World Octopus Day

Anyone who has read my work for a while, particularly my gamebooks, will know that I have a bit of a thing for cephalopods.

I have always been fascinated by these highly intelligent, boneless mollusks, starting with legends of giant squid. In fact, I even have a print of a giant cephalopod on my wall. I based this image from my map of Neverland on the self-same print.

The Terrorsquid, by Jonathan Green.

I should warn you that there are minor spoilers ahead...

There is a Giant Octopus in Bloodbones, the Abyssal Horror in Stormslayer shares some features with a giant cephalopod, there's the Terrorsquid in NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!, and a Kraken in Beowulf Beastslayer.

Giant Octopus, by Tony Hough.

One of my books - Doctor Who: Night of the Kraken - even has a cephalopod in the title. And there are squid or octopus-like creatures in 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas, Dracula - Curse of the Vampire, and RONIN 47. And that's just the gamebooks.

Giant Squid vs. Ghost Whale, by Neil Googe.

Something very much like a giant squid gets a fair bit of screen time in the second Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia novel Leviathan Rising, and there is a fantastic illustration of a Kraken in Heorot - Roleplaying in the World of Beowulf Beastslayer.

Kraken, by Heraldo Mussolini.

Will there be octopuses and giant squid in future books? Undoubtedly!

Steampunk Thursday: Pax Britannia im Deutschland

It's been a few years since my first two Pax Britannia books were published as German language editions, but now they're back, with German titles this time, and brand new cover art. And very impressive they look too!

Unnatural History is now Welt aus den Fugen, while Leviathan Rising has been rechristened Gefahr in der Tiefe.

Bother titles are due to be released on 31 May 2019, courtesy of Luzifer-Verlag.

Don't forget, my steampunk-inspired take on Alice's Adventutres in Wonderland is also available in German, as Alice im Düsterland, and can be purchased here, from Mantikore-Verlag.

Tie-in Tuesday: Dinosaur Day

According to Twitter, today is Dinosaur Day. My working days are filled with dinosaurs at the moment, as I'm nearing the end of writing the first draft of NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!

But of course it's not the first book I've written that features the terrible lizards. There's Terrible Lizards for one. There are also dinosaurs in the Fighting Fantasy gamebook Bloodbones, and the Pax Britannia novels Unnatural History and Leviathan Rising.

Like many 5 and 6 year-olds, I was obsessed by dinosaurs. I would spend hours tracing the dinosaurs in the colouring book I had, and I loved films like The Land That Time Forgot, Valley of the Gwangi, and One Million Years BC, shown on TV during the afternoon at weekends. When I was a little older, by father and I would make Airfix kits of dinosaurs together, and I have very fond memories of travelling up to London on the train with him, specifically to visit The Natural History Museum and its dinosaur collection. I even remember an English lesson, early on in Secondary School, in which we studied an extract from Ray Bradbury's A Sound of Thunder, focusing on the arrival of a T-Rex.

All of this clearly had an impact on my growing up, and I still have a passion and fascination for prehistoric life today. Last year family Green visited New York and I dragged everyone to the American Museum of Natural History, just so that I could see the dinosaur exhibits, which did not disappoint! And because it had an impact on me growing up, it has also impacted upon my writing.

But I have never explored dinosaur life in so much detail as I have in NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! For a start, the book includes over 30 different dinosaurs, marine reptiles, flying reptiles and other prehistoric creatures. But one of the fun things about writing the book has been coming up with new names for dinosaurs, because most of the characters in the story wouldn't have known what the nascent fossil hunters had called these primeval beasts.

I'm keen for the book to be finished and out there in readers' hands for various reasons, but one of them is to see if people can work out which dinosaur is which. Maybe I'll reveal the answers next Dinosaur Day.

Steampunk Thursday: New Pax Britannia Reviews!

Even though the first Pax Britannia novel was published almost ten years ago, some people are still coming to the series for the first time. And when it's someone who enjoys the stories they devour the lot pretty quickly, thanks to the wonder of eBooks.

One such reader is Bob Marlowe who has recently posted reviews of all the Pax Britannia books - Al Ewing's as well as mine - and here's what he has to say about them.

Unnatural History
"A readable style which flows along nicely with enjoyable characters... Very enjoyable evocation of a pulp style and there are plenty more to come. A recommended read."

Leviathan Rising
"Here we have a cocktail of Agatha Christie, Titanic, The Poseidon Adventure, the X-Files and dear old Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea and with Green's enjoyable pulpy style, it's a good read."

