Review & Author Q&A: Chains of Gaia by James Fahy @venture_press @j_r_fahy_tweets

Adventure, Author Interview, Authors of Instagram, Chains of Gaia, fantasy, June Release, Middle Grade, Must Read, Recommend, Reviews, The Changeling Series, Venture Press

Chains of Gaia by James Fahy
The Changeling Series
Venture Press
Release Date: June 12, 2017

Let me tell you something, followers.... I am a lucky, lucky, LUCKY girl. During my travels earlier this month, I had the pleasure of spending a day with one Mr. James Fahy... (or Shay as his close friends call him, and I'm now one of those so you know.. 😉) In all seriousness, if you don't already follow him on social media and know that he's a one-of-a-kind, witty, engaging and over all nice guy then I am here to tell you that he is all of the above and then some. He's also an extremely talented writer, fantastic cook, family man and lover of animals. Keep in mind, however, if you fall down around him, he'll just leave you on the floor and pretend not to know you.... hey, none of us are perfect right? 😼

I had the honor to receive an ARC of the third book in The Changeling Series and it is FANTASTIC! Please tell me you've read the first two in the series and are utterly jealous that I got my hands on a copy of this.... no? Then you really must remedy that! Continue below to see the synopsis, my review and a trailer for Chains of Gaia... then venture further for the longest and funniest Q&A with Shay (thanks again for actually answering the bazillion of them I presented)... Trust me, it's worth the read! (Did you guys know he leaves all the vowels until last and fills them in later? 😲) And then keeeeeeeeep on going to see the other books in this series AND in the Phoebe Harkness series (also awesome reads).

Thanks in advance for taking the time to read the following - now go out and buy all the books! 📚

Synopsis from Amazon:

If you go down to the woods today…

Something dark and dangerous stirs deep in the Netherworlde. A violent, primal power, awoken from its slumber by the Shards of the Arcania.

A scourge lies on the great Everhart forest, a rampaging beast laying waste to the woods, and to the towns and villages that border it, bringing destruction.

It leaves none alive, and Robin Fellows, heir of Erlking and the world’s last Changeling, may be the only one who can stop it.

Pressed into service, Robin and his friends must navigate the deep and twisting secrets of the legendary woods, fighting to save the Netherworlde’s inhabitants from the ever-growing menace, while racing against dark enemies also searching for the source of the monster’s power – the Shard of Earth

Troubled by a rising darkness from within, and a tendency for his magic to go haywire, before Robin can wander from the path and begin to unravel the truth beneath the trees, he must first find a way to come to terms with who – and what – he is.

Unexpected and unwelcome guests at Erlking, and uncertain guides in the wilderness, unsure what secrets are being hidden, even by his closest friends, Robin must decide who he can trust – in a world where it seems no one, friend or foe, is exactly as they appear.

My Review:

Where do I even begin?! How do I review this without spoiling anything for you future readers?

Ever have that feeling of going back to some place familiar and comfortable - like being tucked into your childhood bed? Well here I am, back in Erkling, with Henry, Hestia, Woad, Aunt Irene, Inky... I'm HOME.. and ready for another adventure to the Netherworlde.

This time they must retrieve the Shard of Earth and in the process have to deal with centaurs, a minotaur, dryads and new parts of the Netherworlde (just to name a few). New characters are introduced - Ffoulkes has to be the most annoying and narcissistic character I've seen in a while (but damn I love him) - and surprises are peeking around every corner. Once again, we see the author's sense of humor come into play with various references freckled throughout the book and through the friendships and relationships between the characters. Woad's always been one of everyone's favorites and his simplistic, yet wise, view of the world is always refreshing (as is Inky's loyalty to him). I've always liked Aunt Irene but she vaulted up my list for a variety of reasons. We see Robin still struggling with his role as the Scion and controlling his power, yet maturing and becoming more confident by the minute. I always find it fun and endearing to watch characters grow book by book in a series and the author does this without fail.

