Gamebook Friday: Dracula - Battesimo di Sangue

I am delighted to report that the Italian language edition of Dracula: Curse of the Vampire is now available for pre-order.

The book's title has had a slight change. Dracula: Battesimo di Sangue translates as Dracula: Baptism of Blood, which is what the French language version is called too.

There are two versions of the cover. The collector's edition, featuring the same cover art as the English edition, by Hauke Kock, and the standard one, which has a brand new piece of art produced by Francesco Crisci*, which is absolutely phenomenal.

I must offer Francesco and the team at Raven Distribution a huge thank you for allowing me to share the new cover art with you here, in full, and without any obscuring text.

So, don't delay and order yours now!

For anyone waiting on the Spanish language edition of Dracula: Curse of the Vampire, I believe it will be published next month.

In other news, the latest episode of ACE Gamebooks: The Gamebook Podcast is out now.

* Who also painted a new cover for the Italian version of Neverland: Here Be Monsters!

ACE Gamebooks: The Gamebook Podcast - Fighting Fantasy Fest 6

It probably hasn't escaped your notice that last Saturday, 5th September 2026, Fighting Fantasy Fest 6 took place at the University of West London in Ealing.

I was there with my new mic wand, courtesy of Hoobynoo, and my cameraperson, and so set about recording some material for the second ACE Gamebooks: The Gamebook Podcast podcast. And you can watch it right here...

We had a few of the FFF6 collectibles left over after the event. So, if you would like a pair of gold FF dice, a copy of the programme, some beermats, or even a City Guard T-shirt, follow this link.

Gamebook Friday: Fighting Fantasy and Gamebooks with Jonathan Green

I was recently interviewed for the RPG Blokes Podcast, about all things Fighting Fantasy and gamebooks in general, including my own ACE Gamebooks series.

You can listen to the podcast here, or watch it via YouTube.

Thank you very much to Stephen, Mark and Jon, for having me on their podcast, and if you would like to interview me for your channel, drop me a line at info@jonathangreenauthor.com.

International Gamebook Day 2026 - ACE Gamebooks: The Gamebook Podcast

This International Gamebook Day I find myself preparing for Fighting Fantasy Fest 6, writing a pitch for a new gamebook, brainstorming gamebook plans for 2027, and launching ACE Gamebooks: The Gamebook Podcast.

You know what to do - like, subscribe, click the bell for notifications, and tell all your friends!

Gamebook Friday: L'Oscurità su Arkham

This arrived at my home today...

L'Oscurità su Arkham (published by Vincent Books*) is the Italian language edition of the first Arkham Horror Investigators Gamebook, The Darkness Over Arkham, and a very nice hardback it is too.

It also means that The Darkness Over Arkham is now available in four different languages - English, Spanish, Hungarian, and Italian.

As you can see, L'Oscurità su Arkham varies from the other editions in that is has new cover art. And while the book does not feature any full page illustrations, Vincent Books have commissioned some adventure-specific fillers, including the ones shown below.

Recently, I was interviewed by Riccardo Scaringi for the Il Gioco In Tavolo podcast. During the course of our discussion we talked about Fighting Fantasy as well as exploring the world of Arkham Horror through gamebooks, which you can watch below.

Make sure you pop back tomorrow, because it will be new book day - again!

* Who have also published Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and The Wicked Wizard of Oz in Italian.

Tie-in Tuesday: Terrible Lizards

Back at the start of the year, I was interviewed by Kenny Smith for The Power of 3 Podcast about my Eleventh Doctor novel Terrible Lizards.

First published in 2012 as part of Monstrous Missions, and later released as a self-contained novel for the US market in 2016, in Terrible Lizards, the Eleventh Doctor and his friends join a group of explorers on a Victorian tramp steamer in the Florida Everglades. The explorers are searching for the Fountain of Youth, but neither they nor the treasure they seek are quite what they seem...

If you are interested in peeking behind the curtain, to find out how a book comes to be, you can listen to the podcast here. And you can order pre-loved copies of the novel here.

Gamebook Friday: Gamebook News Round-up

Earlier this week I was the guest of The Geek Pride Podcast, where I got to talk about all things gamebooks, but Moon Knight: Age of Anubis in particular. If you were unable to tune in at the time, you can watch it now below.

In other gamebook-related news YOU ARE THE HERO - An Interactive History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks is now with the proofreader, before going to layout in the next couple of weeks.

And lastly, Sir Ian Livingstone and I are in the process of putting the finishing touches to Magic Realms: The Art of Fighting Fantasy. If you haven't pledged your support to this project, you still can here.

Jonathan Green on The Geek Pride Cast today!

I will be the guest on The Geek Pride Podcast again tonight, Monday 18 September 2023, talking about all things Moon Knight: Age of Anubis, and gamebooks in general, no doubt.

