Obverse Books is a British publisher initially known for publishing books relating to the character
Iris Wildthyme,[1] and currently for the Black Archive series of critical books on Doctor Who, and two sister series - the
Gold Archive, focusing on
Star Trek, and the
Silver Archive,[2] featuring other genre shows. The company also owns publishing rights for stories based on
Faction Paradox, and previously held the license to
Sexton Blake.[3] Obverse Books had an e-book only imprint named Manleigh Books between 2012 and 2016.[1]
History
The company was founded in 2008 in Edinburgh by
Stuart Douglas.[4] Obverse's first book was a 2009 collection of short stories featuring the character Iris Wildthyme, first seen in the Doctor Whouniverse. Further volumes of Iris Wildthyme short stories have followed regularly.
In 2010 the company expanded their line to include story collections from single authors and collections that did not focus primarily on science fiction. That same year the company also acquired the rights to publish short story collections based on
Faction Paradox.[5]
In 2011 Obverse launched The Obverse Quarterly, a series of paperback books aimed at genre fans.[6] The series contains stories by authors such as
George Mann,
Paul Magrs and
Michael Moorcock, and new stories featuring
Zenith the Albino,[7]Sherlock Holmes and
The City of the Saved, amongst others.[8] That same year Obverse began publishing a series of
tete-beche collections as part of the resurgence of such books in the speculative fiction market.[9] The following year Obverse launched an ebook-only imprint, Manleigh Books.
Obverse obtained the rights to the character of
Sexton Blake in 2013 and relaunched the Sexton Blake Library in 2014 with
Mark Hodder's 'The Silent Thunder Caper'.[3][10][11]
In 2019, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the imprint, Obverse published six books, each featuring one of the most popular characters from their catalogue. These included Iris Wildthyme, Faction Paradox, The Manleigh Halt Irregulars, Senor 105,
Seaton Begg and The City of the Saved.
In 2021, Obverse announced a new Gold Archive range, focusing on individual episodes of Star Trek.[15] The company also licensed the prose rights to the setting and characters from the Doctor Who story Paradise Towers.
In 2023, the photobook
Dark Edinburgh by
Scott Liddell won a Scottish Nature Photography Award as 'Favourite Scottish Nature Photography Book' for 2022.[16]
Fiction
The Sexton Blake Library
Sexton Blake and the Silent Thunder Caper by
Mark Hodder (2014)