The Kingdom blog tour

Welcome to the blog tour for The Kingdom! This futuristic fantasy/Disney mashup has people talking about it everywhere and hopefully the excerpt below will catch your attention, too.

The Kingdom is a futuristic amusement park, covering thousands of acres. The main draws are the hybrids; animals rescued from extinction by a combination of genetic engineering and mechanics, and the Fantasists, seven beautiful princesses who stroll through the park interacting with the visitors. They're kept safe inside The Kingdom at all times. Safe, confined, and controlled.

Ana was the perfect character to explore this world with. She's not the oldest or the youngest of the Fantasists, she knows that life has always been this way for them. And at first it seems like a pretty good life; Mother and Father look after them, they have people to help them get dressed and made up and people following them around The Kingdom to make sure they're safe. Mother tucks them in and tells them stories, Father makes sure they're healthy.

And then little details creep out, and the tone of the book changes. Mother doesn't tuck them in - she ties them down. Her stories include the time an older Fantasist was stolen and beaten to death outside The Kingdom. Father ignores their complaints unless their performance is suffering, then he adjusts them.

For Ana, things really start to go wrong when one of her sisters vanishes. She's different when she comes back, and Ana slowly starts to notice things. Many of the animals hybrids are sickening, for one. And her sister Kaia, who only speaks in gentle cliches; a sign of her older operating systems, or something more sinister? And there's Owen, the park worker who turns up everywhere she is.

Interspersed with the story are trial transcripts, newspaper cuttings and other artifacts from a trial taking place about a year and a half after the main story. At that time, Ana is on trial for murder. There's a lot to think about in the defence's arguments that Ana is incapable of murder. It's just not in her programming.

I went into this novel expecting a mystery/fantasy and came out thinking about everything from cultural appropriation to what makes a person a person - admittedly, a question a lot of sci fi asks, but not one that's been answered yet. I hope Jess is planning to return to the world of The Kingdom, but if this shining piece is all we get, it's enough.


Pick up the blog tour at Pythia Reads on the 15th July and enjoy the excerpt below! The book is on sale now.

1

THE DECEMBER OF THE LESSER CHAMELEON 

ONE HOUR AFTER THE MURDER 

The room where they at last found him was so cold, they wondered at first if he had frozen to death. Face as white as snow, skin as cold as frost, lips as blue as ice. His expression seemed, to the police, perfectly peaceful. As if he had passed away in the middle of a very lovely dream.

Except for the blood. Blood always tells its own story.

2

POST-TRIAL INTERVIEW [00:01:03–00:02:54] 

DR. FOSTER: Are you comfortable? 

ANA: My wrist hurts. 

DR. FOSTER: Security felt the cuff was necessary. I hope you can understand. 

ANA: [Silence.] 

DR. FOSTER: Do you need anything before we begin? 

ANA: Can I have some water? 

DR. FOSTER: Certainly. [Into microphone.] Can I get a glass of H,O in here, please? Six ounces, no more. Thank you. [To Ana.] That'll just be a minute. 

ANA: Thank you. 

DR. FOSTER: Of course. It's the least we can do. 

ANA: That's true. 

DR. FOSTER: It's been a long time since our last interview. 

ANA: Four hundred and eighty-one days. 

DR. FOSTER: How are you feeling? 

ANA: Like this interview should be over. 

DR. FOSTER: One last time, Ana. Then I promise, we'll let you rest. 

ANA: I thought I was done answering questions. 

DR. FOSTER: We still need your help. 

ANA: Why should I help you? After everything you've done? 

DR. FOSTER: Because it's the right thing to do. 

ANA: Don't you mean, because I don't have a choice? 

DR. FOSTER: How would you like to see your sisters? They've missed you. Maybe after we finish here I could arrange a visit. Kaia. Zara. Or maybe Zel? Would you like that? 

ANA: [Quietly.] What if I want to see Nia? What about Eve? 

DR. FOSTER: [Silence.] Ana, you know that's not possible. 

ANA: Why don't you just ask me whatever it is you want to ask me? I'm not in the mood for your games. 

DR. FOSTER: My games? 

ANA: You're smirking. What's so funny? 

DR. FOSTER: I'll tell you in a minute. But first, there's one thing I still haven't figured out. 

ANA: I'm listening. 

DR. FOSTER: What did you do with the body, Ana? 

Welcome to the Kingdom... where 'Happily Ever After' isn't just a promise, but a rule. 

Glimmering like a jewel behind its gateway, The Kingdom is an immersive fantasy theme park where guests soar on virtual dragons, castles loom like giants, and bioengineered species--formerly extinct--roam free.

Ana is one of seven Fantasists, beautiful "princesses" engineered to make dreams come true. When she meets park employee Owen, Ana begins to experience emotions beyond her programming including, for the first time... love.

But the fairytale becomes a nightmare when Ana is accused of murdering Owen, igniting the trial of the century. Through courtroom testimony, interviews, and Ana's memories of Owen, emerges a tale of love, lies, and cruelty--and what it truly means to be human.