strange and random happenstance

Back in the before times, 2019 to be exact, someone, and I wish I could remember who so I could profusely thank them, asked me if I had read Jacey Bedford's Rowankind series. I had not and promptly bought the first book, Winterwood. And then the weirdest thing happened, Jacey Bedford emailed me. This never happens. This weird synchronicity where you buy a book and then out of nowhere the author emails you. Well I had magic to thank for that, Regency Magic! Jacey had heard about Regency Magic from Heather Rose Jones, the author of the Alpennia series who had participated in Regency Magic previously in 2016 and again in 2018. Jacey's Rowankind series had just been completed in the fall of 2018 and was wondering if I was interested in reviewing the series for Regency Magic. Um, of course I was! And on August 25th DAW set me the trilogy. Why do I know that date so specifically? Because another weird occurrence happened, one might even say it was a strange and random happenstance. On August 30th Carnival Row dropped on Amazon. The wonderfully Noir Steampunk show starring Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne enthralled me, but the character of Sophie Longerbane played by the actress Caroline Ford keep triggering something in my mind. I knew her from somewhere and IMDb wasn't helping. And that's when I put two and two together and realized she was on the cover of Jacey's books as Ross Tremayne! A fact that Jacey confirmed with the photographer shortly thereafter. All this just goes to show that it was fate all along that I'd pick up this series and fall in love with this wonderfully off the wall series with pirates, I mean privateers, and magic and Fae and goblins and history and I swear, just pick it up and be swept away by Ross's adventures. Because as fate has decreed, and by fate I mean DAW, I happen to have an extra copy of Winterwood and will be giving it away on Instagram this month!

Question: When did you first discover Jane Austen?

Answer: I was very late to the party. We had to do Northanger Abbey at school and though I didn't hate it as much as I loathed Dickens, I don't think it was taught very well. It took me a while to get over the way literature was presented in school. I didn't read Pride and Prejudice until I was in my early thirties. And then, of course, there were various movie or TV adaptations. It might have been the BBC version with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehrle that reminded me to read it again. It seems to be shown pretty regularly, I did like the 2005 Matthew Macfayden film. There were some superb moments. The country dances were authentically sweaty and the Bennett farmyard suitably muddy. I loved the scene where Mum and the girls are lounging about and somebody sees Darcy approaching. The panicked flurry to tidy up both themselves and the room is manic and then by the time Darcy walks through the door they are all sitting primly as cool as cucumbers. Lovely.

Question: What do you think Jane Austen would think of her impact with so many literary offshoots, from parody to pastiche?

Answer: I think she'd be quietly amused by most of it, though probably a bit perplexed about the zombies.

Question: Where do you get your inspiration from?

Answer: The story ideas and the characters come from my own head, but the worldbuilding accretes as I dig deeper and deeper into the history of the period. I can't say that my inspiration comes from any one source. I have a mish-mash of images floating around in my brain that eventually gel into something tangible. When I'm researching, I tend to dip in and out of history books, and I spend a lot of time on Pinterest, collecting pictures of everything from costume and ships to pots and pans and to architecture. It all comes together gradually. The characters and the situation tend to come first and the worldbuilding second. But then the worldbuilding affects the story, too, so it's all interdependent. Even while I'm writing, I'm still researching to add authentic detail. You can't be sloppy on the history just because the story contains magic. It took me ages to research who commissioned the red coats for the British Army, and then to find out where they were made (and by whom). Goblin tailors in my book, but I needed to do the research to achieve verisimilitude, and write about a little Goblin sweatshop in London's East End.

Question: What makes the early 19th century mesh so well with magic?

Answer: It's a really interesting period: the Napoleonic Wars, George III's madness, the Industrial Revolution, bread riots, the age of sail, the echoes of the French Revolution which really put the wind up our politicians. They are frightened of the common people rising up, especially any of them imbued with magic. It's easy to slide magic into such turbulent times. For instance, in my Georgian trilogy (Winterwood, Silverwolf, and Rowankind) we eventually meet George III in the last book, and discover that his madness has a magical origin. Since no one really knows the actual cause (I believe Porphyria has been discounted, now) it's quite easy to offer a logical magical explanation.

Question: The world building and system of magic varies greatly in the regency fantasy genre, how did you go about creating yours?

