SF/Fantasy/Horror Notes

New and longtime fans of Elric of Melniboné will be thrilled to see Elric: The Stealer of Souls, the first of six volumes collecting Michael Moorcock’s essays and stories (some long out-of-print) about the brooding albino antihero. Lush illustrations by John Picacio and maps of Melniboné complement the classic tales that turned the sword and sorcery genre on its head. Moorcock takes the opportunity to set the record straight on some inconsistencies in both his fiction and his defense of it over the last half-century, and declares this compilation “my favourite and probably the last I shall produce.” All six volumes are due out by summer 2009. (Del Rey, $14.95 paper 480p ISBN 978-0-345-49862-5)