An Interview with STEPHANIE SAULTER

April 24, 2015January 31, 2021 Civilian Reader Interview Binary, Dystopia, Gemsigns, Jo Fletcher Books, Must Read 2014, Must Read 2015, Quercus US, Regeneration, Revolution Series, Sci-Fi, Stephanie Saulter

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Stephanie Saulter?

She’s Jamaican-born, American-educated, a Londoner by choice. A good cook and a bad singer. Possessor of a career that’s had at least as much to do with what could be learned as what could be earned. The person who never ends up seeing the films that everyone else is talking about, because she stayed home and read a book.

Your novel Binary is due to be published in the US by Quercus in May 2015. It’s the second in your ®Evolution series – how would you introduce the series to a new reader, and what can fans expect from book two?

The ®Evolution trilogy is set in a London of the near future, around a hundred years after a technologically-caused pandemic known as the Syndrome came close to wiping out the entire human species. Genetic engineering of embryos eventually provided immunity and prevented extinction, but with some babies it was taken further, creating a servant class of genetically modified humans known as gems. This continued for generations, until the indenture system was abolished and gems were acknowledged to have at least some of the rights of other humans. The first book, Gemsigns, takes place against the backdrop of the upheaval that follows this decision. The gemtechs are trying to overturn it and reclaim the people they think of as their property; those people are living in freedom for the first time, and fighting to preserve it; there are progressives who want to help them, and religious extremists who want to wipe them out; the norm majority are conflicted, fearful and easily manipulated. It’s an explosive mix. Events pivot around the gems’ charismatic leader, Aryel Morningstar – a woman whose origins and abilities are shrouded in mystery, and who is loved and feared in equal measure. Continue reading →

Interview with MICHAEL ALAN NELSON

April 21, 2015April 6, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Boom Studios, Comics, Hexed, Michael Alan Nelson, Pyr Books, Sisters of Witchdown, Supernatural, Urban Fantasy

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Michael Alan Nelson?

I grew up in a small farming community in northern Indiana. Lots of corn and woods and swamp, but not much else. However, we lived about ninety minutes from downtown Chicago, so my parents would make sure to get me into the city now and again to remind me there was a larger world out beyond the seemingly endless cornfields. It was actually a nice place to be. I got to experience that stereotypical “small town” life (for all its good and ills) and yet still be exposed to a large, diverse world beyond my back yard. I would spend a Saturday helping my dad cut down trees and split wood (we heated our home with a wood burning stove) and then head into the city on Sunday to visit Adler Planetarium or the Field Museum–though, to be honest, I much preferred the museums to splitting wood.

I was also a bit of a kid-of-all-cliques when I was growing up. I was always shy so people never paid much attention to me. That allowed me to occupy this odd space that floated between several different social strata. I was in theater, competed on the speech team, but I was also a varsity wrestler. Of course, sometimes I would skip practice to play Dungeons&Dragons. When I was supposed to be working on takedowns, I’d be in the bed of a pick-up truck parked in some random cornfield rolling for initiative. Needless to say, I didn’t have a very promising wrestling career. Continue reading →

Interview with PETER NEWMAN

April 13, 2015March 23, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Debut 2015, Fantasy, Peter Newman, Vagrant, Voyager

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Peter Newman?

Peter Newman lives in Somerset with his wife and son. Growing up in and around London, Peter studied Drama and Education at the Central School of Speech and Drama, going on to work as a secondary school drama teacher. He now works as a trainer and Firewalking Instructor. He sometimes pretends to be a butler for the Tea and Jeopardy podcast, which he co-writes, and which has been shortlisted for a Hugo Award.

Your debut novel, The Vagrant, is due to be published this year by Voyager Books. How would you introduce it to a new reader? And is it part of a planned series?

A quick description would be: A silent figure wanders a far-future, post-demonic apocalypse, carrying humanity’s last hope. It features singing swords, demon knights, a baby and a goat.

It has been described recently (to my great delight) as: “A bit like China Mieville writing post-apocalyptic angelic knights.” A quote I’m sharing at every available opportunity!

The sequel will be out next year. [Possibly called The Malice – TBC] Continue reading →

Interview with JAMES BENMORE

April 2, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Artful Dodger, Dickens, Dodger, Dodger of the Dials, Dodger of the Revolution, Heron, Historical, James Benmore, Oliver Twist, Quercus

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is James Benmore?

