Allen Stroud, author, academic and current chair of the BSFA, compiled a list of ‘The best contemporary fantasy and science fiction books with new takes and fresh characters’ for the Shepherd.com website. First on his list is The Janus Cycle by Tej Turner. Allen writes: “This book moved me. … the finale with an assemble moment of courage between many of the characters is such an empowering and cathartic moment… I was listening in the car and found myself in tears”
It is, of course, great news for an author that they have had such a profound effect on their readers. We’re a little concerned, though, if it moved Allen to tears while he was driving! When Tej saw Allen’s list, and his comments on The Janus Cycle, he said that to hear his book moved people is “very validating”. He went on to say: “I am very proud of [The Janus Cycle]. It put me on the map as an author and was a landmark for me on a personal level.”
Tej Turner, author and seasoned traveller, realised that his own experiences, backpacking in exotic parts of the world, were the perfect field research for his epic fantasy adventure series.
DARTFORD, KENT – 14 March 2022 – Elsewhen Press, an independent UK publisher specialising in Speculative Fiction, is committed to publishing outstanding books by incredible authors. One such author is Tej Turner. Tej works in Cardiff as a chef by day and writes fantasy books by night. But he is also an ardent explorer, informing and entertaining his many online followers through a travel blog in which he documents his, often ambitious, trips. Authors often spend more time doing background research for their stories than actually writing, especially if they have to create an imaginary world and populate it with competing peoples, myths, legends and cultures, not to mention geography, flora and fauna. Sometimes, though, the authors have already done some of the research without even realising it.
Peter Buck, Editorial Director of Elsewhen Press said, “In 2015, we published a gritty urban fantasy that Tej had written, The Janus Cycle, but we hadn’t physically met him because he was handling the edits while away on a 9 month backpacking expedition around Asia. In fact, we first met him in person when we launched the book at Eastercon in a hotel in Heathrow, Tej arriving straight off the plane from Kathmandu. We have been friends ever since.”
It was in 2014, just before going on that trip around Thailand, Burma, Indonesia, Philippines, Taiwan and Nepal, that Tej had written the first few chapters of Blood Legacy, the second book in an epic fantasy series he had been planning: The Avatars of Ruin. When he got home in 2015, he picked it up again to finish writing it.
Tej says, “I would like to say that I went travelling as ‘field research’ but that would be a lie – it is just something that I love to do. But that said, when I returned from that trip, I did realise that one of the arcs for Blood Legacy involved its main characters doing things that I had just done myself; namely journeying to lands that are not only different to what they know in terms of scenery and climate, but also – at times – a bit of a culture shock.
“I remember – when I returned home a year later and continued writing – reaching certain points of the story and realising that I didn’t need to do any research because I already had firsthand experience of what the characters were doing. One example of this being when they needed to cross a mountain range; I had just come back from doing a high altitude trek in the mountains of Nepal so the experience was all still fresh within my mind.”
In 2021, Elsewhen Press published Bloodsworn, the first book of The Avatars of Ruin series, and now Blood Legacy is also available, in both paperback and eBook. Tej is currently close to completing the third book in the series, Blood War. Tej adds, “Blood War includes a story arc from even more regions of my world, including a jungle civilisation.”
Bloodsworn attracted praise from best-selling authors Anna Smith Spark, who said: “Classic epic fantasy. I enjoyed it enormously”; and Christopher G Nuttall, who said: “a stunning introduction to a new fantasy world”.
Blood Legacy, too, has already garnered praise from respected authors. Allen Stroud, author and current chair of the British Science Fiction Association said, “Tej Turner is taking you on a journey into Fantasy, only it’s not quite the journey you expected, and it’s all the better for it”; Joanne Hall said, “a nuanced, smart high fantasy novel with intelligent, complex characters, good LGBT rep and some killer twists”; and David Craig said, “an exciting book which ups the stakes, mixing traditional fantasy with an element of possession horror”.
Blood Legacy is available from today in both eBook and paperback formats.