Fahy brings adventure, humor, emotion and action which keeps the pages turning. I literally kept swiping left hoping more pages would appear at the end, but sadly they did not. Swipe, swipe, swipe...nothing. I suppose I will have to just wait for the next installment... until then I'll live my life by picking things up one at a time, socks and underpants. And hey, you guys, as you get to reading this book, send me a hex message so we can discuss.

Chains of Gaia Trailer:

https://www.facebook.com/JamesFahyAuthor/videos/1693768747583707/

Mr. James Fahy:

"James is traditionally published, represented by The Ampersand Literary Agency in Oxford and both the Changeling and Harkness books have been published by Venture Press, the digital imprint of London publishers Endeavour Press. Although he is very active on social media with promotions and competitions, and enjoys supporting indie authors and their work wherever possible.

He lives in the North of England amongst moors and wind turbines, with his extremely patient family, an excitable Akita and a very old cat.

When not writing or playing on social media, he cooks a lot, and occasionally sleeps." (This blurb taken straight from his website: https://jamesfahyauthor.wordpress.com/ - go check him out!)

You can also find him on his various social media platforms:
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram

Author Q&A:

The big-ass bumper interview

What is the most difficult part of your writing process? Your writing Kryptonite?

For me I think it’s getting started, as in actually writing things down. (which might sound odd coming from a writer, but there’s usually a lot that leads up to that point where you actually sit down at the laptop, take a deep breath and type ‘once upon a time…’)

Story ideas tend to germinate in my head, usually formed around a random image or two which pops in unannounced, and I can take a couple of weeks rolling them around my head, trying to feel the shape of the story. I’ll develop characters, discuss backstory with myself, even act out whole scenes of dialogue in my head while I’m doing the dishes or some other menial task. All this comes long before putting pen to paper. I usually have the story pretty much ‘done’ in my head before I force myself to sit down and stare at every writer’s kryptonite, the blank, expectant page.

Do you have any strange writing habits?

I leave all the vowels until last, then go back and add them all in. (no, obviously this is a lie.) I’m not sure if it counts as a habit, maybe more of a ritual, but I get quite intimidated starting something new, and I never really feel ‘comfortable’ until I’ve got at least fifty pages down. After that I’m in my stride and fine, but those first few days, I will usually ‘hide’ the word count so I can’t see how little I’ve written so far and get disheartened!

What is your least favorite part of the writing / publishing process? Favorite part?

Least is editing. Hands down. I frickin’ hate editing. And by that I don’t mean the drafting and checking that I’m not being repetitive or over-explanatory. That’s obviously an important part of polishing a rough draft into a finalised story and I quite like that. I mean when I realise I’ve overwritten, and know that I have to cut ‘X’ amount of words from somewhere, so end up painfully going through page by page cutting tiny words here and there like I’m pruning some annoying book bonsai.

My favourite part is definitely that moment just after release date, when I get my gratis hard copies from the publishers. It’s the first time you’ve held that book in your hands, in all its finished form, and to a writer, there’s nothing quite like it. We call them ‘book babies’ for obvious reasons, but there is a genuine, almost parental pride and satisfaction of holding it and thinking. ‘I made this, and it’s out in the world now’.

Is there one particular subject you would never write about as an author? What is it?

Personally, I would struggle to write anything that involved children being harmed. I’ve read some excellent books, either horrors or thrillers, where children are abducted by maniacs, or where the author very skilfully raises questions of domestic violence or abuse, but it’s something that I find so horrifying that I’d be terribly worried I wouldn’t be able to do it justice, or that it would be too harrowing to write about.

Children in fantastical peril, now that’s another thing. In my Changeling series I know I put my young heroes through a lot of trials, but that’s because kids are much tougher and resilient than we give them credit for. All the best children’s literature or YA literature shows us this. Look at Narnia, those kids go through the wringer!

Does a big ego help or hurt writers?

Oh undoubtedly both. And I’ve never met a writer who didn’t have both a massive ego, and massive self-doubt too. We’re all basket-cases that way I think. Some days we think every word we write is solid gold, and the next day we think that we should just apologise for existing because we can’t seem to please even ourselves.

