Written by Miles Cameron and published by Gollancz, The Fell Sword is the sequel to the highly acclaimed fantasy The Red Knight.
Man lives in small patches of civilisation claimed from the Wild. Inside these pockets man leads a life of tournaments, politics and courtly love. Outside the walls man is prey.
Last month Gollancz revealed that Miles Cameron was actually a pen name for Christian Cameron; known for his historical fiction series Tyrant.
Geek Native has an exclusive on the literary inspirations behind The Fell Sword; an especially interesting topic given Cameron’s established success as an author of historical fiction.
I’m a huge fantasy fan, and I’ve been reading fantasy since I was old enough to read—the first book I can remember was the Hobbit, and I have pretty much devoured fantasy ever since.
Some of my favorite works are modern and dark and grim (or dark and comic, and light and grim) but I also love much older stuff—William Morris and E.R. Eddison. And then there’s older stuff too—the original tales, lays, romances and gestes that can now be called ‘Chivalric Literature.’
I think that Tolkien’s compilation of ‘Sir Gawain and the Green Knight’ was my single greatest inspiration for ‘The Red Knight.’
I have an original University edition from the 30’s and I like to sit and imagine that some student (possibly bored, or too worried about Hitler to pay attention) had this on his desk while Tolkien himself lectured. But in that book lie the dark and conflicting currents of chivalry; the power of women and magic, the fear of the unknown, the need to prove valour and gain fame and honour, the glory, the fun, and all the nice details of clothing. Nothing simple. Sir Gawain and the Green Knight is not a simple story.
My ‘Red Knight’ owes a great deal to the Gawain poet, not least the heraldry of the hero and the colour green as the symbol of Wild magic.
The Fell Sword, out now, Gollancz, £16.99.