Notes for Editors
About Tej Turner
Tej Turner does not have any particular place he would say he is ‘from’, as his family moved between various parts of England during his childhood. He eventually settled in Wales, where he studied Creative Writing and Film at Trinity College in Carmarthen, followed by a master’s degree at The University of Wales Lampeter. Since then, Tej has mostly resided in Cardiff, where he works as a chef by day and writes by moonlight. His childhood on the move seems to have rubbed off on him because when he is not in Cardiff, it is usually because he has strapped on a backpack and flown off to another part of the world to go on an adventure.
When he travels, he takes a particular interest in historic sites, jungles, wildlife, native cultures, and mountains, and so far, he has clocked two years in Asia and a year in South America. He also spent some time volunteering at the Merazonia Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in Ecuador, a place he intends to return to someday. He also hopes to go on more adventures and has his sights set on Central America next. Firsthand accounts of Tej’s adventures abroad can be found on his travel blog on his website. A place he also posts author-related news.
His debut novel The Janus Cycle was published by Elsewhen Press in 2015 and its sequel Dinnusos Rises was released in 2017. Both are hard to classify within typical genres but were semi-biographical in nature with elements of magical realism. They have often been described as ‘gritty and surreal urban fantasy’. He has since branched off into writing epic fantasy and has an ongoing series called The Avatars of Ruin. The first instalment – Bloodsworn – was released in 2021, and its sequel Blood Legacy is out now. He is currently engaged in writing the third instalment (Blood War).
About The Avatars of Ruin
Book 1: Bloodsworn
Cover design: Alison Buck
“Everyone from Jalard knew what a bloodoath was. Legendary characters in the tales people told to their children often made such pacts with the gods. By drawing one’s own blood whilst speaking a vow, people became ‘Bloodsworn’. And in every tale where the oath was broken, the ending was always the same. The Bloodsworn died.”
It has been twelve years since The War of Ashes, but animosity still lingers between the nations of Sharma and Gavendara, and only a few souls have dared to cross the border between them.
The villagers of Jalard live a bucolic existence, nestled within the hills of western Sharma and far away from the boundary which was once a warzone. To them, tales of bloodshed seem no more than distant fables. They have little contact with the outside world, apart from once a year when they are visited by representatives from the Academy who choose two of them to be taken away to their institute in the capital. To be Chosen is considered a great honour… of which most of Jalard’s children dream.
But this year, the Academy representatives make an announcement which is so shocking it causes friction between the villagers, and some of them begin to suspect that all is not what it seems. Just where are they taking the Chosen, and why? Some of them intend to find out, but what they discover will change their lives forever and set them on a long and bloody path to seek vengeance…
Book 2: Blood Legacy
Cover design: Alison Buck
The ragtag group from Jalard have finally reached Shemet, Sharma’s capital city. Scarred and bereft, they bring with them the grim tale of what happened to their village, and a warning about the ancient powers that have been awakened and now threaten all humanity.
Despite this, some of them still hope that reaching sanctuary within the Synod will mean an end to their hardships, but these hopes are soon dashed. Sharma’s ruling class are caught within their own inner turmoil. When Jaedin senses that there are moles within their ranks, not only does his call to crisis fall mostly on deaf ears, but some who do hear seek to thwart him when he tries to hunt these infiltrators down.
Meanwhile, across the Valantian Mountains, Gavendara is beginning to muster its forces. Using ritualistic means to augment their soldiers, their mutant army is like nothing the world has ever seen before.
The Zakaras are coming. And Sharma’s only hope of stopping them is if it can unite its people in time.
Like many small arts organisations, the lack of government support has meant that Elsewhen Press has been struggling to keep publishing during the pandemic.
DARTFORD, KENT – 28 December 2021 – Elsewhen Press is a publishing house specialising in high quality, entertaining and thought-provoking speculative fiction – specifically set up in 2011 to champion new authors. The books they publish often address current, real-world issues but through a fictional prism. Obviously, one of the most significant real-world issues over the last two years has been the global pandemic that has been ravaging many aspects of society, affecting people’s health and mental wellbeing, as well as the resulting economic effects. The impact has been anything but fictional.
