Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: An Import of Intrigue
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE: 3/31/1973
WEBSITE: http://mrmaresca.com/wp/
CITY: Austin
STATE: TX
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/240304/marshall-ryan-maresca *
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: no2015048592
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/no2015048592
HEADING: Maresca, Marshall Ryan
000 00480cz a2200169n 450
001 9831127
005 20150501074058.0
008 150413n| azannaabn |n aaa c
010 __ |a no2015048592
035 __ |a (OCoLC)oca10137321
040 __ |a IlMpPL |b eng |e rda |c IlMpPL |d IEN
100 1_ |a Maresca, Marshall Ryan
370 __ |c United States |2 naf
374 __ |a Novelists |2 lcsh
375 __ |a male
377 __ |a eng
670 __ |a Maresca, M. The Thorn of Dentonhill, 2015: |b title page (Marshall Ryan Maresca)
PERSONAL
Born March 31, 1973; married; children: one son.
EDUCATION:Pennsylvania State University, B.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Has also worked as a Spanish teacher, theatre director, actor, and chef.
WRITINGS
Contributor of stories to anthologies, including Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer and Rayguns Over Texas. Also author of short plays, including Slow Night at McLaughlin’s.
SIDELIGHTS
Marshall Ryan Maresca is a writer of fantasy novels. Based in Austin, Texas, Maresca has also worked as an educator, theatre director, actor, and chef. He has written stories that have been included in anthologies, including Hint Fiction: An Anthology of Stories in 25 Words or Fewer and Rayguns Over Texas. He is also the author of short plays, including Slow Night at McLaughlin’s.
The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages
Maresca has written several books set in the fictional city of Maradaine, the first of which is The Thorn of Dentonhill. The book’s protagonist is a young man named Veranix, who begins studying magic. At night, he sneaks out to seek revenge on Fenmere, a crime boss, and his minions. Veranix believes Fenmere is responsible for the deaths of his parents. His avenger identity is called “The Thorn.” A reviewer on the Relentless Reading Web site suggested: “For an origin story setting up an ongoing series, there is little to complain about. The Thorn of Dentonhill is a light-hearted, fun read and Maresca has introduced a hero with plenty of room to grow [and] a couple of villains who will provide plenty of conflict in upcoming books.”
Discussing his second book, A Murder of Mages, with Lori Lewis Ham, contributor to the Kings River Life Web site, Maresca stated: “The setting—the city of Maradaine—is the same one as Thorn of Dentonhill. It’s a city filled with magic, intrigue, commerce, politics, scholarship, and danger. The main character of A Murder of Mages is Satrine Rainey, an ex-spy and wife of a constabulary inspector. Her husband is beaten nearly to death, so to support her family she uses her old skills to fake her way into an inspector position elsewhere in the city.” Satrine’s partner on the job is Minox Welling, an unlucky person who is also called Jinx.
The Alchemy of Chaos and An Import of Intrigue
Veranix returns in An Alchemy of Chaos. In this volume, he must dodge assassins and save his school from dangerous spells. “Fantasy adventure readers … will enjoy these lively characters and their high-energy story,” asserted a contributor to Publishers Weekly.
In An Import of Intrigue, Satrine and Minox investigate the murder of a nobleman. The narrative also focuses on Minox’s status as an uncircled mage. Maresca explained the concept of an uncircled mage in an interview with Carl Slaughter, a writer on the File 770 Web site. He stated: “For mages to practice their craft in Maradaine, they need to be part of a Circle, which is a legal organization that provides training and accountability, but also that protects the mage from egregious arrest or prosecution. An Uncircled Mage is someone who has the knack for performing magic, but lacks the formal training, and thus is not part of any circle. This can happen a few different ways, but in Minox’s case, his magical abilities didn’t manifest until he was much older, when he was already in the constabulary.” Discussing the character of Satrine, Maresca also told Slaughter: “Satrine has the skills. She was a spy in Druth Intelligence for years, and her time being married to an inspector gave her a familiarity with the procedures and methods of the constabulary. She’s brilliant and she’s observant. Doing the job, solving the crimes—that’s never going to be a problem for her.”
A Publishers Weekly reviewer suggested that An Import of Intrigue featured “a wealth of unique and well-rounded characters, a vivid setting, and complicatedly intertwined social issues.” A critic on the Bibliotropic Web site commented: “It was particularly interesting to see the various cultures in the Little East, each with their own ways of doing things, customs, idiosyncrasies. And more than that, they weren’t just thinly-veiled versions of cultures that exist in our world today. There were a few echoes of inspiration … but for the most part Maresca steered clear of the stereotypes that often make their way into fantasy novels that present multiple different cultures.” The same critic added: “There’s a lot going on, intertwining stories, and everything coming to a head at the same moment, so there’s a load of fantastic tension and momentum to keep everything moving forward at a smooth and tantalizing pace.”
The Holver Alley Crew
In The Holver Alley Crew, Verci and Asti Rynax have given up their life of crime. However, when their plans for a legitimate business literally go up in flames, they return to thievery, bringing other acquaintances into their group. In an interview with John Scalzi, a contributor to the Whatever Web site, Maresca stated: “I feel part of our love affair with charming thieves and clever rogues [is that] we want to believe that if we had to be thieves, if we had to pull a heist, we’d have the smarts and the moxie to pull it off. But we wouldn’t do it just because we had a passing whim. We would only do it because we had to. Only because circumstances made us desperate.”
Martha Louise Hunter, reviewer on the the Writing on the Air Web site, commented: “Combat shock is being looked at here in the raw, treated sensitively, with a … [strong] feeling of the impact it has on both the individuals suffering from it, and those close to them. There’s emotional heft here, rawness and a sense of understanding, which makes, at times, for a heartbreaking read—but at the same time, one which feels genuine.” Hunter added: “The whole narrative is tightly plotted, and each page makes you want to turn to the next—it’s got fires, knife fights, brawls, daring escapes, explosions, and a lot of heart.” “The charming antiheroes will leave you rooting for them long after the dust settles,” asserted Naeisha Rose on the RT Book Reviews Web site. Writing on the Kings River Life Web site, Terrance McArthur remarked: “Maresca must be using a little magic of his own to create a double-mooned world where each neighborhood is unique, and there’s a surprise around every corner.” A critic on the Fantasy Review Barn Web site suggested: “Though fun, almost nothing was memorable enough to leave any kind of impression. If one is looking for a heist novel no matter what The Holver Alley Crew will suffice; it is entertaining in a way and absolutely has some highlight moments.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, December 21, 2015, review of The Alchemy of Chaos, p. 137; October 3, 2016, review of An Import of Intrigue, p. 104.
ONLINE
Bibliotropic, https://bibliotropic.net/ (November 10, 2016), review of An Import of Intrigue.
Fantasy Review Barn, https://fantasyreviewbarn.wordpress.com/ (March 21, 2017), review of The Holver Alley Crew.
File 770, http://file770.com/ (November 28, 2016), Carl Slaughter, author interview.
Kings River Life, http://kingsriverlife.com/ (August 1, 2015), Lorie Lewis Ham, author interview and review of A Murder of Mages; (April 22, 2017), Terrence McArthur, review of The Holver Alley Crew.
Penguin Random House Web site, http://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/ (July 14, 2017), author profile.
Relentless Reading, https://relentlessreading.com/ (March 9, 2015), review of The Thorn of Dentonhill.
RT Book Reviews, https://www.rtbookreviews.com/ (July 14, 2017), Naeisha Rose, review of The Holver Alley Crew.
SFWA, http://www.sfwa.org/ (July 14, 2017), author profile.
Unbound Worlds, http://www.unboundworlds.com/ (November 10, 2016), Meghan McCullough, author interview.
Whatever, http://whatever.scalzi.com/ (March 17, 2017), John Scalzi, author interview.
