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Orion Orion i(A37273 works by) (Organisation) assertion (a.k.a. Orion Books; Orion Publishing Group; Orion Children's Books)
Born: Established: 1991 London,
c
England,
c
c
United Kingdom (UK),
c
Western Europe, Europe,
;
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1 7 y separately published work icon Transcension Damien Broderick , New York (State) : Tor , 2002 Z979500 2002 single work novel science fiction

'Starting with Vernor Vinge's concept of the Technological Singularity (the moment when machines begin to evolve without human assistance or restraint), Broderick takes three people at the end of this century toward the technological/biological apocalypse, beginning with Abdel-Malik, a Lebanese-born judge. In 2004, Malik is murdered, reanimated about 70 years later, and now rules on the fate of humans in an era when the race has given control of its destiny to the Aleph, a godlike, continuously evolving AI. Amanda, a near-thirtysomething adolescent who plays a great violin, can hack into any communications system and was caught breaking into a mag-lev freighter terminal with her boyfriend Vik as part of a failed attempt to hitch a ride on these superfast underground trains. Malik confines her to her home, takes away her communications and Mall visitation privileges, but Amanda hacks through and, using robot bees, gets the attention of Mathewmark, a product of a severely isolated, kind of latter-day–Mennonite compound in which all technology is banned. Mathewmark agrees to help Amanda and Vik sneak down a mag-lev ventilator shaft inside the compound, but ends up almost dying when their plans go awry. Malik rules that Amanda must take care of Mathewmark, whose brain is now rebuilt of computer circuitry and has extraordinary abilities that lead them to discover the apocalyptic event the Aleph has planned to take everyone to the next evolutionary step.'

Source: Kirkus Reviews (https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/damien-broderick/transcension/). (Sighted: 23/6/2014)

1 8 y separately published work icon The White Abacus Damien Broderick , New York (City) : Avon Books , 1997 Z516730 1997 single work novel science fiction

'Long before William Shakespeare, tales were told of the Dane Ameleth whose noble father was murdered by the uncle who swiftly weds new widow Gerutha. Must Ameleth repay this crime by killing his uncle? The White Abacus dares to reconfigure the best known version of the classic tale, Shakespeare's Hamlet, to create a futuristic revenge drama with an entirely different outcome. Telmah is an inventive genius. Ophelia is no sobbing suicide but rather the impressive Warrior Rose, who shockingly revises the fate of her lover.

'In this exotic future history, the galaxy is open to anyone who passes through a hex gate, whether hu (augmented human) or ai (artificial mind). Telmah's close friend is the ai Ratio, newly embodied to the Real. Like all members of his asteroid tribe, Telmah is forbidden to use the hex transport system, since that would doom his rebirth.

'Out of this agonizing dilemma comes a feverish pursuit of truth and duty, love and near-madness, in an endlessly startling future where nothing turns out the way you expect.

Source: Publisher's blurb.

2 6 y separately published work icon The Judas Mandala Damien Broderick , New York (City) : Pocket Books , 1982 Z926626 1982 single work novel science fiction

'Maggie Roche is an out-of-work poet and single mother. Spied on by a cyborged rat, attacked, drugged into panic and rapture, seduced, drawn into conspiracy, she's flung four thousand years into her own future. In the alien world of the Ull–Upload Lifeform Lords who are human-machine hybrids of overwhelming power–she learns that she is history's first true time traveler, hunted by friend and foe to the end of time. The entire future of the cosmos will be reset by these terrifying events. The Judas Mandala introduced the terms "virtual reality" and "virtual matrix," anticipating Frank Tipler's influential Omega Point Theory, William Gibson's cyberpunk fiction, and The Matrix ... A new Afterword describes the strange publishing history of this ground-breaking novel, and includes the full text of an omitted chapter.'

Source: ABR.

1 5 y separately published work icon Striped Holes Damien Broderick , New York (City) : Avon Books , 1988 Z455127 1988 single work novel science fiction

'Sopwith Hammil might be the nation's top chat-show host but his peace of mind is shattered when a time traveling bureaucrat lands on his couch. To save his life and the human race (They're turning the Sun off!), Sopwith must find a wife inside three hours. Turns out it's not that easy, Soppy.

'Meanwhile, popular astrologer and certified lifesaver O'Flaherty Gribble, a favorite guest on Sopwith's show, has discovered the Callisto Effect and how to build striped holes. And in a future that makes Nineteen Eighty-Four look like Brave New World or vice versa, beautiful Hsia Shan-Yun is about to have her brain scrubbed for knitting one of those striped holes, with frightful consequences. But luckily, O'Flaherty finds himself seated on a plane next to God. Tighten your belt, it's that kind of novel.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Gateway edition).