“As a small business we have had no support from government,” says Peter Buck, Elsewhen Press Editorial Director, “and our income has been decimated. Meanwhile the costs of paper, printing and shipping have spiralled. Before the first lockdown, many pundits predicted an increase in the sales of eBooks, but that was not the experience of most indie presses; indeed book sales slumped, as people struggled to pay even their everyday bills on reduced incomes. Some indie presses have had to give up completely. We have been lucky enough to be able to keep going thanks to personal loans and family support, and we have even managed to publish those new titles that we had already planned – albeit most of them somewhat later than we had intended. We felt that it was important to keep publishing as much as we could. For many readers, being able to escape into a good book is what has been helping them cope with the unprecedented stress of everyday life. For some authors the enforced isolation has encouraged them to write.
“As autumn arrived this year, it was looking like things might finally start returning to some sort of ‘new normal’ with bookshops open again, even some science fiction and fantasy conventions restarting. At the Novacon convention in November, our first in-person event for almost two years, we had a joint, belated launch party for the titles we had published since the initial lockdown, and we finally got to reconnect with some of our readers. But that fillip has been shortlived, and with the impact of the Omicron variant we are now no longer certain if we will be able to hold launch parties for the new titles that we will be publishing at the start of 2022.
“Whether or not we are able to hold launch events for them, we will be publishing a number of great new books early next year:
Blood Legacy, the second book in a fantasy series from Cardiff-based writer Tej Turner – we published the first book in the series, Bloodsworn, in January of this year;
Interference by Terry Grimwood, a science fiction novella where grubby politics is still interfering when humanity goes interstellar;
The Forge and the Flood by Durham-based author Miles Nelson, a YA fantasy allegory that touches on identity and the illusion of difference – we published Miles’ debut novel Riftmaster in March this year;
The Seven Succubi by Simon Kewin, a witty contemporary police procedural with a difference. Instead of CID, the investigators work for the secretive HM Office of the Witchfinder General – during lockdown in 2020, we published the first book in the series, The Eye Collectors, which one reader described as ‘Dirk Gently meets Good Omens’.”
Notes for Editors
About Tej Turner
Cover design: Alison Buck
Tej Turner has spent much of his life on the move and does not have any particular place he calls ‘home’. For a large period of his childhood, he dwelt within the Westcountry of England, and he then moved to rural Wales to study Creative Writing and Film at Trinity College in Carmarthen, followed by a master’s degree at The University of Wales Lampeter. After completing his studies, he moved to Cardiff, where he works as a chef by day and writes by moonlight. He is also an intermittent traveller who every now and then straps on a backpack and flies off to another part of the world to go on an adventure. Blood Legacy is his fourth published novel, following Bloodsworn, the first in the Avatars of Ruin series. His debut novel The Janus Cycle was published by Elsewhen Press in 2015, followed by his sequel Dinnusos Rises in 2017. Both of them were described as ‘gritty and surreal urban fantasy’. He has also had short stories published in various anthologies.
About Terry Grimwood
Cover design and artwork: Alex Storer
Suffolk born and proud of it, Terry Grimwood is the author of a handful of novels and novellas, including Deadside Revolution, the science fiction-flavoured political thriller Bloody War and Joe which was inspired by true events. His short stories have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies and have been gathered into three collections, The Exaggerated Man, There Is A Way To Live Forever and Affairs of a Cardio-Vascular Nature. Terry has also written and Directed three plays as well as co-written engineering textbooks for Pearson Educational Press. He plays the harmonica and with a little persuasion (not much persuasion, actually) will growl a song into a microphone. By day he teaches electrical installation at a further education college. He is married to Debra, the love of his life.
About Miles Nelson
Cover art: Miles Nelson
Miles was born and raised in Durham. He studied video game design at Teesside University, graduating in 2018. Since then, he has taken a step back from coding to work on his writing career, and has since led several masterclasses with New Writing North. He has been writing all his life, and whilst he is primarily a sci-fi writer who loves long journeys, strange worlds and all things space and stars, he has also had brief flings with the genres of fantasy and horror. He often writes stories highlighting the struggles faced by the LGBTQ+ community, and tries to include themes of empathy and inclusivity in all he does. Even then, though, Miles stands firm in the belief that this is not the defining element of his stories. And although he tries to represent his community as best he can, these themes are never the main focus; because he believes that (in most cases) a person shouldn’t be defined by their deviation from standard norms. Outside of scifi and fantasy, he has a deep-rooted fascination with natural history, and collects books told from unique perspectives (be they animal, alien, or mammoths from Mars). The older, the better; his oldest book is just about to turn 100! He currently lives in Durham City with his husband, Chris, who so far seems unworried by Miles’ rapidly growing collections.
