Katherine Harbour's Blog - Posts Tagged "gothic"

Thorn Jack: A Night and Nothing Novel
Thorn Jack is coming out March 10 in trade paperback, (stay tuned for a giveaway!)so I thought I'd introduce the characters who wrestled the story away from me.

Finn Serafina Sullivan(17-18) Aspiring photographer. Recovering from the death of her older sister.

Jack Fata/Hawthorn (19 forever) A violinist. A member of the Fata family. A Jack, one of the mortal boys or girls (Jills) filled with magic flowers and made into a soldier.

Reiko Fata (19 forever) Eldest daughter of the Fata family. A Fata queen who rules from the art nouveau splendor of the Tirnagoth Hotel.

Caliban Ariel'Pan (21 forever) One of the Fata family. The crooked dog, the crom cu, a lieutenant of the Wolf king.

Sylvie Whitethorn (17-18) Aspiring actress and Finn's friend.

Christie Hart (18) Aspiring poet and Finn's friend.

Sean Sullivan (42) Finn's dad and a professor of folklore and mythology.

Phouka Banrion (19 forever)Fata family's chauffeur and Reiko's lieutenant.

Nathan Clare (18)One of the Fata family and a boy chosen for his beauty and courage to be a Fata sacrifice.

Aubrey Drake(18)Captain of the HallowHeart Ravens football team. One of the blessed.

Anna Weaver (12) The young sister of a Fata victim. An oracle.

Absalom Askew (18 forever)Jack's friend. A Fata and a trickster.

The Black Scissors (23 forever)A mysterious figure, once Reiko's lover. A highwayman/once a tailor, cursed by the Fatas.

Bones and Heart, the ebook short, will be included in the Thorn Jack paperback! It's Jack's origin story. When he's sent on a mission by Reiko (a month before Finn's arrival), to the sinister Fata Mr. Bones, a creator of Grindylow, Jack recalls his first encounter with the Fatas in London with his exorcist father.
There's also currently a Goodreads giveaway taking place for Thorn Jack!

Thorn Jack will be out in trade paperback tomorrow, with a new cover and the bonus story "Bones and Heart." There's a Goodreads giveaway until March 17 and I'll be answering questions until then as well, through Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/author/7273...

Time's running out for the Briar Queen advanced reader copy giveaway, which ends April 27!
As Finn and Jack attempt normal lives, the Wolf king arrives in Fair Hollow to take Reiko Fata's place and a mysterious young man named Moth reveals a secret that means Finn, Jack, Christie, and Sylvie must venture into the perilous Ghostlands.
Briar Queen: A Night and Nothing Novel

Briar Queen will be coming out as a trade paperback, ebook, and audio June 2. Here are a few reviews!
RT BOOK REVIEWS: "Harbour's characters play for high stakes, and the author is not afraid to make her characters pay." http://www.rtbookreviews.com/book-rev...

BOOKLIST: "The lilting, whimsical new adult fantasy, balanced by impressively detailed and dark vignettes, is fueled by a gothemo-scenester aesthetic... The magic is mysterious, the drama is aching, and the people are beautiful"

KIRKUS: "Readers drawn to faerie lore will enjoy this lush, romantic tale" https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-re...

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY: "Harbour makes love, suffering, and sacrifice the most poignant parts of her worlds, and readers with even the barest knowledge of fairy lore and legends will be pulled deep into this tale of sharp magic and its ruthless children" http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0...

Mortal Danger
After a disturbing and humiliating incident of bullying, Edie attempts suicide and is prevented from doing so by a mysterious young man named Kian, who works for higher powers as a sort of agent in devils' bargains. Edie is granted a wish: To be beautiful. In exchange, she must make her tormentors pay for what they've done. What begins as satisfying revenge, however, becomes horrifying, and she learns that the higher powers might not be as benevolent as they seem. (Hint: one of them seems to be a certain one-eyed Norse god.)Mortal Danger is dark fantasy bordering on horror, which I loved. Edie's plight was heartbreaking enough to make me care for her as she attempts to negotiate a maze of the supernatural, along with the intriguing Kian. The fantasy elements were also fascinating. I want to learn more about this phantom world.

Here's a list of songs I listened to while writing Thorn Jack, in order:

1)I Go to Sleep (Sia)

2)Hypnotic (Zella Day)

3)Young Blood (Birdy)

4)A Man You Don't Meet Every Day(The Pogues)

5)Whispering (Alex Clare)

6)Tam Lin (Fairport Convention)

7)House on a Hill (The Pretty Reckless)

8)Lucky You (Deftones)

9)Back to Black (Beyonce & Andre 3000)

10)I Know Places (Lykke Li)

11)I'll Follow You into the Dark (Death Cab for Cutie)

12)Wide Awake (Katy Perry)

You can listen to some of them here: https://soundcloud.com/katharbour/sets

1) Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics. Set in pioneer times and absolutely disturbing.


2) The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco. Asian ghost girl. Enough said.


3) Fiendish by Brenna Yovanoff. Appalachian contemporary. Are the creatures demons or fairies?


4) Dollhouse by Anya Allyn. In Australia, a group of friends find a house and become captives of a creepy society/cult.


5) Blood and Salt by Kim Liggett. A brother and sister infiltrate a corn cult in the modern Midwest. Horrible things happen.


6) Supervision by Alison Stine. A girl from New York City learns she's a ghost and must remember how it happened while dark things occur.


7) Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake. A young ghost hunter decides to help a bloody spirit instead of destroying her.


8) The Haunting of Sunshine Girl by Paige McKenzie. A mother and daughter move to a new house. Sinister events follow.


9) Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury. The circus comes to town and it's just NOT RIGHT, as two boys come to discover.


10)Nameless by Lili St. Crow. A modern Snow White in world changed by magic. Not your typical vampire tale.

This Dark Endeavor
Frankenstein is one of my favorite books and this story is about Victor Frankenstein as a young man, when he still lived with his stern, wealthy parents and a twin brother, Conrad, who falls almost fatally ill. There's also Elizabeth, the girl who was adopted and has lived with them since they were children. Elizabeth serves as more than the love interest, as she has a fierce character of her own. Conrad is a perfect gentleman who treats his brother with love and kindness. Victor and Elizabeth--who loves Conrad as more than a brother--are soon on a quest to create an elixir that might cure Conrad forever, with the aid of the kindly alchemist Dr. Polidori. There are some serious misadventures, a gruesome sacrifice, surprises, and, told from Victor Frankenstein's point-of-view, it's definitely apparent that Victor--jealous of his brother and in love with Elizabeth--is a complicated antihero. There's an unexpected and sinister ending that may lead Victor into becoming the character of the Mary Shelley novel.

The film option for Thorn Jack has been sold (via the Sandra Dijkstra Agency) to Libby Mitchell, a producer who is now working on the screenplay!

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2773687/bio

Oh, and there'll be a Nettle King arc giveaway in December, so stay-tuned. I'll also be giving away 3 of my fav YA books!