Preview chapters 1-3
The Procurement of Souls Chapters 1-3
Books ARE Always Better, Aren’t They? 5 Reasons Why
Writing my recommendation for Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke reminded me of the 2015 BBC adaptation. Now, this is not a diatribe on the failures and pitfalls of book-to-screen adaptations (I’m just as much a fan of great movies and gritty TV as the next person) nevertheless… Books Are Always Better, Aren’t... Continue Reading →
The Procurement of Souls Chapters 1-3
Preview chapters 1-3
Recommendation: Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
Genre: Alternative Historical Fantasy Publisher: Bloomsbury 1806 and magic returns to England with the unravelling relationship between two contrary magicians. This book draws you in and immediately swallows you whole. Gothic-horror overtones and 19th century-pastiche prose conjure one enchanting read and the exquisitely detailed world practically steams from the pages. Pure sophistication: the ‘thinking wo/man’s’... Continue Reading →
Recommendation: The Glass Books of The Dream Eaters
Genre: Steampunk Publisher: Penguin Three unlikely heroes, each with their own peccadillos, unite to thwart the machinations of a cabal of oligarchs. This erotically-charged romp bounds across an alternate Victorian landscape like a run-away steam train. From manor houses to seedy back-parlours; from hotel boudoirs to grotty hovels; from experimenting chambers to zeppelins in the... Continue Reading →
Writer’s Block: It’s in Your Head, Isn’t It?
I came across this brilliant article in The New Yorker the other day, Why Walking Helps Us Think by Ferris Jabr, which offers a whistle-stop tour of the established link between walking and the formation of ideas, and of its literary champions, from Joyce, to Woolf, to Nabokov. Anyone who knows me will know I’m... Continue Reading →
Benjamin Hope: Author of The Procurement of Souls 