Benjamin Hope: Author of The Procurement of Souls
Benjamin Hope author of fantasy novel Procurement of Souls
Publisher: Angry Robot, October 2017 Genre: Gothic When Catherine Helstone’s missionary brother, Laon, fails to send word from Arcadia, the land of the Fae, she sets out to find him, disembarking into a sinister world beyond her imagination. This is a slow burn that conjures a fully realised world and literary history, parallel to that... Continue Reading →
Publisher: (this edition) Fantasy and Horror Classics Genre: Gothic Horror; Ghost; Fantasy M R James’ ghost stories have a foot firmly placed in the dark romantic gothic story telling traditions from the 18th century (which later saw a revival in the Victorian age with the likes of his contemporaries, Bram Stoker and Dickens, and with... Continue Reading →
The next invention from the world of The Procurement of Souls is another of Magnus Drinkwater's patented instruments, the EMOTOMETER. EMOTOMETER Notes: Patented by Magnus Drinkwater, the emotometer is a brass-based cylindrical apparatus which houses filament receptors capable of reading and interpreting states of being, determined by the density and combination of hormones and pheromones... Continue Reading →
The next inventions up from The World of The Procurement of Souls are patented serums from The Inventors' & Engineers' Guild of Bio-Alchemy. Morpheuserum High strength sleeping draught designed by Fellow and Master of The Guild, Professor Clarence Malahide. Veriform This truth serum was designed by Baron Magnus Drinkwater under commission from... Continue Reading →
VIVISALVE Formulated by Baron Magnus Drinkwater under commission from the king and part-funded by the Sovereign Armaments Division, Vivisalve is a paste compound primarily formed of propolis and the coagulant accelerants vitamin K, Mandragora officinarum, and Guaiacum officinale. The balm is capable of greatly accelerating the healing time of wounds and temporarily boosting the... Continue Reading →
Exploring the world of Victorian inventions for #inventorsmonth got me reflecting on all my own devices and creations within the world of The Procurement of Souls. So, I thought I'd do a series of vignettes showcasing a few. I start tonight with the viroscope, used in the story by Clementine in an attempt to track... Continue Reading →
Well, as a self-confessed beardy of late (you can't deny it when it's on your face, after all!) I felt I had to mark World Beard Day this year. It would appear that I have endowed a number of my characters in The Procurement of Souls with a moustache at the very least! Here's a... Continue Reading →
I must begin the second part of our whistle-stop tour in 1863 when, on 10th January, the world’s first underground steam-train line opened in London between Paddington and Farringdon, serving six other destinations in between!1 The thought of these steam-powered locomotives squealing through the dark, carrying gas-lit carriages behind them conjures quite the gothic scene!... Continue Reading →
To celebrate the wonder of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein this 'Frankenstein Day', here's an extract from my novel, The Procurement of Souls. Have you concocted fiendish machines in your own fiction or have a favourite monster in literature? I'd love to hear from you: leave a comment below!