About Simon Kewin
Cover image: Alison Buck
Simon Kewin is a pseudonym used by an infinite number of monkeys who operate from a secret location deep in the English countryside. Every now and then they produce a manuscript that reads as a complete novel with a beginning, a middle and an end. Sometimes even in that order. The Simon Kewin persona devised by the monkeys was born on the misty Isle of Man in the middle of the Irish Sea, at around the time The Beatles were twisting and shouting. He moved to the UK as a teenager, where he still resides. He is the author of over a hundred published short stories and poems, as well as a growing number of novels. In addition to fiction, he also writes computer software. The key thing, he finds, is not to get the two mixed up. He has a first class honours degree in English Literature, is married, and has two daughters.
Everyone from Jalard knew what a bloodoath was. Legendary characters often made such pacts with the gods. By drawing one’s own blood whilst speaking a vow, people became ‘Bloodsworn’. And in every tale where the oath was broken, the ending was always the same. The Bloodsworn died.
DARTFORD, KENT – 08 January 2021 – Elsewhen Press, an independent UK publisher specialising in Speculative Fiction, is delighted to announce the publication of Bloodsworn by Tej Turner, the first book in his new epic fantasy series The Avatars of Ruin, set on a mediaeval world with three moons, an extensive pantheon of deities, and gemstones with arcane powers.
Cover design: Alison Buck
Anna Smith Spark, author of the critically acclaimed grimdark epic fantasy trilogy Empires of Dust, said of Bloodsworn: “Classic epic fantasy. I enjoyed it enormously.”
Turner’s new series starts in the village of Jalard. It has been twelve years since The War of Ashes, but animosity still lingers between the nations of Sharma and Gavendara, and only a few souls have dared to cross the border between them. The villagers of Jalard live a bucolic existence, nestled within the hills of western Sharma and far away from the boundary which was once a warzone. To them, tales of bloodshed seem no more than distant fables. They have little contact with the outside world, apart from once a year when they are visited by representatives from the Academy who choose two of them to be taken away to their institute in the capital. To be Chosen is considered a great honour… of which most of Jalard’s children dream. But this year, the Academy representatives make an announcement which is so shocking it causes friction between the villagers, and some of them begin to suspect that all is not what it seems. Just where are they taking the Chosen, and why? Some of them intend to find out, but what they discover will change their lives forever and set them on a long and bloody path to seek vengeance…
Peter Buck, Editorial Director of Elsewhen Press said, “Tej has built an impressive world, plotting out the history, mythology, terrestrial and celestial landscapes, not forgetting multiple cultures. It is truly epic, but none of it is ever gratuitously ‘in your face’ – well, apart from a map which is right at the start of the book!”
Bloodsworn is available from today in eBook format and will be available in paperback from 8th March.
Notes for Editors
About Tej Turner
Tej Turner has spent much of his life on the move and he does not have any particular place he calls ‘home’. For a large period of his childhood he dwelt within the Westcountry of England, and he then moved to rural Wales to study Creative Writing and Film at Trinity College in Carmarthen, followed by a master’s degree at The University of Wales Lampeter.
After completing his studies, he moved to Cardiff, where he works as a chef by day and writes by moonlight. He is also an intermittent traveller who, every now and then, straps on a backpack and flies off to another part of the world to go on an adventure. So far, he has clocked up two years in Asia and a year in South America. He hopes to go on more and has his sights set on Central America next. When he travels, he takes a particular interest in historic sites, jungles, wildlife, native cultures, and mountains. He also spent some time volunteering at the Merazonia Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre in Ecuador, a place he hopes to return to someday.
Bloodsworn is his third published novel. His debut novel The Janus Cycle was published by Elsewhen Press in 2015, followed by his sequel Dinnusos Rises in 2017. Both of them were described as ‘gritty and surreal urban fantasy’. He has also had short stories published in various anthologies.
He keeps a travelblog on his website, where he also posts author-related news.
Anyone who knows Tej Turner will be excited to hear that his Epic Fantasy series, The Avatars of Ruin, will launch in the New Year.