There is some ego in writing. I think all writers are performers, we all want the world to pay attention to what we have to say, but unlike actors, saying ‘look at me!’ we’re like shy extroverts, saying ‘look at my characters, not me’. You can get away with a lot talking through other people’s mouths. I think in a lot of ways, writing is more ego-driven than acting. Actors only play one part in a story. Writers? We voice every single character, design the sets, direct the action and create the world. It’s like a genteel god-complex!

What was an early experience where you learned that language had power?

I was a weak and rather shy child, not good at sports or strong or good looking, so a natural target in the hell-hole that was school. I learned pretty early on that a well-placed sarcastic or witty comment could end a fight or win an argument more than fists could. I think being quick-tongued probably saved my skin a lot in school.

How many unpublished/half-finished books do you have?

Oh tons. Absolutely tons of half-finished / half drafted stories. It doesn’t mean that they’ll stay that way though. I tend to come back to things over and over. Some stories can bounce around your head for years, or pop up in different forms and incarnations, before they find their real voice. at the moment, beside the two series I have established, I have one stand-alone novel, another more steampunk series and another fantasy series all either drafted, noted or half-baked. Their time will come when I get some spare time!

What else can we expect from you outside of The Changeling and Phoebe Harkness series?

My next project is a trilogy, with quite an eastern feel to it, (think Tibet/Japan) monks and magic, airships and parallel worlds. The whole story is written in note form, and I already have characters fleshed, it’s just finding the time to dedicate to it right now.

Other than that, I have a one volume horror/ghost tale I want to bring to you, which will touch on several generations of hauntings and is based very much in the real world, and the world of art and design, and also a series of linked short stories loosely based on classic fairy-tales, which will hopefully all tie together.

There’s plenty on the way from me outside of the series you might already know. I’m not going anywhere anytime soon I’m afraid.

What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?

It depends what I’m writing, really. for the Changeling Series, I did (and do) a fair bit of research into some of the more obscure gods and goddesses from Greek Myth, and also a fair bit of digging up information on crystals and precious stones. I use quite an amount of Latin in the books, and it’s important to me that it’s correct, as if readers come across my characters using the ‘high tongue’ of the Netherworlde and want to go away and look it up, I like to think it rewards them with a bit more information, or adds another layer to the narrative.

With the Harkness books, there’s a tremendous amount of research involved, simply because I’ve chosen to set that world in a real city. Oxford is so rich in history, architecture and everything else, that it’s a joy to research, and an absolute goldmine. I deliberately made Phoebe into a bit of an architecture and history nerd so I could use her to smatter the books with tidbits of trivia and knowledge here and there. I’ve had some lovely feedback from readers saying ‘I never knew that about…’ which is always gratifying. Phoebe is also a scientist. I’m clearly not, but it’s important to me not to use ‘movie science’ so a lot of research goes into making sure that the biology, genetics and physics she discusses is correct.

This makes for some odd browser history when I’m researching the ebola virus, or exactly how bodies decay. But I’ve had reviews from readers who are scientists themselves saying my math and theory check out, so phew!

What's the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

It’s not that hard really. I have had people say that Phoebe is so well written, or that it’s hard to believe a man could get inside a woman’s head convincingly. But really people are all very similar inside the mind. I don’t ever try to write phoebe as ‘a girl’ I just write her as a protagonist, her gender is fairly secondary. I think it helps that I’ve been surrounded by strong and competently kick-ass women my whole life, so I have good role models for phoebe. The ‘steamier’ scenes can be quite funny to write, but I think as an author, you have to be able to get inside someone else’s perspective. I’m fairly sure Thomas Harris isn’t a cannibal, but he wrote a damn good Hannibal Lecter, and as far as I know, J K Rowling has never been a teenage boy.

If you could cast the characters of any of your books for a movie, who would play your characters?

