AU LECTEUR (OR TO THE READER)
============================================

I enjoy a nice three-hour karaoke night as much as the next ultra-hip chorister, but on one such occasion, I had a revelation. After putting in a meager four songs in a row, I sensed a hint of vituperativeness when songs requested much after mine were being butchered by unimaginative and uninspired disillusioned vocalists.

I often made my way to the bar for some post-work vocal exercises, and I asked the bartender (whom we tip generously and not just at happy hour) what was going on.

She laughed and said, 'I don't like you guys. I cringe when I hear you sing, especially, and I work at a karaoke bar.' Then she gave me a warm sake on the house and said the spoiled crowd needed to hear more subpar performances to appreciate the inherent awesomeness of my own. After some dark suit clunked through a normally beautiful 'Barracuda,' it was my turn again. I turned my internal speaker up to 11 and didn't SING Boyz II Men's 'I'll Make Love to You' as much as EXUDED it. Then I made the following announcement before they pried the mic from my hands:

Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough fans rejoice! They are back with CHANGELINGS, the story of Ronan and Murel, the children of Yana and Sean from the three POWERS novels (POWERS THAT BE, POWER LINES, AND POWER PLAY)!

We have the last of the STAR WARS DARK NEST TRILOGY with Troy Denning's SWARM WAR, where Luke must get some help from all the heroes of the New Jedi Order to rally round the family, with a pocket full of lightsabers.

Robert Newcomb returns to the world of THE CHRONICLES OF BLOOD AND STONE with SAVAGE MESSIAH, following the adventures of Prince Tristan and Shailiha as they must defeat a dark force that holds their destinies in his hands.

Writer Charlie Huston is known for his thrilling, rock 'em sock 'em crime novels, and delivers the same action and atmospheric panache with his newest book, ALREADY DEAD, about a hard-boiled private eye 'vampyre.'

You give love a bad name,

Tim

WHAT'S NEW IN STORES
===================================================
January 2006

CHANGELINGS by Anne McCaffrey
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0koz0EH
Hardcover

They are Ronan Born for Water Shongili and Murel Monster Slayer Shongili. Twin brother and sister. Children of Yana and Sean. Children of Petaybee. As such, theirs is a destiny deeply intertwined with the sentient planet that is their home. For Ronan and Murel are more than human. Read more..

SAVAGE MESSIAH by Robert Newcomb
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko10E3
Hardcover

In Savage Messiah, the first volume in a sweeping new trilogy of magic, romance, and adventure, Newcomb returns to the world of his epic saga, unlocking fresh secrets and startling surprises. Read more..

WISH YOU WERE HERE by Nick Webb
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko20E4
Trade paperback

It all started when Douglas Adams demolished planet Earth in order to make way for an intergalactic expressway'and then invited everyone to thumb a ride on a comical cosmic road trip with the likes of Arthur Dent, Ford Prefect, and the other daft denizens of deep space immortalized in The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. Read more…

ALREADY DEAD by Charlie Huston
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko30E5
Trade paperback

Those stories you hear? The ones about things that only come out at night? Things that feed on blood, feed on us? Got news for you: they're true. Only it's not like the movies or old man Stoker's storybook. It's worse. Especially if you happen to be one of them. Just ask Joe Pitt. Read more

THE GREENSTONE GRAIL by Amanda Hemingway
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko40E6
Trade paperback

A desperate mother spirits away her infant son, seemingly drawn (chased, perhaps?) to the small English village of Thornyhill. She ends up on the doorstep of old Bartlemy, a curious man who has lived on the forested land for as long as anyone can remember'and who comes to believe that the child is destined for great things. Read more

GHOST HUNT 2 by Shiho Inada
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko50E7
Trade paperback

GACHA GACHA 2 by Hiroyuki Tamakoshi
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko60E8
Trade paperback

OTHELLO 6 by Satomi Ikezawa
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko70EA
Trade paperback

