It's been a while since I posted anything over here so I figured it was time for an update. This year has been far slower than I would have liked due to real life issues (in short, day work!), but things are starting to pick up speed as the second half of the year comes around.
Most of this year has been dedicated to the Tales of Crow series. Two volumes in what will be a five-book series are now published, with The Castle of All Nightmares appearing last month. The third book in the series, The Puppeteer King, just went off to the editor last weekend. Number 4, The Circus of Machinations, is finished and is currently sitting in my to-edit pile along with a couple of trunk novels, a textbook(!), and a handful of short stories. The fifth and final volume, which is set to be the most epic of the lot, is tentatively underway. Okay, so I've written half the prologue, but I have a feeling this one is going to be awesome.
Do you want to know why?
Because the Tales of Crow series blends into the background of the Tube Riders series, ending just as the Governor takes power in Britain. Those of you who have been reading the Tales of Crow series so far will have noticed that each book is set in a different international location. They Came Out After Dark was set in Japan, while The Castle of All Nightmares was set in Romania. (Don't worry, no spoilers!) The Puppeteer King is set in Barcelona, and The Circus of Machinations in Siberia.
The fifth and final volume of the series will be set in Britain. More specifically, in Mega Britain. What you'll get is a view of the
dystopianisation (my god, did I just make that word up??!) of Britain from the sidelines, as the decay sets in and the gates start to close. You'll see the perimeter walls going up and the cities closing off, and into it all I'm going to throw a scarred madman intent on causing as much trouble as possible before his own light fades for good.
The tone of the first two books (and even the third) of the Tales of Crow series were noticeably different to the Tube Riders books, more offbeat and unusual, but over books four and five things start to darken as the world around them dims into the twilight that the Governor has pulled over Europe. It's going to be awesome for me to go back to that world, and I hope that you'll come along for the ride.
And now a little more good news: the first book in the Tales of Crow series is now free. You get get a free copy on
Amazon.com (with more Amazons to follow),
iTunes or
Barnes & Noble. I hope you enjoy it, and if it's your first experience of my books, welcome to my world.
Chris Ward
July 2nd 2015
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