Writing on the Air, http://writingontheair.com/ (March 13, 2017), Martha Louise Hunter, review of The Holver Alley Crew.*
Marshall Ryan Maresca is a fantasy and science-fiction writer, author of the Maradaine novels from DAW Books. His debut novel The Thorn of Dentonhill was nominated for the Compton Crook award. He grew up in upstate New York and studied film and video production at Penn State. He now lives Austin with his wife and son. His work appeared in Norton Anthology of Hint Fiction and Rick Klaw’s anthology Rayguns Over Texas. He also has had several short plays produced and has worked as a stage actor, a theatrical director and an amateur chef.
Marshall Ryan Maresca
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marshall Ryan Maresca
Born March 31, 1973 (age 44)
Syracuse, New York, U.S.
Occupation Novelist
Nationality American
Genre Fantasy
Notable works The Thorn of Dentonhill (2015)
A Murder of Mages (2015)
Website
mrmaresca.com
Marshall Ryan Maresca (born 1973) is an American fantasy author, best known for the Maradaine series of novels, consisting of three different series set in the same fantastical city. He grew up in upstate New York, studied film production at Penn State. He currently lives in Austin, Texas.[1]
His first novel, The Thorn of Dentonhill, was purchased by DAW Books in January 2014 and published in February 2015.
Contents [hide]
1 Life and career
2 Bibliography
3 References
4 External links
Life and career[edit]
In addition to being a writer, Maresca works with his wife, an independent Spanish teacher in Austin, Texas.[2] He has also been a stage actor, a theatrical director and an amateur chef.[3] He states that as an actor, he mostly played minor roles, which he attributes to helping him understand the motivations and point of view of his different characters.[4] He has also written several plays produced in the Austin area, including Slow Night at McLaughlin’s.[5]
Maresca has named among his influences Zilpha Keatley Snyder, David Eddings and Isaac Asimov.[6]
Marshall Ryan Maresca grew up in upstate New York and studied film and video production at Penn State. He now lives Austin with his wife and son. His work appeared in Norton Anthology of Hint Fiction and Rick Klaw’s anthology Rayguns Over Texas. He also has had several short plays produced and has worked as a stage actor, a theatrical director and an amateur chef. His novels The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages each begin their own fantasy series, both set in the port city of Maradaine. For more information, visit Marshall’s website at www.mrmaresca.com.
Marshall Ryan Maresca is a fantasy and science-fiction writer, as well as a playwright, living in South Austin with his wife and son. He is the author of The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages.
Marshall Ryan Maresca grew up in upstate New York and studied film and video production at Penn State. He now lives Austin with his wife and son. His work appeared in Norton Anthology of Hint Fiction and Rick Klaw’s anthology Rayguns Over Texas. He also has had several short plays produced and has worked as a stage actor, a theatrical director and an amateur chef. His novels The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages each begin their own fantasy series, both set in the port city of Maradaine.
For more information, visit Marshall's website at www.mrmaresca.com.
Marshall Ryan Maresca on the World of Maradaine and More
By MEGHAN MCCULLOUGH
November 10, 2016
BARNES & NOBLE
INDIEBOUND
AMAZON
IBOOKS
EDITOR'S NOTE
Marshall Ryan Maresca grew up in upstate New York and studied film and video production at Penn State. His novels The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages each begin their own fantasy series, both set in the port city of Maradaine. His latest novel is An Import of Intrigue. For more information, visit Marshall’s website at www.mrmaresca.com.
SHARE
Cover detail from An Import of Intrigue
We caught up with author Marshall Ryan Maresca as his second installment to his Maradaine Constabulary series (which also happens to be his second series set in Maradaine, along with The Streets of Maradaine) hit bookstores. Read on to learn why Maresca just can’t seem to stop writing about Maradaine (a third series is in the works!), his most important world-building exercise, and more.
Unbound Worlds: An Import of Intrigue is the second installment to your Maradaine Constabulary series. Can you begin by telling us a bit about the series, and the world in which it is set?
Marshall Ryan Maresca: The Maradaine Constabulary series is the second series set in the city of Maradaine—a port city of magic and mystery, crime and gangs, power and politics. It follows two inspectors: Minox Welling and Satrine Rainey, who are both outsiders and outcasts for their own reasons. They’ve got a strong partnership based on mutual respect and trust.
UW: Would you say An Import of Intrigue can be read as a standalone, or should readers pick up A Murder of Mages first?
MRM: Of course you should read the first book first. And buy one for your mom as well. And it makes a lovely Christmas present for everyone you know.
All kidding aside, the story of An Import of Intrigue is a standalone, and I do my best to re-introduce the characters and the world so it could be the first Maradaine book one reads… but it would make more sense if you read A Murder of Mages first.
UW: An election takes place in Maradaine during your novel. How do you think Minox and Satrine would react to the election taking place in the U.S. right now?
MRM: Both of them would probably think, “Yeah, that’s an election, all right.” They’re used to stories of outright fistfights on the Parliament floor and partisans using truncheons to effect outcomes, so our election might seem downright tame. Of course, as is the case with any election, people have to go on with their lives. Minox and Satrine have a case to solve, and that comes first."The worldbuilding exercise I lean toward is going to food. With each culture, I ask: what are they eating?"
UW: Your novel could be described as part fantasy, part mystery. How much attention did you pay to weaving the two genres together? Were you conscious of it?
MRM: For me, the mystery is the bones, and the fantasy is the flesh. The two elements are both intrinsic to the whole story, of course, but the mystery part is the structure that holds the plot together, while the fantasy is what makes it move.
UW: Minox is a mage, although he tries to conceal it and is untrained. Did you turn to any particular works of fantasy, novels or otherwise, as a jumping off point when crafting his powers and lineage?
MRM: Funnily, I put a lot work into his lineage, but that was incidental to his magical abilities. I did that because I wanted to work out his family, which is deeply-entrenched in the constabulary. Since he can’t be a trained mage and in the constabulary, he chooses the latter, because that’s what’s in his blood.
UW: You really flesh out the world of Maradaine—from its culture to its politics—in this book. What went into the world building for you? Did any writing exercises in particular spark inspiration?
MRM: The worldbuilding exercise I lean toward is going to food. With each culture, I ask: what are they eating, what are their crops and livestock, how are they using them? Those are the things that give a people the most definition.
UW: What’s your writing routine? When, where, and how does it happen?
MRM: I don’t have a set place in my house, so sometimes it’s in a chair or on the couch with a laptop desk, sometimes it’s on the walking desk, sometimes I’m spread out on one of the tables. It varies. When is usually late. I think I programmed my creative energy back when my son was little, where I really could not sit down to do the work until after he had been settled into bed. So that means my creative energy REALLY kicks in around 11pm. Usually it involves me putting on headphones and telling everyone else not to bother me until I finish for the night.
UW: The Maradaine Contabulary isn’t your only series set in Maradaine. Why did you choose to write more than one series set in the same world? Do you have any plans for a third?
MRM: A third series—The Streets of Maradaine—launches next year with The Holver Alley Crew. The multiple series came about because I needed to keep writing while trying to sell the novels. I had finished the first Maradaine novel, The Thorn of Dentonhill, and was sending it out to agents, and I had to keep writing while querying agents, and while it was out on submission once I had an agent. Since I had A. done all the worldbuilding of the city and B. didn’t know if Thorn was going to sell or not, it made more sense to put my creative energy into a different series in the same setting. So I wrote several “book one of a series” books set in Maradaine in that time, which became A Murder of Mages (The Maradaine Constabulary series), The Holver Alley Crew (The Streets of Maradaine series), and a fourth one which is still in development.
QUOTED: "I feel part of our love affair with charming thieves and clever rogues we want to believe that if we had to be thieves, if we had to pull a heist, we’d have the smarts and the moxie to pull it off. But we wouldn’t do it just because we had a passing whim. We would only do it because we had to. Only because circumstances made us desperate."
BIG IDEA
The Big Idea: Marshall Ryan Maresca
MARCH 17, 2017 JOHN SCALZI7 COMMENTS
Stop, thief! In today’s Big Idea, Marshall Ryan Maresca explains why actions we wouldn’t approve of in real life we enjoy in fiction, and what that means for his new novel, The Holver Alley Crew.