WALLFLOWER 6 by Tomoko Hayakawa
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0ko80EB
Trade paperback

NEGIMA 8 by Ken Akamatsu
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpA0EL
Trade paperback

PASTEL 1 by Toshihiko Kobayashi
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpB0EM
Trade paperback

STAR WARS: DARK NEST III: THE SWARM WAR by Troy Denning
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpC0EN
Mass market

In the explosive conclusion to the Dark Nest trilogy, Luke Skywalker summons the heroes of the New Jedi Order from near and far, as the Star Wars galaxy teeters on the edge of eternal war. Read more

HOMEWARD BOUND by Harry Turtledove
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpD0EO
Mass market

The twentieth century was awash in war. World powers were pouring men and machines onto the killing fields of Europe. Then, in one dramatic stroke, a divided planet was changed forever. An alien race attacked Earth, and for every nation, every human being, new battle lines were drawn. . Read more

LION OF MACEDON by David Gemmell
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpE0EP
Mass market

Over and again, the aged seeress Tamis scried all the possible tomorrows. In every one, dark forces threatened Greece; terrible evil was poised to reenter the world. The future held only one hope: a half-caste Spartan boy, Parmenion. So Tamis made it her mission to see that Parmenion would before the deadliest warrior in the world -- no matter what the cost. Read more…

POWERS THAT BE by Anne McCaffrey
[http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpF0EQ
Mass market
Strange things were happening on the icy planet called Petaybee. Unauthorized genetically engineered species had been spotted, while some people were simply disappearing. None of the locals were talking to the company, so the company sent disabled combat veteran Yanaba Maddock to spy. Read more...

FROM RANDOM HOUSE CHILDREN'S BOOKS:

Show book shot:

http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpG0ER

Become the new face of Young Warriors!

What Makes a Warrior?

Send in a picture of yourself as a young warrior and describe what makes you one!

One grand-prize winner's picture will be featured on the cover of the paperback edition of Young Warriors!

Enter the Contest!

http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0juD0ES

DEL REY NEWS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS
===========================================

AIR GEAR ANNOUNCEMENT

With 12 volumes and over 5.5 million copies in print in Japan, great anticipation has been building for the U.S. debut of AIR GEAR. AIR GEAR, translated from the original Japanese and completely unedited, follows the adventures of Itsuki Minami, the toughest strongest wrestler at Higashi JHS, who is easy on the eyes, but dangerously rough when he needs to be in a ring. Itsuki lives with the mysterious and sexy Noyamono sisters--so this lucky boy's life isn't exactly dull. But it takes a turn for the even more unreal when Itsuki leads his school to victory over some vindictive Westside punks with gangster connections. Now he stands to lose his school, his friends, and everything he cares about. In his darkest hour, the Noyamano girls come to Itsuki's aid. They can teach him how to use Air Trecks to save their school from the gangster's seige'and bring Itsuki to a thrilling, and terrifying, new world.

'This is definitely one of our biggest releases for 2006,' said manga director Dallas Middaugh. 'The story will have you on the edge of your seat, and the art will keep your eyes super-glued to the page.'

AIR GEAR will be rated for ages 16 and up. The first volume will go on sale July 25, 2006.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
PROMOTIONS

Keith Clayton has been promoted to Associate Editor, Del Rey. Keith has made himself at home in the challenging world of tie-in fiction and nonfiction, handling (most recently) several titles in the Star Wars NEW ESSENTIAL GUIDE series, the BATMAN original fiction program, and the X-MEN 3 movie novelization. He has also shown himself to have a good eye for commercial fiction, having signed up CHASING THE DEAD by Joe Schreiber, which will appear on the Fall '06 Ballantine hardcover list. Keith has been with Del Rey since May 2003
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
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DEL REY PUBLICATION DATA
===================================================

February 2006

THE OUTBOUND FLIGHT PROJECT by Timothy Zahn (Science Fiction)
0-345-45683-1
Hardcover

