International Talk Like a Pirate Day

As it's International Talk Like a Pirate Day, it seems like a good time to remind everyone that in the ACE Gamebook NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! you can play as pirate Captain Hook himself.

You can buy the book through Amazon or the PDF through DriveThruRPG.

Arrrrr! 

Happy Asteroid Day!

I learned this morning that 30 June is Asteroid Day. It is held on the anniversary of the Tunguska event in 1908, when an asteroid leveled 2,150 square kilometres of forest in Siberia.

WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD!

I remember reading a Primeval tie-in novel by Dan Abnett, called Extinction Event (2009), which had dinosaurs entering our world through an Anomaly at the site of the Tunguska event. A similar idea, that of a massive explosion causing cracks in time, also featured in the Doctor Who episode The Fires of Pompei (2008).

This was a concept I played with when I wrote NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! Without giving too much away, the reason there are dinosaurs running around Neverland is because the Chicxulub asteroid that casued the extinction level event that wiped out those ancient beasts also caused fractures in time. These fractures rippled across time, meaning that Captain Hook and his pirates from the Golden Age of Piracy and the sinking of the Titanic survivor Wendy Darling, as well as dinosaurs, mammoth, and sabretooth tigers, can all visit the island at the same time.

So, to mark Asteroid Day. why not pick up a copy of NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! or leave a review of the gamebook on Amazon? After all, every little helps!

NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!

J. M. Barrie, the author of Peter Pan and Wendy, was born 161 years ago yesterday. And it was that particular book that I decided to give an ACE Gamebooks' makeover for the third title in the ever-growing series*. 

I find it hard to believe that NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! was published two years ago (on 1st June) but it remains one of the ACE Gamebooks of which I am most proud.

If you've never sampled its delights before, don't be put off my the fact that it's inspired by Peter Pan. It's also inspired by Sir Conan Doyle's The Lost World and movies like King Kong and Jurassic Park. Let's put it this way - it certainly isn't twee in any way.

On the 15th April, 1912, during her maiden voyage, the RMS Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg. 1,503 people died, including passengers and crew. But 706 people survived, among them Wendy Darling and her dog Nana...

Separated from the rest of her family, Wendy's lifeboat is washed up on the shore of a mysterious island – a place lost in time – home to creatures long thought extinct, a forgotten tribe, and a boy who can never grow up. But the notorious pirate Captain James Hook and his crew have also found their way to Neverland, and the island is angry...

*     *     *     *     *

In NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters!, YOU decide which route to take, which perils to risk, and which of the island’s strange, prehistoric denizens to fight. Play as shipwreck survivor Wendy Darling, automaton avenger Peter Pan, heroic hunter Tiger Lily, or plundering pirate Captain James Hook. But be warned – whether you succeed in your quest or meet a dire end will be down to the choices YOU make.

Will you manage to escape from Neverland?

You can watch Dennis Chang's in-depth critique of the adventure below, and you can even pick up the PDF version from DriveThruRPG.

* ACE Gamebooks #7 is coming to Kickstarter soon, so watch this space!

NEVERLAND - Here Be Colouring Books!

Coming soon from Snowbooks...

Email emma@snowbooks.com for your exclusive first printing copy!

Gamebook Friday: NEVERLAND - Here Be Reviews!

When a new book comes out I excitedly/anxiously check Amazon.co.uk for any reviews, but I often forget to check Amazon.com.

Recently I happened upon NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! on Amazon.com and discovered these rather pleasing reviews...

"If you are wanting to give modern gamebooks or choose-you-own adventure style books a chance, this is a great one to get started with."

"The characters aren't exactly like the book and movies that we've enjoyed and loved before. Rather, they are a twist on the classics. The story is enjoyable, with many options, twists, and turns. You might encounter Giant Serpents and Sabre-Tooth Tigers, or Saurian Lizards and a Colossal Crocodile."

"The actual writing is so imaginative and the artwork is amazing. Definitely recommend all of Jonathan Green’s adventure gamebooks."

"J. M. Barrie's fantasy world is re-imagined by Jonathan Green through a "mixed fantasy" lens with an RPG bent. The book provides re-playability since each of the four characters available for selection provide different perspectives and play-styles, and each with a unique ending. A recommended read especially for gamebook aficionados, though if you are not familiar with other works by the author, then you clearly aren't a gamebook fan."