Answer: I wish I could tell you that I had it all worked out in advance, but I didn't. It grew organically because my heroine, Ross Tremayne, a cross dressing privateer captain, ended up on the high seas, almost by accident, when she eloped with Will Tremayne in one of her father's ships, a lovely tops'l schooner. Will died in an accident so as the book opens Ross has been widowed for four years and she's captaining the ship in Will's stead, supported by a crew of barely reformed pirates. They have letters of marque from the Crown to hunt down and capture (or sink) vessels supplying the French. Ross has weather magic, but her natural element is the land rather than the ocean, and so she's pulled in two directions. Her land-magic develops when Ross first encounters the Green Man and the Lady of the Forests, and realises that her newly discovered younger brother, originally believed to be half-Rowankind, is really half-Fae. This lets me bring in elements of British folklore and magic: wolf shapechangers (don't call them werewolves, they hate that!), kelpies, hobs etc. Land magic. Though my books are set in 1800 - 1802 (the long regency) I don't do balls, and my characters are a million miles away from the ton. They are mostly dealing with problems while keeping clear of the law.

I use settings suggested by my historical research. I have Ross, Corwen and some of the crew being chased through a deserted off-season Vauxhall Gardens by a pack of Hellhounds conjured by the villain, Walsingham. I've used a lot of authentic detail for that (with the help of detailed contemporary maps) and then when they escape to their row-boat on the Thames, they have to run the currents under London Bridge - which was like going over a waterfall with a six-foot drop, as the 'starlings' protecting the bridge piers, narrowed the river channel. I really enjoyed writing that scene.

Question: If you had to choose between writing only period literature or only fantasy literature, which would win?

Answer: I'm not sure I could separate the two. It's true that Regency Romance is my guilty pleasure (I love a Bridgerton-type book) but I don't think I could write something that was just historical. I would end up bringing fantasy and/or adventure into it somewhere. And ditto, if I set out to write a fantasy, it would have elements of history in it, whether it was Georgian or generically medievaloid. I'm currently writing a YA fantasy book that takes place in the modern world and in the lands of Faerie. There are historical aspects to it. My most recent published book, The Amber Crown is set in an analogue of the Baltic States in the 1600s.

Question: Be honest, have you ever dressed up in Regency clothes just to pretend for a moment you are in the past?

Answer: No. I can pretend without the clothes There were some try-on costumes in the Jane Austen Museum in Bath when I went there for research, but they were so obviously easy-on reproductions that I hadn't the heart. I was hoping to have a go at getting into a genuine period dress with its ties and pins (not a real historical one, but one made to the same pattern at least) however these were elasticated so a bit disappointing. I take my hat off to the people who do proper costuming, using real historical patterns and ensuring all the detail is authentic. I can sew, but I don't have much time for it these days.

Biography:
Jacey Bedford is a British writer of science fiction and historical fantasy. She is published by DAW. Her Psi-Tech and Rowankind trilogies are out now. Her latest book, The Amber Crown, came out in January 2022. Her short stories have appeared in anthologies and magazines on both sides of the Atlantic, and have been translated into Estonian, Galician, Catalan and Polish. In another life she was a singer with vocal trio, Artisan, and once sang live on BBC Radio4 accompanied by the Doctor (Who?) playing spoons.

Jacey's Social Media:
Website
Blog
Instagram
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Twitter
Goodreads

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alpennia, Carnival Row, Caroline Ford, Georgian, Heather Rose Jones, Jacey Bedford, Pinterest, Pirates, Pride and Prejudice, Regency Magic, Ross Tremayne, Rowankind, Sophie Longerbane, The Amber Crown, Winterwood

The Secrets of Hartwood Hall by Katie Lumsden
Published by: Dutton
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A gripping and atmospheric debut that is at once a chilling Gothic mystery and a love letter to Victorian fiction.

Nobody ever goes to Hartwood Hall. Folks say it’s cursed...

It;s 1852 and Margaret Lennox, a young widow, attempts to escape the shadows of her past by taking a position as governess to an only child, Louis, at an isolated country house in the west of England.

But Margaret soon starts to feel that something isn't quite right. There are strange figures in the dark, tensions between servants, and an abandoned east wing. Even stranger is the local gossip surrounding Mrs. Eversham, Louis's widowed mother, who is deeply distrusted in the village.

Lonely and unsure whom to trust, Margaret finds distraction in a forbidden relationship with the gardener, Paul. But as Margaret's history threatens to catch up with her, it isn't long before she learns the truth behind the secrets of Hartwood Hall."

Oh, so Gothic! A widow turned governess, a secret affair, an abandoned win, yes yes yes!

