Next Halo Novel Coming In Fall ’08

Tor Books, an imprint of Tom Doherty Associates, LLC—the largest publisher of science fiction in the world—and Microsoft are pleased to announce the latest novel and its author in the New York Times bestselling Halo series. Nebula nominee and Prometheus Award finalist, Tobias Buckell has been tapped to write Halo: The Cole Protocol, due in Fall 2008. The new novel will be the sixth in the New York Times bestselling series based on the blockbuster Microsoft and Bungie Studios' Halo video games for the Xbox 360 videogame and entertainment system.  An unabridged audiobook edition will publish simultaneously with the new novel.

Tobias S. Buckell exploded onto the science fiction scene with Crystal Rain,
(Tor 2006) a debut that combined a unique mix of Caribbean culture – where
Buckell was born and raised – and hard SF adventure elements. Buckell's
unique and groundbreaking work won him acclaim from peers and the literary
community, who called him "a dazzling new voice." His second novel,
Ragamuffin, (Tor 2007) was a 2007 Nebula Award nominee for Best Novel; a
2008 Prometheus Award finalist for Best Novel; and a Locus "Best of 2007."
He is a graduate of the Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers'
Workshop, and was a first-place winner for the Writers of the Future, as
well as having been nominated for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New
Writer.

Buckell's blend of hard science fiction with character-based action
adventure and forays into classic SF pulp won the admiration of both Tor and
Microsoft. Buckell is also a big Halo fan who has played every incarnation
of the game.  "I've been a fan of Buckell's since Crystal Rain, and when I
found out he was playing Halo(R), I was chomping at the bit to get him to try
his hand at a Halo novel." says Tor Editor Eric Raab. "The Cole Protocol is
awesome stuff that expands the Halo universe in some really amazing ways."

Halo: The Cole Protocol will unveil the location of the Spartan Gray Team,
and take readers into an unexplored conflict of the Human-Covenant War,
where unlikely alliances are formed and shattered, altering the course of
the humanity's epic struggle for survival.  The Halo novels, Halo: Ghosts
of Onyx (Tor 2006) and Halo: Contact Harvest (Tor 2007) became instant
bestsellers and they, along with the three previous novels, have helped
establish Halo as one of today's greatest SF franchises.

The original Halo: Combat Evolved game for the Xbox came out in 2001 and
established the Xbox as a leader in the console video game market. The three
games that serve as the foundation of the Halo franchise has now sold more
than 20 million units worldwide,  logging hours of multiplayer action on
Xbox LIVE and spawning action figures, books, a graphic novel, apparel and
more.

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