December 2007 Archives
From the announcement:
Tor Books announced today that novelist Brandon Sanderson has been chosen to finish the final novel in Robert Jordan’s bestselling Wheel of Time fantasy series. Robert Jordan, one of the greatest storytellers of the 20th and early 21st centuries, died September 16th after a courageous battle with the rare blood disease amyloidosis.
The new novel, A Memory of Light, will be the twelfth and final book in the beloved fantasy series which has sold over 14 million copies in North America and over 30 million copies worldwide. The last four books in the series were all #1 New York Times bestsellers, and for over a decade fans have been eagerly awaiting the final novel that would bring the epic story to its conclusion.
Dragonmount was able to interview Brandon Sanderson before the announcement was made.
There are some sample chapters and a free ebook available on his site: http://www.brandonsanderson.com/
One of my favorite authors, one whose books I have unfortunately yet to review here, has announced that he has been diagnosed with a form of early onset Alzheimer’s. His Discworld novels are some of my absolute favorites and you really owe it to yourself to try a few of them if you haven’t already. I’m roughly only a third of the way through the series myself and each book I have read has been a real treat and often had me laughing out loud.
From the announcement, An Embuggerance:
I would have liked to keep this one quiet for a little while, but because of upcoming conventions and of course the need to keep my publishers informed, it seems to me unfair to withhold the news. I have been diagnosed with a very rare form of early onset Alzheimer’s, which lay behind this year’s phantom “stroke”.
We are taking it fairly philosophically down here and possibly with a mild optimism. For now work is continuing on the completion of Nation and the basic notes are already being laid down for Unseen Academicals. All other things being equal, I expect to meet most current and, as far as possible, future commitments but will discuss things with the various organisers. Frankly, I would prefer it if people kept things cheerful, because I think there’s time for at least a few more books yet :o)
PS I would just like to draw attention to everyone reading the above that this should be interpreted as ‘I am not dead’. I will, of course, be dead at some future point, as will everybody else. For me, this maybe further off than you think - it’s too soon to tell. I know it’s a very human thing to say “Is there anything I can do”, but in this case I would only entertain offers from very high-end experts in brain chemistry.
In the future, neurological disorders are running rampant and medical science is unable to keep up. Humanity is on the verge of extinction unless something can be done. Fifty scientists with terminal diseases head out on a mission to Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, to study the pre-life chemistry taking place in the hope of finding a clue to stave off the end of man. Naturally, not all of them survive the trip, but that is only just the beginning of the story.