Emily Goes to Exeter by M.C. Beaton
Published by: Blackstone Publishing
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 178 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The New York Times bestselling Traveling Matchmaker series begins with a Regency tale of seductive subterfuge - from the author of the Agatha Raisin novels.

A dead employer's legacy of five thousand pounds allows spinster Hannah Pym to resign from housekeeping and find adventure traveling the English countryside by coach. But the adventure soon finds Miss Pym traveling with Miss Emily Freemantle, a spoiled, violet-eyed beauty fleeing an arranged marriage to a rake she has never met. When Emily's darkly handsome betrothed boards their stage, Miss Pym is certain the girl was rash to bolt from this aristocratic catch So, as soon as the travelers repair to an inn, Miss Pym begins her matchmaking. Although Lord Ranger Harley complains he'll not marry an ungrateful minx, Miss Pym suspects once she's marshaled the couple into sharing intimate household chores, all romantic knots will be untangled."

I am SO glad they are reissuing this series by M.C. Beaton, originally not published under that name, because they were impossible to find stateside.

The Magician's Daughter by H.G. Parry
Published by: Redhook
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 400 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In the early 1900s, a young woman is caught between two worlds in H. G. Parry's spellbinding tale of miracles, magic, and the adventure of a lifetime.

Off the coast of Ireland sits a legendary island hidden by magic. A place of ruins and ancient trees, sea salt air, and fairy lore, Hy-Brasil is the only home Biddy has ever known. Washed up on its shore as a baby, Biddy lives a quiet life with her guardian, the mercurial magician Rowan. A life she finds increasingly stifling.

One night, Rowan fails to return from his mysterious travels. To find him, Biddy must venture into the outside world for the first time. But Rowan has powerful enemies - forces who have hoarded the world’s magic and have set their sights on the magician’s many secrets.

Biddy may be the key to stopping them. Yet the closer she gets to answers, the more she questions everything she’s ever believed about Rowan, her past, and the nature of magic itself."

Keep an eye on my blog for more H.G. Parry!

Nightbirds by Kate J. Armstrong
Published by: Nancy Paulsen Books
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 480 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"In a dazzling new fantasy world full of whispered secrets and political intrigue, the magic of women is outlawed but four girls with unusual powers have the chance to change it all.

The Nightbirds are Simta's best-kept secret: Girls with a unique and powerful magic they can gift with just a kiss. Some would kill to possess them; the church would kill them outright. But protected by the Great Houses, the Nightbirds are well-guarded treasures.

As this Season's Nightbirds, Matilde, Æsa, and Sayer will spend their nights bestowing their gifts to well-paying clients. Once their season is through, they're each expected to marry a Great House lord and become mothers to the next generation of Nightbirds before their powers fade away. But as they find themselves at the heart of a political scheme that threatens not only their secrets, but their very lives, their future suddenly becomes uncertain.

When they discover that there are other girls like them and that their magic is far more than they were told, they see the Nightbird system for what it is: a gilded cage. Now they must make a choice - to remain kept birds or take control, remaking the city that dared to clip their wings."

Anyone else getting magical Hunger Games vibes? With perhaps a touch of Carnival Row?

The Foreign Exchange by Veronica G. Henry
Published by: 47north
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 287 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A Vodou priestess turned amateur sleuth investigating a ritual murder is embroiled in an insidious case of corruption that reaches beyond the shadows of New Orleans.

After solving a crime blamed on Vodou in New Orleans's French Quarter, Vodou priestess turned amateur detective Reina Dumond has returned to her benevolent work as a healer. But when her friend and enigmatic client Evangeline "Vangie" Stiles comes to her for a spell, Mambo Reina quickly realizes what Vangie really needs is a sleuth.

Something is amiss in the Stileses' marriage. Five thousand dollars has inexplicably appeared in the bank account Vangie shares with her scam-artist husband, Arthur, and she smells trouble. So does Reina. Especially when her investigation into Arthur's likely new con leads to murder. Considering the manner of death and the signs on the victim's body, Reina recognizes it for what it is: ritual magic of the vodouisant kind.

As Reina digs deeper, she encounters a conspiracy exploiting vulnerable youth - one of whom may have abilities just like hers. With the help of her friends Darryl and Tyka, Reina must hone her ever-evolving skills to uncover a mystery that reaches further than she imagined."

Thanks to AMC and Anne Rice I am ALL about New Orleans at the moment.

The Angel Maker by Alex North
Published by: Celadon Books
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 336 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"From the New York Times bestselling author of The Whisper Man and The Shadows comes a dark, suspenseful new thriller about the mysteries of fate, the unbreakable bond of siblings, and a notorious serial killer who was said to know the future.

