Rod Rees

EXPERIENCE THE ULTIMATE IN VIRTUAL REALITY. The Demi-Monde is the most advanced computer simulation ever devised. Created to prepare soldiers for the nightmarish reality of urban warfare, it is a virtual world locked in eternal civil war. Its thirty million digital inhabitants are ruled by duplicates of some of history's cruellest tyrants: Reinhard Heydrich, the architect of the Holocaust; Beria, Stalin's arch executioner; Torquemada, the pitiless Inquisitor General; Robespierre, the face of the Reign of Terror. But something has gone badly wrong inside the Demi-Monde, and the US President's daughter has become trapped in this terrible world. It falls to eighteen-year-old Ella Thomas to rescue her, yet once Ella has entered the Demi-Monde she finds that everything is not as it seems, that its cyber-walls are struggling to contain the evil within and that the Real World is in more danger than anyone realises.

Winter

The Demi-monde

In the Demi-Monde Ella can trust nothing and nobody . . . not even herself. This omnibus edition includes all four parts of The Demi-Monde, called 'Discworld's savage noir cousin' by Stephen Baxter and 'an amazingly quick and enjoyable read' by the British Fantasy Society. The Demi-Monde is a computer-simulated training ground for soldiers. Populated by history's most notorious leaders, it is truly a Cyber-Hell. Ella Thomas was sent there to rescue Norma Williams, the daughter of the President of the United States, but it has all gone horribly wrong. Now she is stuck in this cyber world; the friends she trusted have become her enemies and the Grigori, who have lain quiet for thousands of years, dreaming of the day they will emerge into our world, threaten to finally achieve their goals. To succeed in preventing this destruction, Ella must be more than she ever believed she could be, because resisting evil will require courage, resolve . . . and sacrifice. 'Part Matrix, part Escape from New York , with a dash of Film Noir and a whole host of imagination. Beautifully written' Falcata Times

The US President’s daughter is trapped in the Demi-Monde, a terrifying computer simulation and Ella, her would-be rescuer, can trust nothing and nobody, not even herself

The Demi-Monde

The Demi-Monde: Summer: Book III of The Demi-Monde

Adrian Tchaikovsky

Hugh Howey

Steven Erikson

Richard Kadrey

"Story Behind the Book: Volume 3" collects nearly 40 non-fiction essays from some of the most exciting authors working today. Offering an unique insight into the creative and publishing process, these essay reveal all the beauty, effort and frustration that inevitable comes hand in hand with the urge to write, edit or illustrate. Contributors include Steven Erikson, Adrian Tchaikovsky, Hugh Howey, Richard Kadrey, Rod Rees, Christopher Fowler, Gary Gibson, Eric Brown, Anthony Ryan, Alan Averill, Ian Gibson, Garry Kilworth, Steve Rasnic Tem, Ian R. MacLeod, Cat Sparks, James Everington, Pat Cadigan, Stephen Deas, Jay Kristoff, Peter Roman, Paul Tremblay, Geoffrey Gudgion, Tina Connolly, Joan Frances Turner, Freda Warrington, Beth Bernobich, Jeff Somers, James A. Moore, Ben Jeapes, John R. Fultz, Nick Mamatas, Sean Lynch, Max Gladstone, Karen Sandler, Robert Reed, Roberto Calas, Richard James Bentley, William J. Cobb.

Volume 3 (Essays on Writing Speculative Fiction)

Story Behind the Book

Le Demi-Monde est la simulation informatique la plus avancée jamais conçue. Créé pour entraîner les soldats à la guérilla urbaine, ce monde virtuel est volontairement bloqué dans une guerre civile permanente. Ses trente millions d’habitants numériques sont gouvernés par les avatars des plus cruels tyrans de l’Histoire : Heydrich, l’architecte de l’Holocauste ; Beria, le bourreau de Staline ; Torquemada, l’Inquisiteur sans pitié ; Robespierre, le visage de la Terreur... Quelque chose s’est cependant détraqué à l’intérieur même du Demi-Monde, et la fille du président des États-Unis y est restée coincée. Il incombe à l’agent Ella Thomas d’aller la récupérer, mais, une fois sur place, la jeune femme se rend compte que les règles du jeu sont faussées... Le monde réel pourrait bien courir un danger que nul n’a encore osé imaginer !