MARSHALL RYAN MARESCA:
It’s fascinating how much we love the thief-as-the-hero trope, and we love having them pull a heist.
I mean, in real life, we don’t praise thieves, and we certainly don’t root for them. I’ve been wracking my brain trying to think of any living thieves that we have romantic notions for. We certainly romanticize the thieves of the past: Jesse James or Bonnie and Clyde, but that’s with a distance of history that makes them almost fictional. And we love fictional thieves. From Oceans 11 to The Lies of Locke Lamora to Six of Crows to The Fast and the Furious, we can’t get enough of bad guys doing things well. We love to see stories about thieves pulling some heist or caper, slipping through the fingers of the proper authorities, and heading off into the sunset with their ill-gotten wealth.
Why do we love it, when most of us would never support this in real life? Do we want to live vicariously through them, getting away with things that we know we would never get away with? Do we harbor secret fantasies along the lines of, “I would never actually rob a casino… but if I did, this is how”?
I’m no different, because I love that stuff. So I wrote The Holver Alley Crew, which is flat-out a fantasy heist novel. Two brothers have a job, so they put together a crew, and they pull the job. Absolutely, my favorite part of writing this book was coming up with the plans. I loved writing whole sequences of the characters going, “Here’s what we want to accomplish, what do we need to do?” I loved coming up with elaborate, “here’s our way in, here’s how we do this, here’s how we get away” plans. Then I threw wrenches into the works to ruin those plans, so my characters would have to improvise new ones.
I feel part of our love affair with charming thieves and clever rogues we want to believe that if we had to be thieves, if we had to pull a heist, we’d have the smarts and the moxie to pull it off. But we wouldn’t do it just because we had a passing whim. We would only do it because we had to. Only because circumstances made us desperate.
I think we can all understand desperate right now.
It was important to me to make my heist-pulling thieves good guys who want to be law-abiding, legitimate businessmen. But then a fire comes along and destroys all they were building: home, shop, legitimate life. With that lost, they have to go back to pulling heists, and they make a point of putting together a crew of people who were also ruined by the fire. It’s not about just getting back on their own feet, they want to help their neighbors as well. Just enough to get themselves back on the straight path they were on.
Of course, for any heist, you need a crew:
The Planner: Asti Rynax, former intelligence officer, forcibly retired. The one who can figure out all the angles and put together a plan so crazy that no one will see coming. Deadlier with an apple and a lockpick than most people are with a pair of knives.
The Burglar: Verci Rynax, Asti’s brother. Gadget-maker, window-cracker, and the only one who can keep Asti grounded.
The Sharpshooter: Helene Kesser, best crossbow shot in all West Maradaine, with a mouth as sharp as her aim.
The Muscle: Julien Kesser, Helene’s cousin. Strong as an ox, but not allowed to fight, or you’ll answer to Helene. Loves cheese.
The Driver: Kennith Rill, carriage driver. Designed an unrobbable carriage, which they now have to rob.
The Apprentice: Mila Kentish. Teenage beggar girl that no one notices until after their purse is already gone.
The Old Boss: Josie Holt, the boss of North Seleth, who’s willing to give the Rynax boys one last chance for old time’s sake.
Can this crew pull of their heist, charm your socks off and ride off into the sunset? You’ll have to read it and find out.
QUOTED: "For mages to practice their craft in Maradaine, they need to be part of a Circle, which is a legal organization that provides training and accountability, but also that protects the mage from egregious arrest or prosecution. An Uncircled Mage is someone who has the knack for performing magic, but lacks the formal training, and thus is not part of any circle. This can happen a few different ways, but in Minox’s case, his magical abilities didn’t manifest until he was much older, when he was already in the constabulary."
"Satrine has the skills. She was a spy in Druth Intelligence for years, and her time being married to an inspector gave her a familiarity with the procedures and methods of the constabulary. She’s brilliant and she’s observant. Doing the job, solving the crimes—that’s never going to be a problem for her."
Interview with Marshall Ryan Maresca
Posted on November 28, 2016
Marshall Ryan Maresca
Marshall Ryan Maresca
By Carl Slaughter: Marshall Ryan Maresca’s tale of murder and magic, secrets and lies, policemen and vigilantes, misfits and criminals, professors and sidekicks, conspiracies and guerilla warfare continues to unfold with the release of the second book in his first trilogy, Alchemy of Chaos, and the second book in his second trilogy, Import of Intrigue.
His main characters continue on their journey of discovery and maturity, decisions and consequences, goals and limits, risks and relationships. They frequently make mistakes and are frequently overwhelmed, but they never lose their sense of destiny and their sense of justice.
Meanwhile a third trilogy has been scheduled and more stories are in the works or in the planning, all in the same universe. Other fictional universes and other genres are waiting their turn in line. All this under the experienced oversight of DAW editors.
When he first approached me about an interview/feature, only cursory information about the series was available at the time and I was not impressed with the premise. I thought, “Change the school from a magic academy to a computer academy, change the skills from magic skills to computer skills, change the artifacts to software, or whatever, and the story is essentially the same.”
Big mistake. Never underestimate the power of compelling characters. The more I hear about these characters, the more I am drawn to them. I am mighty curious about the characters in those first two trilogies. In this follow-up interview, he satisfies my curiosity – within the boundaries of spoilers and deadlines.
CARL SLAUGHTER: The main character in Import of Intrigue is an uncircled mage. What exactly is an uncircled mage?
MARSHALL RYAN MARESCA: For mages to practice their craft in Maradaine, they need to be part of a Circle, which is a legal organization that provides training and accountability, but also that protects the mage from egregious arrest or prosecution. An Uncircled Mage is someone who has the knack for performing magic, but lacks the formal training, and thus is not part of any circle. This can happen a few different ways, but in Minox’s case, his magical abilities didn’t manifest until he was much older, when he was already in the constabulary.
CS: What sort of unique circumstances does a police detective who is an uncircled mage find himself in?
MRM: Since the Circles exist to give mages legal protection from constabulary harassment, they do not cooperate with the Constabulary at all. Which means that Minox—a man with deep familial ties to the Constabulary, who always wanted to be an Inspector—had to make the choice to not learn how to use his powers, and be shunned by other mages. But it also means that many in the Constabulary, who distrust and fear mages, don’t want to work with him. He’s on the outside in both worlds.
CS: His partner faked her credentials. Faking credentials as a constabulary is easy enough. But how does she fake her skills as a crime investigator? If you can’t solve a crime, won’t your partner and superior and eventually other police colleagues realize you’re a fake?
MRM: Satrine has the skills. She was a spy in Druth Intelligence for years, and her time being married to an inspector gave her a familiarity with the procedures and methods of the constabulary. She’s brilliant and she’s observant. Doing the job, solving the crimes—that’s never going to be a problem for her.
CS: What sort of chemistry do these 2 characters have?
MRM: Satrine and Minox both recognize competence and capability in each other. They recognize their mutual regard for the job and their dedication to doing it well. They click as partners because they each trust that the other one is trying to do the job as well as they possibly can, and have the ability to back that up.
CS: What about our original hero from the first series. What sort of progress has he made in developing his magic skills and waging war against his father’s murderer?
MRM: Veranix gets put on his path from vigilante to hero in The Thorn of Dentonhill. The main thing he has to contend with in The Alchemy of Chaos and beyond is finding out that declaring himself a hero means taking on responsibility, above and beyond his own vengeance. If the drugs are coming into the campus or adjoining neighborhoods, if other dangers appear that are beyond the normal authorities, if his identity is being appropriated—what is he obliged to do to handle those things? Is he obliged? That his war against the drug kingpin will involve battles he never anticipated. That’s what he needs to struggle with as that series progresses.
maresca-thorn-of-dentonhill
CS: Is he still maintaining his secret identity as a vigilante or does his circle of confidants increase?
MRM: Maintaining his secret remains a challenge. Sometimes that involves bringing new people into his circle of trust, and sometimes that means extreme choices. Sometimes trusting someone is the extreme choice.