Growing up in a beautiful house in the English countryside, Katie Shaw lived a charmed life. At the cusp of graduation, she had big dreams, a devoted boyfriend, and a little brother she protected fiercely. Until the day a violent stranger changed the fate of her family forever.

Years later, still unable to live down the guilt surrounding what happened to her brother, Chris, and now with a child of her own to protect, Katie struggles to separate the real threats from the imagined. Then she gets the phone call: Chris has gone missing and needs his big sister once more.

Meanwhile, Detective Laurence Page is facing a particularly gruesome crime. A distinguished professor of fate and free will has been brutally murdered just hours after firing his staff. All the leads point back to two old cases: the gruesome attack on teenager Christopher Shaw, and the despicable crimes of a notorious serial killer who, legend had it, could see the future."

English countryside and a serial killer with powers? This is right up my alley.

Delicious Monsters by Liselle Sambury
Published by: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 512 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The Haunting of Hill House meets Sadie in this evocative and mind-bending psychological thriller following two teen girls navigating the treacherous past of a mysterious mansion ten years apart.

Daisy sees dead people - something impossible to forget in bustling, ghost-packed Toronto. She usually manages to deal with her unwanted ability, but she's completely unprepared to be dumped by her boyfriend. So when her mother inherits a secluded mansion in northern Ontario where she spent her childhood summers, Daisy jumps at the chance to escape. But the house is nothing like Daisy expects, and she begins to realize that her experience with the supernatural might be no match for her mother's secrets, nor what lurks within these walls...

A decade later, Brittney is desperate to get out from under the thumb of her abusive mother, a bestselling author who claims her stay at "Miracle Mansion" allowed her to see the error of her ways. But Brittney knows that's nothing but a sham. She decides the new season of her popular Haunted web series will uncover what happened to a young Black girl in the mansion ten years prior and finally expose her mother's lies. But as she gets more wrapped up in the investigation, she'll have to decide: if she can only bring one story to light, which one matters most - Daisy's or her own?

As Brittney investigates the mansion in the present, Daisy's story runs parallel in the past, both timelines propelling the girls to face the most dangerous monsters of all: those that hide in plain sight."

Dual timelines? Ghosts? Hauntings? Yes!

She Is a Haunting by Trang Thanh Tran
Published by: Bloomsbury YA
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 352 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"This house eats and is eaten...

A House with a terrifying appetite haunts a broken family in this atmospheric horror, perfect for fans of Mexican Gothic.

When Jade Nguyen arrives in Vietnam for a visit with her estranged father, she has one goal: survive five weeks pretending to be a happy family in the French colonial house Ba is restoring. She's always lied to fit in, so if she's straight enough, Vietnamese enough, American enough, she can get out with the college money he promised.

But the house has other plans. Night after night, Jade wakes up paralyzed. The walls exude a thrumming sound while bugs leave their legs and feelers in places they don't belong. She finds curious traces of her ancestors in the gardens they once tended. And at night Jade can't ignore the ghost of the beautiful bride who leaves cryptic warnings: Don't eat.

Neither Ba nor her sweet sister Lily believe that there is anything strange happening. With help from a delinquent girl, Jade will prove this house - the home they have always wanted - will not rest until it destroys them. Maybe, this time, she can keep her family together. As she roots out the house's rot, she must also face the truth of who she is and who she must become to save them all."

Sometimes a good haunting is what's needed for the truth to be set free and for you to find yourself.

Marvelous by Molly Greeley
Published by: William Morrow
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 416 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"A mesmerizing novel set in the French royal court of Catherine de' Medici during the Renaissance, which recreates the touching and surprising true story behind the Beauty and the Beast legend, from the acclaimed author of The Clergyman's Wife and The Heiress.

1547: Pedro Gonzales, a young boy living on the island of Tenerife, understands that he is different from the other children in his village. He is mercilessly ridiculed for the hair covering his body from head to toe. When he is kidnapped off the beach near his home, he finds himself delivered by a slave broker into the dangerous and glamorous world of France's royal court. There "Monsieur Sauvage," as he is known, learns French, literature, and sword fighting, becoming an attendant to the French King Henri II and a particular favorite of his queen, the formidable Catherine de' Medici. Queen Catherine considers herself a collector of unusual people and is fascinated by Pedro…and determined to find him a bride.

