Books. These ancient bound things with text are more expensive than a map pack and heavier than a Gold Lancer download card. They don’t give their owners rumble feedback and they certainly can’t be played via an Xbox 360. Thankfully, these non-digital abominations aren’t completely worthless: they make nifty paperweights and can even plug the plot holes and story gaps videogame writers leave in their games.

Such is the case for Gears of War: Aspho Fields. In the book, author Karen Traviss opts to explain events between the original Gears of War and Gears of War 2 -- unexplored territory by the videogames. Apparently, this book was so hot Random House decided to ink another contract. Yes. Another Gears of War book is coming.

It’s called Gears of War: Jacinto’s Remnant and it hits, uh, book shelves on July 28. For fifteen bucks, you can read this thing and learn about stuff that happens after Gears of War 2. (Spoiler Alert: it’s about tough guys killing tough things in a tough war.)

If you want to know more about the book, the press release is available below the fold. If you just want to stare at pretty pictures, the cover art is available in the header and in the gallery below.

We haven’t read anything Gears fiction aside from that awesome slash stuff available on the Internet. (Dom and Marcus were made for each other.) What did you guys think about the first book? Do you have any interest in this one?

 A DEL REY TRADE PAPERBACK ORIGINAL

Continuing the Saga of the Award-Winning Video Game Series... GEARS OF WAR JACINTO'S REMNANT

BY Karen Traviss #1 New York Times bestselling author

NEW YORK (June 30, 2009) – Blockbuster video game franchise Gears of War burst onto the book scene last year with its first official novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Karen Traviss. ASPHO FIELDS — spanning the story between Gears of War and Gears of War 2 — was an instant bestseller. Now the sequel, GEARS OF WAR: JACINTO’S REMNANT (Del Rey Trade Paperback, on sale July 28, 2009, $15.00) picks up from the harrowing end of the second game and follows humanity’s struggle to survive after the destruction of its last bastion on the planet Sera.

After a brutal fifteen-year war for survival, the Coalition of Ordered Governments is forced to destroy Jacinto – mankind’s last city – in a final bid to stop the Locust Horde. As the survivors flee, they're caught between the last of the Locust, bent on vengeance, and a primitive struggle to stay alive in an icy wilderness. It’s up to Marcus Fenix, Dom Santiago, and their fellow Gears to fight to get Jacinto’s refugees to a safe haven. But what they find is a new world; lawless, treacherous, with an all too familiar enemy – humans, as desperate and dangerous as any Locust grub.

“Karen Traviss has outdone herself once again,” said Rod Fergusson, executive producer, Epic Games. "JACINTO'S REMNANT not only answers the question of what happens after the events of Gears 2, it also provides greater insight into the Gears of War universe and a deeper understanding of its characters. We hope players of the games and discerning readers alike will enjoy this ongoing tale of humanity's fight for survival."

GEARS OF WAR: JACINTO’S REMNANT was written in partnership with Epic Games, Inc., developers of the 11 million-selling Gears of War video game franchise. GEARS OF WAR: JACINTO’S REMNANT will be released day and date with the latest Game Add-on for Gears of War 2 (Xbox 360). Gears of War 2: All Fronts Collection includes all previously released downloadable content for the game to date in addition to Dark Corners, a substantial Add-on featuring seven new multiplayer maps and the new Road to Ruin campaign chapter. In total, the All Fronts Collection contains nineteen maps and a new campaign experience, available for 1600 Microsoft points on Xbox LIVE starting at 12:00 a.m. GMT on July 28. For more information, visit www.gearsofwar.com.

Karen Traviss is the author of four Star Wars: Republic Commando novels: Hard Contact, Triple Zero, True Colors, and Order 66; three Star Wars: Legacy of the Force novels: Bloodlines, Revelation, and Sacrifice; two Star Wars: The Clone Wars novels: The Clone Wars movie novelization and No Prisoners; as well as City of Pearl, Crossing the Line, The World Before, Matriarch, and Judge. A former defense correspondent and TV and newspaper journalist, Traviss lives in Wiltshire, England.

GEARS OF WAR: JACINTO’S REMNANT by Karen Traviss
A Del Rey Trade Paperback
Publication Date: July 28, 2009
ISBN: 978-0-345-49944-8
$15.00

Epic, Epic Games, Gears of War, Gears of War 2 and Marcus Fenix are trademarks or registered trademarks of Epic Games, Inc. in the United States and elsewhere.