CS: He’s a college student. Surely he has a dating life. How does his dating life affect his career in magic and his career in crime fighting.
MRM: On one hand, romance is the last thing he wants to think about. He’s got so much on his plate. On the other hand—he’s still a teenage boy, and thus he’s still a ball of hormones and confusion. He’s still drawn to the people he’s attracted to, and not always sure what to do about that—if he even should do something about it.
The key relationship in his life is with Kaiana, the young woman who works on campus and keeps his secret safe. She’s his best friend, and he is attracted to her—but does that necessarily mean they should be romantic, especially if he’s not really sure if that’s something that interests her? One thing I want to explore is how—especially as a teenager—these things are confusing and unclear and don’t always go how they “ought” to go.
CS: Once he avenges his father murder, is he going to take off his cap and mask?
MRM: Again, it ties into responsibility and burden. If he avenges his father’s murder, will he be “done”? Or will he have created an even bigger mess? And if so… who’s responsibility is that mess?
CS: Do the detectives and the vigilante have any interaction?
MRM: Things have been building to that– Alchemy of Chaos showed one of Minox’s siblings on the constabulary force in Veranix’s neighborhood. We’ll see that pushed further in The Imposters of Aventil— coming out in October next year. That book will mark the first proper “crossover”, but far from the last.
maresca-alchemy-of-chaos
CS: Are the kingpins in the first series, the conspirators in the second series, and the arsonists in the third series connected?
MRM: The clearest answer I can give you right now (without delving into pure spoiler territory) is that there are a lot of things simmering under the surface, and the tendrils of those things all touch each other in different ways. So there are underlying sources for these different challenges my heroes are facing, and those sources also have their interconnections.
CS: What about the magic premise. Is being a magician in the genes, the artifacts, the gadgets, or the chemicals?
MRM: It’s in the genes, to a degree. There isn’t a clear “this family has magic” or anything like that—but a small portion of people are born with the knack to channel and shape the energy of magic (called “numina” by the academics). Within the context of the world, there isn’t any noted pattern to who gets born with the knack, just that it usually manifests around puberty. Minox—our uncircled mage inspector—is the rare exception that his ability manifested well into adulthood.
CS: How does magic fit into the society of this fictional universe?
MRM: It’s still something that’s trying to be understood. Of course, it’s always been around, but for centuries Druth society treated it in a very hostile way—incarcerating or lynching anyone who manifested talent. Circle laws and university sanctioned training of magic were part of a desire to change that, to reshape the public attitudes—make society safe for mages, integrate what they can do into everyday life. They’re also trying to understand what it is and what it means, approaching it with scientific rigor. But a lot of people don’t like that, or are, at the very least, uncomfortable with that. So you see a society with a lot of tension when it comes to magic.
CS: Once all three trilogies are wrapped, are we going to revisit this fictional universe? Are we going to revisit any of the same heroes? Are the main characters in all three series going to interact in a grand finale?
MRM: Hmmm… how to answer this question without getting too spoilery. OK, I have a grand, mad plan for Maradaine that involves three phases. Phase I will consist of the first three books for these three series, as well as the first three books of a fourth series that I’m provisionally calling The Maradaine Elite. Phase I, if I pull it off well, will finish in a way that is satisfying along the lines of the grander arcs, without closing the doors for what Phases II and III will need.
That’s a complicated way of saying “yes, but….”. And that’s pretty much the answer at its core.
CS: Who would play the main characters of the first and second series in a screen adaption?
MRM: This is a tough one, especially with the Thorn characters, because their young age makes the “appropriate actors” a constant moving target, and whoever would fit for playing Veranix and Kaiana are actors who are just starting their careers. So I’m not sure who would fit those roles. Ideally, Veranix and Kaiana and many other characters would be played someone who is making it their break-out role.
The Constabulary characters are easier. After the first book came out I watched The Killing, and it was eerie how much Mireille Enos and Joel Kinnaman—playing mismatched detectives partnered to solve a murder—physically matched how I saw Satrine and Minox. I mean, their characters are completely different in that show, but they look perfect.
CS: Any new fictional universes and fictional characters in the works?
MRM: I have several things in the works, in various stages of development. There are a few things that are in the world of Maradaine, but outside of the confines of that city—I’m still figuring out what sort of format that will take, but it will be new characters (or spotlight on existing minor characters). Those will likely be novella-length works or standalone novels. I’ve also been working on a space opera for a while, but that’s still coming together– it’s about two-thirds of a novel so far, but it still needs some further development. I hope to have something concrete to say about that within the next calendar year. And there are a few other fantasy concepts in brand new worlds that are brewing… my worldbuilding process is always long and open-ended, so I can’t say when that will be ready to properly talk about. Of course, as I have plenty of things already planned and in the works, so there’s no rush there. I’m happy with the current pace I’m working at.
QUOTED: "a wealth of unique and well-rounded characters, a vivid setting, and complicatedly intertwined social issues."
An Import of Intrigue
Publishers Weekly.
263.40 (Oct. 3, 2016): p104.
COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
An Import of Intrigue
Marshall Ryan Maresca. DAW, $7.99 mass market (400p) ISBN 978-0-7564-1173-2
In Maresca's fine second Maradaine Constabulary novel (following A Murder of Mages), a foreign dignitary is found murdered in the fantasy city
of Maradaine, an event with potentially explosive repercussions. Constabulary inspectors Satrine Rainey and Minox Welling are used to getting
assigned to "the strange ones," the cases no one else wants. This one is a dramatic death in the Little East, a Matadaine neighborhood brimming
with immigrants from several nations who distrust one another only slightly less than they distrust Maradaine natives. The dead man, a Fuergan
noble, was found on Druth soil, in a location used by Tsouljans, marked with symbols from another culture, and stabbed with a blade from yet
another; these presumably staged complications make almost everyone a potential suspect, and the chances of an international misunderstanding
are dangerously high. Maresca offers something beyond the usual high fantasy fare, with a wealth of unique and well-rounded characters, a vivid
setting, and complicatedly intertwined social issues that feel especially timely. Fantasy fans who like to mix magic and murder will enjoy this
one. (Nov.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"An Import of Intrigue." Publishers Weekly, 3 Oct. 2016, p. 104+. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA466166601&it=r&asid=0248a893d509dbf4d17b4e75dc573168. Accessed 11 June
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A466166601
---
QUOTED: "Fantasy adventure readers ... will enjoy these lively characters and their high-energy story."
6/11/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1497221473963 2/2
The Alchemy of Chaos
Publishers Weekly.
262.52 (Dec. 21, 2015): p137.
COPYRIGHT 2015 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
The Alchemy of Chaos
Marshall Ryan Maresca. DAW, $7.99 mass market (400p) ISBN 978-0-7564-1169-5
The adventures of Veranix Calbert-full-time magic student, part-time costumed vigilante--continue in Maresca's fun fantasy adventure series
(following The Thorn of Dentonhill). Veranix is haunted by his mother's death, which was caused by addiction to the drug effitte. His alter ego,
the Thorn, has worked tirelessly to suppress sales of the drug in the neighborhoods around the University of Maradaine. But the demands of
school exams and street justice are just the beginning of Veranix's troubles. A prankster starts setting off increasingly dangerous spells on campus,
and the local crime lord hires assassins to deal with the Thorn. Maresca mixes magic and martial arts in a story brimming with action, intrigue,
and student hijinks. Fantasy adventure readers, especially fans of spell-wielding students, will enjoy these lively characters and their high-energy
story. Agent: Mike Kabongo, Onyxbawke Agency. (Feb.)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"The Alchemy of Chaos." Publishers Weekly, 21 Dec. 2015, p. 137. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA438563349&it=r&asid=45dc1dba52f9033410628ebc9b0f7365. Accessed 11 June
2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A438563349
QUOTED: "Combat shock is being looked at here in the raw, treated sensitively, with a string feeling of the impact it has on both the individuals suffering from it, and those close to them. There’s emotional heft here, rawness and a sense of understanding, which makes, at times, for a heartbreaking read—but at the same time, one which feels genuine."
