Glen Cook

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).
Glen Cook at Demicon 15 in 2004
Glen Cook at Demicon 15 in 2004

Glen Cook (July 9, 1944–) is a contemporary American science fiction and fantasy author, best known for his fantasy series, The Black Company. Cook currently resides in St. Louis, Missouri.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Glen Cook's love of writing began in grade school, and in high school he wrote the occasional article for his school's newspaper. After high school, Cook spent time in the United States Navy and later worked his way through college, leaving little time for his writing endeavors. Cook began to write in earnest while working for General Motors at an auto assembly plant. Cook claims that his job was simple enough to leave him ample time to write while at work; in fact, Cook admits to having written as many as three books per year while working at the plant.[1]

It was during this time that Cook wrote his first novel of The Black Company, a gritty fantasy series that follows an elite mercenary unit through several decades of their history. The series, currently 10 novels long, has become something of a cult classic, especially among current and former members of the military. When asked about the series' popularity among soldiers, Cook replied: "The characters act like the guys actually behave. It doesn't glorify war; it's just people getting on with the job. The characters are real soldiers. They're not soldiers as imagined by people who've never been in the service. That's why service guys like it.".[2] Cook is also well known for his Garrett P.I. series, which tells the haphazard adventures of hardboiled detective Garrett, and his Dread Empire series, which highlights Cook's earlier published work.

Cook is currently retired from his job at GM, living with his wife, Carol, and children (Justin, Chris, and Mike) in St. Louis, Missouri. Although he can now devote himself full-time to his writing career, he feels he was actually more productive while he was still employed at his old job.[2]

[edit] Published Works

[edit] The Black Company

Cover of "The Black Company", part of The Black Company series.
Cover of "The Black Company", part of The Black Company series.

An epic fantasy series about a band of mercenaries known as The Black Company.

  • Books of the North:
  1. The Black Company (May 1984)
  2. Shadows Linger (October 1984)
  3. The White Rose (April 1985)
  • Books of the South:
  1. Shadow Games (June 1989)
  2. Dreams of Steel (April 1990)
  • Books of the Glittering Stone:
  1. Bleak Seasons (April 1996)
  2. She Is The Darkness (September 1997)
  3. Water Sleeps (March 1999)
  4. Soldiers Live (July 2000)
  • Spin-offs:
  1. The Silver Spike (September 1989)
  • Not Yet Published:
  1. A Pitiless Rain (TBA)[2]
  2. Port of Shadows (TBA)[2]

[edit] Garrett P.I.

Cover of Sweet Silver Blues, part of the Garrett P.I. series.
Cover of Sweet Silver Blues, part of the Garrett P.I. series.

A combination fantasy and mystery series about Garrett, a freelance private investigator.

  1. Sweet Silver Blues (1987)
  2. Bitter Gold Hearts (1988)
  3. Cold Copper Tears (1988)
  4. Old Tin Sorrows (1989)
  5. Dread Brass Shadows (1990)
  6. Red Iron Nights (1991)
  7. Deadly Quicksilver Lies (1994)
  8. Petty Pewter Gods (1995)
  9. Faded Steel Heat (1999)
  10. Angry Lead Skies (2002)
  11. Whispering Nickel Idols (2005)

Science Fiction Book Club omnibus editions:

  1. The Garrett Files (collects Sweet Silver Blues, Bitter Gold Hearts, and Cold Copper Tears; 2003)
  2. Garrett, P.I. (collects Old Tin Sorrows, Dread Brass Shadows, and Red Iron Nights; 2003)
  3. Garrett Investigates (collects Deadly Quicksilver Lies, Petty Pewter Gods, and Faded Steel Heat; 2004)

[edit] Dread Empire

  • Prequels
    1. The Fire in His Hands (1984)
    2. With Mercy Toward None (1985)
  • Main Sequence
    1. A Shadow of All Night Falling (1979)
    2. October's Baby (1980)
    3. All Darkness Met (1980)
  • Sequels
    1. Reap the East Wind (1987)
    2. An Ill Fate Marshalling (1988)
    3. The Wrath of Kings (manuscript stolen) [3]
  • Omnibus Volumes (reprinted by Night Shade Books):
    • A Cruel Wind: A Chronicle Of The Dread Empire, an omnibus of the main sequence, to be followed by two more omnibus volumes, and a volume of Dread Empire Short fiction. This book is available in hardback and will be published in paperback in August 2007.
    • A Fortress in Shadow: A Chronicle of the Dread Empire, apparently containing the two prequel novels, due in June 2007.

[edit] Instrumentalities of the Night

  1. The Tyranny of the Night (Book 1) (2005)
  2. Lord of the Silent Kingdom (Book 2) (2007)

[edit] Starfishers

Starfishers is a science fiction series drawing on elements of Norse mythology, and in the case of Passage at Arms, World War II submarine warfare.

  1. Shadowline (1982)
  2. Starfishers (1982)
  3. Star's End (1982)
  • Related
  1. Passage at Arms (1985)

[edit] Dark War

  1. Doomstalker (1985)
  2. Warlock (1985)
  3. Ceremony (1986)

[edit] Standalone Novels

  1. The Swap Academy (1970) (written as "Greg Stevens")
  2. The Heirs of Babylon (1973)
  3. The SwordBearer (1982)
  4. A Matter of Time (1985)
  5. The Dragon Never Sleeps (1988)
  6. The Tower of Fear (1989)
  7. Sung in Blood (1992)

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ The Glen Cook Interview. Retrieved on June 20, 2006.
  2. ^ a b c d Strange Horizons Interview. Retrieved on June 20, 2006.
  3. ^ An Interview with Glen Cook. Retrieved on August 26, 2006.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../g/l/e/Glen_Cook_e895.html"
In other languages