{"product_id":"9780765388797","title":"By Fire Above : A Signal Airship Novel","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eBy Fire Above\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Robyn Bennis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBy Fire Above\u003c\/i\u003e is the rip-roaring new adventure in Robyn Bennis's Signal Airship military fantasy series that Patricia Briggs hails as “full of sass and terrific characters.”\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"All's fair in love and war,\" according to airship captain Josette Dupre, until her hometown of Durum becomes occupied by the enemy and her mother a prisoner of war. Then it becomes, \"Nothing's fair except bombing those Vins to high hell.\"\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBefore she can rescue her town, however, Josette must maneuver her way through the nest of overstuffed vipers that make up Garnia's military and royal leaders in order to drum up support. The foppish and mostly tolerated \u003ci\u003eMistral\u003c\/i\u003e crew member Lord Bernat steps in to advise her, along with his very attractive older brother.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBetween noble scheming, under-trained recruits, and supply shortages, Josette and the crew of the \u003ci\u003eMistral \u003c\/i\u003efigure out a way to return to Durum—only to discover that when the homefront turns into the frontlines, things are more dangerous than they seem.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Full of sass and terrific characters. Great storytelling. Loved it.” —\u003cb\u003ePatricia Briggs\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Marvelous, witty and action-packed steampunk with exquisite attention to detail. Bennis's writing is incredible, her vocabulary impressive, and she honest to God made me believe you could build an airship from spare parts.”—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e Bestselling author Ann Aguirre\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Bennis opens and closes with fierce combat sequences and layers in knotty questions about how to distinguish between loyalty and romance from love, and balance obedience to superiors with duty to subordinates, all starkly highlighted by life-or-death decisions forced on the characters. Readers will hear both the crackle of musket fire and the heartfelt cries of honest self-admission in this rich adventure.” \u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePraise for the Signal Airship series\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Steampunky navy-in-the-air military tale full of sass and terrific characters. Great storytelling. Loved it.” —\u003cb\u003ePatricia Briggs\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Marvelous, witty, gory AF, action-packed steampunk with exquisite attention to detail. Bennis's writing is incredible, her vocabulary impressive, and she honest to God made me believe you could build an airship from spare parts.”—\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eNew York Times\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eUSA Today\u003c\/i\u003e Bestselling author Ann Aguirre\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eThe Guns Above\u003c\/i\u003e is a sharp, witty Ruritanian adventure full of flintlock rifles, plumed shakos, brass buttons... and airships! Taking place in an alternate mid-nineteenth-century Europe where dirigibles ply the smoky air over battlefields and women have been grudgingly admitted to the air corps,\u003ci\u003eThe Guns Above\u003c\/i\u003e takes a clear-eyed, even cynical view of the 'glories' of war, complete with blood, shit, shattered limbs, and petty squabbles among the nobility. The aerial combat is gut-clenchingly realistic, the two viewpoint characters are well-drawn and as different as can be, and the action never stops. Hard women learn compassion, soft men learn bravery, and the fate of a nation depends on one rickety airship and its stalwart crew. A winner!” \u003cb\u003e—David D. Levine, author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eArabella of Mars\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“An engaging gunpowder adventure with a helping of witty Noel Coward dialogue and a touch of Joseph Heller.” \u003cb\u003e—Tina Connolly, Nebula Award-nominated author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eIronskin\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Wonderfully adventurous and laudably detailed. Bennis paints airship battles so clearly you'd swear they were from memory.” \u003cb\u003e—Becky Chambers, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Most airships seem to be powered by handwaving, but Bennis builds hers out of solid, believable detail. You couldn't pay me enough to go up in one of those flying death-traps, but I never question for an instant why Josette does, and I'm cheering for her every step of the way.“—\u003cb\u003eMarie Brennan, author of \u003ci\u003eA Natural History of Dragons\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Buckle in. The crew of the Mistral will take readers on adventures they won’t soon forget.” \u003cb\u003e—P\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eip Ballantine, author of The Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences series\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Hold on to your goggles, Bennis' \u003ci\u003eThe Guns Above\u003c\/i\u003e is a nonstop ride.” \u003cb\u003e—Suzanne Lazear, author of The Aether Chronicles Series\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A fast-paced military fantasy, full of colourful characters and quirky humour that had me laughing throughout. Every fan of airships should read this.” \u003cb\u003e—Marc Turner, author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eDragon Hunters\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Bennis's prose is wry and explosive!” \u003cb\u003e—Lawrence Schoen, author of \u003ci\u003eBarsk\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Entertaining from start to finish, laced with brash banter and characters full of grit, muscle, and heart.”\u003cb\u003e—Jacqueline Koyanagi, author of \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eAscension\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Bennis writes a pleasing mix of banter and gritty battle scenes, combining both the adrenaline rush of combat and its horrifying results, and never indulging in too-sudden social victories that might cheapen the long struggle against embedded prejudice.” \u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An exciting new world that will attract steampunk fans of all ages and leave them hoping for more.” \u003cb\u003e—\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eBooklist\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“An inventive military fantasy that will grab readers at the first page. Delightful, memorable characters make up Bennis’ debut, along with her concise, amusing storytelling. Without a doubt, Bennis’ latest is a highly entertaining read.”\u003cb\u003e—\u003ci\u003eRT Book Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e, four stars\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e“A fun blend of flintlock rifles, airships, military exercises, and wry commentary on both gender politics and 'military intelligence.' There’s enough whip-smart dialogue to make any reader laugh out loud, and readers who are mechanically inclined will love the detailed descriptions of gears, flight tests, and ballast.” —\u003cb\u003eFantasy Literature \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Delightfully dry whistle-past-the-graveyard humour, a soupçon of sarcasm, and an approach to military action that reminds me of nothing so much as Forrester’s Hornblower or Cornwell’s Sharpe novels—but with airships and female officers....\u003ci\u003eThe Guns Above \u003c\/i\u003eis an immensely entertaining, fast-paced adventure.” —\u003cb\u003eLiz Bourke, Tor.com\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\"Airships, kick-ass women, and military fiction with a hint of fantasy… I mean, really, what more could you want?\"\u003cb\u003e —Nerdophile\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Although \u003ci\u003eThe Guns Above\u003c\/i\u003e may be author Robyn Bennis’ first published novel, it certainly reads as though she’s found her voice— and a great story to boot.” \u003cb\u003e—Culturess\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9780765388797\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Tor Books","offers":[{"title":"Hardback","offer_id":40678730531022,"sku":"9780765388797","price":26.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9780765388797","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}