Suelan — Sister of the Blade. The First Sister's Secretary and Harith's niece.
Sunny — Sunflower Hopechild. Court'esa from the Citadel who befriends R'shiel on their journey to the Grimfield.
Tarja — Tarjanian Tenragan. Son of the First Sister, Joyhinia. Captain of the Defenders.
Teggert — Former convict. Works as a cook in the Commandant's household in the Grimfield.
Unwin — Sister of the Blade at the Grimfield in charge of the Grimfield's Kitchens.
Verkin — Kriath Verkin. Commandant of Bordetown.
Wandear — Probate at the Citadel.
Wilem — Commandant of the Grimfield. Son of Mahina and married to Crisabelle.
Wylbir — A rebel. Former sergeant of the Defenders.
Zac — Prisoner in the Grimfield.
Harshini
Brak — Lord Brakandaran té Carn. Only other living half-breed Harshini.
Dranymire — Prime Demon bonded to the house of té Ortyn.
Glenanaran — Harshini sorcerer who leaves Sanctuary to help Brak.
Korandellan té Ortyn — King of the Harshini. Nephew of Lorandranek and brother of Shananara.
Lorandranek té Ortyn — Deceased. Former king of the Harshini, driven mad by the task laid on him by the gods.
Shananara — Her Royal Highness, Shananara té Ortyn. Daughter of Rorandelan. Sister of Korandellan.
The Gods
Brehn — God of Storms.
Cheltaran — God of Healing.
Dacendaran — God of Thieves.
Gimlorie — God of Music.
Jashia — God of Fire.
Jakerlon — God of Liars.
Jelanna — Goddess of Fertility.
Jondalup — God of Chance.
Kaelarn — God of the Oceans.
Kalianah — Goddess of Love.
Leylanan — Goddess of the Ironbrook River.
Maera — Goddess of the Glass River.
Patanan — God of Good Fortune.
Voden — God of Green Life.
Zegarnald — God of War.
Hythria
Almodavar — Hythrun Raider. Captain of Damin Wolfblade's Raiders.
Cyrus Eaglespike — Hythrun. Warlord of Dregian Province. Damin Wolfblade's distant cousin.
Damin Wolfblade — Warlord of Krakandar and heir to the High Prince's throne. Son of Princess Marla and nephew of Lernen Wolfblade, High Prince of Hythria.
Kalan — High Arrion of the Sorcerers' Collective in Hythria. Damin Wolfblade's half sister, also known as Kalan of Elasapine. She has a twin brother, Narvell Hawksword.
Lernen Wolfblade — High Prince of Hythria. Damin's uncle. A known pervert with no desire to produce an heir and rather exotic sexual appetites.
Marla Wolfblade — Princess of Hythria. Sister of Lernen Wolfblade and mother of Damin. Married 5 times she is also the mother of Kalan and Narvell Hawksword of Elasapine.
Rorin — Seneschal to the High Arrion of the Sorcerers' Collective.
Soothan — Captain of a Hythrun fishing boat.
Karien
Aringard — Queen of Karien. Married to Jasnoff and mother of Cratyn.
Charity — Karien noblewoman. Granddaughter of Baron Lodnan.
Chastity — Daughter of Terbolt. Adrina's Lady-In-Waiting. Formerly betrothed to Cratyn.
Cratyn — Crown Prince of Karien. Son of Jasnoff and Aringard.
Drendyn — Karien. Earl of Tiler's Pass. Cratyn's cousin and nephew of King Jasnoff.
Elfron — Karien priest sent to the Citadel with Lord Pieter to denounce the Sisterhood's handling of the pagans.
Garanus — Karien Priest sent to the Citadel with Terbolt, the Duke of Setenton.
Hope — Adrina's Lady-In-Waiting.
Jasnoff — King of Karien. Married to Aringard. Father of Cratyn and uncle to Drendyn.
Jaymes of Kirkland — Karien page attached to Lord Laetho's retinue. Son of Lord Laetho's Third Steward, he cannot by knighted due to his common birth.
Lord Pieter — Karien Envoy to Medalon.
Mikel of Kirkland — Karien page attached to Lord Laetho's retinue. Jaymes' younger brother. Appointed as Adrina's page following his escape from Medalon.
Overlord — See Xaphista.
Pacifica — Adrina's Lady-In-Waiting.
Terbolt — Karien. Duke of Setenton and father of Chastity.
Vonulus — Karien Priest appointed as Confessor to Adrina.
Xaphista — The Overlord. God of the Kariens.
Fardohnya
Adrina — Princess of Fardohnya. Eldest legitimate child of King Hablet and his first wife. Adrina's mother was beheaded for trying to assassinate her husband's mistress and her illegitimate son Tristan.
Cassandra — Princess of Fardohnya. Adrina's younger sister and second legitimate child of Hablet.
