The Trouble With Crimson Angel Guards...

Oh dear, I see it's been a cheeky month since my last posting here! There's no excuse, absolutely no excuse for such a long delay in updating the blog... well, there is, there is an excuse, a very good one, in fact, the best excuse there is - I've been busy working! The downside to that mini revelation, is the usual caveat of saying that I can't talk about what I've been doing yet; does that ever get less boring to hear? No, I thought not, sorry, but as ever, all will be revealed as soon as possible.

In the meantime though, things that I also wasn't allowed to talk about when they were first recorded, can now be splashed across these cyber pages in all their glory, because they are now available for the listening pleasure of all those who actually derive 'listening pleasure' from them - ah, as neat a slice of tautology as you could hope to find!

Moving swiftly on; I think we're up to release number 33 now with this lates batch. Not the floods of early spring, but a gentle summer trickle to match the mood of the weather, which is a bit soggy and warm at the moment. So here goes - in order of release, sort of:

This month's first offering - and coming in at a whopping 32 hours & 14 minutes - is the third novel/audio book in Ian C. Esslemont's Malazan Series, produced by Neil Gardner and read by me for Penguin, Random House and now available from audible.co.uk:

The return of the mercenary company, the Crimson Guard, could not have come at a worse time for a Malazan Empire exhausted by warfare and weakened by betrayals and rivalries. Indeed, there are those who wonder whether the Empress Laseen might not be losing her grip on power as she faces increasing unrest as conquered kingdoms and principalities sense freedom once more.

Into the seething cauldron of Quon Tali--the Empire's heartland--marches the Guard. With their return comes the memory of the Empire--and yet all is not well with the Guard itself. Elements within its elite, the Avowed, have set their sights on far greater power. There are ancient entities who also seek to further their own arcane ends.

And what of the swordsman called Traveller who, with his companion Ereko, has gone in search of a confrontation from which none have ever returned?

As the Guard prepares to wage war, so Laseen's own generals and mages, the 'Old Hands', grow impatient at what they see as her mismanagement of the Empire. But could Laseen have outwitted them all?

Could she be using the uprisings to draw out and finally eliminate these last irksome survivors from the days of her illustrious predecesor, Kellanved?

* * * * *  

Next up is another audio book, this time from Games Workshop  - and coming in at a relatively paltry running time of 10 hours & 57 minutes - Angels of Caliban:

The First Legion go to war, and their primarch's brutal actions threaten to tear apart the fragile alliance of Imperium Secundus.

With the Dark Angels spread across a hundred systems, primarch Lion El’Jonson stands as Lord Protector of Ultramar – though his true motives are known to few indeed, and old rivalries on the home world threaten to tear the Legion in half. But when word comes of the Night Lords’ attack on Sotha, the Lion’s brutal actions bring Imperium Secundus once again to the brink of civil war.

Not even the most fearsome warriors of the Dreadwing, nor any arcane secret of the Order, can guarantee victory if he sets himself against his loyal brothers.

   Written by Gav Thorpe and Produced by Matthew Renshaw

* * * * *

...so, last and certainly least (in terms of running time!), the latest adventure of The Fourth Doctor, The Trouble With Drax:

Altrazar. The temporal Atlantis, a place lost to time. Believed by many to be a myth, it has long been the perfect location for the rich and powerful to hide away their most dangerous secrets.

Until now.

Because the somewhat crooked, not exactly honest, wheeler-dealer cockney Time Lord known as Drax has found a map that leads to its location. And, at the behest of a manipulative businessman, he's going to use it.

When the TARDIS is dragged out of the space-time vortex, its crew aren't best pleased to see the Doctor's old school friend, even less when he pressgangs them into joining a raid on the most secure safe-house in history. However with Romana and K9 held hostage, the Doctor has little choice but to agree. With Drax in tow, he heads for the planet.

Which is where the trouble starts.

 Tom Baker The Doctor    Lalla Ward Romana    John Leeson K9/Cabot  

Ray Brooks Drax    John Challis Rosser    Hugh Fraser Charles Kirkland/Shopkeeper 

Jane Slavin Shopkeeper 2    Miranda Raison Inspector Fleur McCormick    

John Banks Grunthar/Street-Cleaner

 Written by John Dorney
Directed by Nicholas Briggs 

* * * * *

And that is almost it for this posting; but there's just enough time to say that I'm currently preparing to record an audio book next week, followed the week after with a trip up to Games Workshop Head Quarters to record more audio drama narration and I'm really looking forward very much to all that.

Thanks for stopping by and I'll do my best to update again before too long!

...all for now, more just a soon as it happens!