Ooooh. I have my favourites of course, although they might not tally with other peoples. Characters in books are so subjective. For the Changeling series, I would adore having Bill Nighy as my Mr Strife in a perfect world, and Marion Coutard as Calypso. Hestia would need to be Penelope Winton or I would throw myself on the floor and have a tantrum.

For the Phoebe series, my first choice for Phoebe would be Emily Blunt, with Kristin Scott Thomas as Cloves. Everyone else is up for grabs. I would have died of joy if David Bowie could have played Gio in book one though!

If you didn't like writing books, what would you do for a living?

Ideally, you mean? If I couldn’t be a writer for some reason, I’d love to direct. I studied film and media, and it’s something I’d enjoy branching out into at some point in a distant future. I think directing is something that writers do on the page quite naturally. It would be interesting to try it for real in a movie medium.

As a writer, what would you choose as your mascot/avatar/spirit animal?

Probably a sloth. I’m incredibly lazy and slow to get going!

What literary character is most like you?

That’s a difficult one! I’m not sure really, that’s probably a question other people could answer about me more than I could answer myself. I’d be tempted to say Dorian Grey, just because I’m probably quite vain and give the impression of being a charming enough chap, when in reality I have a portrait in the attic showing my soul as a shrivelled and debauched horror of a thing!

What authors have inspired you?

Lots. I studied literature at University, so obviously some of the classics like Lewis and Tolkien are major influences for me. Modern writers I adore are Clive Barker and Neil Gaiman. Both have such a bottomless well of imagination, and a way of making the mundane and everyday seem and feel fantastical, and the fantastical seem and feel plausible. You get the impression from both that they never quite grew up or lost that sense of wonder and fascination with the world and all the magic and mystery it contains. That’s something very appealing to me that I strive to live up to. Both authors strive to show beauty, but they don’t shy from the dark. I try to do the same.

Obviously you love all your characters, but if you could choose a favorite character from The Changeling Series and the Phoebe Harkness series that you write, who would they be?

It is a bit like asking a parent to choose their favourite child, yes. From Changeling I would say Hestia. She’s not a very major character, but I like that I get to show her character not through her words, but her actions, and when I feel like I get it just right, it’s incredibly satisfying. I like that she isn’t likable, but some of my favourite moments and scenes are where we glimpse beneath her surface and you get an idea of the soul of Erlking.

In Phoebe I can’t help but love Cloves. She’s such fun to write. I honestly don’t know where she comes from half the time, and she says and does things that I only wish I could. In a kind of parallel with Hestia I suppose, she’s not really a likable character, she’s abrasive and rude, but I just love her, and she has her moments. There’s a little Cruella De’vil in there, a little Anna Wintour, and if I’m honest, quite a bit of me.

Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

Yes! Especially in the Changeling series. There are plenty of red herrings, and lots of misdirection, and I make sure there are ‘Easter eggs’ peppered throughout that either hint at things to come, or that won’t seem relevant until several books later. I love the idea that once the series is finished, people might, on a second read-through of volume one, spot one or two things in Isle of Winds and say ‘bloody hell! That was staring me in the face!’

One thing I always planned to explore with Changeling was the notion of characters not necessarily being who you think they are, or not ending up where you might assume. I think in book one you think ‘these are the good guys; these are the bad guys’. In book two, some of the good guys are not that good, and some of the bad guys are…complicated. By book three, hopefully, you’re starting to wonder who on earth is standing where on the game board. I love character progression, and of course I know, even if no-one else does, who ends up where by the end of the series. Hopefully some of it will be surprising and keep you guys guessing.

Have you edited out anything from either series that you wish you had kept?

I edited quite a lot out of Changeling volume one, simply for length, as it was the first in the series, but many of the scenes I cut, I managed to work back into book two in a different form.

The scene in Drowned Tomb where Jackalope takes Robin and co to the town of Worrywort, and they barely escape being found out by Strigoi and his peacekeepers, was originally a scene in book one, shortly after they left the oracles temple, but before they met Hawthorn. In the original version, it was Woad who went into the village for supplies, not Jackalope.