Catherine Raffelin is a beautiful seventeen-year-old girl whose merchant father has fallen on hard times and offers up his daughter to Queen Catherine. The queen will pay his debts, and his daughter will marry Monsieur Sauvage.

Catherine meets Pedro for the first time on their wedding day. Barely recovered from the shock of her father's betrayal, she soon finds herself christened "Madame Sauvage" by the royal courtiers, and must learn to navigate this strange new world, and the unusual man who is now her husband.

Gorgeously written, heartbreaking and hopeful, Marvelous is the portrait of a marriage, the story of a remarkable, resilient family, and an unforgettable reimaging of one of the world’s most beloved fairy tales."

Oh a Fairy Tale reimaging with Catherine de' Medici!?! You can't give me this book fast enough.

A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon
Published by: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Hardcover, 880 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The stunning, standalone prequel to the New York Times bestselling The Priory of the Orange Tree.

In A Day of Fallen Night, Samantha Shannon sweeps readers back to the universe of Priory of the Orange Tree and into the lives of four women, showing us a course of events that shaped their world for generations to come.

Tunuva Melim is a sister of the Priory. For fifty years, she has trained to slay wyrms - but none have appeared since the Nameless One, and the younger generation is starting to question the Priory's purpose.

To the north, in the Queendom of Inys, Sabran the Ambitious has married the new King of Hróth, narrowly saving both realms from ruin. Their daughter, Glorian, trails in their shadow - exactly where she wants to be.

The dragons of the East have slept for centuries. Dumai has spent her life in a Seiikinese mountain temple, trying to wake the gods from their long slumber. Now someone from her mother's past is coming to upend her fate.

When the Dreadmount erupts, bringing with it an age of terror and violence, these women must find the strength to protect humankind from a devastating threat."

If you're like me and haven't quite gotten around to reading The Priory of the Orange Tree, good news, this is a prequel!

Barbarian's Prize by Ruby Dixon
Published by: Berkley
Publication Date: February 28th, 2023
Format: Paperback, 304 Pages
To Buy

The official patter:
"The next novel in the international publishing phenomenon the Ice Planet Barbarians series, now in a special print edition with a bonus original novella!

Tiffany doesn't care about all the attention she's getting from the alien men, but there is one particular hunter she can see herself with - if only she can find a way to move forward from the past....

It's hard being the most popular girl on the ice planet. The alien men are falling all over themselves to impress me in the hopes that I'll take them to my furs. But they don't know my secrets. And they don't realize that behind my smile, I just wish they'd take their courting presents and their competitions for my affection and go away. I want to be left alone. But on a planet where women are a scarcity, that won't be happening.

If I had to choose a mate...it'd be someone with a gorgeous blue body, big horns, and the most intense gaze ever. Someone who knows the truth of what happened to me and why I don't like attention. Patient, handsome Salukh knows my secrets. He knows why I have nightmares and why I don't trust anyone. He's willing to let me "experiment" with him. I can use him. Take what I need from him to work through my trauma. He's been a good friend and the best shoulder to cry on.

There's one small problem.

When it comes to us, he doesn't just want to be my friend. He wants to be my forever. And day by day, he's getting harder to resist...."

But Salukh could be the one!

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:00 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Alex North, Carnival Row, Gothic, H.G. Parry, Kate J. Armstrong, Katie Lumsden, Liselle Sambury, M.C. Beaton, Molly Greeley, Regency, Ruby Dixon, Samantha Shannon, Trang Thanh Tran, Veronica G. Henry

George Mann is a fantasy author whose diverse range of books are always must buys for me, seriously, just look at the picture of the bookshelf below, that's just some of my collection. I first discovered him through his Newbury and Hobbes series when I picked up a copy of The Affinity Bridge on vacation, an interesting experience I have previously recounted. So when I heard George was setting up a blog tour for his newest publishing endeavor, Motherbridge: Seeds of Change, I contacted him immediately. I had to be a part of this. We readers who have a platform need to make sure we vocally support authors we love so that they keep doing the work we hold so dear. So here's some fun and I hope thoughtful questions for George that he was kind enough to answer. AND if you need more George after this here's a Q and A from back in 2014 he did for my blog. Enough from me, over to George!

Question: If someone knows you only from some of your franchise work, be it Doctor Who, Star Wars, Warhammer 40,000, what would you tell them about yourself to get them to pick up something else you’ve written?

