Sci-fi books
(Amazon Photos)

In a saga that could very well be ripped from the pages of the very books involved, two science-fiction novels with near-identical covers prompted Amazon to take action this week and temporarily block sales of one of the books.

Sales of “The Corroding Empire,” by Castalia House author Johan Kalsi and editor Vox Day, were halted and then resumed by Amazon. The book was released one day before Tor Books’ “The Collapsing Empire,” by fellow sci-fi author John Scalzi, which came out on Tuesday — a year after it was first announced. From the titles to the artwork, the two covers are undoubtedly similar.

The science-fiction blog io9 says that similarity is purposeful, and it’s all part of a long-standing feud between the authors/publishing houses.

Read all about it at io9 and File 770 to get a deeper dive into the backstory. Amazon has yet to comment to either site.

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