The Pincers of Death - now out November 2017!

[Toby Frost]

The Pincers of Death, the sixth book about Space Captain Isambard Smith, will be out on the 9th of October.

Once again, Isambard Smith takes to the skies to dish out justice and civilise the galaxy. But this time, he's got his sights on the greatest prize of all: Ghast Number One, the self-proclaimed glorious leader of the ant-people. If he can bring down the dictator, the Ghast Empire will surely fall.

It won't be easy, though. Alien space fleets, brutal gladatorial combat and even five-a-side sports fixtures stand between Smith and his quarry. And even then, he will face his toughest challenge yet: defeating a legion of bio-engineered soldier ants fanatically devoted to Number One - the dreaded Pincers of Death!

The artwork is currently being drawn (I've seen a sketch and it's amazing) and I am correcting the typos as we speak. If you're really keen and want to order a copy, you can do so here:

Pincers of Death by Toby Frost (Paperback)

Pincers of Death by Toby Frost | Waterstones

 

[Toby Frost]

Right chaps, with a certain amount of grimacing I have to say that the release has been put back for reasons beyond my control. We've got a firm date of the 4th of November, but if there's any way I can get it brought forward, I will.

Sorry about that! It will be worth the wait, rest assured!

 

[Vladd67]

The nation will set off fireworks in its honour.

 

[Dave]

I wondered why it hadn't arrived yet, as it said four days from the publication date. I have absolutely nothing left to read now!

Edit: I've changed thread title accordingly.

 

[The Ace]

Give the people responsible a boot in the nadgers from me, and show them this.

 

[Dave]

We have received notification from the publisher that the publication date for "Pincers of Death" has been moved to Friday, 17th Nov 2017.

What is this Toby? Is a time travel story? Or, are you being forced to redact all references to JFK?

 

[The Ace]

Will we actually see the thing this side of Christmas ?

This is the third, "Firm date," we've been given, and I hope heads will roll for this.

 

[Dave]

Ace, I'll change the date back to the second date given, as Wordery sent my copy out last Wednesday, despite what they had previously emailed. Definitely is available now! Toby was signing copies at Forbidden Planet London this week. Not sure what is going on with Wordery, and I haven't had a chance to start reading it yet. I'm much too busy at the moment.

 

[Toby Frost]

It's definitely available through Forbidden Planet and Waterstones, both to buy off the shelves and order. When it was put back (thanks to the printers overbooking work) I was given the 17th as the day by which it definitely would be out, so it may well be available before then in most places. I'm not sure about Amazon, because they seem to be a law unto themselves. So to be honest, in order to get it as quickly as possible, I'd look at Waterstones or other bookshops (assuming there are some). I hope that helps.

 

[Rodders]

I have just finished this and it was great fun. Just as you'd expect from a Space Captain Smith yarn.

Toby, are you planning any more stories.

 

[Toby Frost]

Thanks – I’m pleased that you enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun to write.

As to what next, that’s difficult. I’m very pleased with the six Smith books, and having two trilogies feels “right”. However, I’m extremely keen not to end up doing the same thing but worse, and for the series to slowly get weaker and weaker. Also, of course, there are other things I’d like to write. It’s interesting to write a book that isn’t a comedy: Up To The Throne depends on pacing and plot rather than humour, which is a different sort of discipline for a writer. So now feels like a good point to pause.

But I would like to return to Smith’s world. I’ve been thinking about writing something that is more an adventure with jokes than a comedy with a bit of adventure: less a war story than a spy story, involving secondary characters from the Smithiverse (or Pollyverse, as I prefer it). Now that the Ghast/Edenite/Lemming alliance has been defeated on the battlefield, I could see all sorts of plots emerging. What is Steelor the rogue Logic Engine up to? Will Ravnavar declare independence? Can Suruk endure peacetime without going mad (or madder)? I don’t know if people would be disappointed to have a comedy-drama rather than a comedy, but it could be entertaining. Perhaps a few different spin-offs could work. The Wainscott War Memoirs need to be published, after all.

So would I go back to Smith? Yes, I certainly wouldn't rule it out, but I can't say when.

 

[Rodders]

Great news!!!