Holly Ice's Blog, page 3

The Last Chapter: The Russian Sleep Experiment Novella

What's to come...The final edit is done, the lights are dimming, the website to record this phenomenon is almost complete. This horror novella is coming... The experiment has begun.The next few months will bring a series of images created by Daniel Tyka and short extracts from the novella to go with them. The website will soon be launched to feature the book and images on a dedicated URL. Be ready!The Details...A timeline will be put together between me and the publisher, Almond Press, in the next few days or weeks. This will keep us on the right track to release updates simultaneously and in tandem. As mentioned above, sneak peeks are planned, as is the gradual, weekly release of new artwork by Daniel Tyka, commissioned especially for The Russian Sleep Experiment novella. You will also soon see the spooky front cover, complete with a Soviet test chamber. The next few weeks and months are going to be exciting and nerve wracking for me in the run up to my first long piece being published. I'd welcome any support or comments!Image courtesy of Jacob Stewart under the cc 2.0 Generic license: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...

The Last Chapter: The Russian Sleep Experiment Novella

What's to come...   The final edit is done, the lights are dimming, the website to record this phenomenon is almost complete. This horror novella is coming... The experiment has begun.   The next few months will bring a series of images created by Daniel Tyka and short extracts from the novella to go with them. The website will soon be launched to feature the book and images on a dedicated URL. Be ready!   The Details...   A timeline will be put together between me and the publisher, Almond

A Nightmare to Enjoy from the Safety of your Sofa - A Different City (Marcheval) by Tanith Lee - Book Review

This collection of three short stories features as its centrepiece a Gothic city named Marcheval and the book is sheer fantastic Gothic splendour, with Splashes of Fantasy.Marcheval has elements of the modern and many more elements of the past, of slums and unscrupulous chaps and great fortunes gone to rot. It is atmospheric of a time while being out of time and has a grand sense of place. The windy streets and fantastical elements (including strange and new fantasy variants on human looks and skills) are carefully wrought and were vivid in my mind throughout, without the prose turning too purple. In some ways more than this old city, filled with large houses, old families and strange religious practices, the thread that links these three short stories together is the characters. All three stories have a central female protagonist who faces something awful and deals with it outside the box of normal, in a deliciously dark way. Without giving too much away, I can tell you the first story ‘Not Stopping at Heaven’ involves an unexplained childhood tale of horror which brings a horrific, animalistic power into play. The story appears to have a strong moral about what not to do in marriage, and how even the downtrodden should be treated well. You never quite know who has a secret weapon up their sleeve. The second story, ‘Idoll’ has a more ritualistic core, and tells of a spooky rich family with a secret hidden in their attic. They are typical of some tropes in that they look perfect on the surface and yet underneath they are more than sinister, like overlords with a puppet that helps bring their needs to fruition. The family adopts a distant relative and soon take advantage of her presence. The girl is quite passive in her approach to fighting back for my taste so the ending was not quite as satisfying for me as it could have been, but it was realistic for a time where women are second class citizens. The final story, ‘The Portrait in Grey’ reminds me of the worlds Dick Van Dyke chalked on the pavement in Mary Poppins, only here the images are done in the blackest of charcoal and without musical accompaniment, discounting maybe a good, dramatic fugue. The final story is of pure, and utterly complete, revenge, then washing the offender away as if they are nothing. Quite cathartic. All three stories have strong morals. Revenge permeates them, as well as a stewing inner anger at the injustices the characters face. These are not stories meant to produce cheer. These are stories I found myself smiling along with, in satisfaction at the often violent and final endings rather than any happy sentiment. Uncomfortably, my reactions sometimes made me think of what the audience at a stake burning could have looked like, or the cheering crowd in a coliseum as the thumb was turned for death. These are stories that delve into the underbelly of an alternate world and cut the malign up to be eaten by the carrion, socially, mentally and physically. A great nightmare to enjoy from the safety of your sofa.If forced to rate A Different City, I would give it 4.5/5 stars, if we're allowed halves, or 5/5 if not. You can find the book on Amazon UKAmazon US or Barnes and Noble(I received a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review)