Human Nature
"The story itself is quite simple but well structured (things in the prologue that seem irrelevant are revisited later) and the good pulpy style of Green makes for a well paced roller coaster."

Evolution Expects
"As ever, a cocktail of monsters, steam punk and nods to well know characters & stories etc. including this time a Bond like board meeting scene, a character named Brundle after the 1987 version of The Fly and a bit of Talons of Weng Chiang amongst others... This series shows no signs of letting up, both novel and novella are a well-paced read, guaranteed to liven up any journey to work."

Blood Royal
"The writing is of the usual high standard with a monster infested St Paul's Cathedral especially well described... I love this series -and am sad I've less than halfway to go to the end."

Dark Side
"I had the feeling Jonathan Green had as much fun writing this as I had reading it. There's the usual tributes to films, book et al that he's enjoyed , the First men in the Moon and Voyage dans la Lune and every chapter takes its name from a film e.g. The First Men in the Moon, Sphere... These stories will never be on the Booker Prize shortlist but the Booker winners I've read were never this much fun!"

Anno Frankenstein
"Naturally this is a blockbuster mix that we have come to expect of monsters and set pieces and does not disappoint, Green handling all the ingredients with his usual skill."

Time's Arrow
"The influences here are Edgar Allen Poe's Murder in the Rue Morgue, The Island of Dr Moreau and The Phantom of the Opera, characters names including Moreau and Leroux. The new characters work well and the story races along at Green's usual pace."

If you're yet to sample the delights of the Pax Britannia steampunk universe, you can buy the books and eBooks here.

World Animal Day

Today, 4th October, is World Animal Day, so it seems appropriate that I am writing a story about the Beast of Bodmin Moor whilst also plotting the Lion's next encounter in The Wicked Wizard of Oz.

Animals have featured to a greater or lesser extent in many of my books and stories but among the most notable must be...

Sonic the Hedgehog Adventure Gamebooks

Howl of the Werewolf

Pax Britannia: Unnatural History

Pax Britannia: Leviathan Rising

Temple of the Spider God

Terrible Lizards

Pax Britannia: Time's Arrow

SHARKPUNK

Night of the Kraken

And there are still more animal-themed stories to come...

The European Day of Languages 2015

At the initiative of the Council of Europe, Strasbourg, the European Day of Languages has been celebrated every year since 2001 on 26 September.

To mark the occasion here at JonathanGreenAuthor.com I thought I would revisit some of the more recent foreign languages editions of my books.

Back in June, twenty years after it was first published in English, my third published Fighting Fantasy Gamebook (and my third published book) Curse of the Mummy was been published in a French translation by Gallimard Jeunesse.

In January, my second Pax Britannia novel Leviathan Rising was published in German.

In July last year, my Dickens-inspired ghost story Necropolis saw print in Russian, of all things.

In May last year, my most popular gamebook to date, Howl of the Werewolf, was published in Spanish.

And in March 2014 the horror anthology DIABOLOS MMXIV, which includes a German translation of my story The Doll's House, saw print.

Steampunk Thursday: Leviathan Rising auf Deutsch

Today is the official publication date of the German language paperback edition of Leviathan Rising, my second Ulysses Quicksilver Pax Britannia adventure.

The German translation (by Michael Knarr) has been published Luzifer-Verlag, the publishers who previously put out the German edition of Unnatural History. This new edition also features a brand new cover by the very talented Timo Kümmel.

In 80 Tagen um die Welt – mit Stil! Dieses vollmundige Versprechen der Carcharodon Shipping Company soll mit der Jungfernfahrt des neuesten und mehr als beeindruckenden Unterwasserkreuzfahrtschiffs Neptune auf die Probe gestellt werden.

Unter den Reisenden befindet sich auch Ulysses Quicksilver, der Dandy-Abenteurer und Held von Magna Britannia, um sich eine wohlverdiente Ruhepause nach den traumatischen Erlebnissen des 160. Thronjubiläums von Queen Victoria zu gönnen.

Doch bereits wenige Tage nach dem Besuch der Unterwasserstadt Pacifica kommt es zur Katastrophe. Ein brutaler Mord wird begangen, und kurz darauf wird die Neptune Opfer einer Sabotage, welche das Schiff in die bodenlose Tiefe des Meeres sinken lässt. Doch gefangen auf dem Meeresgrund, haben die Probleme für die Überlebenden gerade erst begonnen. Denn hier unten lauert ein jahrzehntealtes Geheimnis auf sie.