Hablet — King of the Fardohnyans. Has 14 illegitimate sons and thirteen legitimate daughters. He refuses to name his heir hoping one of his wives will give him a legitimate son.
Japinel — Fardohnyan tailor, alchemist and con-man.
Lecter Turon — Chamberlain of the Fardohnyan Court. Lector is a eunuch who makes his fortune collecting bribes.
Raven — Head of the Assassins' Guild that operates in Hythria and Fardohnya.
Teriahna — The Raven. Head of the Assassins' Guild.
Tamylan — Fardohnyan slave raised to serve Adrina. Lover of Tristan on Adrina's orders.
Tristan — Bastard son of King Hablet of Fardohnya. Adrina's half — brother and Captain of her Guard sent to Karien.
Illustrations by Stephanie Pui-Mun Law
Demon
Demons Molding into Dragon
Dragon in Flight
Detail from Cover: Leaving Sanctuary
Detail from Cover: Sanctuary
Cover Detail of Sanctuary
Cover Detail: R'shiel and Demons
Detail from Cover: R'shiel and Demons
Sketch for Demon
Sketch for Demon
Interview with
Jennifer Fallon
By Stephanie Smith,
Editor of The Demon Child Trilogy
1. Was Medalon your first manuscript or do you still have some in the “bottom drawer”?
The first book I wrote was when I was 14. It was an outback murder mystery and it's long gone, which is probably a good thing. The next piece I wrote was a short story about a girl in a mental institution. I still have that one. I wrote a Mills and Boon when I was 20, which was duly rejected (thank God!) and then I started another four or five novels before writing my first full sci-fi/fantasy effort. I submitted none of them for publication until I wrote Medalon, which was the first novel I felt confident was worth trying to get published.
2. Are your characters based on any specific people in your life? Do your family and friends think that you have based characters on them? Does this make your relationships different from when you had not published any books?
Not really, although some people tell me that they can see certain characteristics in some of the characters. I frequently borrow people's names and they are usually delighted to be included. Mostly I get requests for them to be tall dashing heroes, or gorgeous princesses... one friend of my son's specifically asked if he could “get the girl” when I asked if I could I borrow his name. Being published has made little difference to my relationships. Most people I know seemed to be much more confident than I ever was that I would get published.
3. Where did you go to school? Did any of your teachers influence you as a writer? Do you think the overall “philosophy” of the school had an influence on your later career decisions?
I went to a number of schools but did all my high schooling at Catholic Girls High in Braddon, in the Australian Capital Territory. I had a terrible time at school. I was a loner with few friends and have no happy memories of school at all. At my first primary school I was beaten savagely by a nun, and my second, I was bullied unmercifully, and the others just
blur into misery. I remember returning to school the day after my mother died, when I was 13, being confident that at least on that day, the sympathy vote would mean the others would leave me alone.
4. Medalon sets the scene with the Sisterhood, ruled by R'shiel's mother, as a rigid bureaucratic religion. Do you think a religion run by women would be like this, or is any religion likely to become rigidly controlling?
I have issues with most organised religions. I think they have all lost the plot. Generally, I think any organisation arrogant enough to claim it knows the mind of God is bound to run into trouble sooner or later.
5. Tarja and Damin are, of course, favourites of your female fans. I am sure they would like to know if you know any “real” Tarjas and Damins! (Sorry, just had to ask this one!)
I wish! No, they are total fantasies... if I knew any guys like that, I wouldn't spend all my time in front of a computer imagining them!
6. Tarja and R'shiel have a complex relationship. They have been brought up by their mother as brother and sister. Then they discover that R'shiel is from a totally different family. Tarja is unsure who his father is, although his mother is still the same person. Then, because of interference from the gods, they begin to fall in love. Because of Tarja's near-death experience when R'shiel saved him by using demons, Tarja then begins to hate her. Are human relationships quite so complex, in your experience?
Absolutely. I think there is no such thing as a “simple” human relationship and that all of us go through different phases which alter how we react to other people. The effect is extreme in Tarja and R'shiel's case, but by no means is it unique.
7. The politics of Medalon, Karien, Fardohnya, etc, are also quite complex. Did you base any particular country on your knowledge of this world?
Yes and no. I have always been interested in politics so I just sort of played a bit of political “what if” based around a few different premises, i.e., ruled by women, by warlords, kings, etc...
8. Did you fully realise the landscape politically, emotionally and socially before beginning to write the trilogy?
I had a pretty good idea of the overall scene, but a lot of the detail evolved as I wrote.
9. Do you think of your world as a parallel world, a future world or an alien land? Or something else entirely?
Probably a parallel world, although in the very beginning, Medalon was a world colonised by humans far in the future.
10. Did you have characters act in certain ways in the first book that you would have wanted to change when you began to write the second book? Did you wish you had begun certain plotlines earlier?
