day a ‘Redeemer’ will arise who will be ‘the one and the both’, and who will sweep away the age-old tyranny of Alba’s female rulers to ‘bind the nation together in peace’.
The hopes and dreams of Alba’s downtrodden males are centred on this mystical being, whose eyes hold the wisdom of the ages and who can reputedly change into an eagle at will.
Can Rolande live up to their expectations, wrest the antlered throne from the Warlord of the Clans, drive the evil Sorceress, Fergael from her stronghold in the Dark Tower, and unite the polarised Kingdom?
“The book is written cleverly in the first person so Lee doesn’t have to equate the principal player with his/her gender. This also allows Lee to step out of the book’s politics and, in the Land of Alba, show that a kingdom ruled by any one part of the population can condemn the other elements to slavery. Childe Rolande also draws on poetic influences, particularly on Byron’s poem ‘Childe Rolande to the dark tower came’... In this book, however, there are enough poetic parallels to play that wonderful game so beloved of Umberto Eco, hunt the allusion. It’s a game that, if well played, will pay off for any lover of the fantasy genres and those interested in the politics of humanity, as pressed through the freedom of fantasy.”
John Gilbert - Fear Magazine.
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