STARFIST: FLASHFIRE by David Sherman and Daniel Cragg (Science Fiction)
0-345-46054-5
Hardcover

THE BOOK OF SKULLS by Robert Silverberg (Science Fiction)
0-345-47138-5
Trade paperback

NODAME CANTABILE 4 by Tomoko Ninomiya (Manga)
0-345-48241-7
Trade paperback

TSUBASA 8 by CLAMP (Manga)
0-345-48428-2
Trade paperback

LOVE ROMA 2 by Toyoda Minoru (Manga)
0-345-48263-8
Trade paperback

GURU GURU PON-CHAN 3 by Satomi Ikezawa (Manga)
0-345-48141-0
Trade paperback

GENSHIKEN 4 by Kio Shimoku (Manga)
0-345-48242-5
Trade paperback

THE VAMPIRE'S SEDUCTION by Raven Hart (Horror)
0-345-47975-0
Mass market

THE LABYRINTH KEY by Howard V. Hendrix (Science Fiction)
0-345-45597-5
Mass market

March 2006

JUDAS UNCHAINED by Peter F. Hamilton (Science Fiction)
0-345-46166-5
Hardcover

GACHA GACHA 3 by Hiroyuki Tamakoshi (Manga)
0-345-48623-4
Trade paperback

SCHOOL RUMBLE 1 by Jin Kobayashi (Manga)
0-345-49147-5
Trade paperback

SUGAR SUGAR RUNE 2 by Moyoco Anno (Manga)
0-345-48630-7
Trade paperback

OTHELLO 7 by Satomi Ikezawa (Manga)
0-345-48439-8
Trade paperback

NEGIMA 9 by Ken Akamatsu (Manga)
0-345-48273-5
Trade paperback

SUNSTORM by Arthur C. Clarke and Stephen Baxter (Science Fiction)
0-345-45251-8
Mass market

ALTERED CARBON by Richard K. Morgan (Science Fiction)
0-345-45769-2
Mass market

STAR WARS REPUBLIC COMMANDO: TRIPLE ZERO by Karen Traviss (Science Fiction)
0-345-49009-6
Mass market

April 2006

ENGAGING THE ENEMY by Elizabeth Moon (Science Fiction)
0-345-44756-5
Hardcover

THE SWORD OF STRAW by Amanda Hemingway (Fantasy)
0-345-46080-4
Trade paperback

EARTH ABIDES by George R. Stewart (Science Fiction)
0-345-48713-3
Trade paperback

