Derek Künsken Books In Order

Publication Order of The Quantum Evolution Books

Publication Order of Venus Ascendant Books

Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas

Publication Order of Collections

Publication Order of Anthologies

Derek Kunsken is a best selling science fiction author best known for writing the “Quantum Evolution” series of novels. The author was born in Coburg, Canada in 1971 and as a teenager he went to the University of Guelph. He would later attend McMaster University where he graduated with a masters in molecular biology. But he left everything behind and went to Honduras where he worked with street children for several years. After he returned to Canada, he worked a range of jobs finally ending up in diplomatic postings in Cuba and Colombia. In 2006, he made his science fiction debut with the short story “Tidal Maneuvers” after which he became a regular contributor of short stories to magazines. In 2012, he was the winner of the Asimov’s Reader Poll for his work “The Way of the Needle.” He made his long fiction debut with the publishing of “The Quantum Magician,” the novel that spawned the “Quontum Evolution” series of novels.

Similar to many authors, Derek Kunksen wanted to be an author from a very young age. While his parents discouraged him, his teacher was the opposite. In the fourth grade, he wrote a story and his teacher printed copies of it and gave them to everyone in class which made him feel like an accomplished author. As a fifteen year old, he began writing a novel in the mold of “John Carter of Mars” or “Tarzan” but it would take a decade before he finished it. Unlike successful authors who just write everyday, he waited for inspiration which never came. It was not until he was doing his masters that he met another writer who inspired him to complete his manuscript and submit to Tor Books. While the manuscript was rejected, it gave him a lot of pointers on his next manuscript. When he started working for the Canadian Federal Public service he began working on a science fiction work but soon realized he knew nothing about the genre since he read comics and had hardly been exposed to real science fiction novels. It was not until his thirtieth birthday when he was given “How to Write Fantasy and Science” that things started changing for him.

The biggest breakthrough for Derek Kunksen was when he started reading the works of Hugo and Nebula award winners. He also subscribed to Analog and Asimov’s which made getting into short story writing somewhat easier, especially once he found “Podcastle” and “Escape Pod.” After listening to hundreds of podcasts on writing, he started becoming better at writing characters and plots. He still had a lot of weaknesses and flaws but over time he smoothed out the kinks from taking notes from the best authors out there. It took him about five years to become proficient and it was not until he was thirty five that he made his first short story sale. This was his first real validation as an author. He published “The Quantum Magician,” his debut novel in 2018 and has never looked back since.

In “The Quantum Magician” by Derek Kunsken, we are introduced to titular quantum magician Belisarius. He can function very well as a quantum computer as he was engineered to be both a human and a machine. But to make use of all his capabilities he needs to hand over control of himself to the quantum intellect which is known for not caring about anyone. To keep himself intellectually stimulated but just enough not to awaken the quantum intellect, he conducts a series of con jobs. But then he gets a job offer more dangerous and bigger than anything he ever had before. A conquered nation with a very small fleet had managed to come up with some novel technologies that they intend to use to get through a wormhole. But the government that is the owner of the wormhole will not let them use it. They decide to smuggle the fleet across the wormhole which is a very dangerous endeavor.

Derek Kunsken’s “The Quantum Garden” continues to follow the story of Arjona Belisarius the conman. He is working alongside Cassie, his homo quantum companion and Stills, the foul mouthed pilot. The novel, unlike the first, takes a very different approach as compared to the debut. This time Belisarius is going for a bigger heist and adventure as compared to what ensued in the first novel. By his actions, he had managed to upset the balance of power between the human governments of the different galaxies and this has caused an outbreak of war. His disruptive actions could result in the destruction of the world and his people and he may have to make a deal with a man he double crossed. This would enable him to travel back in time where he can once again work his quantum magic. He finds himself struggling to find a new place for himself in the universe and if he can manage to get out of the quagmire he may just get back to his time and save his people. The author sets the story in a rich world where other species and cultures have managed to advance in the development of high tech but brutal technologies.

“The Quantum War” by Derek Kunsken is the third novel of the “Quantum Evolution” series of novels. It is an action packed, ground breaking and all new science fiction work set in the same world of “The Quantum Garden” and “The Quantum Magician.” At the opening of the novel, the Congregate-Union war is raging and the elite fighter pilots from the Union known as Homo Eridanus are having to deal with an influx of deadly resistant pilots on the Congregate side. In the wreckage of one of the Congregate planes, they find evidence that the pilots are Homo Quantus with AI connections and strange wiring that is not the least human. At the same time, the Union receives a delegation from the Puppets who want to form an alliance though it would come at a great price. They need Antonio Del Casal, their geneticist that had been captured and is now guarded by hundreds of Homo Quantus rescued. Belisarius the con man is the only one who can breach the Congregate defense but will he agree to come back?