“Supernatural alternate histories don’t come much more suspenseful or fully realized than this impressive series debut from Dixen…. Dixen excels at concocting unexpected detours and jaw-dropping cliffhangers. Anne Rice fans will be especially enthralled.” –Publishers Weekly
“With all of the intricacies of Castlevania, readers explore an alternate France where vampyres have taken over and are high nobility, while most humans are commoners…Fantasy fans who like their speculative fiction filled with vampyre aristocrats and plenty of twists along the way will enjoy taking a bite out of this series starter.” –Library Journal
“Victor Dixen’s THE COURT OF SHADOWS is an entirely original version of a world ruled by vampires. His protagonist, Jeanne, makes choices that are genuinely unpredictable as she seeks vengeance for the deaths of her family. I could not put this book down.” –Charlaine Harris, author of All the Dead Shall Weep
A fiery heroine seeks vengeance against a royal court of deadly vampires in this epic alternate history set in lavish Versailles.
Two-time winner of the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire, Victor Dixen stands at the forefront historical horror fantasy in France. Now, thanks to an impeccable translation by Françoise Bui, English readers will have the opportunity to experience Dixen’s thrilling writing firsthand. THE COURT OF SHADOWS: Vampyria Saga Book One will be published in hardcover by Amazon Crossing on September 19, 2023.
Victor Dixen, who grew up in Versailles, has long been interested in the Grand Siècle, which shaped France into what it is today: centralization of power, development of architecture and the arts, the rise of gastronomy, and the art of living. It’s a pivotal moment in French history that brims with paradoxes. It’s the time of Descartes, of Pascal, and of the advent of reason, which prefigured the Age of Enlightenment. But paradoxically, it’s also an age of darkness, with an incredible resurgence of superstitions and of the occult. Witchcraft was never more practiced in France than under Louis XIV, while in Spain, the Inquisition reached its sinister apogee, and in America, suspected witches were burned in Salem.
In THE COURT OF SHADOWS, Dixen has composed a baroque and horrifying alternate history of this pivotal period in history. “Essentially, this story is a way for me to tackle an icon that has always fascinated me, the vampire,” says Dixen. “The vampire is, in fact, the supreme literary creation, truly immortal, always reborn from its ashes, from century to century, from book to book.” In writing THE COURT OF SHADOWS, Dixen was inspired by Anne Rice for her intoxicating Gothic ambiance and characters with psychological depth; Alexandre Dumas for his breadth of epic adventure; and Quentin Tarantino for his frenzied pacing, the eruption of “pop” patterns in the narrative, and psychological tension.
We have gathered an impressive group of bloggers who will post reviews, offer giveaways, share excerpts, and more, starting on September 19th, and we hope you will join us!
Tuesday, September 19 – LEXIJAVA
Tuesday, September 19 – MONIKA’S BOOK BLOG
Wednesday, September 20 – ELSIE QUAIL WRITES
Thursday, September 21 – BOOKS, LOVE AND UNDERSTANDING
Friday, September 22 – GREEN EYED GIRL 0704
Monday, September 25 – SUZY APPROVED BOOK REVIEWS
Tuesday, September 26 – DIVE INTO A GOOD BOOK
Wednesday, September 27 – TINA MAY READS
Thursday, September 28 – BOOKISH MARIE
Friday, September 29 – READING FOR THE SEASONS
Saturday, September 30 – MISS LARIS
Monday, October 2 – WHAT JESSIE READS
Monday, October 2 – PAPERBACK HART
Tuesday, October 3 – PUNKER’S FICTION READS
Tuesday, October 3 – NK LITERARY NERD
Tuesday, October 3 – NAAYTASH READS
Wednesday, October 4 – SUBAKKA BOOKSTUFF
Thursday, October 5 – AMY’S BOOKET LIST
Friday, October 6 – NURSE BOOKIE
Monday, October 9 – TALI’S LIBRARY
Monday, October 9 – LIVING MY BEST BOOK LIFE
Monday, October 9 – MY BOOK COVE
Tuesday, October 10 – GONE WITH FLYNN
Tuesday, October 10 – JOYFUL READER
Wednesday, October 11 – CELIA McMAHON READS
Thursday, October 12 – BOOKS AND COFFEE MX
Friday, October 13 – DREAMING IN PAGES
Friday, October 13 – TANVIS READ VENTURES
Monday, October 16 – BOOKISH CORNERR
Monday, October 16 – BOOKPHENOMENA
Tuesday, October 17 – A LITTLE BIBLIO
Tuesday, October 17 – BOUVIE BOOKS
Wednesday, October 18 – THE BOY WHO READS BOOKS
Wednesday, October 18 – BOOKS AND BASILISKS
Thursday, October 19 – STEPH HORROR MAMA 03
Thursday, October 19 – BALANCING BOOKS AND BEAUTIES
