Katherine Harbour

Katherine Harbour is the author of Thorn Jack, the first book in a trilogy of dark fantasy novels released by Harper Voyager.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Harbour's reply:

I'm currently reading three books.

Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor. This is the sequel to Daughter of Smoke and Bone, which was fantastic. The story concerns a girl named Karou, who lives in Prague and her family are monsters called chimaera. She falls in love with a warrior angel named Akiva, who shares a mysterious past with her. The tension caused by the two warring races, the imaginative characters, and the world-building are all intriguing. The angels are a tyrannical, winged race, while the chimaera—half beast, half-human—are practiced in the magical arts. Karous is trying to save her people—the chimaera—and it’s a heartbreaking struggle.

The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries by W.Y. Evans-Wentz. I chose this book because I’m writing a trilogy about fairies. Published in 1911 and written by an American who received a Doctor of Science in Comparative Religion degree from Oxford, the book is a collection of essays and reports concerning the fairy folk of Great Britain. This book is fascinating, creepy, and has some interesting theories on fairy folklore.

WonderBook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction by Jeff Vandermeer. I’m reading this because it’s a book about writing speculative fiction and it was written by Jeff Vandermeer. The lessons on plot, inspiration, theme, and other story elements are instructive and fun. There are charts, bizarre illustrations, and appropriate examples. It’s a book I’ll be returning to again and again.

Visit Katherine Harbour's website.

--Marshal Zeringue