2 11 y separately published work icon The Dreaming Dragons : A Time Opera Damien Broderick , Melbourne : Norstrilia Press , 1980 Z368813 1980 single work novel science fiction

'Aboriginal anthropologist Alf Dean Djanyagirnji, with his autistic nephew Mouse, seek evidence that the Rainbow Serpent is a desert myth sprung from the ancient skeleton of a dinosaur. Instead, they find a gate that teleports them into a vault miles beneath sacred Uluruh, the huge eroded monolith once dubbed Ayers Rock by the white invaders. They are not alone. American and Russian scientists and military personnel have drilled into the Vault, and only Mouse's damaged brain can communicate with the Vault intelligence.

'Elsewhere, in California's Big Sur, former hippie physicist and student of the occult Dr. Bill DelFord is commissioned to explain an equally ancient ruin on the far side of the moon. A non-human, extraterrestrial intelligence? A long forgotten intelligent dinosaur species destroyed at the apex of their civilization by the cataclysmic asteroid impact 66 million years ago? Or something worse?

'What these researchers and explorers find, step by incredible step, is a bond between that vanished species and human consciousness, mortal and post-mortem. The Dreaming (originally published under the misleading title The Dreaming Dragons) is a headlong cascade of mythology and advanced physics, hurtling toward an unexpected apotheosis.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Gateway edition)

1 y separately published work icon The Gifts of Reading Jennie Orchard (editor), London : Orion , 2020 19679921 2020 anthology essay

'This story, like so many stories, begins with a gift. The gift, like so many gifts, was a book...' So begins the essay by Robert Macfarlane that inspired this collection.

'In this cornucopia of an anthology, you will find essays by some of the world's most beloved novelists, nonfiction writers, essayists and poets.'You will see books taking flight in flocks, migrating around the world, landing in people's hearts and changing them for a day or a year or a lifetime.'You will see books sparking wonder or anger; throwing open windows into other languages, other cultures, other minds; causing people to fall in love or to fight for what is right.'And more than anything, over and over again, you will see books and words being given, received and read - and in turn prompting further generosity.'Published to coincide with the 20th anniversary of global literacy non-profit, Room to Read, The Gifts of Reading forms inspiring, unforgettable, irresistible proof of the power and necessity of books and reading.Inspired by Robert MacfarlaneCurated by Jennie OrchardWith contributions by: William Boyd, Candice Carty-Williams, Imtiaz Dharker, Roddy Doyle, Pico Iyer, Andy Miller, Jackie Morris, Jan Morris, Sisonke Msimang, Dina Nayeri, Chigozie Obioma, Michael Ondaatje, David PillingMax Porter, Philip Pullman, Alice Pung, Jancis Robinson, S.F.Said, Madeleine Thien, Salley Vickers, John Wood and Markus Zusak. (Publication summary)
1 y separately published work icon Yggdrasil Station Damien Broderick , London : Orion , 2020 19458506 2020 single work novel science fiction

'In medical student August Seebeck's world, almost identical to ours, there are eleven months in a year. None of them is the month of August—until now, when the young orphan stumbles into the true, infinite universe, and becomes a Player in the Game of Worlds. And step by deranged step he meets his siblings: Avril, Decius, Jan, Jules, Maybelline, Septimus/Septima who is both male and female, Toby, the others. And outside his family, glorious, brilliant Lune, also a Player, is quickly his lover, with dreadful secrets of her own.

'These diverse warriors of the multiverse confront the terrible K-machines, who detest and slaughter humans ... but then are the Seebeck family really human? What are these silver symbols engraved into their flesh? What is the true nature of the unending, unfolding cosmos, a meta-reality built from ontological computation, Lune's doctoral specialty? And how can August slay the looming Jabberwock using only the Sun-blazing Vorpal implant in his hand? What final transformation awaits the multiverse at Yggdrasil Station, at the death and dawn of spacetime, where all the heroes die and live again? In this astounding helter-skelter two-part novel, the answers to such questions emerge along a twisting path that will not set you free until you sit with August at a great thirteen-sided table and learn his destiny, and perhaps your own.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

1 1 y separately published work icon Stormblood Jeremy Szal , London : Orion , 2020 19457393 2020 single work novel science fiction

'Vakov Fukasawa used to be a Reaper: a bio-enhanced soldier fighting for the Harmony, against a brutal invading empire. He's still fighting now, on a different battlefield: taking on stormtech. To make him a perfect soldier, Harmony injected him with the DNA of an extinct alien race, altering his body chemistry and leaving him permanently addicted to adrenaline and aggression. But although they meant to create soldiers, at the same time Harmony created a new drug market that has millions hopelessly addicted to their own body chemistry.