This series has truly epic world building (see map below), history, and pantheon; and, of course, a thrilling story to tell following a group of people from the village of Jalard as they become embroiled in events way beyond their experience. The story starts with Bloodsworn.
“Everyone from Jalard knew what a bloodoath was. Legendary characters in the tales people told to their children often made such pacts with the gods. By drawing one’s own blood whilst speaking a vow, people became ‘Bloodsworn’. And in every tale where the oath was broken, the ending was always the same. The Bloodsworn died.”
When one of the villagers from Jalard feels compelled to swear a bloodoath, even knowing the tales of old doesn’t deter them from becoming Bloodsworn.
Here is the cover for Bloodsworn which represents the talents and skills of the Bloodsworn.
Cover design: Alison Buck
Bloodsworn will be published in digital formats on the 8th of January 2021 and in paperback on the 8th of March 2021. Reviewers and bloggers can contact us now for digital ARCs.
On her blog, All Things Jill-Elizabeth, Jill-Elizabeth recently reviewed The Janus Cycle and Dinnusos Rises by Tej Turner. The books were not her usual fare and she “found them a bit, well, grittier than my taste tends to run”. She freely admits that she decided not to finish reading either book, but felt compelled to write a review because to not do so wouldn’t “do justice to the author OR story … simply because I picked up a book outside of my comfort zone and it delivered what it promised, namely a story that I wasn’t exactly comfortable launching myself into.”
Artwork: Alison Buck
The Janus Cycle has multiple narrators (one per chapter) telling different aspects of the story from differing perspectives as they lead inevitably to the final event (that they all need to prevent). Jill comments that, as “the narrative progresses, you get glimpses of where you are and why you’re there, but there’s a certain amount of flexibility in the style that I struggled with a bit. I tend to prefer my novels in a more traditional format – I’m a bit old-school in that regard.” She adds “I like a slow-build, with lots of backstory and complicated, well-developed, characters. Janus has the latter in spades…” The stories that lead to the denouement are “told well” but unfortunately Jill couldn’t make it to the end.
Artwork: Alison Buck
Dinnusos Rises was, she says, “more my style”. However this too has multiple narrators and ultimately involved Jill feeling uncomfortable. As she says it “isn’t a comfort book, and I think stepping outside of my comfort zone is where I ran into issues with them. That’s me, not the books.” She found the characters “intriguing” and “colorfully presented without ever feeling either over- or under-done”. Tej, she says, “manages a tidy turn of phrase in his descriptions of people and their emotional baggage – there are some cleverly massaged psychological insights here, and those were fun to discover.” She adds “The writing is strong, as is the characterization”.
She concludes by saying that Tej is “a very talented individual”, describing his writing as “full-frontal, Gonzo storytelling”. Although they were quite far outside her usual reading taste, Jill says “they were very well crafted and the characters are deeply human for good and for ill. And on top of that, the cover illustrations are extremely cool, aren’t they?” As well as complimenting Tej’s writing and the covers of both books, Jill also described both Tej and Elsewhen Press as “exceedingly cool and easy to work with” – obviously a very discerning person!
You can, and should, read the whole of Jill’s review on her blog here.
Well, actually, it was a yurt but that wouldn’t have been alliterative.
Artwork: Alison Buck
Saturday the 8th July saw a vibrant and excited group of people from far and wide descend on the Milgi restaurant in Cardiff. Secreted at the back of the restaurant in an unexpected outdoor space is a yurt full of comfy sofas. Once Tej and friends had been let loose on it there were vines hanging down from the central opening and draped across tables, along with grapes too. But more importantly there was wine, I mean books. We were all there for the launch party for Dinnusos Rises by Tej Turner. It was a good turnout and a fantastic time was had by all. Before proceedings really got underway Tej was interviewed on camera, giving some thoughtful insight into his influences and motivation. Then, for some reason, it was decided to interview yours truly (fame at last!). What’s even more surprising is that any of my interview actually made it through the final edit.
If you were there you know what a great time we all had. If you weren’t there, you should now be kicking yourself at a missed opportunity. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and met some really lovely people. Thanks Tej.