The interview will be streamed live at 9:00pm BST via YouTube, Facebook and Twitch, but will also be available for you to enjoy later at your leisure.

You can watch my previous appear on The Geek Pride Podcast below.

JG on the Geek Pride Podcast

A few weeks ago, I was on the Geek Pride Podcast, talking about all things Fighting Fantasy, RONIN 47, and how to write an adventure gamebook. To listen to it, simply click on the image below.

JG on the 'Inside the Rookery' Podcast

 

Gamebook Friday: 'TWAS the Krampus Night Before Christmas

It's the last day of the 12 Days 'Til Christmas Sale over on the ACE Gamebooks Roleplay page on DriveThruRPG, so don't delay and grab yourself a bargain today!

Recently, I have been enjoying listening to and watching other people playing through my games, and if you're wondering if 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas is for you, why not enjoy a preview taster by doing the same?

First up there is K. R. Boyter, from the Mythical Tales of Edra, with Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3 of his playthrough.

Then there's Brian Hazzard, over on the Instadeath Survivors Support Group, with his Xmas Special podcast.

And finally, Vicki from Girls That Game, played through the book on her Twitch channel last year.

DMs After Dark recently undertook a festive one-shot using 'TWAS - The Roleplaying Game Before Christmas, but what was really nice about this session was that the Gamesmaster used the rules and background to create their own adventure. You can see how the party got on below...

 

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas

and a Happy New Year!

Steampunk Thursday: Scarlet Traces on the 2000 AD Thrill-Cast

The latest 2000AD Thrill-Cast focuses on the new Scarlet Traces anthology. It consists of an hour-long discussion between Scarlet Traces co-creator and anthology editor Ian Edginton, writer Maura McHugh, Rebellion commissioning editor David Moore join, and 2000 AD publicity droid Molch-R, about the world of Scarlet Traces, the legacy of H G Wells' original novel, imperialism and speculative fiction, and moving from comics into prose.

It's an interesting listen, but when the spectre of steampunk rears its ugly, cog-adorned head, it's clear that people have a problem with steampunk, to the point where Pax Britannia, Rebellion's own steampunk novel series, doesn't even get a passing mention.

You can purchase Scarlet Traces: A War of the Worlds Anthology, which includes my story Wonderful Things, here.

Gamebook Friday: Onward Adventurer

The latest episode of Starburst Magazine's podcast Brave New Words - #2.27 Onward Adventurer - is available to download for free from iTunes. The reason I mention this today is because not one, not two, but four of my books get a mention. I say a mention, but they are actually discussed for a good 40 minutes or more, which is nice.

The books in question are YOU ARE THE HERO Parts 1 and 2, Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland and The Wicked Wizard of Oz. Fighting Fantasy Fest 1 and Fighting Fantasy Fest 2 also get a mention. (And when I say a mention...)

There is an interesting discussion concerning how well, or not, the artwork of the Fighting Fantasy books has dated, although I completely disagree with one of the panel who thinks that there were some poor artistic decisions made in the YATH books and who argues that if you are writing a history of something you should consider reworking iconic images associated with it. (And we all know how well that's gone down with some FF fans with regards to Scholastic re-imagining classic images from the FF gamebooks.)

I'm pleased to say that the panel are suitably wowed by the look of the special edition of The Wicked Wizard of Oz, and are especially impressed by Kev Crossley's designs for the playable characters, although the same panellist misunderstands that the Scarecrow isn't The Grim Reaper but A Grim Reaper, and it would have been nice if somebody had actually read/played through the book before reviewing it.

You can listen to the podcast for yourself here.

         

Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu and the 2000AD Thrillcast

If you're a fan of 2000AD (like me) then you really should be listening to the monthly podcast, or rather, Thrill-cast.

This month PR droid Molch-R interviews not only GAME OVER contributor Michael Carroll, but also Stickleback-creator Ian Edginton. And what's even better than that is that both Mike and Ian are writing stories for the forthcoming Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu anthology.

So, if you're a fan of their comics work, you really should back the Shakespeare Vs Cthulhu Kickstarter and check out their utterly awesome prose as well.

YOU ARE THE HERO makes the shortlist for the British Fantasy Awards 2015!

Having spent the day exploring the land of the Vikings, I was delighted to return to the Information Age this evening to discover that YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks has made the shortlist for the British Fantasy Awards 2015.

It's also great to see how many of m'colleagues have been nominated in various categories, including FF artist Les Edwards, SHARKPUNK contributors Gary McMahon, Ian Whates, Laurel Sills and Den Patrick, and of course Lavie Tidhar - and in more than one category!

In other news, the guys at Starburst Magazine have uploaded an interview I did with them about Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland, as well as the podcast I recorded with Ed Fortune, Adrian Tchaikovksy, Producer Al and an audience of... half a dozen, at Edge-Lit 4, and Alex Davis (the organiser of Edge-Lit) also has a guest post on his blog from me today.