'Vakov may have walked away from Harmony, but they still know where to find him, and his former Reaper colleagues are being murdered by someone, or something — and Vakov is appalled to learn his estranged brother is involved. Suddenly it's an investigation he can't turn down ... but the closer he comes to the truth, the more addicted to stormtech he becomes.And it's possible the war isn't over, after all ...'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

1 y separately published work icon The Water's Daughter Michelle Lovric , London : Orion , 2020 18883218 2020 single work children's fiction children's

'An exquisitely imagined fantasy novel about a girl who can see history with her touch. Set on the canals of Venice, from an award-winning author, this is a perfect book for fans of Frances Hardinge and Jennifer Bell for 9+ readers.

'Twelve-year-old Aurelia Bon can see what happened in a place by merely pressing her fingertips up against the walls. So when young boys start disappearing around an old palace, Aurelia must use her ability to find out what has happened, before the boys of Venice disappear forever...' (Publication summary)

1 y separately published work icon The Lost Soul Atlas Zana Fraillon , Sydney : Lothian , 2020 18883072 2020 single work children's fiction children's

'One street-boy's quest to reunite and make amends with his best friend told in an epic story that spans a city, a decade, and the divide of life and death itself. From the award-winning author of The Bone Sparrow.

'A boy awakens in the Afterlife, with a pocketful of vague memories, a key, a raven, and a mysterious Atlas to guide him as he sets out to piece together the mystery of his final moments ...

'Meanwhile on Earth, Twig is alone as a newly-made street kid after his dad goes missing. But when he meets Flea, a cheerful pickpocket, the pair become fast friends, better even than blood family itself. Together, Twig and Flea raise themselves on the crime-ridden streets, taking what they need and giving the rest to the even-poorer. Life is good, as long as they have each other. But the all-powerful Boss who rules the streets has other plans.

'Loyalty will be tested, and a cruel twist of fate will lead to an act of ultimate betrayal. But will it tear the friends apart ... forever?' (Publication summary)

5 y separately published work icon The River Home Hannah Richell , Sydney : Hachette Australia , 2020 18579177 2020 single work novel

'The river can take you home. But the river can also drag you under...

''It's something she learned years ago - the hard way - and that she knows she will never forget: even the sweetest fruit will fall and rot into the earth, eventually. No matter how deep you bury the pain, the bones of it will rise up to haunt you ... like the echoes of a summer's night, like the river flowing relentlessly on its course.

'Margot Sorrell didn't want to go home. She had spent all her adult life trying not to look behind. But a text from her sister Lucy brought her back to Somerset. 'I need you.'

'As Margot, Lucy and their eldest sister, Eve, reunite in the house they grew up in beside the river, the secrets they keep from each other, and from themselves, refuse to stay hidden. A wedding brings them together but long-simmering resentments threaten to tear the family apart. No one could imagine the way this gathering would change them all forever. And through the sorrow they are forced to confront, there is a chance that healing will also come. But only if the truth is told.' (Publication summary)

1 y separately published work icon Like Mother, Like Daughter Elle Croft , London : Orion , 2020 18052858 2020 single work novel thriller

'If what they said was true, then the grotesque and the monstrous ran in her blood. It was imprinted within her very core, her DNA, a part of every cell in her body.

'Kat's children are both smart and well-adjusted. On the outside.

'Kat has always tried to treat Imogen and Jemima equally, but she struggles with one of her daughters more than the other.

'Because Imogen's birth mother is a serial killer. And Imogen doesn't know.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

2 18 y separately published work icon Beloved Son George Turner , London : Faber , 1978 Z112561 1978 single work novel science fiction

'Forty years after his starship escapes from an apocalyptic Earth, Commander Albert Raft and his crew return to a much younger and violent Earth society that wants to embrace Raft as a god because of his telepathic powers.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Avon reprint).

2 12 y separately published work icon Vaneglory : A Science Fiction Novel George Turner , London Boston : Faber , 1981 Z111572 1981 single work novel science fiction

"One of the few survivors of a destroyed human race, Will Santley of the newly emerging Ethical Culture is caught up in the mysterious biopolitical affairs of radioactive immortals and must remember his frightening past in order to survive."

