FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Feb. 10, 2007
CONTACT: J.C. Hutchins, 7thSonNovel@gmail.com
Download PDF version of release here.
To celebrate the conclusion of one of the most popular serialized audiobooks on the Internet, celebrities from science-fiction publishing and television will appear as special guest readers in author J.C. Hutchins' novel, "7th Son: Deceit."
"Deceit" is the second book in Hutchins' acclaimed 7th Son "podcast novel" trilogy. Released as free weekly audio downloads to about 20,000 listeners worldwide, 7th Son is a technothriller about human cloning, the recording of human memories, and a conspiracy sparked by the assassination of the U.S. president.
As "Deceit" enters its final episodes, listeners will be treated to celebrity cameos at the beginning of each chapter. The celebrities are recapping the novel's previous events, bringing the audience up to date on the story.
Special guest readers in January through March include:
Nick Sagan, author of the science fiction novels "Idlewild," "Edenborn" and "Everfree." Sagan has also written episodes for "Star Trek: The Next Generation" and "Star Trek: Voyager." Son of astronomer Carl Sagan, it is Nick's "Hello from the children of Earth" greeting that was recorded and placed on the Voyager space probes' golden records. "Everfree" will be available in paperback this April.
Ron Glass, Emmy-nominated actor best known as the charming Detective Ron Harris in the TV series "Barney Miller," and for his compelling role in the cult sci-fi series "Firefly" as Derrial Book, a preacher with a mysterious past.
Kevin J. Anderson, New York Times bestselling author renowned for his novels set in the "Star Wars" universe, and co-author of the acclaimed "Dune" prequel series. His works also include the "Saga of the Seven Suns" series, and the Nebula Award-nominated "Assemblers of Infinity."
Alan Dean Foster, writer of the upcoming "Transformers" movie tie-in novel, and author of more than 40 science-fiction and fantasy novels including "Star Wars" and "Star Trek" tie-ins, and fan-favorite originals such as the "Commonwealth" series and the "Dinotopia" series.
Cory Doctorow, John W. Campbell Award-winning author of the new short story collection "Overclocked;" co-editor for the popular culture blog, BoingBoing.net; author of the novels "Down and Out In the Magic Kingdom," "Eastern Standard Tribe" and others.
Gigi Edgley, actress acclaimed for her role as Chiana on the Sci Fi Channel series "Farscape." Edgley was nominated in 2006 for Best Actress in a Motion Picture by the Film Critics Circle of Australia for her performance in "Last Train to Freo."
Robin Furth, author of "The Dark Tower: A Complete Concordance," the official encyclopedic resource for Stephen King's acclaimed epic "Dark Tower" fantasy series. Furth is currently plotting the new "Dark Tower" comic book series from Marvel Entertainment.
Helen Keier, co-author of the "Star Wars New Essential Guide to Alien Species." She is also a blogger at StarWars.com, and a freelance editorial consultant for Lucasfilm Publishing.
"It is an honor to invite so many talented, creative stars in the science-fiction community to appear on the podcast," author J.C. Hutchins said. "This is another first in podcasting. The ending of 'Deceit' won't be remembered for just the story's action and plot twists. The caliber of these entertainers enhances the listening experience."
Anderson, Foster, Doctorow and the other guests are the latest in a series of 7th Son cameos from veteran science-fiction entertainers. Past celebrity readers have included actor Nathan Fillion (star of the TV series "Firefly" and recent guest star on ABC's "LOST"), Jeph Loeb (writer/producer of NBC's "Heroes") and award-winning sci-fi/fantasy novelists Robert J. Sawyer, Mike Resnick, Tracy R. Hickman and others. Patrick Lussier, editor of film thrillers "Red Eye" and the "Scream" trilogy appeared in the novel, as has director George Romero and sci-fi/horror novelist Scott Sigler.
This event is the author's most recent innovation in podcast fiction. To mark the debut of "Deceit" in September 2006, Hutchins hosted a launch party for the novel in the popular online community Second Life. This was the first event of its kind for any novel. Hutchins' website features artwork, music, fiction, videos and "virtual reality" tours based on scenes in the books -- all created by fans.
7th Son, a free weekly podcast, is the most popular "podiobook" series in history. 7th Son is the #1 most-popular program at the podcast directory PodcastPickle.com, and is listed as a Top 20 podcast in iTunes' Literature category. The first novel in the series -- titled "Descent" -- was nominated for two podcast fiction awards. The novel has been featured on such popular blogs as BoingBoing.net and MissSnark.com.
"7th Son, Book Two: Deceit" and "Book One: Descent" can be found at www.JCHutchins.net and at www.Podiobooks.com.
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About the novel: 7th Son is the story of seven strangers who have been brought together after the recent assassination of the U.S. president. These men quickly discover they all appear to be the same man ... with identical childhood memories.
Unwitting participants in a human cloning experiment, these "John Michael Smiths" have been assembled to catch the man who murdered the president. Their target? The man they were cloned from; the original John Michael Smith, code-named "John Alpha."