PASTEL 2 by Toshihiko Kobayashi (Manga)
0-345-48628-5
Trade paperback

GHOST HUNT 3 by Shiho Inada (Manga)
0-345-48626-9
Trade paperback

THE WALLFLOWER 7 by Tomoko Hayakawa (Manga)
0-345-48371-5
Trade paperback

KAGETORA 1 by Akira Segami (Manga)
0-345-49141-6
Trade paperback

HIS MAJESTY'S DRAGON by Naomi Novik (Fantasy)
0-345-48128-3
Mass market

FAT WHITE VAMPIRE BLUES by Andrew Fox (Horror)
0-345-45697-1
Mass market

DANTE'S EQUATION by Jane Jensen (Science Fiction)
0-345-43038-7
Mass market

May 2006

THE BLOOD KNIGHT by Greg Keyes (Fantasy)
0-345-44068-4
Hardcover

VELLUM by Hal Duncan (Science Fiction)
0-345-48731-1
Trade paperback

DRUIDS by Morgan Llywelyn (Fantasy)
0-345-49131-9
Trade paperback

GURU GURU PON-CHAN 4 by Satomi Ikezawa (Manga)
0345-48097-x
Trade paperback

NODAME CANTABILE 5 by Tomoko Ninomiya (Manga)
0-345-48269-7
Trade paperback

PICHI PICHI PITCH 1 by Michiko Yokote (Manga)
0-345-49196-3
Trade paperback

TSUBASA 9 by CLAMP (Manga)
0-345-48429-0
Trade paperback

GENSHIKEN 3 by Kio Shimoku (Manga)
0-345-49153-x
Trade paperback

THRONE OF JADE by Naomi Novik (Fantasy)
0-345-48129-1
Mass market

X-MEN 3 by Chris Claremont (Movie Tie-in)
0-345-49211-0
Mass market

SIDE BAR
==========================================================

When Two Ann/es Write as One
By
Elizabeth Ann Scarborough

Anne McCaffrey and I dreamed up Petaybee, our sentient world populated by a racial mix of Irish and Inuit (Eskimos), after her first trip to Fairbanks, when I took my first trip to Ireland. While Anne was in Fairbanks, my former home, I made sure she got to enjoy the Northern Lights and took her out to my friends the Melchiors, who gave her a dogsled ride and moose spaghetti.

When I went to Ireland to research Irish folk music for some other books I was writing, we decided to try co-writing one. 'What shall we write about?' I asked. 'Oh, dogsleds and the Irish,' she said. A little while later, she declared, 'I have an idea,' and retired to her office to write the first ten pages of Powers That Be. Handing me the disk, she said, 'You take it,' and I wrote the next twenty pages. Leapfrogging, editing each other's prose, we wrote our book in two fun-filled months. I spent large parts of the next two years at her house doing the same, and then we took a hiatus because she had so many other projects and my cats were tired of sharing me with her cats.

Changelings let us collaborate via the miracle of email, with a couple of in-person conferences when Anne returned to the States to pick up awards. As we work on the Twins of Petaybee series, I hope she keeps winning more awards so we have more opportunities for conferring face to face!

IN DEPTH
=======================================================

A Conversation with Charlie Huston, author of Already Dead

Q: What sets the vampires of Already Dead apart from those familiar to readers of Stoker, Rice, and Hamilton, as well as to fans of Buffy and Angel? What new angles are you bringing to vamp noir?

Charlie Huston:Well, I don't know how many knew angles you can find in a vampire story. Truth is, that's a well-mined vein. No pun intended. The aspect I find most entertaining is blending vampire mythology into a noir world. I love the idea of a gothic creature of the night existing in a contemporary setting with a noir sensibility.

Q: You've published two mainstream mysteries, Caught Stealing and Six Bad Things, the first of which has been optioned for a film. What made you branch out into horror'assuming you consider Already Dead to be horror?

CH:I tend to think of Already Dead as a noir story with horror trappings, but honestly, it's a pretty fine line. Once you got vamps and zombies, it's hard to argue the book's not horror. Either distinction is fine by me. As to how I ended up writing this book after starting with straight-up crime, just kind of happened to me. I had a few lines and a few scenes that kept picking at me until I went to work. I expected to end up with a short story maybe. Instead I got a novel and the framework for an entire series. Lucky me.

Q: Some writers never wanted to do anything else but write, while others seem to have stumbled into it almost by accident. What was your path to becoming a writer?

CH:I was a bit of a stumbler. I've always done a bit of writing for my own entertainment, even started college as a creative writing major (miserable failure). But for most of my adult life I was studying theater and acting. I wrote my first novel more to occupy myself with something creative than to find a publisher. It was only through a random series of events and blind luck that I ended up doing this full time. This is me knocking wood.

Q: Who are some of your biggest influences as a writer?

CH:Over the last couple years, as I've worked on several novels now, I've started to see signs of many writers. Off the top of my head, Charles Bukowski, James Elroy, Cormac McCarthy, have all put a stamp on my Henry Thompson books. With Already Dead I'm pretty consciously going for a Chandler thing.

To read the rest of the interview, go to: http://info.randomhouse.com/cgi-bin21/DM/y/enB10ILuVi0WM0kpH0ES

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