Le Demi-Monde (Tome 1) - Hiver

Look over your shoulder. Do you see the camera? Then dig that even as you read these words of sedition and denial you are being watched by the ever e-quisitive National Protection Agency. The National Protection Agency omnipresent, omniscient and most ominous which runs PanOptika, the spider at the centre of the Web. What s the slogan: watching out for the good guys by watching out for the bad guys. But who watches the watchers? So dig this cats and kittens: if we do nothing soon we must kneel, digitally-dutiful, before National Protection, and then there will be no chance to zig when the ChumBots say zag, or to beep when they say bop. Realise that PanOptika triumphant means we will not be able to think, to act, to speak or to move without the spirit-sapping realisation that the badniks know everything everything. This is my warning.

Invent-10n

“You can’t help getting caught up in the smartly-paced story…which is served up with lashings of steampunk relish.” —SFX (UK) “Rees makes the book work: the world he’s created is a psychopathic nightmare.” —The Guardian In the Demi-Monde, author Rod Rees has conjured up a terrifying virtual reality, a world dominated by history’s most ruthless and bloodthirsty psychopaths—from Holocaust architect Reinhard Heydrich to Torquemada, the Spanish Inquisition’s pitiless torturer, to Josef Stalin’s bloodthirsty right-hand man/monster, the infamous Beria. The Demi-Monde: Winter kicks off a brilliant, high concept series that blends science fiction and thriller, steampunk and dystopian vision. If Neil Gaiman, Neal Stephenson, James Rollins, and Clive Cussler participated in Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games, the result might be something akin to the dark and ingenious madness of Rees’s The Demi-Monde: Winter.

A Novel

The Demi-Monde: Winter

'We want you to go to hell, Miss Thomas.' For five million bucks Ella is prepared to give even hell - or in this case, the Demi-Monde - a shot. And all she has to do to earn it is find the President's daughter and lead her to safety. But as Ella discovers, getting into the Demi-Monde is the easy part; surviving to collect her money is quite another. With thirty million digital-Duplicates at war in the cyber-killing field that is the US Military's virtual-training ground, the Demi-Monde is a challenging place - especially as the Dupes are programmed with a craving for blood and are led by some of history's most vicious tyrants. And the many bizarre conceits in the Demi-Monde have a sinister reason behind them. In the Demi-Monde Ella can trust nothing and nobody . . . not even herself.

Book I of the Demi-Monde

The Demi-Monde is about to reach its catastrophic conclusion . . . For thousands of years the Grigori have lain hidden, dreaming of the day when they will emerge from the darkness. Now that day draws close. Norma, Trixie and Ella fight doggedly to frustrate these plans, but they need help. Percy Shelley must lead Norma to the Portal in NoirVille so she can return to the Real World. Trixie's father must convince her that, if she is to destroy the Great Pyramid standing in Terror Incognita, she must be prepared to die. And Vanka Maykov - though not the man she knew and loved - must guide Ella to the secret enclave of the Grigori, where she will face the most chilling of enemies. In this explosive finale to the Demi-Monde series, our heroes will come to understand that resisting evil will require courage, resolve . . . and sacrifice.

Book IV of The Demi-Monde

The Demi-Monde: Fall

Eine Computer-Simulation außer Kontrolle, der gefährliche Plan eines Professors und eine junge Frau mit einem geheimnisvollen Erbe ... Demi-Monde ist eine Computer-Simulation, die programmiert wurde, um Soldaten auf alle Eventualitäten eines Krieges vorzu bereiten. Das denkt die amerikanische Regierung. Tatsächlich steckt aber ein Professor dahinter, der einen weitaus verhängnisvolleren Plan verfolgt. Nur Ella Thomas, die in die Demi-Monde eingeschleust wurde, um die Tochter des Präsidenten zu retten, scheint ihn noch vereiteln zu können. Aber auch sie vermag nicht, den Professor davon abzuhalten, nicht nur die virtuelle, sondern auch die reale Welt in große Gefahr zu bringen ...