You can buy your own copy of NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! on Amazon.com here, and on Amazon.co.uk here, and a signed copy direct from the author here.

NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! launches today!

At times it's felt like it's been almost 65 million years in the making, but at long last, my latest ACE Gamebook NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!, is published today!

On the 15^th April, 1912, during her maiden voyage, the RMS Titanic sank after hitting an iceberg. 1,503 people died, including passengers and crew. But 706 people survived, among them Wendy Darling and her dog Nana...

Separated from the rest of her family, Wendy's lifeboat is washed up on the shore of a mysterious island – a place lost in time – home to creatures long thought extinct, a forgotten tribe, and a boy who can never grow up.

But the notorious pirate Captain James Hook and his crew have also found their way to Neverland, and the island is angry...

In NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! YOU decide which route to take, which perils to risk, and which of the island’s strange, prehistoric denizens to fight. Play as shipwreck survivor Wendy Darling, automaton avenger Peter Pan, heroic hunter Tiger Lily, or plundering pirate Captain James Hook. But be warned – whether you succeed in your quest or meet a dire end will be down to the choices YOU make.

Will you manage to escape from Neverland?

You will be able to pick up a signed copy of NEVERLAND – Here Be Monsters! at Stand 2-640, from Yours Truly, complete with a collectible bookmark.

So maybe I'll see you there...

Happy Birthday, J. M. Barrie!

J. M. Barrie, the author of Peter Pan and Wendy, was born 159 years ago today. More recently, of course, I was inspired to re-imagine his characters and their story as an adventure gamebook, in which the island of Neverland is populated by more monstrous reptiles other than just one giant crocodile.

NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! goes on general release on Saturday 1st June and you can pre-order your copy here.

NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! Playthrough on Twitter

Monday 15th April 2019, mark the 107th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic. To mark the occasion, I am going to start a playthrough of my latest ACE Gamebook, NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!, on Twitter.

So if you've been wondering what a gamebook adaptation of Peter Pan and Wendy would be like, join me on Monday, on the #NeverlandPlaythrough hashtag, to play through the opening passages of the adventure.

Gamebook Friday: NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!

You may have noticed that I've not been blogging very much lately. Well this is because I've been working on three different ACE Gamebooks projects simultaneously. I've been getting Beowulf Beastslayer ready to send to the publisher for laying out, I've been editing 'TWAS - The Krampus Night Before Christmas, and I've been packing up the rewards for NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters!

Prepping the parcels for posting.

At the start of this week I posted the books to the NEVERLAND backers, and many have started to receive them. The book isn't officially released until 1st June, when I will be at the UK Games Expo, and if I'm honest, I'm hoping a few more reviews might appear on the book's Amazon listing page between now and then. In fact, if we hit 50 reviews on Amazon, I have a little surprise planned for everyone.

The Jolly Roger Black Flag edition hardback alongside The Wicked Wizard of Oz collector's hardback.

NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! has been a long time coming, and it's great to see it out in the wild at long last. I just hope that, when people come to read it, they think it's been worth the wait...

Lost

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the legendary literary phenomenon Sherlock Holmes, died 88 years ago today. The reason I mention this is because he also wrote The Lost World, in which Professor George Challenger and his companions discover dinosaurs (and other supposedly extinct creatures) alive and well on top of a mesa in the Amazon basin of South America.

I have spent the last few weeks editing NEVERLAND - Here Be Monsters! And while it is clearing inspired by J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan, the gamebook is as much influenced by Conan Doyle's The Lost World. During the course of the adventure, you can explore much of the Skull Island-esque Neverland, which has called for me producing a map of the place.

Just like the adventure itself, there's still a fair bit to do before it's finished, but I've really enjoyed indulging my inner cartographer again after so many years.

To get an idea of what it is like on an island lost in time, inhabited by all manner of prehistoric beasts that want to kill you (or kill you and eat you), you can now play through Tiger Lily's introduction to the adventure, which also contains another Conan Doyle reference, by downloading the extract here.