Dark Urban Fantasy
Date Published: 05-02-2022
The wizard, known simply as Jarrod, has been living covertly amongst humans for over a decade. As a Professor at the University of Magic on his own planet, Prushal, he is ostensibly on Earth to research humanity’s ancient magic. But the university’s council no longer trust his motives and want him back.
Jarrod’s peaceful guise as an expert in historical artefacts is shattered as he becomes embroiled in a series of gruesome demonic murders where he becomes the prime suspect. With pressure mounting, he doesn’t have much time to confront the demon’s knight, and clear his name. An unlikely alliance forms between Jarrod and Detective Widcombe as she and the wizard work to uncover the real murderer and the evil he is unleashing on mankind.
What is the hardest part of writing your books?
The first draft of ‘Jarrod and the Demon’s Knight’ took three months to write. The hardest part of the novel’s creation was reading a professional manuscript critique. As an author, we become attached to our work and love it for all of its faults. The critique made me face the errors, plot holes and general failings in my craft. Ultimately, the story became stronger, a richer tapestry of woven prose and the characters eliciting stronger emotions from the readers. But, the critique always hurts.
What songs are most played on your Ipod?
Ipod, that’s a tad retro… Spotify says my most frequent tracks are from Suzanne Vega, Eurythmics, Tina Turner, Queen, Christina Perri, Garbage, Texas, Fiona Apple and general 80-90 stuff. Sort of showing my age here.
Do you have critique partners or beta readers?
I have a couple of beta readers, one being my wife. They all tell me how it is and I listen to them. After that, I use a professional critique service. For ‘Jarrod and the Demon’s Knight’, I used a professional via Jericho Writers. For my most recent manuscript (a vigilante novel), I used Reedsy.com and having learnt a lot over the years I have arranged for my 5 book science fiction series to be re-edited in March 2023. I made the rookie mistake of believing a proofread was good enough.
Critiques are not cheap and they hurt like hell, but they are worth it.
What book are you reading now?
I have just put down ‘The Real Witches Handbook’ by Kate West after only reading a third of it. There is nothing wrong with the book, it and a pile of other witchcraft related tomes are in my research pile. I was going to write a witch based horror novel, but my wife has just beta-read ‘Jarrod and the Dark Cardinal’ and it spooked her, it’s a bit dark. So I’ve decided to write something lighter instead.
How did you start your writing career?
After two failed attempts at writing a science fiction novel, and two decades later, I wrote ‘Mineran Influence’. It is about how Sam Shepard discovers aliens in rural Wales, how this changes his life, the truths that come out and the subsequent perils he faces.
I would say the book insisted on being written, which is true, but the published novel is nothing like the ones I tried to write years earlier.
Tell us about your next release.
I have two manuscripts in production. ‘Vigilante’s Wrath’ has been through a copyedit-critique and needs a lot of work to bring it up to standard. This book is about an anti-hero, a deadly vigilante who mistakenly rescues a girl. ‘Jarrod and the Dark Cardinal’ is the second standalone novel in the Jarrod series. As I mentioned earlier, it is a bit dark and deals with demons, sacrifices and such like.
About the Author
P N Burrows lives on a rather wet mountain in rural Wales. Phil has worked in a variety of roles over the years from IT Consultant to a Business Advisor. In his spare time, he loves to read and particularly enjoys crime thrillers. He also enjoys working his way through a comprehensive bucket list that he and his partner have created; they can frequently be found dancing the Lindy Hop.
P N Burrows has also written a 5 book science fiction series starting with the Mineran Influence and a children’s diversity picture called Emily and Her Mums.
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