A Nightmare to Enjoy from the Safety of your Sofa - A Different City (Marcheval) by Tanith Lee - Book Review

    This collection of three short stories features as its centrepiece a Gothic city named Marcheval and the book is sheer fantastic Gothic splendour, with Splashes of Fantasy.   Marcheval has elements of the modern and many more elements of the past, of slums and unscrupulous chaps and great fortunes gone to rot. It is atmospheric of a time while being out of time and has a grand sense of place. The windy streets and fantastical elements (including strange and new fantasy variants on human

Was King Arthur Real? King or Giant? The Facts as I See them

The Who, What, Where and Why of King Arthur is a convoluted tale but I will attempt to break it down to the basics.The Who“King Arthur” is billed as the King of ancient Albion* and Arthur, supposedly, fought the Anglo-Saxon invaders. There are legends of him as a man, leader and fantastical creature which have filtered down to us today. These follow two strands: the man, and the giant.For those interested in Etymology, the true meaning of ‘Arthur’ is unknown but there have been some estimations:The Celtic ‘artos’ means ‘bear’, ‘viros’ is ‘man’ and ‘rigos’, ‘king’. There is also an uncommon Roman surname ‘Artorius’ in the running. In addition, the old Welsh ‘gwr’ means ‘hero’, which could be combined with the Celtic ‘Artos’.Whatever the origins, Arthur is now a reasonably common name. If even some of the predicted origins are correct, it also has an amazing meaning! ‘Bear hero’, ‘bear king’…or he could be a wayward descendent of the Romans (not quite so interesting).In the Cotswolds, I grew up with tales that Arthur was buried within a hill in the countryside, ready to rise to England’s defence, should we face attack again. The question is, where would that attack be coming from? What species would be coming at Britain, swords out?The meaning of Arthur which carries most weight with me, lies in the concept of Arthur as a hero, battling ferocious beasts.Now, why would I say that?*(the name for England and Scotland before the Romans changed it to Britannia and eventually it became Britain / The United Kingdom).The WhatArthur: The King?Is King Arthur really a King? Or, is Arthur a fixture in British folklore? Historians have argued it and said there is no definitive proof he was a King, especially as he was not listed in any known Kings lists of the time and had no direct contemporary mention under his name. In fact, the monk Gildas in The Ruin and Conquest of Britain gave a different person’s name as Briton’s leader: Ambrosius Aurelianus.This man shares many similarities with the commonly told tale of Arthur, fighting in and winning a big battle against the Anglo-Saxons during the 5th Century. However, it is a quantum leap from Arthur to Ambrosius, even if spelling conventions back then were a little ropey.There is no mention of Arthur’s court, round table, Merlin or Guinevere in some of the oldest tales. Instead, we have something quite different.Snippets allude to a soldier with no parallel. For example, in ‘Y Goddin’, Arthur is referred to indirectly, with warriors being described as good but ‘no Arthur’.It is generally accepted that Geoffrey of Monmouth (in the 12th Century), concocted the tale of King Arthur because the Celts needed a hero (and he was probably bored) but, this is not an end to the folklore and the magic.Arthur: The Giant?On looking into historical references to Arthur, a representation is found that does not portray him as King. Instead, he is a folkloric, heroic leader. In these descriptions, he’s a figure far more on the edge of society than a regal representative.He is described as 'the leader of a band of heroes who live outside society, whose main world is one of magical animals, giants, and other wonderful happenings, located in the wild parts of the landscape'.