Smugglers Weekly Stash

As the long weekend comes to a close, we have a few important announcements!

This Saturday (July 12th), Lisa Shearin–author of fantasy novels Magic Lost, Trouble Found and Armed and Magical–will be joining us for our next “Chat With an Author”! What’s better is, we will be having another giveaway: FIRST PRIZE wins autographed copies of Magic Lost, Trouble Found and Armed and Magical, and a RUNNER UP will get a bookmark, magnet and postcard featuring the lovely Raine Benares (heroine of the two books). **Psst, for those who have the books already, you can enter the contest for the extra runner up goodies–details to follow when the interview goes up!**

New Releases:

Naomi Novik’s bestselling, award-winning Temeraire series’ fifth installment comes out on Tuesday.

Naomi Novik’s triumphant debut, His Majesty’s Dragon, introduced a dynamic new pair of heroes to the annals of fantasy fiction: the noble fighting dragon Temeraire and his master and commander, Capt. Will Laurence, who serves Britain’s peerless Aerial Corps in the thick of the raging Napoleonic Wars. Now, in the latest novel of this dazzling series, they soar to new heights of breathtaking action and brilliant imagination.

It is a grim time for the dragon Temeraire. On the heels of his mission to Africa, seeking the cure for a deadly contagion, he has been removed from military service–and his captain, Will Laurence, has been condemned to death for treason.

For Britain, conditions are grimmer still: Napoleon’s resurgent forces have breached the Channel and successfully invaded English soil. Napoleon’s prime objective: the occupation of London.

Separated by their own government and threatened at every turn by Napoleon’s forces, Laurence and Temeraire must struggle to find each other amid the turmoil of war and to aid the resistance against the invasion before Napoleon’s foothold on England’s shores can become a stranglehold.

If only they can be reunited, master and dragon might rally Britain’s scattered forces and take the fight to the enemy as never before–for king and country, and for their own liberty. But can the French aggressors be well and truly routed, or will a treacherous alliance deliver Britain into the hands of her would-be conquerors?

Also out this week, Marvel Zombies 2, the graphic novel, hits stores on July 9th!

Forty years have passed and the zombies have come back home after eating just about everything else in the universe. Yum yum! What awaits them back on Earth, though, is beyond anything even these shambling monstrosities could have conceived! The Marvel characters that became last year’s unexpected smash hit are back and more stomach-churning than ever! Plus: At last – witness the birth of the Marvel Zombies! Kirkman and Phillips pull out all the stops as they reveal the secret story of the day the Marvel Heroes became brain-eating monsters! Want to see the Avengers eat Jarvis? You won’t get that in New Avengers, effendi! Collects Marvel Zombies 2 #1-5.

Annnnd gearing up for this weekend, also on July 9th, Hellboy: Oddest Jobs will be released!

Long-time contributor to the Hellboy mythos Christopher Golden brings together a crew of luminaries including Joe R. Lansdale (Bubba Ho-Tep) and China Miéville (King Rat), cross-genre sensation Barbara Hambly (The Windrose Chronicles), celebrated mystery writer Ken Bruen (The Dramatist), best-selling science fiction and fantasy novelist Tad Williams (Otherland), and a bevy of other skilled storytellers eager to spin a tale or two about the world’s greatest paranormal detective, as some of the biggest names in horror, mystery, and fantasy come together to pay homage to Mike Mignola’s Hellboy!

All leading up to this Friday, when Hellboy II: The Golden Army hits theaters nationwide!

Can I get a HELL YES!? Guillermo del Toro does Hellboy proud with his beautiful artistic direction–stick around and we’ll have our review of Hellboy II next week!

Around Blogland: Shannon, over at What Women Read is hosting her book club for July 15th; this month’s book is Mr. Perfect by Linda Howard. Pop on over if you’re down for some discussion of the novel.