I wanted to introduce Strigoi and the peacekeepers in book one, as he’s such an important character in the series, but there simply wasn’t room. I was happy to insert him back into book two instead.

One scene which was cut entirely from book one involved Robin and Henry discovering the lake at Erlking, and having a creepy run in with a grimmgull and a Skriker in the bushes, disaster only averted by the arrival of Mr Drover. It was a good, creepy scene, but in the end I scrapped it. they don’t now discover the lake until book two.

What's your favorite under-appreciated novel?

Day of the Minotaur, by Burnett-Swann. No-one’s ever heard of it, but it’s beautifully written, filled with mythology in a way you wouldn’t expect it to be, and tells a coming of age story of Thea and her brother Icarus in such a beautifully written way. In a way, I’m glad it’s not more popular, as I’m quite possessive of it, and I like to think that it’s ‘mine’. I read it as a hormonal young teen, and considering it deals with the transition into adulthood, it resonated quite powerfully. It’s the most prized paperback on my shelves.

If you could paint a picture of any scenery you've seen before, what would you paint?

I saw a fair few amazing sunrises when I cruised down the Nile. Egypt is a beautiful country. I’d love to paint it. the light there is astounding. I’d love to go back and visit again one day. Some of my favourite memories from my time there were cruising between the towns, when you are out in the wild, with nothing around you but the Nile and wilderness, sliding by peacefully. It’s a different pace of life, and the people are so hospitable. I fell in love with the country.

If you could witness any event past, present or future, what would it be?

Oh there are far too many! I’d like to see the pyramid’s built! I’d like to wander around the library of Alexandria before it was destroyed. I’d like to see Vesuvius explode, or Augustus become emperor. I’d like to be there when the first pilgrim boat touched down on America, or be a guest of the Emperor of China in the forbidden city. Be at the Pole looking at the borealis with Scott, watch the Sistine chapel be painted or experience the street parties at the end of the second world war in London. I adore history, and there is so much I would love to explore if I could time travel. It would always be the past for me though. There isn’t a future to play in until we make it. (which in itself is an exciting thought)

If you could be any fictional character, who would you choose?

I would quite happily be Bilbo Baggins. It’s quite difficult choosing a fictional character, as they invariably get placed in discomfort or peril, but for the chance to roam Middle-earth, and to go on an excellent adventure, as well as having Bag-end to live in, I’d risk it. a friend of mine has a theory that, if heaven exists, it’s different for all of us, and it’s your perfect place.

If that’s true, then when I die, I am sure to wake up in the shire, living in Hobbiton with a well-stocked pantry and a sleepy, bee-filled garden. I’m a simple creature.

Which celebrity do people say you resemble? (Lately I've been getting Jennifer Lawrence - not hating ;))

I have no idea. I’m not very good with celebrities. I used to get ‘Russell Brand’ quite a lot when I had long hair. I think I have the same laugh as Jimmy Carr, but I’m not sure I really look like anyone but me. I used to look a bit like Victor from Tim Burtons ‘The Corpse Bride’ when I was clean-shaven. Stop motion animation is not a bad thing to be compared to.

What would you name the autobiography of your life?

Hmmm. Probably ‘not to be taken seriously’ I’m not a fan of auto-biogs. I find it irritating when people (especially in the music industry) release them when they’re about 25. Wait until you’re 90, and you have a decent life story to tell!

What songs are included on the soundtrack to your life?

Bowie, of course. ‘Heroes’ is my anthem. Play it when I’m dead. Repeatedly. Classical, Williams’ The Lark Ascending is a favourite of mine. I’m a big fan of the Cure ‘Close to me’ is a beautiful song, and ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’ by Crowded House for some reason makes my heart hurt something fierce. There would have to be some Placebo in there somewhere. ‘Every you, every me’ is a song that vibrates in me on a molecular level. Placebo is the soundtrack of my teenage years, and I think whatever music we loved in those years is always the music that defines us. We could be 80 and hear that music and it just drags your soul back through time immediately to who you were and how you felt at that tumultuous and powerful time of your life.