Behind the scenes (literally) – Tej being interviewed on cameraA Tej talk – not be confused with a TED talk
If you want to watch the interview it’s on Youtube:
On SFcrowsnest, Vinca Russell has reviewed Dinnusos Rises, the latest novel from Tej Turner. Describing it as an “unusual blend of urban fantasy, mythology and self-discovery” Vinca says that the story gradually unfolds “until it reaches a final, fairly satisfying climax at the end”.
As in The Janus Cycle, Tej provides us with a separate narrator in each chapter, which Vinca found “to be less irritating than I expected and for this story it fitted nicely”. The inclusion of mythical figures, a ghost, and characters who have powers “ranging from time travel to dream walking, via being able to talk to animals and alter people’s emotions by playing music” “makes for an interesting mix, but I think I’d have liked it all to be explored in a bit more depth” says Vinca. Adding that it’s “great that Turner has populated his stories with characters that aren’t just white, heterosexual and cisgender – there should be more of that diversity in fiction” but sometimes explanations of such issues broke up the pacing of the story.
Vinca concludes by saying “I was pleasantly surprised” by Dinnusos Rises, observing that it “used the multiple POV narrative structure well and the plot tied up nicely”.
You can read Vinca’s full review on SFcrowsnest here.
On RisingShadow.net, Seregil of Rhiminee has just posted a marvellous review of Dinnusos Rises, the latest novel from Tej Turner. Although it is a sequel to his debut novel The Janus Cycle, it can also be read as a standalone novel. Seregil says he found The Janus Cycle captivating (“intriguing and insightful” was how he described it in his review) and he therefore had high expectations for Dinnusos Rises. In this review he writes that he is pleased to say that Dinnusos Rises met all of his expectations and “even managed to exceed them, because it’s just as rewarding and thought-provoking a reading experience as The Janus Cycle and then some”, adding that it is a “perfect companion” to The Janus Cycle.
Seregil describes Dinnusos Rises as “vibrant and intriguingly gritty”, saying that it is “one of the most fascinating novels of the year” with a “sophisticatedly complex story and colourful characters” which “will mesmerise readers who enjoy reading thought-provoking stories”.
He says it’s great that Tej “blends literary fiction with speculative fiction and spices the story with a touch of surrealism” to make a novel that takes readers on a “captivating and rewarding journey into a realistic yet surreal urban landscape where strange things happen and where reality meets fantasy in a powerful way”. Seregil compliments Tej’s characterisation as “excellent”, all of the characters are three-dimensional, have depth to them and each has a unique voice. He says that the characters “interact with each other in a believable way” and “nothing feels artificial or pretentious”. Using multiple viewpoints in a “vivid way” Tej “keeps the story fresh and interesting”.
Seregil says that Tej has a “genuine talent for writing stories that are spiced with gritty realism” exploring challenging themes in a realistic way while avoiding “melodramatic moments”; Tej counterbalances the harshness and grittiness with “moments of beauty and a few humorous elements”. Seregil says that one of the best things about the novel is that Tej “explores attraction, sex and different forms of sexuality in an admirably bold and realistic way”, and “dares to explore different kind of sexuality”.
In conclusion, Seregil describes Dinnusos Rises as a “prime example of what gifted authors are capable of achieving when they have courage to write about various themes and issues in a bold and insightful way”, and says it is “one of the best novels of the year” that “dares to be different and wonderfully showcases the diversity of the genre and its possibilities”. His summary is that Dinnusos Rises is “excellent in every possible way, because it’s a daring, thought-provoking and satisfyingly gritty novel”.
This was a very brief précis of Seregil’s review which you should read here.
Tej Turner does not have any particular place he would say he is ‘from’, as his family moved between various parts of England during his childhood. He eventually settled in Wales, where he studied Creative Writing and Film at Trinity College in Carmarthen, followed by a master’s degree at The University of Wales Lampeter. Since then, Tej has mostly resided in Cardiff, where he works as a chef by day and writes by moonlight. His childhood on the move seems to have rubbed off on him because when he is not in Cardiff, it is usually because he has strapped on a backpack and flown off to another part of the world to go on an adventure.
Tej Turner has spent much of his life on the move and he does not have any particular place he calls ‘home’. For a large period of his childhood he dwelt within the Westcountry of England, and he then moved to rural Wales to study Creative Writing and Film at Trinity College in Carmarthen, followed by a master’s degree at The University of Wales Lampeter.
