Celebratory pealing bells for Kristin Landon, whose absorbing SF novel Windhome lifts off today!
This fascinating, nuanced story of first contact will be irresistible to readers of Le Guin, Butler, McDevitt, and Arnason. Grounded in science, with a plot rich in external and internal discovery, with vivid characters for whom the reader comes to care deeply, Windhome is The Left Hand of Darkness meets Black Robe with a soupçon of Alien. The story’s premise:
Earth has sent out exploratory expeditions in a desperate attempt to discover the nature of the alien force that wiped out at least one extrasolar civilization and now threatens Earth itself. One of the exploratory starships is stealth-attacked by the hostile aliens. The survivors, marooned among the pre-technological inhabitants of the icy world of Windhome, struggle to survive, to understand this harsh world and its few, grim people—and, somehow, to fulfill their mission. Thrown into an unwilling alliance with a Windhome outsider faction, exiled into wilderness, two of the human crew must live by this world’s bitter laws, accept the ways of its people—and eventually make a terrifying choice.
Kristin Landon lives in Oregon with her husband Tom and an imperious Cavalier spaniel named Lucy. In addition to writing science fiction, she works as a freelance copyeditor of a wide range of scholarly and medical books. Her novelette “From the Depths” appeared in the highly acclaimed science fiction anthology To Shape the Dark (Candlemark & Gleam, 2016). She is also the author of the Hidden Worlds trilogy: The Hidden Worlds, The Cold Minds, and The Dark Reaches (Ace Books). The magnificent cover is by multi-award winner Julie Dillon.
Windhome received wonderful reviews in Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Romance Times, Skiffy & Fanty, and from pillar of hard SF G. David Nordley, which indicates its range. Excerpts:
“After an eight-year hiatus, Landon (The Dark Reaches) returns with a complex fourth novel that combines dystopian and first-contact themes. // This is a quiet, tense book, saturated with dread.” —Publishers Weekly
“This striking tale of survival and fortitude in an icy, alien world by the author of the “Hidden Worlds” trilogy is recommended for readers who enjoy character-driven stories.” —Kristi Chadwick, Library Journal
“…Landon’s worldbuilding skills shine. While the action is strictly between the humans and the natives, the setting is easy to envision and believe…// Overall, this isn’t a necessarily happy story, but it is satisfying and leaves wide the possibilities for the next book.” —Karen Sweeny-Justice, Romance Times
As fully fleshed out as their human counterparts, the aliens of the book come alive as they react to and have to deal with the sudden appearance of three people from the sky. // Although a comparison to Ursula K. LeGuin is obvious, I really think it’s Eleanor Arnason, with her Ring of Swords and A Woman of the Iron People, that Landon’s work most resembles in my reading oeuvre. It is a corner of Space Opera that is not quite as explored as it could be, and for me, Windhome is a welcome addition to it. —Paul Weimer, Skiffy & Fanty
Windhome delivers a page-turning epic journey of human survival through a maze of alien politics and environmental challenges. Its cultural worldbuilding is fascinating, detailed, and nuanced in a way that may remind readers of George R. R. Martin, Poul Anderson, or C. J. Cherryh. We should see more from Kristin Landon. —G. David Nordley, author of After the Vikings
Windhome is available on Amazon, B&N, Kobo – and of course on our website, where buying the lovingly prepared trade paperback also brings along the full digital bundle (PDF, Epub and Mobi) . All C&G ebooks are DRM-free. As a reminder, it may take a couple of days post-launch for full linkage between print and digital versions on Amazon and B&N.
Come explore Windhome with us; sail under skies where red Arcturus glitters coldly as the winter star!
