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Christopher Ruocchio

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Christopher Ruocchio
BornNorth Carolina
Occupation
  • Writer
  • Editor
Alma materNorth Carolina State University
Genres
Years active2018–present
Notable works
  • Empire of Silence
  • Howling Dark
Notable awards
Website
sollanempire.com

Christopher Ruocchio is an American space opera and fantasy writer and formerly an assistant editor at Baen Books. He is best known for his Sun Eater series, the first of which earned him the 2019 Manly Wade Wellman Award. The second book in the series, Howling Dark, was nominated for a 2020 Dragon Award. He has co-edited four genre anthologies, and authored a Thor story for Avengers #750.

Biography

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Christopher Ruocchio was born in North Carolina in the United States.[1] He is Roman Catholic and attended Catholic schools until high school.[1] He attended North Carolina State University where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in English rhetoric and minored in classics.[1][2] He became an assistant editor at Baen Books in 2015.[2][3] His first published work was "Not Made for Us", published in March 2018 in the Star Destroyers anthology he co-edited with Tony Daniel.[4]

His first novel, Empire of Silence, was published by DAW Books in July that same year.[5] Ruocchio won the 2019 Manly Wade Wellman Award for Empire. His second anthology, Space Pioneers (co-edited with Hank Davis), was released by Baen that year in November. It included one of his short stories, "The Parliament of Owls". The second book in his Sun Eater series, Howling Dark, was released in July 2019.[6] It was nominated for a 2020 Dragon Award for Best Military Science Fiction or Fantasy Novel.[7][8]

Ruocchio self-published a novella, The Lesser Devil, in his Sun Eater series in February 2020. The anthologies Overruled! and Cosmic Corsairs, both co-edited with Hank Davis, were released by Baen Books in 2020. The third book in the Sun Eater series, Demon in White, was released by DAW Books that same year.[9] A Thor story he authored appeared in Avengers #750 in November 2021.

He is married and lives in Raleigh, North Carolina.[10]

Bibliography

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Sun Eater

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The series, a blend of space opera and epic fantasy, is set 20,000 years into our future.

  1. Empire of Silence (July 2018, DAW Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-1300-2)
  2. Howling Dark (July 2019, DAW Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-1303-3)
  3. Demon in White (July 2020, DAW Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-1306-4)
  4. Kingdoms of Death (March 2022, DAW Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-1309-5)
  5. Ashes of Man (December 2022, DAW Books, ISBN 978-0-7564-1660-7)
  6. Disquiet Gods (April 2024, Baen Books, ISBN 978-1982193324)
  7. Shadows Upon Time (forthcoming, 2025)

Other works set in this universe:

  • The Lesser Devil (#1.5, novella, February 2020, Ruocchio Ventures, ISBN 979-861735413-5)
  • Queen amid Ashes (#2.5, novella, December 2021, Baen Books, in Sword & Planet, ISBN 978-1982125783)
  • Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 1 (#2.6, short story collection, April 2021, Ruocchio Ventures, ASIN B092STL2NW)
  • Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 2 (#3.5, short story collection, June 2022, Ruocchio Ventures, ASIN B09X3BJ2LP)
  • Tales of the Sun Eater, Volume 3 (#5.5, short story collection, September 2023, Ruocchio Ventures, ASIN B0CGVJS91D)
  • The Dregs of Empire (#5.6, novel, November 2023, Ruocchio Ventures, ISBN 979-8871712597)

Short fiction

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  • "Not Made for Us" in Star Destroyers (March 2018)
  • "The Parliament of Owls" in Space Pioneers (November 2018)
  • "The Demons of Arae" in Parallel Worlds: The Heroes Within edited by L. J. Hachmeister and R.R. Virdi (October 2019, Source 7, ISBN 978-1-69839-186-1)
  • "Kill the King" in The Dogs of God: Science Fiction According to Chris edited by Chris Kennedy (February 2020, Theogony Books, ISBN 978-1-950420-96-4)
  • "Victim of Changes" in Overruled! (April 2020)
  • "The Night Captain" in Cosmic Corsairs (August 2020)
  • "Good Intentions" in Shapers of Worlds edited by Edward Willett (September 2020, Shadowpaw Press)
  • Untitled Thor story in Avengers #750 (November 2021, Marvel Comics, art by Steve McNiven)[11][12]
  • "The Barrow King" in Galaxy Science Fiction Volume I, Issue 263 (August 2024)