What did you do growing up that got you into trouble?

I’m certainly not telling you that. But plenty. Luckily I was (and am) a sly and clever sod, and I very rarely got myself in a jam I wasn’t able to get myself out of. I have spent the night at a police station before now, and thanks to co-conspirators, I got away. I also may (this is all speculative of course) have set someone on fire before now, and poisoned someone – not to death – with mercury.

I was young, I didn’t like to be crossed. I like to think I’ve mellowed with age.

What's the best/worst gift you've ever given/received?

The best gifts I ever received were both homemade. One was from a seven-year-old and was a drawing of a family, to cheer me up. The other was a handmade clock with gargoyles on it made from clay that my other half created, based on a book series I was working on at the time. A tremendous amount of thought and love went into both.

The worst gift? Is there such a thing? I guess maybe I got a gift card or two in my time, but I quite like those. I’m incredibly easy to please! Someone did once send me oversized and very frilly underwear through the post, which was horrible, but they were a penfriend of many years, and it was supposed to be horrible, so in its way, it was epic.

What do you miss most about being a kid?

Feeling safe. Utterly safe, and knowing someone is always there to make sure everything is okay. You never get that feeling back as an adult, and if you have kids, by the gods it is your duty to make them feel that safety for as long as you can.

What is something you learned in the last week?

I learned this week that some of my friends are better friends than I thought they were, and that I’m bloody lucky to have them. (and these are friends I’ve never physically met) I’ve learned the importance of a decent support network of good, honest humans. There are about six or seven of you in my instafam. My Coven, my Tea-pals, my Anime-buds. You know who you are: you never bullcrap me, you tell me when I’m being an arse, and you keep me sane.

What's one piece of advice you have received that has always resonated with you?

In life, or in writing?

In writing, I’ve always liked: ‘first drafts don’t have to be good…they just have to be written’

In life, I love the saying that ‘other people’s opinions of you are none of your business’

Basically, you can’t affect what people think of you, nor should you care. Don’t devote your time to trying to please others, or to be what others think you should be. Don’t court approval. Follow your own path and your tribe will come to you. You will never make the whole world love you, or your work, and you shouldn’t want to try. Just be honest. It’s something that I’ve found comes easier as you get older, but there’s something wonderfully freeing about not caring or worrying about what other people think.

For synopses of his other works, see below and click on the titles to be transported to my reviews of each.

The Changeling Series:

Isle of Winds is the first installment in a Middle-Grade age fantasy series

Robin Fellows lives with his grandmother and lives what appears to be a rather ordinary life for a normal twelve year old boy.

But when Robin’s Gran dies, quite suddenly and a bit mysteriously, his world is turned upside down. A long lost relative comes out of the woodwork and whisks him away to a mysterious new home, Erlking Hall, a quiet estate in the solitary countryside of Lancashire.

Suddenly Robin must adjust to his new reality. But reality is no longer what he thought it was…

Erlking has many secrets – as do his newly found Great-Aunt Irene and her servants. After a strange encounter on the train and meeting a cold, eerie man on the platform, Robin begins to notice odd happenings at Erlking.

There is more than meets the eye to this old, rambling mansion.
Little does he know that there is more than meets the eye to himself.

Robin is the world’s last Changeling. He is descended from a mystic race of Fae-people, whose homeland, the Netherworlde, is caught in the throes of a terrible civil war.

Not only this, but in this new world there is a magical force that has infiltrated the human realm.

Before he can wrench power from the malevolent hands of the Netherworlde’s fearsome tyrant leader, Lady Eris, he must first search for the truth about himself and the ethereal Towers of Arcania.

The first installment of The Changeling Series, Isle of Winds is an engrossing tale written in the traditions of high fantasy story-telling while carving out a magical new realm. It is perfect for fans of The Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter series.