Answer: I guess I'd frame myself as a fantasy writer, really. In that my Newbury and Hobbes series take the form of mystery plots, but at their heart they’re Victorian fantasies, filled with weird and wonderful goings-on, the supernatural, and adventure. Likewise my other work, such as Wychwood, or Ghosts of Manhattan, or Engineward. I love to dabble in different genres, but what I always come back to is fantasy and myth. I love creating mythic stories that have their roots in folklore and superstition, or at least feel like they could have sprung from that same well.

Question: We met at TelsaCon in 2011 but we discovered we had actually attended the same David Bowie concert back in 2000. What was your favorite song that Bowie sang during that show?

It has to be 'All the Young Dudes.' Or maybe 'Absolute Beginners.' I loved that show, and the band he was touring with at the time, too. It's probably the most 'rock and roll' thing I've ever done, flying to NYC for one night, just to see David Bowie. I only had a rucksack with me and literally flew in, went to the gig, then slept at a cheap hotel. We only had time to grab breakfast and pop up to the top of the Empire State Building the next morning before flying home. What a great experience, though. I still think about that gig all the time.*

Question: You’ve done books, music, audio books, comics, now an animated series, what medium have you not done yet that you’re excited to do and could it be VR? Or do you secretly want to become a YouTube influencer with Cavan Scott and your channel Strange Matter?

Answer: Ha! I can't see myself as an influencer! I’ve not really considered VR, although never say never! I think it’d probably be live action TV. That's still very much on my bucket list. I love long form storytelling, with a tale that unfolds over several episodes, and I’d love to get my teeth into a meaty TV project.

That aside, though, there's still so much I want to do in the other mediums I'm already working in. More novels I want to write, more comics I want to co-create with great artists. And more stories I want to tell inside some of the worlds I've been lucky enough to be invited to write within, too.

Question: What can you tell us about your dark fantasy reimagining of King Arthur Blood of Camelot you’re working on with Cavan Scott?

Answer: Oh, Blood of Camelot is hugely exciting! As I mentioned earlier, I have a deep and abiding interest in folklore and mythology, as does Cav - it’s one of the reasons we’re such good friends. We wanted to do something new together, having written a number of Doctor Who comics and audios together, as well as two Sherlock Holmes audio plays for Audible.

The story is a dark reimagining of the original Arthurian myth, that sees Arthur lose his way in his effort to protect Camelot from the plague of fae creatures that are constantly attacking the borders of his realm. Believing he is the only one who can save Camelot, that in order for Camelot to survive, he himself must persist, he murders Merlin - the last of an ancient Elven race - and drinks his blood to consume his power. In the process, he becomes the thing he’s always tried to fight against - a monster. It's left to Guinevere, a knight of the Round Table, and Lancelot, to lead the resistance and try to fight back against the tide of darkness consuming the land.

Question: Animation has a very loyal fan base, despite what Netflix is doing gutting their department, is there an animated show that holds a special place in your heart?

Answer: Too many to name! As a child I used to love The Mysterious Cities of Gold, Battle of the Planets, Ulysses 31. These days I love watching anime with my kids, and we're loving things like Attack on Titan, Jujutsu Kaisen, Demon Slayer and Seraph of the End.

Question: You are a very prolific author, in the next few months alone you have Motherbridge, out now, and in July both The Albion Initiative and a Carnival Row tie-in. My question is, does this mean you know that season two of Carnival Row is coming this summer and you’ve been sworn to secrecy? OMG, have you seen it!?!

Answer: Ha ha ha! I couldn't tell you even if I knew, I'm afraid. But I will say this - I've read the scripts and you’re going to love it.

But yes, I've been busy! Some of that is to do with the spate of pandemic lockdowns that we all went through, and the fact that release dates got bumped back, and some is just because I find it hard to say no to such amazing projects. I mean - who’s going to turn down the chance to write official Carnival Row continuation comics???

Question: With the end of your long running Newbury and Hobbes series with The Albion Initiative does it feel like you’re shedding the mantel of Steampunk author or do you feel that over the years you’ve diversified enough that Steampunk is like your origin story and you’re now so much more?

Answer: That’s an interesting question. I mean, yes, The Albion Initiative is the final Newbury and Hobbes story...for now. But I don’t think I’ll ever walk away from them completely. For example, there’s an unannounced Newbury and Hobbes novella coming this year, too. And there'll be more stories in the future. Maybe not novels, though, we'll have to see.

As to shedding/taking on new mantles...I’m not sure the mantle of 'steampunk author' has ever sat that easy on my shoulders, to be honest. I’ve always seen myself as more of a fantasy writer, and the Newbury and Hobbes series very much borrowed the aesthetic of the steampunk genre, but also dipped into other loves and inspirations, such as Doctor Who, Hammer Horror, James Bond...I think the other work I’ve produced over the years has borne that out. If you look at it as a body of work, the one word I’d use to sum it all up is 'fantasy.' So I think that’s a better fit.