I’m the author of a trilogy of novels that further the adventures of Jack Dawkins from Oliver Twist – or the Artful Dodger as you and I might call him. The first of these books, Dodger, was released to a very warm reception last year and so it’s been a real pleasure to keep his story going for another two books.

Your next novel, Dodger of the Dials, is published in paperback this year by Heron. It’s your second novel about the Artful Dodger. How would you introduce the series to a new reader, and what can fans of the first expect?

So, Dodger picks up six years after the events of Oliver Twist. In that book, Jack was arrested for pickpocketing and was transported to an Australian penal colony. But now he’s back in London under mysterious circumstances with a task to locate a priceless jewel which is lost somewhere within the city. The story leads Jack back into some of the darker areas of his past and he finds out what has become of many of the other young orphans that once shared Fagin’s home with him. It’s a historical crime caper with one of literature’s most irreverent anti-heroes at its center.

Dodger of the Dials is set a year after that and now an even more emboldened Dawkins is establishing himself as one of London’s most ambitious criminals. He’s moved from pickpocketing and is now a burglar-on-demand, cracking great houses on behalf of dubious wealthy clients. He also runs a significantly large gang in the Seven Dials vicinity called ‘the Diallers’ but his success attracts unwanted attention from an even bigger career criminal called Weeping Billy Slade. We see the beginnings of what we now call organized crime but this prototype is a disaster for Jack. Before long he’s in a condemned cell awaiting his own execution like Fagin before him and with some desperate plans for escape. Continue reading →

Interview with DAVID WALTON

March 25, 2015March 11, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview David Walton, Pyr Books, Sci-Fi, Superposition, Supersymmetry

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is David Walton?

As well as a science fiction author, I’m an engineer, a Christian, and the father of seven children. My oldest child is fourteen, and my youngest is only one and a half, so my home is a riotous place, full of love, adventure, and chaos. During the day, I work for Lockheed Martin, a satisfying career that makes use of my interests in math and algorithms. On my blog, I’ve written about how my Christian faith interacts with my love for science and science fiction.

Your next novel, Superposition, will be published by Pyr in the US, in April 2015. How would you introduce the novel to a potential reader? Is it part of a new series?

As a quantum physics murder mystery! Superposition is a fast-paced thriller, with high-stakes danger and a race to the finish. It starts when a former colleague shows up at Jacob Kelley’s door full of unbelievable tales and fires a gun at Jacob’s wife. When the colleague shows up dead, Jacob is accused of murder. Soon he and his teenage daughter are on the run, pursued by the police and by a quantum intelligence unconstrained by the normal limits of space and matter. Father and daughter have to pick up the pieces, following multiple paths of possibility to get to the truth and put their lives back together again. Continue reading →

Interview with MARKUS HEITZ

March 5, 2015March 5, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Devastating Hate, Die Legenden der Albae, Dwarves, Elves, Fantasy, Gerechter Zorn, Jo Fletcher Books, Legends of the Älfar, Markus Heitz, Piper Verlag, Righteous Fury, Vernichtender Hass

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Markus Heitz?

An ex-RPGer, old Goth, who likes living and laughing and telling stories. Many stories in many different worlds. That’s the curse of being a roleplayer (p&p) for 16 years. Now I’m writing and it’s a kind of methadone. Oh, of course, I wear black. It calms people around you – did I mention, that I am 1.89m tall?

Your latest novel, Righteous Fury, is published by Jo Fletcher Books. How would you introduce the novel to a potential reader? Is it part of a series? Is it connected to your previous novels?

When I started the Dwarves, I knew that my evil elves – called the Älfar – must have their own series. The idea of changing the perspective was very seductive for me. And, like the Emperor in Star Wars, I wanted to say to readers: come to the Dark Side. Look, we even have art and paintings and culture. Okay, we use bones and blood and other parts of our enemies, but, well, art is art. Playing the devil’s advocate was the challenge. Continue reading →

Interview with RJURIK DAVIDSON

March 3, 2015March 2, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Fantasy, New Weird, Rjurik Davidson, Stars Askew, Tor Books, Tor UK, Unwrapped Sky

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Rjurik Davidson?

That sounds like an existential question. The kind of thing that Jean Paul Sartre would spend his time contemplating. We are what we do, Sartre would have responded. As for me, I’ve always tried to live a varied life, and have done many jobs. One of my qualities is curiosity. I love learning new things. There’s too much to know in this world. My interests include from quantum physics, ancient history, political theory, psychology and psychoanalysis. I’ve lived around the world (Australia, the US, Europe), worked as a cook, clerk, lecturer, and builder. I speak French, though unevenly. I love to see things I’ve never seen before. I love to meet unusual people. I’m very loyal but don’t often forgive people who have treated me poorly.