(By very definition, I do not think a King – at least, a good one with actual followers – could live outside society).Or, even more fantastically, as:‘above all else...a defender of his country against every kind of danger, both internal and external: a slayer of giants and witches, a hunter of monstrous animals -- giant boars, a savage cat monster, a winged serpent (or dragon)’Who wouldn’t want to know this guy? He’d sure as anything be less likely to snub you than a King would.To me, this is far more interesting than the dry tale of yet another King. Fantasy and legend has had its share of Kings, Queens, bastards of a prince once removed, and so on. History is far more interesting when it has a unique twist.A suggestion of a world still populated with fantastical, magical animals and creatures, gives me the space to imagine a Britain of the Dark Ages where Science was not yet real and magic and superstition still had their foundations in society. One could even imagine, perhaps, that these things were real, an age ago.The WhyYes, I’m aware this is out of ‘strict’ order, but it’s more interesting this way, promise.So, Arthur is on the scene with otherworldly creatures, battling in the defence of Briton. Why?Well, folklore suggests Arthur and his relatives were themselves giants, or could at least alter their height. So, they’d fit right in! Who better to fight a supernatural hoard than a friendly giant? (Cue B.F.G. anyone? Ah – the memories.)Even the equivalent of Guinevere in the older tales, Gwenhwyfar, has magical leanings. There was a popular folk tune in Wales:Gwenhwyfar ferch Ogrfan GawrDrwg yn fechan, gwaeth yn fawr."Gwenhwyfar, daughter of Ogrfan Gawr,Bad when little, worse when great."(Now, this one reminds me of the hulk!)The WhereArthur’s resting place is a tricky subject. He was here, then there, then somewhere else again. Some claims were likely for monetary gain, others had false information and some, admittedly, have a certain Romance. The TLDR version is that no one can agree. So, until he pops up out the ground, he’ll keep us guessing!Summing UpI love history, especially when there is an aspect of the unknown and the paranormal, two of my very favourite subjects. I love to think we as a race don’t know everything and that there is a possibility the magical still exists, somewhere we’ve not found/seen it yet. I, for one, refuse to kill a fairy. It is, after all, impossible to disprove a negative and there is still so much to be discovered.ResearchI did a lot of research on this topic a while back, when laying the foundations for my fantasy-crime novel While I Slept, which has since turned into ‘The Riftkeeper Series’, based around what would happen if Arthur (a fantasy soldier rather than a King) awoke in the modern day and all the supernatural creatures of his time re-entered our lives simultaneously. In short: few good things.Sources, Sites and Further ReadingEarly Mentions in Historyhttp://www.britannia.com/history/docs/stanzas.htmlThe Man-giant and Gwenhwyfarhttp://www.celtnet.org.uk/gods_g/gwenhwyfar.htmlhttp://www.arthuriana.co.uk/n&q/figures.htmhttp://www.pbs.org/mythsandheroes/myths_four_arthur.htmlhttp://www.history.co.uk/shows/king-arthurs-round-table-revealed/articles/the-real-king-Arthurhttp://www.caerleon.net/history/arthur/page2.htmhttp://www.history.com/news/ask-history/was-king-arthur-a-real-personhttp://www.britainexpress.com/History/King_Arthur.htmhttp://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/anglo_saxons/arthur_01.shtmlhttp://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/history/top-10-clues-to-the-real-king-arthur-2024729.htmlEtymology of the nameImages (from top to bottom):Images 1 and 2 are listed under the CC 2.0 no deriv license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/) and are courtesy of Hartwig HKDImages 3 and 4 are listed under the CC 2.0 generic license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/) and are courtesy of danijela dannie and francois schnell, respectively.