Not that I’ve ever had a problem being considered a steampunk author! I love playing in the genre and the people I’ve met amongst the fandom have all been so lovely and welcoming.

Question: Seeing as many of your stories are set within the same universe do you have any personal headcanon that there were Wookies long ago in the world of Newbury and Hobbes?

Answer: Heh. No. I think it’s important to keep these things separate, when you're writing in other people's worlds. I know I've dabbled before with little crossovers into one of my Doctor Who novels and some Sherlock Holmes stories, but I see those more as little Easter Eggs, harking back to some key influences, rather than trying to build a cohesive universe that embraces them all. I suppose the only thing that links them, really, is that the stories are written by me, so I suppose some of the same voice and preoccupations bleed through those different stories.

Question: While you’ve created many interesting worlds of your own, you’ve played in some very big franchise sandboxes, from Doctor Who to Star Wars. What franchise do you dream of working with?

Answer: Both Doctor Who and Star Wars are a huge amount of fun to write for, and I hope there’ll be many more opportunities to write more for them both in years to come. In terms of franchises I’d love to write for and haven't yet: Spider-Man, Batman, James Bond, Conan the Barbarian all spring to mind. All big influences from my youth too.

Question: And, this follow-up question is actually mandatory; you’ve written a lot for Doctor Who so who would you like to see as the next Doctor?

Answer: I’m SUPER excited to see Ncuti Gatwa take on the role! I think he’s going to be brilliant. Beyond that, I don’t know! I’d be a rubbish casting director! I just want great stories with an actor who’s enthusiastic to be there!**

Question: And on to an equally hard question, I know this is like picking your favorite child, but of all the characters you’ve written, do you have a favorite?

Answer: That is a super-tough question. I don't know. Maybe Ellie from the Wychwood books, because strangely she's the most autobiographical of the characters I've written. I feel a real affinity for her. But then...I do love writing stories for Newbury, too...

Question: Moving more specifically to the reason we’re here, the release of Motherbridge, what was the first comic that you remember making a lasting impact on you? And yes, it can be terrifying, like how I learned about shock treatment from a Return to Oz comic.

Answer: Since I'm in the UK, it's a slightly more difficult question to answer, because we have a tradition for funny kids' comics like The Beano, The Dandy, Buster, Whizzer and Chips and the like. Anthology comics filled with short, funny strips. They all played a big part in my early comic reading.

When I eventually discovered American comics, it was through the Marvel UK reprints of Spider-Man and Star Wars. I adored them, and the characters that were often introduced in back-up strips. Later still, I discovered imported comics and started reading Batman and Daredevil. I remember a particular issue of Daredevil that introduced Typhoid Mary and that sticks very much in my mind.

Question: What comics are automatically on your pull list?

Answer: Spider-Man and Batman. Usually Daredevil. Anything set in the Hellboy universe by Mike Mignola. Anything drawn by Humberto Ramos. Tom Taylor’s Nightwing. Cav's Star Wars: The High Republic and Shadow Service series. And then...whatever looks good, or is written by someone whose work I admire. My pull list is substantial, but it shifts around all over the place!

Question: Recently you had two covers of the Star Wars Adventures you wrote illustrated by the amazing Francesco Francavilla. Is there anyone else working in comics who you dream of working with? Get it out there in the universe and see if we can actualize it.

Answer: Yes! I’d love to have some covers created by Esad Ribic, and I’d love to work with both Phil Noto and Humberto Ramos. Oh, and JH Williams III!

Question: What was it like writing a direct to trade comic versus one released monthly?

Answer: Well that’s an interesting question in this case! Initially, we were planning to produce Motherbridge as a four-issue mini series, but when Covid hit we only had one issue written, and everything had to go on hold because the comic stores and comic distributors were all rightly closing to protect their staff. Later, when things started to stabilize and the market opened up again, we realized Motherbridge might better suit the OGN treatment rather than floppies, so I revisited the first script and then wrote the rest of it with that in mind.

For me, the main difference is that, as a writer, you can pace yourself a little differently. You don’t have to get all the reveals and hooks out as quickly in that first or second issue, because anyone who’s reading the graphic novel is in for the long haul - at least for those 80-odd pages! It’s a bit like writing a prose novel in that respect - while there are clear conventions of format and medium, you have a whole book in which to tell your story.

