This week I received a review copy of Moskva, the upcoming thriller by Jack Grimwood, aka Jon Courtenay Grimwood, author of the SF novels Stamping Butterflies (2004), 9Tail Fox (2005), and the British Science Fiction Award winner End of the World Blues (2006). It’s good to see one of the most talented writers in our genre branching out… but I must admit that mostly what the book did was spark an interest in some of Grimwood’s early genre books. I ended up digging up his Assassini trilogy, which Library Journal called “A tale of politics, love, and the supernatural… 15th Century Venice springs to life, along with a varied cast of nobles, pirates, and supernatural creatures.” It was published in paperback by Orbit earlier this decade:

The Fallen Blade (417 pages, $14.99 trade paperback/$9.99 digital, January 27, 2011) — cover by Larry Rostant
The Outcast Blade (432 pages, $14.99 trade paperback/$9.99 digital, March 26, 2012) — cover by Emma Graves
The Exiled Blade (338 pages, $15.99 trade paperback/$9.99 digital, April 2, 2013) — cover by Emma Graves

It’s fascinating to contrast Larry Rostant’s photo-based cover for The Fallen Blade with his stylistically similar (and yet markedly different) cover for Jay Posey’s Sungrazer, which we posted here just two days ago. Rostant’s cover work is almost entirely photo-based; he has some striking examples — including some gorgeous dance photos — at his website.

[Click the images for bigger versions.]

Here’s a look at the back covers for all three novels.

We previously covered Grimwood with his alternate history fantasy cyberpunk hard-boiled detective series, The Arabesk Trilogy, which had the unusual distinction of being nominated for both the British Science Fiction and British Fantasy Awards.

The Arabesk Trilogy by Jon Courtenay Grimwood

See all our coverage of the best new fantasy series here.