Happy New Year! My best wishes to you and yours for 2019!
Here’s my review of 2018. It was a dicey year for me, with some bright spots. I’ll start with the Attack. Those of you who follow me on Facebook and Twitter—and I posted a blog on WordPress, but took it down for legal reasons—know that in July, 2018 I was violently attacked on a sunny summer afternoon while I was walking around beautiful Lake Merritt in Oakland, California.
A man literally sprang out of the flowering bushes and confronted me on the sidewalk. He tried to beat me up, drawing his fist back to punch me in the face. I fended him off, then he shoved me down a pedestrian walkway into two lanes of oncoming traffic. I shuffled my feet to avoid plunging into the traffic and fell on my right hip on the concrete street curb. The Oakland police apprehended and arrested him. I took an ambulance ride to the hospital, was x-rayed and informed that I had a fractured right hip and broken right femur. Early in the morning the next day, I underwent three hours’ of surgery under general anesthetic.
It’s been a long, brutal six months since then, but as of January 1, 2019, I am walking without a walker or a cane. I’m not as mobile as I used to be. I’m working on that, doing physical therapy every day. I’ve gone grocery shopping with my husband three times, going into the market without a cane (but leaning on a shopping cart). I still have pain, especially in my knee, but I’m walKING! Thrilled about that. And I’m about a third of the way through a nonfiction book inspired by the ordeal and some issues that cropped up as a result. I hope to be done with the piece in 2020. It’s called Sticks and Stones Will Break My Bones.
Now for the good news:
“Aurelia” was published in the January-February 2018 issue of the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Here’s one review: https://alexclarkmcg.wordpress.com/page/4/
Jan 23rd, 2018, Aurelia by Lisa Mason, Fantasy and Science Fiction Magazine, Jan/Feb 2018
“Another fantastic piece in what is shaping up to be a fantastic issue of F&SF. While the last piece I read out of this issue, The Equationist by J.D. Moyer, was my favorite story out of the issue at the time, it will have to share the podium with this gem as well–though I like them for very different reasons.
Aurelia is the story of a debaucherous lawyer who is presented with the woman of his dreams. She lives in a manner overlooking the San Francisco Bay, and but a nefarious person is trying to buy her property. She hires the protagonist, Robert, to be her lawyer, but quickly seduces him–though as he is looking for a wife to make himself look more respectable than he already is–the seduction is mutual. They are married within a month, and their sex is like nothing Robert has experienced.
However, Robert still hungers for sexual relations with nearly every woman he comes into contact with. He cheats on his wife with his psychologist, with the intern, with the lowly tax attorney when he is away on a work trip.
And that isn’t all that’s wrong either. Aurelia, Robert’s wife, has an art studio above the garage. He has only been inside once, and only with her permission. It holds a sense of decay and has burlap twine crisscrossing it so that you have to duck and weave around it. Everything about this studio is wrong, in comparison to everything about the manor next door. It is decadent and majestic, while the studio is decaying and dark.
That’s a pretty good set up. Obviously, Aurelia isn’t what she seems, and there are lots of hints along the way for readers to figure out what will happen before it does.
It is a gothic tale, but also rather fairy tale-esk in the telling. A thoroughly enjoyable experience from a writer I’ll certainly look for in the future.” (A)
“Dangerous” was published January 2018 in Welcome to Dystopia, an anthology of forty-five short stories edited by award-winning Gordon Van Gelder and published by O/R books. Paul Di Filippo’s review at Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/review/future-is-nearly-now-science-fiction-2018 mentioned the story and ten others as his favorites and called my story “droll.” Two more reviews called my story “hilarious”, see ANALOG at http://www.analogsf.com/current-issue/the-reference-library/ and the SAN FRANCISCO BOOK REVIEW at https://sanfranciscobookreview.com/product/welcome-to-dystopia-45-visions-of-what-lies-ahead/.
Finally, “The Bicycle Whisperer” was published in the May-June 2018 issue of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. Here’s one review http://sfbookreview.blogspot.com/2018/05/mayjune-2018-fantasy-and-science-fiction.html “Simon’s bicycle runs away. He hires the Lone Rangerette to find her, which she does. LR finds Shimano Stella, calms her down and asks her whether she has run away to get away or to get attention. A lot of story packed into five pages.”
Then seven of my books are BACK IN PRINT. See the list below for the links. The new print books include Summer of Love, The Gilded Age, The Garden of Abracadabra, One Day in the Life of Alexa, Strange Ladies: 7 Stories, Arachne, and Cyberweb. Click on the links for the covers and reviews.
Forthcoming in 2019 is a story “Taiga” in the April 2019 digest of Not One of Us, edited by John Benson. And the REALLY BIG NEWS is that my new high-concept SF novel, CHROME, will be available for pre-order on May 21, 2019 and go on sale on September 24, 2019!
So there you have it, my friends. More stories and novels are on the way!
