The French version of The God Engines showed up today, and it looks fantastic. I suspect, just as Shakespeare is better in the original Klingon, that TGE (now entitled Deus in Machina, which works very well, all things considered) might be even more moody and dark in French. Someone who actually reads French will have to let me know.
If you’re interested in getting it, here’s my French publisher’s page for it, here it is on Amazon in France and in the UK. Sorry, North Americans, it doesn’t seem to be on this side of the Atlantic yet. Now you know what it’s like for everyone else.
Still not available for Kindle in the UK though. *grumpy face* *doesn’t like paper books anymore*
Excellent title!
This was an amazing book, by the way. Quite different, I thought, from your other novels.
Still think it would make a great animated feature, or part of a feature, like the old Heavy Metal compilation from the 80′s.
David Wilson:
Yup, and intentionally so.
Matthew in Austin:
I think it’d make an excellent anime or high-toned live action horror film, myself.
I find it amusing that in Canada, a partially French-speaking country, it’s easier to get your work in German than in French.
I think that’s quite an excellent title.
The title’s even in correct Latin. Will wonders never cease?
One reason I always envisioned the animated/anime route for this story is I didn’t really visualize the characters as human. Humanoid, definitely, but I imagined them having an otherworldly look about them. Tallish and thin, pronounced facial structure. I am sure I am overlaying some other story on top of it, but I can’t quite place what…
Sacre bleu!
If you’re a Francophone living in North America, I think you already know what it’s like for everyone else…
@Thomas
You do know there are 7 millions of us in Canada, right? And we actually usually get stuff (other than books that is) from the US well before the Europeans.
Crappy that we don’t have the French version here yet, but then, I already have the English one, so even though I’d love to get back to you about the result in French, I don’t think I’m gonna cough up the dough for a repeat. Sorry John.
@Scalzi: So you have achieved the goal: A variant listing in the OED for deus ex machina. Well Done!
@ #8: They’re French, after all!
–ml
Matthew in Austin@9: “Tallish and thin, pronounced facial structure. I am sure I am overlaying some other story on top of it, but I can’t quite place what…”
What you describe sounds a little bit like Aeon Flux.
I see you have the Silverberg collection. I’m missing book two. Ex library copies are going for more than $80 although they have dropped in value considerably. You don’t have a spare do you? :-)
@ Loïc Haméon: You do know there are 7 millions of us in Canada, right?.
Oui, je sais bien. I’m going to be spending a week in Montréal later this month.
John,
sorry to go off-topic, but are you going to write something on the current Young Adult firestorm that’s raging across the internet? I’d be very interested in your thoughts on the subject.
Yup. Always thought the evil, Demigod dude on the cover looked French anyway… ;-)
Loïc Haméon@12: 8.4 million according to StatsCan, actually. 7.2 million in Ontario & Quebec alone. I think those numbers might even be a bit low; I’m living in New Brunswick and way more than 50% of the people I know are bilingual, with most of the bilingues having French as a first language. I realize that the sample size of “people I personally know” is not scientifically valid, but it’s a start. (Source is the Wikipedia page for French Canadians)
((Not trying to be a smartass, the 7 mil figure just seemed really low to me and I got curious. 8.4 mil still seems low.))
Oh for an edit feature on comments, rather than immortalizing probably breaking Scalzi’s Law on Scalzi’s own blog ><
Yeah, ‘Deus in machina’ is pretty clever. Looks spiffy too.
My best friend bought me an autographed copy for my birthday. I read it yesterday. I feel like my brain has been seared.