"The whole narrative is tightly plotted, and each page makes you want to turn to the next—it’s got fires, knife fights, brawls, daring escapes, explosions, and a lot of heart."
Marshall Ryan Maresca
March 13, 2017 Martha Louise Hunter Off Previews
Listen to the interview
Novelist and playwright, Marshall Ryan Maresca joins Writing on the Air this week. We’ll be talking with him about his latest novel, The Holver Alley Crew (DAW, March 7, 2017).
Writing On the Air is broadcast from the KOOP Radio studios in Austin, Texas each Wednesday from 6-7 pm Central. We’re heard on Austin radio 91.7FM KOOP, and online at KOOP.org. You can also listen at Radio Free America and TuneIn.com.
For our previous episodes, try the search bar, or simply scroll through the shows below. You can hear the audios on each page, or head over to iTunes for our podcast. For show updates, follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
We’re glad you’re here, and thanks for listening to our show.
Photo by Kimberley Mead
Marshall Ryan Maresca is a fantasy and science-fiction writer, as well as a playwright.
The author of five novels, Marshall writes three book series: the Thorn of Dentonhill series, the Maradaine Constable series, and the Holver Alley Crew series. His first two novels, The Thorn of Dentonhill and A Murder of Mages, came out in 2015, and The Thorn of Dentonhill was a finalist for the Compton Crook award in 2016. The Holver Alley Crew (DAW, March 7, 2017) was released last week.
Marshall’s work has appeared in Norton Anthology of Hint Fiction and Rick Klaw’s anthology, Rayguns Over Texas. He has had several short plays produced and has worked as a stage actor and amateur chef. He is the former artistic director of the Disciples of Melpomene and Public Domain Theatre Company.Marshall grew up in upstate New York and holds a BA in film and video production from Pennsylvania State University.
Marshall lives in Austin, Texas with his wife and son.
ABOUT The Holver Alley Crew —Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reviews
The Holver Alley Crew is the first in a new fantasy series from Marshall Ryan Maresca. It’s set in his ‘Maradaine’ world, which already has a few other series running inside it. Rather than detectives or vigilantes, however, this book is focused on, well, thieves, and a fantasy-style heist.
Maradaine is a large, multi-districted city, and it has the energy and diversity on the page to back that up. There’s chemists shops, bars, restaurants, and all of the apparatus of civic life. Up to a point, anyway. We’re not in Maradaine to see the civic buildings or scenic police headquarters this time though – here, we’re in Holver Alley. It is, to be kind about it, not the nicest place in the city.
The law doesn’t show up much in Holver, perhaps because it’s been paid not to, and perhaps because it’s indifferent. Instead, there’s a combination of people organizing for themselves, and a more criminal element sitting over the top, skimming whatever cream is available. Maresca makes it at once fantastic and familiar – the urban issues faced in the Alley are those common to large conurbations everywhere, but in this case the gangs have crossbows and mages. The alley succeeds in feeling like a neighborhood – one where everyone knows everyone else. They may not like everyone else, but that’s hardly the point. This is a relatively small, close-knit community, used to being ignored or acted upon by those above it in the social food chain – and that closeness and strength give the book its heart – personified by the links between the characters.
Before talking about the characters though, I wanted to mention something else done well in the background – the stratification of society, even in Holver Alley. There’s a sense of the regular people, and those just getting by, dipping in and out of the fringes of the extra-legal. Then there’s the wealthy, whose immense influence allows them to break into communities, to buy influence and wellbeing, to set their own needs above the community – their own goals over the whole. It’s a quiet thread this, running beneath angry dialogue and the occasional brawl within the text, but it’s an important and powerful one.
Our protagonists are the Rynax brothers – once professional thieves. Now, after the war that has shaped Maradaine has come to a close, one of them is a settled family man – and the other is suffering from combat strain. Their relationship is close, and friendly, and the effort they put into sustaining the link between them, even when they appear to be poles apart, is obvious. Watching the one interact with his family, his love for his life and his baby is clearly balanced closely with concern for his brother, a man who believes he might lash out with lethal force at any moment. Here is a Rynax everyman, a voice for the reader.
The other Rynax, damaged by the war, is something else entirely. He’s tortured by his concern for his brother and their family, and the feeling that he’s only one poorly placed word away from catastrophic levels of violence. There’s the sense of a man on the boil, struggling to drag himself back from the brink. But he’s also quick on his feet, mentally and physically – watching him throw a plan together is breathtaking, and often highly entertaining. Watching him take on groups of antagonists singlehanded is similar – but emotionally leavened by the possibility that this wrath could be turned on his friends. Still, combat shock is being looked at here in the raw, treated sensitively, with a string feeling of the impact it has on both the individuals suffering from it, and those close to them. There’s emotional heft here, rawness and a sense of understanding, which makes, at times, for a heartbreaking read – but at the same time, one which feels genuine. I’d recommend the book for this portrayal alone.
The Rynax boys are backed up by a cast of misfits – from street urchins with a bad attitude, to crossbow-snipers with a bad attitude, to carriage drivers and strongmen. As each has a role in the crimes shown off here, each gets their time on the page, and a little more room to shine – but together, in gestalt, they’re a charming, entertaining and prickly mob, whom you’d be happy to buy a round for – with an eye on your wallet.
The same can’t really be said for the antagonists. Much of the text, their composition and goals seem mysterious. I’d like to have seen a little more from them, to give them a modicum of the depth and emotional connection that we have with the Rynax boys and their team. On the other hand, the more the enemy present themselves, the more unpleasant they obviously are – and so on that basis, they serve their purpose perfectly well. There’s a few moments where villainy is laid bare – it would be nice to have seen it seeping off the pages.
The plot – well, no spoilers, but this is basically a heist novel. The Rynaxes get a team together to investigate why their lives are suddenly in turmoil, and this calls for a certain amount of breaking, entering, and indeed looting. There’s some fantastic planning scenes, as the team pieces together exactly what they’re going to do and when. Then there’s the tension of the job, and this is something which is brought out to perfection – each action is watchmaker-precise, and each failure can lead to a cascade of other failures – watching the team anticipate and deal with these (or not) is agonising and wonderful. The whole narrative is tightly plotted, and each page makes you want to turn to the next – it’s got fires, knife fights, brawls, daring escapes, explosions, and a lot of heart – and as such, I’m looking forward to seeing what adventures the Holver Alley Crew go onto from here. — Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reviews
For more information, please visit his website, mrmaresca.com. You can also keep up with Marshall on Twitter at @marshallmaresca and Facebook.
QUOTED: "The charming antiheroes will leave you rooting for them long after the dust settles."
THE HOLVER ALLEY CREW
Author(s): Marshall Ryan Maresca
The pacing of The Holver Alley Crew is a bit slow in the very beginning, but once the action goes into high gear you will find yourself flipping quickly through the pages to find out how the story will unfold. If this is your first time picking up a book from the Maradaine series, the lingo might throw you for a loop, but the charming antiheroes will leave you rooting for them long after the dust settles.
It is not easy rebuilding your life from the ground up, but somehow the Rynax brothers, Verci and Asti, start to do just that. Unfortunately, a devastating tragedy befalls their town of Holver Alley, leaving them destitute, desperate and in debt. As the brothers watch their friends and neighbors slip into abject poverty, they begin to find themselves falling back into a life of crime, but as they prepare for their first heist in years, it soon becomes clear that the townspeople's misfortune was no accident. (DAW, Mar., 352 pp., $7.99)
Reviewed by:
Naeisha Rose
QUOTED: "Maresca must be using a little magic of his own to create a double-mooned world where each neighborhood is unique, and there’s a surprise around every corner."