Was King Arthur Real? King or Giant? The Facts as I See them

  The Who, What, Where and Why of King Arthur is a convoluted tale but I will attempt to break it down to the basics.   The Who “King Arthur” is billed as the King of ancient Albion* and Arthur, supposedly, fought the Anglo-Saxon invaders. There are legends of him as a man, leader and fantastical creature which have filtered down to us today. These follow two strands: the man, and the giant.   For those interested in Etymology, the true meaning of ‘Arthur’ is unknown but there have been some

While I Slept: Between The Editing Lines

Bonus story extract at the end of this post…As the title would suggest, this novel is still in the editing stages. There are 29 chapters currently, and I’m working on chapter four. There were a lot of changes toward the start of the book to improve interaction between the characters and improve the pace of the plot.Sometimes I think I need some sort of countdown to mark off each chapter as they’re done! I can see now how some writers struggle to let go of their work; it can be easy to nitpick at a piece long after you’ve read it through for the sixth time.However, I’m not going to let The Riftkeeper Series series sit on my computer. I’m digging on through the lines of editing and list of comments my brilliant editor made and I can see the piece improving with each read and each few lines of work.My original vision of the story can be seen clearly and the characters are live, vivacious people, nagging at me that they don’t talk like that they talk like this. Still, I wouldn’t change any of that. It’s a blessing to know my characters that well.I’m focusing on looking through the eyes of Annie and Arthur, as well as the minor characters like Farah and Brent, in order to bring the five or six senses of their world to life on the page, and for the reader.I’ll be keeping you updated for the major milestones and, in the mean time, I’ll leave you with a word from Arthur:''I'll do that.' I tried to keep my expression concerned, aiming for dutiful citizen. It wasn't a role I really liked to play but I had done a lot of bending at the knee before. Politics was not a place for egos, not unless you were on the pedestal with all your minions looking to break it down. I preferred to live in a less precarious spot, somewhere real life is possible rather than a constant game of masks.'P.S. Those also interested in horror and sci-fi may like to check out my recent blog post on The Russian Sleep Experiment, my other project on the go. A summary can be found on the Upcoming page. 

Final Stages: The Russian Sleep Experiment

OverviewThis project is now in its final stages. We have a front cover (which we’re keeping under wraps for a few more weeks yet – sorry!) and the final third of the story is back to me for editing. Once that is done, the piece gets one more edit as a whole, and we’ll be working toward publication, with a much better idea of a precise publication date.The ArtworkI’m in love with the front cover and I think it looks really good. We have both a black and white and a colour version and we are deciding between the two. I'm looking forward to sharing it with you.Our cover artist, Daniel Tyka, is also working on some sketches based on quotes from the text, so you can expect some teaser pictures in the near future. I’ve seen one already and it should be something special – he has really captured the feel of the story and brought it to life through illustration.To give you all an idea, one of the quotes he has worked from is:'The march was as bitter-cold and boring as it usually was. Hundreds of miles of pine trees and guards at either end and spread out down our line, guns ready for flight, like we would survive out here if they missed their shot anyway!'UpdatesI hope you’re all looking forward to seeing this thing in one piece. I promise to keep you all up to date and, if you have any questions, drop me a line below or through the contact form on the contact page.P.S. For those also interested in my paranormal mystery novel While I Slept, the first in The Riftkeeper Series, check out my latest blog post or the visit the Upcoming page for a summary.The image above is courtesy of слава фонарюк and is used under the Creative commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license. A link to this can be found here: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/legalcode

While I Slept: Between The Editing Lines

  Bonus story extract at the end of this post…   As the title would suggest, this novel is still in the editing stages. There are 29 chapters currently, and I’m working on chapter four. There were a lot of changes toward the start of the book to improve interaction between the characters and improve the pace of the plot.   Sometimes I think I need some sort of countdown to mark off each chapter as they’re done! I can see now how some writers struggle to let go of their work; it can be easy to

Final Stages: The Russian Sleep Experiment

  Overview This project is now in its final stages. We have a front cover (which we’re keeping under wraps for a few more weeks yet – sorry!) and the final third of the story is back to me for editing. Once that is done, the piece gets one more edit as a whole, and we’ll be working toward publication, with a much better idea of a precise publication date.   The Artwork I’m in love with the front cover and I think it looks really good. We have both a black and white and a colour version and we