The end of an epic adventure
Today is release day for most editions (ebook, audiobook and US paperback) of The Prince of Lies, the final volume in the Night’s Masque trilogy. An adventure that began just over three years ago, when I finished the manuscript of the first book and started submitting it to agents, is almost over already; something that seemed barely conceivable when I set out.
If I thought I was nervous last December when Book 2 came out, that was nothing to Book 3! My protests to the contrary, The Merchant of Dreams is fairly close to The Alchemist of Souls in tone and structure, even if the setting is changed and the scope somewhat more epic. The Prince of Lies isn’t a massive departure, but it covers a much longer time-span than the other two, and of course being the end of the trilogy it has to wrap up all the storylines I set going in the previous two volumes. I now understand why Scott Lynch found writing his third book such a trial. I might only have a fraction of the readership, but there are huge expectations to fulfil, and it’s inevitable that not everyone is going to like the direction you take your characters in.
Anyway, the time for worrying is past. The book is out there, and I hope that the majority of you who enjoyed the first two books will be satisfied with the conclusion. I shall be celebrating with a whirl of promotional activities (see below), then knuckling down to writing the first draft of my new novel (working title: Serpent’s Tooth). Thank you for buying and reading my books, and I hope to have good news for you in 2014!
The Prince of Lies launch events
October 30th – closing date for the “Book Cover Fun” competition over at Angry Robot Books
October 31st – signing at Forbidden Planet, London (you can pre-order a signed copy if you can’t make the event itself)
Review on Fantasy Faction
Interview on My Bookish Ways
Interview on The Quillery
Guest post Do’s and Don’ts in Elizabethan London on Over the Effing Rainbow
Guest post Making History (alternate history in Night’s Masque) on Rising Shadow
Coming soon!
Interview and giveaway on Fantasy Faction