Der Leviathan ist erwacht und erhebt sich hungrig aus der Tiefe. Wenn er sich auf die Jagd begibt, wird niemand seiner urzeitlichen Wut entkommen …


If you read German and you enjoy Steampunk pulp page-turners, follow this link to pick up a copy for yourself.

Steampunk Thursday: Luzifer Verlag

Steffen Janssen, publisher of the German editions of my Pax Britannia books Unnatural History and Leviathan Rising, would like some feedback on the books from German language readers. So, if you happen to have read my books in German, why not drop him a line here?

Oh, and Happy New Year.

Steampunk Thursday: Pax Britannia reviews

Some more, rather pleasing, reviews of my various Pax Britannia books have appeared online recently, which are all the more pleasing when you consider that the first book in the series was published seven years ago! Here are just a few of them:

Unnatural History
"Jonathan Green is most surely one of the futuristic-steampunk heroes the literary world has. His writing is fantastic fantasy that has you gripping the edges of the book to prevent yourself from being sucked in. Quicksilver is the sort of hero OTHER heroes look up to. He's dashing, suave and can give and take a good kicking like the best of them. This entire series is fabulous. Buy them. BUY THEM ALL."

Leviathan Rising
"I bought this book as something to read that night in the hotel. I could not put it down. I stayed awake in delight reading into the early hours to discover if my guess about the villain was correct - no I did not 'get it' immediately, but it dawned on me as I read onward. The whole reminded me of the adventure movies I used to watch in the late 1950's on a Saturday morning when I was a child. I loved it. Well done, Mr Green. I shall now look for the next book with interest."

Blood Royal
"So many characters, plots and more that speed you towards an extraordinary action-packed finale. If you like a smidgen of Steampunk in your library make it this series!"

Of course, you could pick up the next Pax Britannia book for your collection at the forthcoming Steampunks in Space event at the National Space Centre in Leicester. Maybe I'll see you there...

Steampunk Thursday: Leviathan Rising

Luzifer-Verlag, the German publishers who published a German edition of Unnatural History last year, will soon be releasing a German language edition of my second Pax Britannia novel Leviathan Rising. And here's the new cover by Timo Kümmel...

Steampunk Thursday: The Leviathan Rises

As fans of my Pax Britannia books will already know, Steampunk hero Ulysses Quicksilver encountered the legendary Kraken in Leviathan Rising. But now Professor Mark McMenamin is proposing that the Kraken isn't a legend after all.

To read more about the professor's startling claims, click this link.

Steampunk Thursday: Build A Squid

My second Pax Britannia novel Leviathan Rising involves, in part, a team of scientists building their own cyber-squid. Well if you fancy having a go at constructing a Kraken of your own, why not follow this link?

Leviathan Rising - a new review

Not read my Pax Britannia mash-up of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express and James Cameron's The Abyss, Leviathan Rising yet?

Still need persuading?

Then check out this new review by David Kenyon:

I've always loved those old Jules Verne stories and this story in it's underwater setting provided plenty of references to those undersea escapades, this time accompanied by the dashing Quicksilver and his faithful manservant Nimrod as they piece together a murder mystery at the bottom of the sea. There were enough red herrings not to mention some rather gory murders as one by one they are killed off. Coupled with the threat of being eaten by giant sharks and bio-mechanical giant squids and you have yet more exciting set pieces that Green excelled at in Unnatural History...

The writing is imaginative and witty without being dogged down by too much exposition and detail, but the world is very vivid in my mind and I had no trouble immersing myself in the inky brine of the Kraken's embrace... take the dive into the world of Pax Britannia. You will be 'suckered' into it's embrace.

You can buy Pax Britannia: Leviathan Rising here.

The Pax Britannia eBook 'Box' set

What do you get the eReader owner in your life, who doesn't already own the Pax Britannia novels in eBook form already? Why, the Pax Britannia eBook 'Box' set of course.

From now until the end of the December you can get 30% off the first three eBooks - Unnatural History, Leviathan Rising and Human Nature - when who purchase them together from the Sony Reader store.

24 hours in the Asylum

So, a week ago I headed up to Lincoln for Weekend at the Asylum, the UK and Europe's premier steampunk event. This was the third year it had been running and although it was my first visit, Pax Britannia had been there from the start, with guests at the inaugural event receiving either a copy of Unnatural History or Leviathan Rising as a gift.