As editor

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Reception

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Ruocchio's writing in his first novel, Empire of Silence, was described as "promising and ambitious", but with "occasionally heavy-handed detail" by Locus reviewer Carolyn Cushman.[5] Rob H. Bedford of SFFWorld described it as "remarkably page-turning", and Ruocchio's writing as "nuanced at times, magnetic to the reader's eyes", going on to state that "the narration felt earned and genuine".[13] Bedford compared the book to Frank Herbert's Dune, The Book of the New Sun by Gene Wolfe, and The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, stating that "[t]his just might be the most impressive SFF debut novel of 2018".[13] The novel garnered the 2019 Manly Wade Wellman Award for Ruocchio.[14][15]

Barnes & Noble included Howling Dark as one of their best science fiction and fantasy books for July 2019, describing it as "space opera at its most riveting and grandiose".[6] Publishers Weekly described Ruocchio's writing in Demon in White as having "seamless worldbuilding, thought-provoking science, and heart-pounding battles".[16] Stephen Hubbard of Book Reporter described the writing as "exquisite...epic-level storytelling" and "a powerful tour de force that stands head and shoulders above its two deftly crafted predecessors".[9] The reviewer also stated that "no one is delivering better science fiction than Christopher Ruocchio".[9]

Awards and honors

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Ruocchio has been nominated for the following awards.

Year Organization Award title, category Work Result Refs
2019 North Carolina Speculative Fiction Foundation Manly Wade Wellman Award Empire of Silence Won [14][15]
2020 Dragon Con Dragon Award, Best Military Science Fiction or Fantasy Novel Howling Dark Nominated [7][8]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Episode 29: Christopher Ruocchio". The Worldshapers Podcast. July 13, 2019. Archived from the original on January 16, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "About the author". Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  3. ^ "Interview with Christopher Ruocchio". Civilian Reader. July 2, 2018. Archived from the original on January 25, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  4. ^ "Publication: Star Destroyers". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. March 11, 2018. Archived from the original on March 7, 2018. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Cushman, Carolyn (December 11, 2018). "Carolyn Cushman Reviews Smoke and Iron by Rachel Caine and Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio". Locus. Archived from the original on December 16, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Somers, Jeff (July 1, 2019). "The Best Science Fiction & Fantasy Books of July 2019". Barnes & Noble. Archived from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "2020 Dragon Award". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on October 23, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "2020 Dragon Awards Winners". Locus. September 8, 2020. Archived from the original on December 3, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  9. ^ a b c Hubbard, Stephen (August 14, 2020). "Demon in White: The Sun Eater, Book Three". BookReporter. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  10. ^ "Christopher Ruocchio". Simon and Schuster. Archived from the original on February 25, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  11. ^ Arrant, Chris (August 16, 2021). "Sun-Eater novelist Christopher Ruocchio signs Marvel deal for Thor". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  12. ^ Dominguez, Noah (August 17, 2021). "Marvel Celebrates Avengers #750 With a Massive Anniversary Issue". Comic Book Resources. Archived from the original on August 18, 2021. Retrieved August 18, 2021.
  13. ^ a b Bedford, Rob H. (July 10, 2018). "Empire of Silence by Christopher Ruocchio (The Sun Eater #1)". SFFWorld. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "Winner of the 2019 Manly Wade Wellman Award". North Carolina Speculative Fiction Foundation. July 15, 2019. Archived from the original on January 21, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  15. ^ a b Glyer, Mike (July 15, 2019). "2019 Manly Wade Wellman Award". File 770. Archived from the original on January 18, 2021. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
  16. ^ "Demon in White". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on August 18, 2020. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
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