Demi-Monde: Welt außer Kontrolle 2

Der Widerstand

Rod Rees’s riveting dystopian saga continues with The Shadow Wars, the spellbinding sequel to The Demi-Monde: Winter. First Daughter Norma Williams finds herself stranded in the sinister cyber-world of the not-so-distant future that’s inhabited by some of history’s most menacing villains. Betrayed by those she thought were friends, she must lead the resistance against a terrifying force if she wants to survive. Skillfully written and highly imaginative, The Shadow Wars blends elements of steampunk with science fiction in an adventure that will keep you on the edge of your seat and captivated until the very end.

Book Two in the Demi-Monde Saga

The Shadow Wars

Il y a huit mille ans, le Déluge a détruit l’empire des Lilithi, dispersant dans notre monde la race de super-guerriers connus sous le nom de Grigori. Ils sont restés cachés jusqu’à aujourd’hui, mais l’existence du Demi-Monde a changé la donne. À présent, ils sont en mesure de prendre le contrôle du Monde Réel et d’en exterminer le genre humain. Trois jeunes femmes pourraient déjouer leurs plans : Norma Williams, piégée dans le cauchemar d’un des Secteurs les plus violents de la ville ; Ella Thomas, réduite en esclavage par l’esprit de Lilith ressuscitée ; et Trixie Dashwood, consumée par sa haine pour Heydrich. Encore faut-il qu’elles parviennent à vaincre leurs démons respectifs...

Le Demi-Monde (Tome 3) - Été

Entrez dans le monde virtuel le plus perfectionné jamais conçu... et le plus mortel ! Les ombres étendent leur emprise sur le Demi-Monde. Les soldats de Heydrich défilent au pas de l’oie dans les rues de Paris, Lilith, déesse maléfique venue du fond des âges, s’est réveillée, et Norma Williams n’a d’autre choix que de prendre la tête de la résistance. Perdue dans ce cauchemar virtuel, écrasée par les terribles responsabilités qui pèsent sur ses frêles épaules, elle ne peut même pas compter sur ceux qu’elle croyait être ses amis, mais qui l’ont trahi. Pour triompher de la folie du Demi-Monde, elle doit se dépasser... ou périr.

Le Demi-Monde (Tome 2) - Printemps

Durant des milliers d’années, les Grigori sont restés dans l’ombre, mais le jour de leur retour approche. Norma, Trixie et Ella luttent pied à pied pour contrarier leurs plans. La tâche serait insurmontable si elles ne pouvaient compter sur de nombreux alliés : Percy Shelley, chargé de conduire Norma au Portail de NoirVille afin qu’elle réintègre le monde réel ; le père de Trixie, seul capable de convaincre sa fille que si elle persiste à vouloir détruire la Grande Pyramide qui se dresse en Terra Incognita, elle encourt une mort certaine ; et Vanka Maykov, qui doit accompagner Ella dans le repère secret des Grigori où l’attend le plus terrifiant des ennemis. Dans ce final explosif du Demi-Monde, nos héros vont apprendre que résister au mal requiert toujours plus de courage...

Le Demi-Monde (Tome 4) - Automne

Welcome to the Demi-Monde: a computer-created steampunk horror-pit of a virtual world, ruled by history's choicest psychos! Eight thousand years ago the Deluge destroyed the empire of the Lilithi, setting the race of super-warriors known as the Grigori loose in the outside world. They have lain hidden until now when - thanks to the creation of the dystopian virtual reality that is the Demi-Monde - they at last stand ready to achieve mastery of the Real World - and to cull HumanKind in the Final Solution. Three girls stand between them and victory: Norma Williams, trapped in the nightmare that is the Coven, the viciously misandric Sector of the Demi-Monde; Ella Thomas, enslaved by the spirit of Lilith-come-again; and Trixie Dashwood, consumed by her hatred for Heydrich and his evil ForthRight.

Rod Rees

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