From the author of Summer of Love (a Philip K. Dick Award Finalist and San Francisco Chronicle Recommended Book). On BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Smashwords, Apple, and Kobo. On Kindle worldwide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. BACK IN PRINT! Find the beautiful trade paperback at https://www.amazon.com/Summer-Love-Travel-Lisa-Mason/dp/1548106119/ or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/summer-of-love-a-time-travel-lisa-mason/1104160569.
The Gilded Age (a New York Times Notable Book and New York Public Library Recommended Book). On BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. On Kindle worldwide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. BACK IN PRINT! Find the beautiful trade paperback at https://www.amazon.com/Gilded-Age-Time-Travel/dp/1975853172/ or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-gilded-age-a-time-travel-lisa-mason/1106038566.
The Garden of Abracadabra (“Fun and enjoyable urban fantasy . . . I want to read more!) On BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. On Kindle worldwide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. NOW IN PRINT! Find the beautiful trade paperback at https://www.amazon.com/dp/1978148291/ or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-garden-of-abracadabra-lisa-mason/1108093507
Arachne (a Locus Hardover Bestseller) is an ebook on US Kindle, UK Kindle, Canada Kindle, Australia Kindle, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. On Kindle worldwide in France Kindle, Germany Kindle, Italy Kindle, Netherlands Kindle, Spain Kindle, Mexico Kindle, Brazil Kindle, India Kindle, and Japan Kindle. Back in Print! Find the beautiful trade paperback at https://www.amazon.com/dp/198435602X or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/arachne-lisa-mason/1000035633.
Cyberweb (sequel to Arachne) is on US Kindle, BarnesandNoble, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also Kindle worldwide on UK Kindle, Canada Kindle, Australia Kindle, Brazil Kindle, France Kindle, Germany Kindle, India Kindle, Italy Kindle, Japan Kindle, Mexico Kindle, Netherlands Kindle, and Spain Kindle. Back in Print at https://www.amazon.com/dp/1984356941 or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cyberweb-lisa-mason/1001932064
Strange Ladies: 7 Stories (“A must-read collection—The San Francisco Review of Books). On Nook, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Smashwords, Apple, and Kobo. On Kindle world wide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. NOW IN PRINT at https://www.amazon.com/Strange-Ladies-Stories-Lisa-Mason/dp/1981104380/ or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/strange-ladies-lisa-mason/1115861322.
One Day in the Life of Alexa (“Five stars! An appealing narrator and subtly powerful emotional rhythms”). On BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Smashwords, Apple, and Kobo. On Kindle worldwide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. Order the beautiful trade paperback NOW IN PRINT at https://www.amazon.com/One-Life-Alexa-Lisa-Mason/dp/1546783091 or IN PRINT at Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/one-day-in-the-life-of-alexa-lisa-mason/1126431598.
Celestial Girl, The Omnibus Edition, A Lily Modjeska Mystery (Five stars) On Nook, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Smashwords, Apple, and Kobo. On Kindle worldwide in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands. SOON IN PRINT!
Shaken (in Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine) on BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands.
Hummers (in Fifth Annual Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror) On BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, and India.
Daughter of the Tao (in Peter S. Beagle’s Immortal Unicorn) on US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, BarnesandNoble, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands.
Every Mystery Unexplained (in David Copperfield’s Tales of the Impossible) on BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, and India.
Tomorrow’s Child (In Active Development at Universal Pictures) on BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, India, Mexico, and Netherlands.
The Sixty-third Anniversary of Hysteria (in Full Spectrum 5) on BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, and India.
U F uh-O (Five Stars!) on BarnesandNoble, US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, and India.
Tesla, A Screenplay on US Kindle, Canada Kindle, UK Kindle, BarnesandNoble, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on Kindle in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, and India.
My Charlotte: Patty’s Story on Barnes and Noble, US Kindle, UK Kindle, Canada Kindle, Australia Kindle, Smashwords, Apple, and Kobo. On Kindle in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Brazil, Japan, Netherlands, and Mexico.
“Illyria, My Love” is on US Kindle, Barnes and Noble, Apple, Kobo, and Smashwords. Also on UK Kindle, Canada Kindle, Australia Kindle, Germany Kindle, France Kindle, Spain Kindle, Italy Kindle, Netherlands Kindle, Japan Kindle, Brazil Kindle, Mexico Kindle, and India Kindle.
Please visit me at Lisa Mason’s Official Website for all my books, ebooks, stories, and screenplays, reviews, interviews, and blogs, adorable cat pictures, forthcoming works, fine art and bespoke jewelry by my husband Tom Robinson, worldwide links, and more!
And on Lisa Mason’s Blog, on my Facebook Author Page, on my Facebook Profile Page, on Amazon, on Goodreads, on LinkedIn, on Twitter at @lisaSmason, at Smashwords, at Apple, at Kobo, and at Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America.
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