The Drowned Tomb.
War is coming. The summer heat is sweltering, and the young changeling, Robin Fellows, awaits further training. He has gained much skill in the Shard of Air, but what is coming next? After his previous tutor was revealed to be an agent of the mortal enemy of all Fae, Lady Eris, Robin is assigned a new mentor to continue his magical learning. Enter Calypso, a water nymph and member of the race of Panthea that also inhabit the mysterious, enchanted Netherworlde. Her job: to instruct Robin in the Shard of Water, a powerful magic with which the user can cast huge bolts of ice and command entire oceans to bear down his or her will. But all is not well at Erlking Hall, and war is fast approaching the Netherworlde. More agents of Lady Eris are in pursuit of young Robin, the Scion of the Arcania and last Changeling in the world. They’re out for the Shard of Water as well. And they’ll stop at nothing to find it, no matter who gets in their way…

What follows is a spellbinding journey, as Robin and company navigate once more the enchanting and at times terrifying Netherworlde. The Drowned Tomb is the mesmerizing second instalment of James Fahy’s bestselling Changeling series. Perfect for fans of High Fantasy storytelling and fae mythology, this sequel to Isle of Winds is a must have.

The Phoebe Harkness Series:

Hell's Teeth.

New Oxford.

A third of the human population has been lost.

The wars came, and they created a monster. The Pale, a subhuman, vampire-like drone. Then they lost control.

In the thirty years that followed, humankind sought to rebuild itself within the walls of New Oxford.

But society had become fractured – humans now lived incongruously among Genetic Others, themselves a group of many subspecies.

The most dangerous of them all: the vampires.

Somehow, these groups have managed a peaceful co-existence under the controlling government influence of the Cabal. But that is all about to change…

When Phoebe Harkness receives a phone call in the middle of the night, things take a turn to the horrifying. Her supervisor at Blue Lab One, a high-security research facility, has gone missing.

And all that is left behind: her teeth.

Dr Harkness now finds herself in a race against time to stop further bloodshed and uncover the mystery behind the victims of this horrific crime. She must navigate the dark underworld of the vampire community, without becoming someone’s prey herself…

But she is not alone – on her side, against all odds, is another vampire. Together they must fight for answers before it’s too late…

Hell’s Teeth is the gripping first instalment of the urban gothic Phoebe Harkness series. It follows the young doctor as she stalks through the corrupt dystopia of New Oxford.

Crescent Moon.

What do you do when your world is turned upside down?

When you discover your father had a direct hand in the genocide of much of the world’s human population?

Phoebe Harkness’ life has changed forever. Thirty years after a cataclysmic world war that eviscerated one third of the human population, a new sub-species of vampire-like drones has set its teeth to the survivors of humanity.

They’re not the only ones: ‘Genetic Others’ such as vampires, werewolves and more roam the streets of New Oxford, trying – and sometimes failing – to live peacefully amongst humankind.

But that is all about to change.

A spate of serial killings have occurred, rocking the already fragile ecosystem of New Oxford.

Brutal murders and mutilation are now commonplace.

Phoebe must get to work. She is named as liaison between the Genetic Others and the Cabal, the ruling order of the walled city.

She must negotiate with the Tribals, a subset of werewolves cast aside by the cultural hegemony of the Cabal.

But before she can make any progress with the Tribal leader, Kane, she learns of more murders – and three missing students. And Kane’s daughter is among the missing…

One of the victims leaves a message in blood: ‘Crescent Moon’.

Now Phoebe must act urgently with the help of Kane and her former paramour, vampire Allesandro to track down the culprit of these horrific killings.

But who is conducting all of these strange happenings behind the scenes?

And what does it have to do with the Crescent Moon…?

Crescent Moon is the gripping second instalment of the urban gothic Phoebe Harkness series. It follows the young doctor as she stalks through the corrupt dystopia of New Oxford.

Book 3 - Pale Children - coming 2017

Both the Changeling series and the Harkness books have been released in second edition anthologies: the Changeling anthology containing over 50 pages of bonus background material on the Netherworlde.