Your debut, Unwrapped Sky, will be published in paperback by Tor in the UK, in March 2015. How would you introduce the novel to a potential reader?

Unwrapped Sky sits somewhere between fantasy and science fiction, in a little subgenre sometimes called the New Weird. It’s set in the fantastic city of Caeli-Amur, which is something like an industrial version of Ancient Rome. Steam trams chug along the streets. A ruined forum lies close to a huge arena. Three dictatorial Houses rule the city. It’s filled with strange wonders. Ancient Minotaurs arrive for the traditional Festival of the Sun and New-Men bring wondrous technology from their homeland. Hideously disfigured Wastelanders stream into the city and strikes break out in the factory district. Continue reading →

Interview with MARSHALL RYAN MARESCA

February 13, 2015February 13, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview A Murder of Mages, DAW Books, Debut 2015, Fantasy, Marshall Ryan Maresca, Most Anticipated 2015, Thorn of Dentonhill

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Marshall Ryan Maresca?

I’m a fantasy and sci-fi writer living in Austin, TX, as well as an occasional playwright. I grew up in upstate New York, outside of Syracuse, but fled from lake-effect winters to hotter climates when I finished college.

Your debut, The Thorn of Dentonhill, will be published by DAW Books in the US, in February. How would you introduce the novel to a potential reader? Is it part of a series?

The Thorn of Dentonhill follows Veranix Calbert, a magic-student by day, vigilante-by-night who fights his own personal war against a drug trafficking gang. It’s a fast-paced adventure, filled with action, magic and snappy dialogue. Is it part of a series? Short answer: yes. More complicated answer: Thorn is the first in a series following Veranix, but my next book — A Murder of Mages — is in the same setting, but following different characters. So there will be two separate series that cohabit the same space. Continue reading →

Interview with BRUCE McCABE

February 2, 2015February 1, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Bruce McCabe, Crime, Dreamcon Publishing, Random House, Skinjob, Techno, Thriller, Transworld

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Bruce McCabe?

The ‘official version’ is I’ve spent a career researching, writing about, and advising on, human factors in technology innovation and adoption and now I write fiction. The unofficial version is, I’m an incorrigible explorer, and if I don’t spend time meeting people smarter than myself and poking and prodding new ideas and daydreaming about what they might mean, I go nuts!

Your debut novel, Skinjob, will be published in paperback by Transworld in January 2015. How would you introduce the novel to a potential reader? Is it the beginning of a series?

A frantic roller-coaster ride of a techno-thriller, set over just six days. Lots of action and provocative themes. A series? Maybe. My next book follows the fortunes of another protagonist, but I love the characters in Skinjob and if the right ‘what if?’ comes along I will be bringing them back. Continue reading →

Interview with SARA B. ELFGREN and MATS STRANDBERG

January 28, 2015January 27, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Chosen Trilogy, Engelsfors Trilogy, Fire, Hammer, Horror, Mats Strandberg, Random House, Sara B. Elfgren, Supernatural, The Circle, The Key, Urban Fantasy

Let’s start with an introduction: Who are Sara B. Elfgren and Mats Strandberg?

Sara: I was born in 1980 in Stockholm, Sweden and I still live here. I surround myself with books. I tend to rant about stuff I love, and stuff that annoys me. What We Do in the Shadows made me laugh and I saw it twice in the cinema. I like people who are empathetic and sarcastic.

Mats: Well, I am 38. I grew up in a small town with some similarities to Engelsfors, minus the apocalypse. I now live in Stockholm. I watch way too much reality TV. I am horrible at remembering people’s names and it’s very embarrassing. I never finish books that I don’t like after 100 pages.

The third novel in your Engelsfors trilogy, The Key, will be published in the UK by Hammer in January 2015. How would you introduce the series to a potential reader, and what can fans of the first two novels expect here?

Mats: The trilogy is about six very different girls, who find out that they are witches, and have to work together to stop the apocalypse.

Sara: Meanwhile, they have do deal with the problems of their everyday lives: parents, partners, friends, bullies and homework. In The Key, the fans can expect answers to all the big, and many of the little, questions. The plot will thicken… Continue reading →