The Holver Alley Crew By Marshall Ryan Maresca: Review/Giveaway
IN THE APRIL 22 ISSUE
FROM THE 2017 ARTICLES,
ANDFANTASY & FANGS,
ANDTERRANCE V. MC ARTHUR SECTIONS
by Terrance Mc Arthur
Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of The Holver Alley Crew. We also have a link to order it from Amazon, and from an indie bookstore where a portion goes to help support KRL.
Sometimes, a fantasy is too good to look at from only one viewpoint. It cries out to be viewed from another angle.
Marshall Ryan Maresca created the otherworldly city of Maradaine for The Thorn of Dentonhill, a novel about a schoolboy/mage/superhero/avenger, a character followed in The Alchemy of Chaos. That academia/magic/underworld blend wasn’t enough, so Maresca took another look at the city, creating a male/female police detective duo with paranormal aspects for A Murder of Mages and An Import of Intrigue. He needed another part of Maradaine society to explore, so he now introduces The Holver Alley Crew, a ragtag gang of thieves on a mission of revenge.book
Asti and Verci Rynax, raised as thieves, have left crime behind them. Verci has a wife and child, while Asti has PTSD from his days in wartime Intelligence operations. A fire in the neighborhood wipes out their plans for a legal business and saddles them with a major debt, so they fall back on their training. Other displaced persons are enlisted for a coach-robbing caper, but the problems they encounter reveal conspiracies that motivate them to plan a casino heist.
A motley crew they are:
• Verci and his family found temporary housing with her sister, whose nosy husband keeps suggesting unsuitable jobs.
• Asti has stress-related blackouts that end with him covered with blood…of other people. Terrified that his Hulking out will harm those near him, he avoids close contacts.
• Helene Kessler, an Annie Oakley with a crossbow, annoys Verci’s wife by seeming to be interested in her man.
• Julien Kessler—Helene’s cousin is big and strong, but seemingly slow of mind.
• Kennith, a dark-skinned immigrant who can fabricate amazing things. The stable where we works becomes the gang’s headquarters.
• Mila, a young child of the streets, who has made a career of noticing things and sizing up people.
Later additions to the band:
• The Old Lady—Josephine runs low-level crime in this part of Maradaine, and always has a job available for people she trusts…if a crime boss can trust anybody.
• Almer Court—an apothecary with a fondness for mayhem-producing concoctions. His business survived the fire, but he wants to help with their criminal adventures.
• Win, a locksmith in shock from losing his shop and his family…handy for cracking safes.
• Gin, an actor with a knack for artistically changing faces.
They are felonious, but they have scruples. They only kill guards because being hired muscle implies a dangerous and short career path. Innocent bystanders are off-limits.
Holver Alley may be a low-class district, but the people do their best to survive…by any means necessary. There are bars, churches, shops, inns, bakeries, and more. Maresca must be using a little magic of his own to create a double-mooned world where each neighborhood is unique, and there’s a surprise around every corner. He’s mixed up a potion of The Sting, Ocean’s Eleven, The Magnificent Seven, The Dirty Dozen, and The Thomas Crown Affair, and offered up the dish the way revenge is supposed to be served—cold.
To enter to win a copy of The Holver Alley Crew, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “crew,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen April 29, 2017. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address, and if via comment please include your email address.
Check out more fantasy/horror book and TV reviews in our Fantasy and Fangs section.
Click on this link to purchase this book & a portion goes to help support KRL & an indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy:
The Holver Alley Crew
You can use this link to purchase the book on Amazon. If you have ad blocker on you may not see the link:
Terrance V. Mc Arthur is a Librarian for the Fresno County Public Library.
Disclosure: This post contains links to an affiliate program, for which we receive a few cents if you make purchases. KRL also receives free copies of most of the books that it reviews, that are provided in exchange for an honest review of the book.
QUOTED: "The setting –the city of Maradaine–is the same one as Thorn of Dentonhill. It’s a city filled with magic, intrigue, commerce, politics, scholarship and danger. The main character of A Murder of Mages is Satrine Rainey, an ex-spy and wife of a constabulary inspector. Her husband is beaten nearly to death, so to support her family she uses her old skills to fake her way into an inspector position elsewhere in the city."
PREVIOUS POST: Refreshing Summer Infused Waters
NEXT POST: Broads of Broadway On Stage at the Ice House
A Murder of Mages by Marshall Ryan Maresca: Review/Interview/Giveaway
IN THE AUGUST 1 ISSUE
FROM THE 2015 ARTICLES,
ANDFANTASY & FANGS,
ANDLORIE LEWIS HAM,
ANDMYSTERYRAT'S MAZE SECTIONS
by Lorie Lewis Ham
This week we have a review A Murder of Mages by Marshall Ryan Maresca, along with an interesting interview with Marshall. Details at the end of this post on how to enter to win a copy of the book, along with a link to purchase the book where a portion goes to help support KRL & indie bookstore Mysterious Galaxy.
A Murder of Mages by Marshall Ryan Maresca
Review by Lorie Lewis Ham
A Murder of Mages is the first book in a new series by Marshall Ryan Maresca, but it is set in the same world as his debut novel The Thorn of Detonhill. The new series features the Maradaine Constabulary.
Satrine Rainey is a wife and mother of two girls, who finds herself in desperate need of a job to provide for her family since her constable husband has suffered a horrible injury on duty which leaves him incapable of even caring for himself. Using the skills she gained while she was a spy, Satrine fakes her way into a job as the first ever female Inspector third class. She is paired with Inspector Minox Welling, an uncircled mage, who has been nicknamed Jinx because bad things always happen to his partners. Basically, they are put together because no one else wants them. book
On her first day on the job Satrine and Minox are sent out to investigate the body of a mage found in an alley staked to the ground with his heart cut out. This investigation puts them in Satrine’s old neighborhood where she grew up as a street rat, bringing back some unwanted memories. When more mages are murdered in the same fashion, Satrine and Minox find themselves in a race against time to find a serial killer before he strikes again. On top of that, Satrine struggles to juggle everything and keep her secret, while Minox finds himself struggling with his lack of knowledge about his abilities as a mage.
Satrine is a wonderfully strong character who proves herself more than capable of keeping up with the men, as she has to deal with their prejudices against her getting this position. Minox is a complex and fascinating character who has always been a bit of an outcast, because he is a mage (in a world where they are not looked upon well), because he is uncircled, and because he is a bit socially awkward. Minox is absolutely brilliant, and makes me think a great deal of a young Sherlock Holmes.
This book for me is the perfect combination of urban fantasy, magic, and mystery. I love a good mystery and when you can combine it with fantasy there is nothing I love more. The characters are real, and interesting and they make a great team. I can’t wait for the next book in this series, and now want to read Marshall’s other book. Marshall is a talented writer who has created a fascinating world!
Interview with Marshall Ryan Maresca
KRL: How long have you been writing?
Marshall: I’ve been writing on some level for all my adult life, but I got serious about novel writing in 2007. That’s when I buckled down and figured out how to write a novel, and really devote time to getting them done.
KRL: When did your first novel come out? What was it called and can you tell us a little about it?
Marshall: My first novel, The Thorn of Dentonhill, came out in February. It’s a fantasy/superhero novel about a magic student by day and street vigilante by night.
KRL: We actually reviewed that here in KRL. Have you always written fantasy? If not what else have you written?
author
Marshall Ryan Maresca
Marshall: Fantasy is my primary passion, but I’m also a big fan of science-fiction. I’ve been working on a few things in that area, plus I have a short story, Jump the Black, in the anthology, Rayguns over Texas.
KRL: Please share about these interesting aspects of your life that were mentioned in your bio. You also have had several short plays produced and worked as a stage actor, a theatrical director and an amateur chef? Are you still involved in any of these things?
Marshall: My theatre days are mostly behind me. I haven’t been on stage for fifteen years. I miss it on occasion, but the truth is I was, at best, a decent actor and director. I still dabble with playwriting, enough to keep the skills sharp!
KRL: How and why did you go from those to writing?