I arrived at my hotel in good time and so headed off into Lincoln itself. The Asylum is located within the historic part of the town at the top of the hill. Close by are Bailgate, the Cathedral and the Castle. During the course of my walk I discovered that Steep Hill is aptly named and was delighted to see that the city was gearing up for a weekend of steam-themed goodness, with many shops bearing a sign that read...

I also encountered various ladies and gentlemen in elegant dress, looking like they had just stepped out of a Doctor Who Christmas special. By comparison, my 'Powered by Steam!' T-shirt looked like a very poor effort indeed.

Before I knew it, it was time to check in at the Asylum itself, ready to join the merriment surrounding the launch of Robert Rankin's latest novel The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age. It was here that I bumped into old steampunk friends Willoughby Chase and Herr Doktor*, and met a number of other first-timers, Esther, Vincent and James. My new friends had really entered into the spirit of the event, with Esther basing her look on the entirety of Alice in Wonderland, and it was several hours later that we parted company before we drank the bar at the Victoria Inn dry.

Fellow first-timers - James, Esther and Vincent.

Next morning I was up bright and early** ready to bring Pax Britannia to the masses when Weekend at the Asylum really got going in earnest. Major Tinker welcomed everybody in the Exhibition Hall and then proceeded to introduce all of us visiting authors to the indulgent throng. This was totally unexpected (at least on my part) but also totally brilliant because it really helped to break the ice. I was particularly pleased because Tinker referred to me as 'a Geek's Geek' which is probably the nicest thing anyone's said about me in a long while.

With introductions over, people started to visit my table - attracted no doubt by Pye Parr's fabulous banner - but before I knew it I was being author-wrangled upstairs to the Little Theatre to give a talk about my writing and the world of Pax Britannia, concluding with a reading from the forthcoming Time's Arrow and a Q&A session. The audience*** were most appreciative and included Wilf Lunn - yes, the Wilf Lunn from my TV childhood!

Wilf Lunn, the man himself - living TV legend and the original steampunk!

It was then back downstairs to flog my wares, with The Ulysses Quicksilver Omnibus selling particularly well. The rest of the day passed in a blur of fantastic costumes, appreciative fans, new converts, Penny Farthing races, chats with other steampunk authors****, and River Song look-a-likes. My new friends stopped by to provide a bit of moral support and also looked after my stall for a while so that I might take a look at the art exhibition***** which featured pieces by Herr Doktor and Arfon Jones' stuffed Womble.

Mr Vincent Shaw-Morton and Miss R R Hood.

'Womblus Wimbledon Vulgaris', discovered by Professor Arfon Jones.

As the day's events drew to a close - which included a costume competition, won by a young lady in jodphurs wearing something akin to Spring-Heeled Jack's jet-pack - the steampunks departed to take part in a sanctioned Guinness World Record attempt****** and the hall was emptied in preparation for that evening's Empire Ball. I was released from the Asylum******* as, unfortunately, my twenty-four hours were up. It was time to head back down south, my mind a-whirl with fresh ideas and my heart lifted by a host of new friendships made.

This bottle of toffee vodka and absinthe lolly were both gifts - so my thanks go to Professor T Bottom and Miss Emilly Ladybird.

Oh, and having met Ulysses Quicksilver himself at the steampunk event at Kew Bridge Steam Museum, this time I think I met my Steampunk Muse!

I've enjoyed steampunk, in books and comics and on film, for the best part of twenty years or more, before I even realised what steampunk was. I've been writing steampunk for the last five, but I've never actually 'done' the whole steampunk scene.

But since returning from Lincoln I've noticed a change coming over me. I've started checking out Victorian frock coats online and have even bid on a pair of goggles on eBay. That's right - steampunk, like a Bengal tiger, has well and truly got my claws into me now. And I don't think it's going to be letting go any time soon...

PS - If you've not seen it already, my vlog about Weekend at the Asylum is available here for your viewing pleasure.

* 'Old' meaning I'd met them once before.

** One of these statements might not be entirely true.

*** Who made up for what they lacked in numbers with their attentiveness and the quality of their many questions.

**** Amongst those I met were Raven Dane, Sam Stone, David J Howe and Toby Frost of Space Captain Smith fame.

***** Which included Vincent's steampunk rendition of Miss R R Hood - which went on to win the Ruskin!

****** Greatest number of steampunks gathered in one place at the same time, I believe.

******* For good behaviour I believe, although I really rather wish I hadn't been.