Out now!
Nineteen tales of science fiction and fantasy (including three new, never-before published) in my first collection of short stories, to be published by new kids on the block, Bewildering Press.
Available now from
THE STORIES - REVIEWS
Tall Tales on the Iron Horse
"Clever surrealism and a superb punch line"
Nick Gevers - Locus
"It's one of those
stories you can't quite make sense of until the end, and even then you
have to think about it. Well worth the ride."
David Soyka - SF Site
Dolls
"Multiple layers give 'Dolls' a weight that will beg you to re-read."
S R Turner - Tangent
The Defenders
"For
such a brief story, Davies encompasses a wide range. 'The Defenders'
brought to mind a comment by John Clute (in reference to both James
Tiptree Jr and the underrated Kris Neville) 'A capacity to develop the
sometimes routine initial material of a story so that its implications
expanded constantly...' Tiptree did this with breathtaking ease, and
Davies displays a similar ability here"
Chris Markwyn Tangent
" 'The Defenders' by Colin P Davies expertly dissects colonialism in quintessential science-fictional terms"
Nick Gevers - Locus
"Short, effective, and providing a solid emotional payoff, this is a great short story"
Jason B Sizemore - Apex Digest
The Girl with the Four-Dimensional Head
" 'The Girl with the Four-Dimensional Head' by Colin P Davies is
excellent. This is not another goofy, pulpy tale, but a gritty sci-fi
drama with fully drawn characters, outstanding dialog, and an
interesting take on the old standby setting of Mars"
Michael Gabriel Bailey - Tangent
Read extracts here See contents here More details here
Cover art by Crystalwizard
THE COLLECTION - REVIEWS
"Its so easy to say that there is literally something for everyone within the covers, but nothing could be more true. Colin won't beat you up with heavy science but neither will he taunt you with ghosts and ghoulies, but he will walk you damn close and absolutely entertain you. Tall Tales on the Iron Horse is a fast entertaining read, well worth the cost. You won't be disappointed"
Paul Cole, Beam Me Up, Radio Station WRFR, Rockland
Or listen at Beam Me Up Podcast
Anyone with the courage to board the iron horse of science fiction and fantasy written by Davies will be left with a bitter taste of deep and dark thoughts. Readers will find much to consider and will find much to keep them reading
Vivian Zabel, Vivian's Site
As Cory Doctorow wrote, “the easiest way to write futuristic science fiction is to predict, with rigor and absolute accuracy, the present day,” and Davies has succeeded admirably in this task. But don’t let that distract you from the ageless elements in these stories, which often confront darker aspects of the human heart in ways illuminating and surprising. These stories share other common elements: they are well-plotted, crisply told, and thoroughly engaging
Alvaro Zinos-Amaro, The Fix
Mostly consisting of previously published science and speculative fiction short stories, Tall Tales is a smart collection that is provocative and complex. Many stories conceptualize the results of widespread genetic engineering, holographic technology, and a culture that needs constant entertainment and stimulation......It brought to mind the movies Blade Runner and 2001, A Space Odyssey and a world where the created servant becomes the disillusioned master.
Jaimie Bell, Front Street Reviews
The author’s imagination leads him to craft stories that take you into futuristic tales that are often deeply troubling, complex, spell binding and perplexing...The title seems innocuous; it lends itself to the image of stories with a warm, cozy fireside focus. Don’t be fooled.
Barbara L. Fielder, Armchair Interviews
Every so often, a book comes along that not only captures your attention, but holds you under its power long after you have turned the final page. Tall Tales on the Iron Horse, written by Colin P. Davies, is just that sort of book. Joyce Anthony, Books and Authors
With an imagination sparked by that understated and deliberately dry British humor (well, humour, I suppose), Science Fiction writer Colin P Davies has crafted a wonderfully witty collection of fantastical stories titled, Tall Tales on the Iron Horse Lyn Perry, Bloggin' Outloud
NEWSNEWSNEWSNEWSNEWSNEWSETC....
LATEST NEWS....
The Certainty Principle, a 6000 word sf story that takes place on Mars and in Wales, has sold to Asimov's. No publication date yet.
A rewritten version of my early story David Yeung Remains will be appearing soon in the anthology Things Are Not What They Seem
My story Babel 3000, which appeared in March Asimov's, is included in Dave Truesdale's Recommended Reading List for 2007 published on the Black Gate website, and is also now available, together with Dolls, The Defenders, and Tall Tales on the Iron Horse on the intriguing new website anthology builder
On April 1st the 'Silly Fantasy' anthology will be published. This is a compendium of humorous prose, poems and artwork and ideal for those lonely minutes spent in the bathroom. I have five pieces appearing: One Paradox and a Funeral (flash), Dead Fred and A Hero's Guide to Saving a Planet (poems), and ET Phone Home and First Contact (cartoons)
Entertain your ears... An atmospheric telling of the story, Tall Tales on the Iron Horse , can be heard on the podcast site Beam Me up. - episode #86. A second story, The Defenders, was read on episode #87. The Evangelist will be read in an upcoming episode
Two new short stories are now online at Bewildering Stories - Happy Halloween in the (you guessed it!) Halloween issue #265, illustrated by Crystalwizard , and Her Precipitous Pride, His Lamentable Ears in issue #267
The short story Tall Tales on the Iron Horse is now available to read at Keith Brooke's excellent site Infinity Plus. After ten years, Keith is making this the last-ever update of the site. The special 'anniversary update' has fiction from Paul McAuley, Nicola Griffith, Kit Reed, James Patrick Kelly, Gareth L Powell, Jeff Vandermeer and Paul Di Filippo
Pestworld, a humorous look at the future possibilities of genetic engineering has been serialised at Bewildering Stories in issues #233 and #234
The Defenders Asimov's Science Fiction (Oct/Nov 2004) is included in The Year's Best Science Fiction #22 - Ed Gardner Dozois - from St Martin's Press (The Mammoth Book of Best New SF #18 from Robinson in the UK)
The Bookmole is now complete and on the market. The novel is 57,000 words and for Age 12 Plus
MOVE INTO EUROPE
In a surprise move (a surprise to me at least), I have made my first appearance in translation. The Defenders has been published in the acclaimed Hungarian SF magazine Galaktika (#197)
The story has received a good review in Estonian from Lauri Lukas. Thanks to Lauri for the translation.