Marshall: As I said, my acting and directing skills were mostly just decent. I could play a minor role or direct a play, and at best I’d not get in the way of everyone else. Also, that work cost me time, money and stress, partly with the logistics of production. I couldn’t afford to keep doing it, but I still had a creative drive that I needed to tap into. Writing was something I could do on my own schedule, in the privacy of my own home.
KRL: What brought you to choose the setting and characters in your latest book? Please tell us a little about the setting and main character for your most recent book.
Marshall: The setting –the city of Maradaine–is the same one as Thorn of Dentonhill. It’s a city filled with magic, intrigue, commerce, politics, scholarship and danger. The main character of A Murder of Mages is Satrine Rainey, an ex-spy and wife of a constabulary inspector. Her husband is beaten nearly to death, so to support her family she uses her old skills to fake her way into an inspector position elsewhere in the city.
KRL: Do you write to entertain or is there something more you want the readers to take away from your work?
Marshall: Entertainment is my primary goal. That isn’t to say there isn’t further depth that can be found, of course there is, but I leave that for readers to find for themselves. I won’t dictate how they should read it.
KRL: Do you have a schedule for your writing or just write whenever you can?
Marshall: I try to put in at least an hour or 500 words a day. Some days I fall short, others I go far past that. book
KRL: If you had your ideal, what time of day would you prefer to write?
Marshall: Late evening is when the creative brain really kicks in.
KRL: Did you find it difficult to get published in the beginning?
Marshall:Absolutely. It took a lot of perseverance and rewriting, submitting and rejection after rejection. But the process is a valuable one. I think it made a better work in the long run.
KRL: Do you have a great rejection or critique or acceptance story you’d like to share?
Marshall: I was a regular attendee of the ArmadilloCon Writers Workshop for several years. When I first went, I was kind of cocky about what I had written and it got utterly savaged by the teachers. Looking back, it was very, very deserved. But I kept at it, working on improving my craft. Finally I brought a first chapter of one of my Maradaine books and was put in a group with an editor from Tor. He told me seven words that got me through the hard years of writing and submitting that followed: “You have a lot of real talent.”
KRL: Future writing goals?
Marshall: I’ve got a long-range plan for the Maradaine books that involves multiple series.
KRL: Writing heroes?
Marshall: There are a lot of writers I admire, whose work I really love, who I consider friends, but heroes? That’s kind of tough.
KRL: What kind of research do you do?
Marshall: I do a lot of wide-scope world-building research, like studying different specific corners of history and anthropology, trying to construct a more complete picture of what a society and civilization looks like. For example, The Disappearing Spoon is about the history of the periodic table of the elements, but it gave me a lot of insight about the methods and politics of science and academia over the course of history. Mostly, for me, research is about just getting more “stuff” into my brain that I can shake around and use to create fuller pictures.
KRL: What do you read?
Marshall: Like I said, I read a lot of non-fiction history and anthropology. I also love a wide variety of sci-fi and fantasy, especially anything that takes traditional trope and turns it on its ear. Oh, and my true guilty-pleasure reading: Star Trek novels.
KRL: Ah a fellow Trekie! Anything you would like to add?
Marshall: The sequels to both Thorn and Murder will be out next year. They are, respectively, The Alchemy of Chaos and An Import of Intrigue.
KRL: I can’t wait! What is something people would be surprised to know about you?
Marshall: Before I do a reading, my private warm-up is Nicki Minaj’s “Superbass”.
KRL: Website? Twitter? Facebook?
Marshall:My website is www.mrmaresca.com and my twitter handle is @marshallmaresca.
To enter to win a copy of A Murder of Mages, simply email KRL at krlcontests@gmail[dot]com by replacing the [dot] with a period, and with the subject line “Mages,” or comment on this article. A winner will be chosen August 8, 2015. U.S. residents only. If entering via email please include your mailing address.
Check out more fantasy book reviews in our fantasy and fangs section.
Use this link to purchase the book & a portion goes to help support KRL & Mysterious Galaxy:
A Murder of Mages: A Novel of the Maradaine Constabulary
Lorie Lewis Ham is our Editor-in-Chief and an enthusiastic contributor to various sections, coupling her journalism experience with her connection to the literary and entertainment worlds. Explore Lorie’s mystery writing at Mysteryrat’s Closet.
QUOTED: "for an origin story setting up an ongoing series, there is little to complain about. The Thorn of Dentonhill is a light-hearted, fun read and Maresca has introduced a hero with plenty of room to grow, a couple of villains who will provide plenty of conflict in upcoming books."
The Thorn of Dentonhill
Marshall Ryan Maresca
★★★½
DAW, 2015.
Marshall Ryan Maresca’s debut novel is a brisk and enjoyable bildungsroman blending fantasy and superheroics that should appeal to YA fans of either genre.
Indeed, The Thorn of Dentonhill feels like Batman goes to Hogwarts.
Set in the sprawling city of Maradaine, the novel follows Veranix Calbert, an orphaned student at the ancient university of Maradaine. Discovered by his professor Alimen and provided a full scholarship on behalf of a wizarding society, he struggles with his magical and history classes helped by his roommate Delmin.
But Veranix also harbors a secret.
By night the young student roams the rooftops, a daring vigilante known as “The Thorn,” harrying local criminals with his magic, acrobatic and archery skills, in an attempt to avenge his parents. His father had been the leader of a street gang who was killed by the local crime boss Fenmere, his mother driven mad from Fenmere’s drugs. And Veranix has sworn revenge, disrupting Fenmere’s drug trade and giving his illicit money to charity.
Things kick into gear when Veranix stumbles upon a dockside delivery in the dead of night, which he suspects is a major drug delivery. It turns out, however, to be a pair of mysterious magic items, a cloak and a rope. Armed with this cool costume and utility belt, which greatly enhance his natural abilities, “The Thorn” starts attracting the attention of Fenmere.
As well as the mysterious mage cabal who had ordered the magic items for their own nefarious purposes.
The Thorn of Dentonhill would make a great graphic novel, indeed it often feels more like a comic book than a fantasy novel.
While I mentioned Batman above, and Veranix’s youth points towards Spider-Man, I believe Frank Miller’s Daredevil is a closer analog to The Thorn. His acrobatic skills, his connection to the tough life on the streets, how he is rising above through education (magic, not law in Veranix), his protection of his “turf” and his focus on organized crime bosses all remind me of that groundbreaking comic run from the early ’80s.
Veranix gets a proper comic origin (his archery expert father hid from Fenmere with a traveling circus, where he met Veranix’s mother, a member of a family of acrobats), has a network of informers in the neighborhood gang, which is led by his cousin Colin. He even has his own support network in his roommate and professor, as well as a potential love interest — the groundskeeper’s assistant Kaiana, herself a victim of Fenmere’s drug trade.
At the same time, like comic books, the conflict in The Thorn of Dentonhill feels two dimensional. The good guys are good, the bad guys are bad and its easy to discern which is which.
But for an origin story setting up an ongoing series, there is little to complain about. The Thorn of Dentonhill is a light-hearted, fun read and Maresca has introduced a hero with plenty of room to grow, a couple of villains who will provide plenty of conflict in upcoming books.
And, most importantly, he’s created a character that I care enough about to continue reading.
QUOTED: "It was particularly interesting to see the various cultures in the Little East, each with their own ways of doing things, customs, idiosyncrasies. And more than that, they weren’t just thinly-veiled versions of cultures that exist in our world today. There were a few echoes of inspiration ... but for the most part Maresca steered clear of the stereotypes that often make their way into fantasy novels that present multiple different cultures."
"There’s a lot going on, intertwining stories, and everything coming to a head at the same moment, so there’s a load of fantastic tension and momentum to keep everything moving forward at a smooth and tantalizing pace."
An Import of Intrigue, by Marshall Ryan Maresca
Buy from Amazon.com, B&N, or IndieBound
Author’s website | Publisher’s website
Publication date – November 1, 2016
Summary: The neighborhood of the Little East is a collision of cultures, languages, and traditions, hidden away in the city of Maradaine. A set of streets to be avoided or ignored. When a foreign dignitary is murdered, solving the crime falls to the most unpopular inspectors in the Maradaine Constabulary: exposed fraud Satrine Rainey, and Uncircled mage Minox Welling.
