From British Fantasy Award nominee Molly Tanzer comes her debut novel, Vermilion, a spirited weird Western adventure that puts the punk back into steampunk.
Gunslinging, chain-smoking, and Stetson-wearing Taoist psychopomp, Elouise "Lou" Merriwether might not be a normal nineteen year old, but she's too busy keeping San Francisco safe from ghosts, shades, and geung si to care much about that. It's an important job, though most folks consider it downright spooky. Some have even accused Lou of being more comfortable with the dead than the living, and, well ... they're not wrong.
When Lou hears that a bunch of Chinatown boys have gone missing somewhere deep in the Colorado Rockies, she decides to saddle up and head into the wilderness to investigate. Lou fears her particular talents make her better suited to help placate their spirits than ensure they get home alive, but it's the right thing to do, and she's the only one willing to do it. On the road to a mysterious sanatorium known as the Fountain of Youth, Lou will encounter bears, desperate men, a very undead villain, and even stranger challenges. She will need every one of her talents and a whole lot of luck to make it home alive.
About the Author :
Molly Tanzer is the Sydney J. Bounds and Wonderland Book Award-nominated author of A Pretty Mouth, Rumbullion and Other Liminal Libations, and Vermilion. She lives in Boulder, Colorado, with her husband and a very bad cat. When not writing, she enjoys mixing cocktails, hiking in the Rocky Mountains, experimenting with Korean cooking, and, as of recently, training for triathlons.
Emily Woo Zeller is an Audie and Earphones Award-winning narrator, voice-over artist, actor, dancer, and choreographer. AudioFile magazine named her one of the Best Voices of 2013. Her voice-over career includes work in animated film and television in Southeast Asia.
Review :
"Vermilion is a unique, hearty, thought-provoking romp that rewrites history with a vivacious flourish."
-- "NPR"
"[An] excellent debut novel...The best thing about Vermilion is Lou Merriweather...She's fun, vibrant, rough around the edges, and a kick-ass heroine...Vermilion is a roller-coaster of a ride: it's exciting, suspenseful, and a downright blast to read, but it maintains a serious side that underscores the complicated history of the American West. Plus, talking bears and vampires."
-- "io9.com"
"A splendid page-turner...This hugely entertaining mixture of American steampunk and ghost story is a wonderful yarn with some of the best dialogue around."
-- "Publishers Weekly (starred review)"
"Old West steampunk has another appealing heroine in Lou...The pages turn themselves in this debut novel from a small press that deserves a big audience."
-- "Library Journal (starred review)"