Source: Bookseller's website.

1 14 y separately published work icon Yesterday's Men George Turner , London : Faber , 1983 Z111260 1983 single work novel science fiction

'On a futuristic Earth where the repressive leaders of the Ethical Culture attempt to control the aggressive instincts of the human race, part-Cyborg Peter Corrigan becomes a part of a secret government experiment.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Avon reprint).

1 3 y separately published work icon Genetic Soldier George Turner , New York (City) : William Morrow , 1994 Z81123 1994 single work novel science fiction

'In a distant future, on an Earth populated by a scant few hundred thousand humans, the Atkins’s Thomas performs without question the duties for which he was genetically bred. Called “Soldier” by one and all, he is a man of honor and ability, responsible for keeping the peace, for maintaining the status quo . . . and, most important, for guarding the great Book House on the hill – a vast repository of Last Culture knowledge presided over by Libary, Soldier’s mentor, the most senior of the mystic Celibate scholars.

'Such is Thomas’s life in the serene, semi-primitive world without nations and cities and governments – until the night the starship comes home. Having fled a dangerously overcrowded Earth years before the Collapse and the Twilight that followed, for seven centuries the men and women of the space-going vessel Search have been combing the galaxy for inhabitable planets – their aging processes dramatically slowed by the relative magic of light speed travel and cryogenic sleep. And now, lonely and frustrated, the weary voyagers have returned to a homeworld unrecognizably altered by the relentless tides of time – a world that does not want them back.

'A bitter welcome awaits the Searchers, as old Libary gathers Earth’s Ordinands and Elders together to tap the terrifying power of the collective unconscious – in preparation of the Carnival night when they will sweep the helpless intruders back to their lonely sky in the name of Holy Science. And it is Soldier who stands in the middle, silent and alone – bound by duty to evict the homesick star-travelers . . . yet cursed by a preordained genetic destiny that has decreed their eviction will mean Soldier’s death.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Orion ed.).

1 8 y separately published work icon In the Heart or in the Head : An Essay in Time Travel George Turner , Carlton : Norstrilia Press , 1984 Z426790 1984 single work autobiography criticism

'In the Heart or in the Head is a brilliant literary memoir in which George Turner chronicles his chaotic growing-up in a family for whom fact and fantasy were equally acceptable and often indistinguishable. It is also the record of his development as one of Australia’s finest novelists and his entanglement with science fiction.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Orion ed.).

1 y separately published work icon The Wishing Bones Michelle Lovric , London : Orion , 2019 17151746 2019 single work novel young adult fantasy historical fiction

'Venice in 1740, a serene and lovely city.
But look beneath the surface . . . step off the edge of what you think you know . . .

'Young orphan Lily has grown up in a glum, prison-like convent. Her only freedom is walking the beautiful streets of Venice, dreaming of escape...of a family...of being loved.

'Then someone tries to steal the bones of Venice's beloved Saint Lucy. Without her protection, the city's vibrant colours fade to grey. And soon, the Venetians start to turn on one another.

'If Lily can't find a way to save Saint Lucy, Venice - the only home she's ever known - will descend into darkness...forever.

'A magical adventure set amongst mysterious canals and filled with monstrous eels, moody mermaids and menacing curses.

Source: Publisher's blurb.

4 1 y separately published work icon Angel Mage Garth Nix , Crows Nest : Allen and Unwin , 2019 15477384 2019 single work novel fantasy

'From fantasy master Garth Nix comes a new world of angels, heroes, gunpowder and high magic.

'The icon-maker and angel-summoner Liliath, long-believed dead, has woken from her century-long sleep to pick up the threads of a plan that has already destroyed one kingdom and may yet destroy another. To succeed, Liliath must bring together Agnez the musketeer; Simeon the doctor; Dorotea the mage; and Henri, one of the Cardinal's clerks, and take them into utmost danger ...

'Set in an alternate 17th century where angels can be summoned (and controlled) by those with a talent for magic, Angel Mage is an action-packed story of angels, heroes, gunpowder and high magic.'  (Publication summary)

2 5 y separately published work icon Brain Child George Turner , New York (City) : M. S. Mill and William Morrow , 1991 Z504839 1991 single work novel science fiction crime

'David Chance, the unknowing offspring of a long-forgotten experiment that produced genetically engineered child geniuses, learns terrible secrets about his own conception and discovers the horrifying course that human history is taking.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

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