With a murder scene deliberately constructed to point blame toward the rival groups resident in this exotic section of Maradaine, Rainey is forced to confront her former life, while Welling’s ignorance of his own power threatens to consume him. And the conflicts erupting in the Little East will spark a citywide war unless the Constabulary solves the case quickly.
Review: It’s multicultural mayhem in the second of Maresca’s Maradaine Constabulary novels! Inspectors Rainey and Welling are called to the scene of a murder, which is par for the course as these things go. But that murder took place in a part of the city where many foreign cultures intermingle, where they don’t always get along, and where the law tends to overlook and ignore in favour of dealing with their own people. With culture clash at the forefront, Rainey having to confront her past, and Welling’s magic getting wildly out of control, it’s a race against time to see whether the murder will be solved and the perpetrator brought to justice, or a massively dangerous situation will get too out of hand to contain.
I kind of love reading about the adventures and misadventures of Rainey and Welling. They’re such a wonderful duo, loyal to their cause and to each other as partners-in-solving-crime, but that loyalty doesn’t go so far as to blind them to each others’ faults. Nor does it spill over into romance, the way so many novels do. Satrine Rainey is married, and though that’s a more complicated situation than the previous novel revealed (and what it revealed was complicated enough), she stays loyal to him. Minox Welling doesn’t seem to have an interest in Rainey, either. They have a great friendship and work-partnership, and I think part of my appreciation for that comes from comparison, seeing how most authors would have hooked up the leading male and leading female characters because that’s just what you do. Only here it isn’t, and I love seeing that.
It was particularly interesting to see the various cultures in the Little East, each with their own ways of doing things, customs, idiosyncrasies. And more than that, they weren’t just thinly-veiled versions of cultures that exist in our world today. There were a few echoes of inspiration, or at least I thought I saw some in naming conventions and the way some words sounded, but for the most part Maresca steered clear of the stereotypes that often make their way into fantasy novels that present multiple different cultures.
Again, this is something that’s best appreciated in comparison to other novels on the market. I’ve lost count of just how many secondary worlds take place surrounding characters based on Western and European ideals, running into cultures that sound like transplanted Middle Eastern or East Asian groups. It’s almost standard fare. And it’s this comparison that makes Maresca’s novels so appealing to me. On the surface, they’re fun fantasy adventures that feel a lot like comfort fiction. But dig a bit into it and you see how Maresca works to make his novels stand apart, to do things a little bit differently even when on the whole they feel very comfortably familiar. You’ve got complex familial hierarchies and mourning rituals and legal matters and all of it requires more thought behind the scenes than tends to be on the page, and from both a reader’s and writer’s standpoint, I can appreciate the work that Maresca put into making sure that individuality was there.
But even aside from dipping below the surface and liking the novel for what it isn’t, I also like it for what it is. It’s a fun romp through a fantasy city, a murder mystery with depth, and enough intrigue (as the title suggests) to keep me turning pages to see what comes next. Is Welling’s magic going to get out of hand and hurt someone? Is he going to dip further into the madness that might let him see the connections in the case? Is Rainey going to manage to avoid an assassin from her past? Are any of the Fuergans or Imachans or Lyranans ever going to cooperate without being forced to? Who even is the murderer, let alone why did they murder? There’s a lot going on, intertwining stories, and everything coming to a head at the same moment, so there’s a load of fantastic tension and momentum to keep everything moving forward at a smooth and tantalizing pace.
Though I’m going to admit, there was plenty of uncomfortable language in An Import of Intrigue. Racist epithets being hurled around, sexism, you name it. Which isn’t surprising, given the setting, and it makes perfect sense as to why it would be there. It fits. It’s part of the story being told, the way people talk. Nor do I think that it’s a reflection of the author’s attitudes to women or… Well, I can’t say people of colour, really, because the slurs used are in reference to cultures that only exist within the Maradaine novels. Nobody in this world is grey-skinned and gets called a tyzo, for instance; that’s just something that isn’t applicable. I suppose what bothers me about it isn’t so much that it exists in books so much as it existing in books is a reflection of the worlds created, which are influenced by the world we live in. We still live in a world where sexist and racist terms get used so thoughtlessly, so casually, and my discomfort isn’t with the issue being in An Import of Intrigue or any other Maradaine novel so much as it’s with what it signifies.
That being said, the colloquialisms do add flavour, and it’s very easy to get a solid feel for what Maradaine is like by the way people speak. You feel like you’re reading about a real place, complex and ugly and full of all the sights, sounds, and smells you’d find in such a place.
I normally would say that I dislike cliffhanger endings (and I do), but somehow the ending of this book didn’t bother me in the slightest. I suppose it was less of a cliffhanger and more of a strong hint at what’s to come, peeling back the layers to show what’s been in the shadows, and what could develop in future novels. It was a well-done teaser, almost like the season finale of a show you know will continue into another season, and it left me hungry for more.
When all is said and done, I really enjoyed An Import of Intrigue, not just for the interesting presentation of other cultures and the examination of Welling’s magical troubles and Rainey’s extremely fascinating past, but for the adventure I got to go on with the characters. I closed the book wanting to immediately grab another one, only there isn’t another one yet. You know a book has really grabbed you when that’s your reaction. They’re fun novels, interesting stories, great characters, and I think any fan of fantasy adventures will enjoy reading them as much as I do.
(Received for review from the publisher.)
QUOTED: "Though fun, almost nothing was memorable enough to leave any kind of impression. If one is looking for a heist novel no matter what The Holver Alley Crew will suffice; it is entertaining in a way and absolutely has some highlight moments."
Fantasy Review: ‘The Holver Alley Crew’ by Marshall Ryan Maresca
March 21, 2017 Nathan ReviewMaresca
The opening to my favorite fantasy series of all time begins with a city on fire. The Holver Alley Crew starts with a city on fire. This says absolutely nothing about the book, nor are there any comparisons to be made to The Color of Magic here, it is just an observation.
Maradaine is a city that has appeared in two series previous but The Holver Alley Crew is the start of its own series within the series; I had absolutely no previous experience with the author myself and this book felt like the start of something completely new.
Thrown right into the action we meet the Rynax brothers as they awaken to a fire threatening not just their homes and business but the entire neighborhood. When the smoke clears they come to the realization that all their previous plans are for naught. They are two old criminals who tried to go strait and now have nothing but debt to show for it. What is there to do? Go back to the old work of course.
Ultimately this is a buddy heist type of book complete with lovable misfit cast. The Rynax brothers are thieves with a heart of gold bronze tarnished tin. They may steal and kill but they have morals, damn it, rules on who is allowed to be killed passed on by their daddy. They are soon joined by a sharpshooter and the gentle giant, a plucky street kid with skills way beyond what a life of begging should allow, and finally Q from the James Bond films (a chemist with ALL the cool new toys). Together for a heist they learn together that they may have a larger purpose as it becomes clear the fire was deliberately set their plucky crew is the only one who can dole out appropriate justice!
Sadly, though fun, almost nothing was memorable enough to leave any kind of impression. If one is looking for a heist novel no matter what The Holver Alley Crew will suffice; it is entertaining in a way and absolutely has some highlight moments (the creative way a mage is taking out of the protection picture is genius). But it is a straight forward path with no real suspense or surprises. Nothing about the plans these brothers put together is particularly noteworthy, nor are any of the crew’s interactions. The banter is lacking, the emotional appeal is lacking, and the payoff is fairly unremarkable.
If fantasy literature got the respect it deserved this would be a novel found at the checkstand at the local grocery store. Not the novel that one would brag about reading to their friends but a novel one would have no problem grabbing before their next business trip for some easy reading. And in that capacity it absolutely works; it is almost certainly better than most the thriller of the month book options. Beyond that though there isn’t much to say; empty calories are ok sometimes but not what I am hoping for when grabbing a new treat.
3 Stars
Copy for review provided by publisher.