Aaron Allston releases new ebook: An Occurrence at Bifrost Bridge

An Occurrence at Bifrost BridgeAaron Allston, author of many Star Wars novels including the upcoming Wraith Squadron novel, X-Wing: Mercy Kill, has announced the ebook release of a new short story, An Occurrence at Bifrost Bridge. Set in the 1940s, this fantasy story journeys into the realms of Norse mythology, with a title reminiscent of a classic Ambrose Bierce tale.

Available in several formats, the story is available for purchase at Allston’s ArcherRat Publishing store or get the Kindle edition on Amazon. Physical copies may be available for purchase from the author at Dragon*Con. Also now available in multiple electronic formats is Allston’s first ebook, Dead But Hostile, a trio of horror shorts.

Allston talks Fate of the Jedi, Wraith Squadron

In an interview with Del Rey’s Suvudu blog, Aaron Allston talks about the current series, Fate of the Jedi (Have you finished Conviction yet?) and drops a few more details on his upcoming Wraith Squadron book.

Most of the action takes place in the same approximate period as Fate of the Jedi, but there are critical chapters that revisit the Wraiths in earlier years, starting just after they made the jump to become an Intelligence unit. The current-era story reunites some of the longtime Wraiths, introduces new ones, and even has second-generation Wraiths.

Head on over to Suvudu for more on the Wraiths, FOTJ, and the Jedi in general.

FOTJ: Ascension pushed back a week; Del Rey wants your input on The Old Republic era books

Del Rey announced today on Facebook that Fate of the Jedi: Ascension by Christie Golden will have its release date pushed back from August 16 to August 23. (Our book release schedule has been updated.) Don’t forget that the next FOTJ novel, Aaron Allston’s Conviction, comes out on May 24!

Also, their reader poll this week gives a chances for readers to give feedback on continuing The Old Republic era after the third novel, Revan, comes out. Did people read and like Fatal Alliance and Deceived? Get your thoughts in on their Facebook discussion.

Street date shuffle: Realigning the novels for 2011/2012

We got a number of schedule updates from Sue Rostoni today. There were a few notable delays – Riptide, Shadow Games and (sigh) Fate of the Jedi: Apocalypse have all been pushed back a few months. There were also a number of additions: Drew Karpyshyn’s contribution to The Old Republic tie-ins set for October. Looking forward into 2012, Luceno’s Plagueis novel is up for January, and Allston’s new Wraith book for July.

We also got what is perhaps our first conformation that John Jackson Miller’s Lost Tribe of the Sith is set for print. Head on over to our book schedule for all the details.

Our top 10 Star Wars books of 2010

Can’t end the year without a list, can we? Here are our staff’s picks for the ten best books of the year.

Be sure to check out more favorites at StarWars.com. They asked us to do the literature portion, but other contributers include Kyle Newman, Ashley Eckstein, TFN’s Eric Geller, Steve Sansweet, and Bonnie Burton!

10. Star Wars Year by Year: A Visual Chronicle by Daniel Wallace, Pablo Hidalgo, Gus Lopez, and Ryder Windham
Rounding out the list is the one book that has it all. Expanded Universe history? Check. Oddball merchandise? Check. Museum exhibits? Early versions of Yoda? Mark Hamill on Broadway? Check, check, and you better believe it. Star Wars Year by Year compiles over four decades (yes, four) of highlights, lowlights, and trivia – think of it, perhaps, as The Essential Franchise Chronology. But its scope goes beyond Lucasfilm productions. The authors also spotlight various milestones in science, pop-culture, and politics, giving readers a sense of the events that helped shape Star Wars, as well as how Star Wars changed the world. – Stooge

9. The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance by Sean Williams
Setting the stage for the eventual release of The Old Republic MMO, Fatal Alliance builds up the worlds and character types, and then throws them all into the fray against a new threat. Sean Williams captures the look of this era, and brings together some new enjoyable characters. It’s a heist caper that unfolds into a tale of espionage and war. It takes a little while to set up the players, but the endgame is well worth it. – James

8. Millennium Falcon: A 3D Owner’s Guide by Ryder Windham
The saga’s most iconic ship is revealed! Ryder Williams’ text is sparse but clever, the illustration work by Chris Trevas and Chris Reiff shines, and the layer-by-layer design is icing on the cake. Kids will love it and adults will delight in the technical specs and (in-character!) modification notes. It’s a just plain fun book – certain to entrance even the most jaded fan for at least a little while. – Dunc

7. Fate of the Jedi: Vortex by Troy Denning
With Luke and Ben and their new Sith allies having defeated a more sinister evil, you’d think that Troy Denning would take it easy on the Jedi Order, but Abeloth’s demise in Allies is just the beginning of a series of explosive events. Faster that you can say “Curse your sudden but inevitable betrayal”, the Sith bring it. Chief of State Daala brings it. The Mandalorians bring it. Tahiri’s prosecutor brings it. So it’s up to a couple of Jedi, and Han and Leia to strike back – and when they bring Lando and droids to help, you know it’s going to get heavy as the Jedi shake things up against their adversaries. – James

6. The Sounds of Star Wars by J. W. Rinzler and Ben Burtt
A book that needs a volume button? Not to worry, this is more than just a gimmick. To fully explore the audio awesomeness of Ben Burtt, The Sounds of Star Wars has a built-in soundboard which plays over 200 (unmixed!) effects from that galaxy far, far away. So you can read about the crazy ways he made these sounds, then listen to the fantastic end results! Plus, Mr. Burtt has enough behind-the-scenes stories to fill ten volumes – and for a quadruple Oscar-winner, he’s remarkably humble. – Stooge Continue reading “Our top 10 Star Wars books of 2010″

Celebration V book and comic news: Wraith Squadron, Fate of the Jedi, Crimson Empire 3 and more

Del Rey brought plenty to the table for Celebration, but the biggest EU news is without a doubt the reveal that Aaron Allston will be writing a brand-new Wraith Squadron novel. It’s too early for details, but expect a spring/summer 2012 release date.

We also learned that Thrawn will appear in Zahn’s Hand of Judgment, Drew Karpyshyn will be writing a third Old Republic novel, Jeff Grubb’s 2012 paperback will feature Hutts, and Han Solo will appear in the Dash Rendar/Holostar novel. And TFN reports that something is in the works for the 20th anniversary of Heir to the Empire, to which I say: Damn straight.

As for Fate of the Jedi, we learned that the final book will be titled Apocalypse. Cheery! Also addressed was the heightening of drama, Vestara’s role, and (sigh) the whole Jacen/Tahiri thing. Except, not really. (I do love the Mando quote, of course.)

Meanwhile, the comic fans got a surprise of their own: Crimson Empire III is a go, for real this time. The 6-issue series will begin in March with Mike Richardson and Randy Stradley scripting and Dave Dorman on covers.

Knight Errant got a big push, complete with a costumed representation, but if the EUC report is anything to go by it’s too soon for much of a reveal.

As for Legacy, there are currently no plans for anything after the War mini – Ostrander and Duursema will “will be working on something entirely different.”

The rest of the news rehashes much we’ve already heard, but a hardcover edition of Dark Empire will commemorate the comic’s twentieth anniversary. And the return of Dark Horse Presents may yield some Tales-like stories.

Also getting some love at the con (but not enough for their own entry) was The Force Unleashed (Yoda? Really? That Muppet needs a better agent.) and The Old Republic.