Tantalizing tales coming our way

Ian McDonald (River of Gods, Cyberabad Days, Brasyl) has made writing speculative fiction set in second and third world countries a house specialty. Coming down the pipe in June/July of this year will be “The Dervish House,” a new techno thriller that takes place in a country woven through with complex dichotomies and warring traditions: Turkey.

According to A Dribble of Ink,

“In the sleepy Istanbul district of Eskiköy stands the former whirling dervish house of Adem Dede. Over the space of five days of an Istanbul heatwave, six lives weave a story of corporate wheeling and dealing, Islamic mysticism, political and economic intrigue, ancient Ottoman mysteries, a terrifying new terrorist threat, and a nanotechnology with the potential to transform every human on the planet.”

Sounds like classic McDonald to me: seemingly disconnected character plots that eventually cinch close and tight, some sort of techy/bioware crisis that only they can prevent, and a fascinating, richly textured country in which to set his characters racing.

Load up your playlist with some Mercan Dede and get out your Turkish-to-English slang dictionary, because this will be a frolic through some amazing territory. Can’t wait.

Gosh, and what’s this little number below, which drops around the same time as “Dervish?”

Why, yes, yes it is.