Welcome to this instalment of Rapid Fire, my ongoing series of quick interviews with Black Library authors talking about their new releases. These are short and sweet interviews, with the idea being that each author will answer (more or less) the same questions – by the end of each interview I hope you will have a good idea of what the new book (or audio drama) is about, what inspired it and why you might want to read or listen to it.
In this instalment I spoke to the ever-prolific Josh Reynolds about his brand new novel Shadespire: The Mirrored City, which is available to order right now!
As usual, let’s get straight to the questions and Josh’s answers.
Track of Words: What’s the elevator pitch summary for Shadespire: The Mirrored City?
Josh Reynolds: A hardened mercenary finds himself trapped in Shadespire, and must learn the ways of the city before it claims his soul.
ToW: Without spoiling anything, who are the main characters and what do we need to know about them?
JR: Seguin Reynar is a former Freeguild soldier who’s willing to do anything to survive. Isengrim of the Red Reef is a savage Bloodreaver who’s willing to do anything to claim Reynar’s skull.
ToW: Where and when is it set?
JR: It’s set in Shadespire, but as to when – well, time doesn’t mean much in the Mirrored City.
ToW: Is there anything that you’d recommend readers check out before reading this?
JR: Nope! Not unless they want to check out the Shadespire audio dramas [Doombound by David Annandale, A Place of Reflection by David Guymer, and The Autumn Prince by Guy Haley] released last year, as I included a few references to those in the book.
ToW: Why this story? What made you want to write this in particular?
JR: I wanted to write a story about characters with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. Shadespire seemed like the perfect setting for that.
ToW: A haunted, madness-filled city – that sounds right up your street. Did this give you the opportunity to draw from some of your more horror-flavoured influences?
JR: A few things, but part of the fun is seeing if anyone catches the references. So I’ll just say ‘yes’.
ToW: How does the final product compare to your original concept? Has anything changed much from your first ideas?
JR: Not much is different. The characters wound up being a lot less heroic in the final version, though.
ToW: How does this story compare to the rest of your work? Is it a familiar style, or a departure?
JR: I’m trying to do a few things different with this one – the book is split between two points of view, and never deviates from that. The plot is also a bit…circular? That’s the best way to describe it without spoiling anything, I think.
ToW: Do you have plans to continue any aspects of this story, or is it a standalone piece?
JR: I wrote it with the intention of writing a sequel – though not from the perspective of either main character. So, hopefully I’ll get to go back to the story sometime in the future.
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Thanks as always to Josh for once again taking the time to answer these questions. Keep an eye out for a review of Shadespire: The Mirrored City just as soon as I can get my hands on a copy.
Click here to buy Shadespire: The Mirrored City.
If you fancy taking a look at some other Rapid Fire interviews, just click here. If you’ve got any questions, comments or other thoughts please do let me know in the comments below, on Facebook or Twitter, or by emailing me at michael@trackofwords.com.