And last of all, Alice's Nightmare in Wonderland now has less than £1,000 to raise to achieve funding.

YOU ARE THE HERO at the UK Games Expo 2015

At the weekend I attended the UK Games Expo. It was the first time I had attended since it moved from central Birmingham to the NEC Metropole and a very impressive venue it was too. Graham Bottley of Arion Games kindly let me share his table, so Fighting Fantasy was well represented at the expo, with his Advanced Fighting Fantasy books on sale alongside some of the few remaining hardbacks of YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks.

Graham Bottley and Simon Strafford on the Arion Games stand.

Despite being stuck behind a table for most of the weekend (and so not getting to see much else that was going on) I had a great time, with people stopping by to pick up YOU ARE THE HERO (some of whom had seen it mentioned in the programme), backers of the original Kickstarter stopping by to get their copies signed or to pass on their very kind comments about the book, and old friends turning up just to say hello (people like Jim Swallow, James Wallis, and Matt Elliott). On Saturday night I recorded a podcast for Pod Your Own Adventure (but more on that another time), and then on Sunday afternoon this happened...

 The now officially 'award-winning'

YOU ARE THE HERO - A History of Fighting Fantasy Gamebooks.

The 10th UK Games Expo was a fantastic event, excellently organised and brilliantly run, and that's thanks to Tony Hyams, Richard Denning, John Dodd, and a host of others, so a big thank you to all concerned who helped make this run in such a smooth and relaxed way. And here's to the UK Games Expo 2016. (I might have something new to promote games-wise by then.)

Gamebook Friday: Pod Your Own Adventure

There's nothing like hearing your work read aloud to realise how flawed it is. Having listened to the Pod Your Own Adventure Night of the Necromancer podcast, I now feel like throwing away my Adjective Thesaurus and starting again. Of course, the sarcastic comments by the guest didn't help. I just hope she never writes a book and has it read out as part of a podcast. And to top it all, apparently there's going to be a part two...

In other news, Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014 continues to be shaping up nicely. The exhibition is almost there, the schedule is now online, and tickets are still available for sale until the end of the month.

Maybe I'll see you there...

Hear me speak!

On Tuesday I spent a very pleasant evening in the company of Simon 'Spindles' Potthast, Brendan 'Nerd Vs World' Gylee, and Ady 'Chocolatier' Wilce, for the recording of Episode 29 of the aforementioned Nerd Vs World.

We spent our time eating chocolate and retro sweets, whilst talking about everything from '80s kids' cartoons to YOU ARE THE HERO, and the podcast went live yesterday. You can listen to it here.

And then today another interview I did - this time at the Sci-Fi Weekender, and conducted by Jonathan Hicks, the Farsight Blogger - went live. You can listen to that one here.

Thanks to Jonathan and the guys from Nerd vs World for talking to me, and I wouldn't be surprised if in a year's time there'll be another Nerd vs World blog post...

(From left to right, and back to front)

Spindles, Nerd Vs World, The Chocolatier and Kaiju Killer.

Steampunk Thursday (Part 3): Nerd Vs World

I enjoyed a most pleasant evening on Tuesday, in Oxford, taking part in the recording of the latest Nerd Vs World podcast. I had been invited by Mr Simon 'Spindles' Potthast, whom I met at the Sci-Fi Weekender*. Also in attendance were Mr Brendan Gylee, whose baby Nerd Vs World really is (and master of the hot drinks cabinet), and Mr Ady Wilce, who supplied some most welcome Yum Yums that kept us** energised during the course of the evening.

We ended up talking for a good couple of hours about everything from Star Wars chopsticks and retro kids TV to the Clemency Slaughter Kickstarter, Pax Britannia (and Steampunk in general) and must-see movies***. You can listen to the podcast here.

The Nerd Vs World podcasters: (from l-r) Ady, Brendan and Spindles.

The guys have very kindly offered to have me back again, at some point in the future, an offer that I plan to take them up on.



The evening's musical interlude was provided by The Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing, who also wrote this.


* In the video/slideshow, he's the one dressed as Professor Severus Snape.

** Well, me.

*** I was surprised none of the guys had seen Gareth Edwards' sublime Monsters. If you've not seen it, get hold of a copy and do so without further delay!

Jonathan Green and Bryan Talbot talk Steampunk on the Radio

That's right, you read that right, I'm going to be on the radio, talking about the cult of Steampunk with legendary British comic creator Bryan Talbot - tonight!

If you're in the London area, you can tune in to the one hour live show on Atomic Bark! at 9.00pm this evening on 104.4FM, and live on the net too at www.resonancefm.com.

The show will also be repeated tomorrow, Thursday 13 December, from 11.00am to 12.00pm, with podcasts to follow a few weeks after that.

So if you're in London, and able to tune in tonight or tomorrow, let me know what you thought of our discussions via the usual channels.

Until next time...