I need to say something about Aleta’s incredible artwork here, too. She worked so hard on this book, and it shows on every single page. I was so lucky to be able to work with her, and she’s realized Hayley and her world in a way that was exceeds anything I ever imagined.

Question: There are so many stories where nature takes over, usually post-apocalyptic, but in Motherbridge nature taking over is a positive thing, what made you want to flip the trope?

Answer: It’s very much a reaction to the world around us right now, and what's going on with the climate. Rewilding seems to be such an important part of what's needed to save the world from the intensive industries that we've developed to sustain us. I wanted to look at what a world might look like where nature had tried to balance the system for us, how a radical natural revolution could change the planet - and the sorts of reactions that different people would have. I guess it's a love letter to the Earth, in a way. We have a tendency in post-apocalyptic fiction to see nature as a wild, untamed, sinister thing as you say - I wanted to show the flipside of that, to remind us that we're part of the natural world, not aside from it.

Question: Motherbridge seems so of the moment, with climate change, immigration, walls, even separation from loved ones, which many of us suffered due to Covid, yet comics have a lengthy production time, how did you manage to capture this relevancy?

Answer: It's actually been in development for a long time, but the wind seems to have been blowing in this direction for a good while. It's obviously quite a political comic, a gut reaction to the anti-immigration policies instigated by various world governments, a reaction to the symbolism of border walls and isolationism. I guess, in some ways, Motherbridge is a bit of a scream in rage at the way our leaders seem intent on leading us down an increasingly grim path, seemingly ignoring all the important lessons of history. So it started long before Covid, and was written and drawn by the wonderful Aleta during the pandemic period. It can’t help but be informed by that.

Question: Even more startlingly relevant is this world you have created where the masculine military industrial complex and governments are forcing Mother Nature to die in order to achieve their goals. This seems like a confluence of events that you couldn’t dream up. Do you believe that with enough education, enough people reading articles, and stories like Motherbridge, that we can positively effect the world around us?

Answer: I really do, yes. I mean, Motherbridge is a comic. It's a story. It's entertainment. I have no misconception about that. It's not a political treatise and it's not going to change the world. In some ways, it's deeply personal, too - about my reaction to the world and where it's headed. But at the same time, isn't the point of a story to transmit ideas? To help create empathy for others - to allow people to see through someone else's eyes for a while? From the earliest myths, this is what we see - cautionary tales, human stories, tales that warn, tales that help us engage with the world in a different way. If just one person reading Motherbridge looks at the world outside their window and thinks a little bit more compassionately about the people out there - well, the story has done more than I could ever have dreamed of.

I think that's what I hope for. That through stories, and articles and news reports and television shows - that we can all learn to look beyond ourselves and try to understand what's going on in other people's lives, and to offer out our hands to help them, and maybe ask for help from them, too.

That all sounds very grand. This is, like I said at the start, just a comic book. But I do think that's the power of story. Not my story, in particular, but the collective stories that we tell each other and through which we share our experiences of the world.

Question: This book feels like it would be good for any age to read, especially as you present large topics in a non-condescending manner. Was your plan to educate as you entertain or was that just a welcome side effect?

Answer: I think it's a welcome side effect. I'm no expert in these things. Like I said above, this is a personal story, a personal reaction to the world. It's a fantasy. But if it makes someone think, even for a moment, then I'll be a very happy man indeed.

Question: Will there be further adventures for Hayley Wells?

Answer: Time will tell! Both me and Aleta would love to delve back into Hayley’s world and tell people what happens next. I have a plan. It'll depend on how well this first book sells, as to whether we get to do more. We'll be keeping our fingers crossed!

*Interesting fact, but of George's two choices I would chose 'Absolute Beginners' because it's the first time Bowie sang it in concert since 1987. Though my personal choice is 'Wild is the Wind' which opened the show because hearing Bowie's voice for the first time coming out of the darkness was transcendent. And yes, that is an actual picture I took of Bowie singing 'All The Young Dudes!'

**I literally sent this question to George on a Thursday and that Sunday Ncuti Gatwa was announced, and I am equally excited by the casting.

Posted by Miss Eliza at 12:01 AM 0 comments  

Labels: Aleta Vidal, Carnival Row, Comics, Covid, David Bowie, Doctor Who, Fantasy, Francesco Francavilla, George Mann, Motherbridge, Newbury and Hobbes, Star Wars, Steampunk, The Affinity Bridge, The Albion Initiative