Harlan Ellison’s First Novel —
Returning to Bookstores After 30 Years!
HARD CASE CRIME to publish definitive edition of WEB OF THE CITY
New York, NY; London, UK (June 11, 2012) – Acclaimed author Harlan Ellison has authorized the publication of a new edition of his first novel, Web of the City, by Hard Case Crime, the award-winning line of mystery novels from editor Charles Ardai and publisher Titan Books. The new edition, which will feature not just the definitive text of the book but also three thematically related short stories Ellison wrote for the pulp crime magazines of the 1950s, will mark the book’s first appearance in stores in three decades.
Harlan Ellison is one of the most renowned authors of the past 60 years. Although best known for his fantasy and science fiction and his always controversial essays, Ellison has also won the Edgar Allan Poe Award twice for his crime fiction. Other honors he has received include a record 10 Hugo Awards, 5 Nebulas (including the lifetime Grand Master Award), 6 Bram Stoker Awards (including their lifetime Grand Master Award), 4 Writers Guild of America Awards, and 2 World Fantasy Awards, as well as multiple other lifetime achievement awards. He has also been a finalist for the Emmy and twice for the Grammy. The film made of his life, Dreams with Sharp Teeth, starring Ellison, took 21 years to make, and is one of the most award-winning documentaries of the past five years.
Written in 1957 while Ellison was enduring Army Ranger basic training in Georgia, Web of the City tells the story of a teenager who sets out to leave the New York City street gang he runs with, putting his family in grave danger. Ellison wrote the book after going undercover for ten weeks as a member of an actual Brooklyn street gang, the Barons, an experience that also inspired him to write the famous “Memo From Purgatory” episode of The Alfred Hitchcock Hour starring James Caan (The Godfather) and Walter Koenig (Star Trek).
Hard Case Crime will bring the book out in April 2013, in paperback and e-book editions, with a new cover painting in the classic pulp style by Glen Orbik.
About Hard Case Crime
Called “the best new American publisher to appear in the last decade” by Neal Pollack in The Stranger, Hard Case Crime has been nominated for or won numerous honors since its inception including the Edgar, the Shamus, the Anthony, the Barry, and the Spinetingler Award. The series’ books have been adapted for television and film, with two features currently in development at Universal Pictures and the TV series “Haven” going into its third season this fall on SyFy. Upcoming titles include new novels by Stephen King and James M. Cain. Hard Case Crime is published through a collaboration between Winterfall LLC and Titan Publishing Group.
About Titan Publishing Group
Titan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981, comprising three divisions: Titan Books, Titan Magazines/Comics and Titan Merchandise. Titan Books, recently nominated as Independent Publisher of the Year 2011, has a rapidly growing fiction list encompassing original fiction and reissues, primarily in the areas of science fiction, fantasy, horror, steampunk and crime. Recent crime and thriller acquisitions include Mickey Spillane and Max Allan Collins’ all-new Mike Hammer novels, the Matt Helm series by Donald Hamilton and the entire backlist of the Queen of Spy Writers, Helen MacInnes. Titan Books also has an extensive line of media and pop culture-related non-fiction, graphic novels, art and music books. The company is based at offices in London, but operates worldwide, with sales and distribution in the US and Canada being handled by Random House. www.titanbooks.com
I’ve read this one, years ago of course, and remember liking it.
Back in my 20s I remember reading a comment that Ellison made to a writer in the “Writer Magazine,” where he wrote a column at the time, and I was so pissed off that I determined to never buy a Harlan Ellison book so he wouldn’t get any money from me. Wow, that seems a long, long time ago now. And I can’t quite remember what I was so angry about. This book sounds pretty interesting actually.
Mr. Ellison can be a bit prickly at times. He’s so passionate about his writing, writing in general, that he has little patience for anyone he feels is capable of better work.
Great news Randy – I love Ellison’s work (and you are probably being generous with the word ‘prickly’) and this looks like a great edition with wonderful cover art. Made my day.
Cheers,
Sergio