A huge, Luna-style welcome to our new YA author, Elizabeth Priest! I am particularly proud of her achievement, as I met Elizabeth at Eastercon in Bradford, back in 2013. Even then she was a determined young writer. For me, to see her hard work come to life in such an exciting way is truly a joy.
Elizabeth Priest is a fantasy writer living in Hastings, the UK. Obsessed with chasing fairies since early childhood, she has a History, Literature & Creative Writing BA from the University of Chichester, where she spent a great deal of her time attending free lectures on folklore and mythology to round out the corners on her quest, and has been working on the Troutespond series of YA novels ever since.
We really have to thank the fantastic work of agent John Jarrold, of John Jarrold Literary Agency, for bringing Elizabeth and Luna together. A big heartfelt thanks goes to him!
“The series is witty, frightening and wonderful,” said John. “The characters leap from the page – funny, infuriating and fascinating. This is a major achievement; a living, breathing world.”
Elizabeth's series will help expand our YA section, by introducing Fantasy to it. The Troutespond Series works on the premise that, if the supernatural did exist, inquisitive teenagers would be the first to notice and absolutely the worst people to interact with it.
The first book, Concrete Faery, follows the rambling internal monologue of teenager Ally Guardian - a self-confessed side character to her louder friends, she remains permanently convinced that the universe wanting anything to do with her is a cosmic joke. Late one night her insomniac thoughts are derailed by the appearance of a strange man who sits outside her window, and tells her “I can’t speak to you yet” when she goes down to talk to him. The next day she is implicated in a demonic attack on her history teacher, and given the new girl at their school to look after as punishment.
We look forward to working with Elizabeth and bringing The Troutespond Series to life!