I was fortunate in that I was writing Book Three before Book One went to print, so I was able to sneak a few things in at the last minute that gave the series a much more coherent feel than it would have had I started Book Three any later. Generally, though, I'm happy with the way it resolved itself.
11. Change through the three books is by individual action, military might and political dealing and chicanery. Is this how you see world politics and change in our societies in the present day?
Absolutely! I believe politics is a far more powerful force than war, which is why my character only have two major battles, neither of which are particularly glorious. I think much more is achieved (and destroyed) through politics than by any other form of manipulation.
12. What are you writing next?
I am working on a new trilogy called Second Sons. It is much darker than The Demon Child Trilogy and follows the story of a young man who must prove that a goddess doesn't exist, in order to save his world. It is very complex and I am (at the time of writing) working on the final draft of Book One.
13. Who are you reading at the moment? What are your favourite books?
I'm reading Betrayal by Fiona McIntosh. Have just finished The Magicians' Guild by another first-time author, Trudi Canavan.
14. Why do you think fantasy is one of the fastest-growing genres in the world today? Do you think there are more males than females reading the genre, or vice versa... or is it about an even split?
I think the more complex our world gets, the more we yearn for a simpler world, where problems are solved through the courage and resources of people, rather than relying on technology. As for the gender bias, I'm not really sure. I seem to have a fair smattering of both male and female readers.
15. Has fantasy or science-fiction been your favourite reading through your life? Do you have any books in either of these genres that you feel helped to change your life in any particular direction?
I have always been a devoted sci-fi fan. I re-read the Lensmen series so many times I wore it out. I discovered fantasy a lot later, but find that I love losing myself in places other than the world I live in - no doubt a hangover from my childhood.
16. Do you have any advice for readers who might want to ask how to begin writing, and how to get published?
Write!!!!! I meet so many people who tell me they have a great idea for a book, but they never get around to putting it on paper. In my opinion, the writers who will eventually get published are those for whom writing is an obsession. These are the writers who NEVER give up. Other than that, my advice is to get an agent, and develop a very thick hide!
Visit www.voyageronline.com.au where Jennifer Fallon answers more questions from the multimedia department of HarperCollinsPublishers, Australia.
Reading Notes
1. Tarja wakes to find the geas that made him love R'shiel no longer in place. Why is his reaction so ambivalent?
2. R'shiel realises she cannot face Xaphista head on, but must find a more subtle way of breaking his power? What does she use and why is it so effective?
3. Damin decides to let the son of his enemy live, to be raised in the house of Tejat Lionsclaw. Why does he do this?
4. Why is it so important to Brak that Damin Wolfblade believes Mikel is dead, and why does he go to such trouble to prevent Damin from striking the killing blow?
5. Discuss the changes likely to happen in the Citadel with the return of the Harshini.
6. With the disbursement of the Sisterhood, Garet Warner wishes to give Medalon a democratic government. Discuss some of the problems likely to arise during this period.
7. In the end, R'shiel chooses not to kill Loclon, but to let him live on the Isle of Slarn. Is this a fitting punishment?
8. Shananara offers to place Harshini advisors in the courts of each ruler, to prevent further war. How would this affect each nation?
9. When the story ends, R'shiel plans to retrieve Mikel from the God of Music. What do you think the boy's reaction would be to all that has happened to him?
10. Will Death release Brak?
About the Author
Jennifer Fallon was born in Melbourne, Australia, and at the age of 11 moved to the nation's capital, Canberra, when her father, a senior public servant in the Defence Department, was transferred. She lived in and around Canberra for about eight years. She is the ninth child in a family of 13 girls.
Jennifer has lived in the 'Top End' of Australia, the Northern Territory, since 1980, although at present she is based in Melbourne for work commitments. She has two daughters and a son. Over the years, Jennifer has also had 32 foster children. Friends refer to her home as 'the ashram' due to the large number of stray teenagers that still inhabit her house at irregular intervals.
Jennifer has worked in a wide variety of occupations and at present is a director of Business Innovations Group Pty Ltd, and the main creative force behind Mr Big, the Web Wizard. She is an accredited workplace trainer and also a partner in the US company CISDesigns. She currently works as a consultant in e-commerce and VoIP and travels around Australia for her work. She is a member of the Business & Professional Women's Association, the Phenomenal Women of the Web Association and is often in demand as a guest speaker.
Like many other aspiring writers, in 1981 Jennifer wrote a Mills & Boon that dutifully got rejected. (She later burned the manuscript.) She cha
nged to fantasy in 1990 when she decided she would be better writing something for herself, rather than trying to please everyone else. In 1995, Jennifer decided to either get published by the year 2000 or give up writing and get a real job. Her first series, The Demon Child Trilogy, was released in August 2000 and hit the bestseller list the first week it was released.
Her first e-book, Medalon, Book One of The Demon Child Trilogy, was released globally as an e-book by PerfectBound in May 2001. Book Two, Treason Keep, was released in September 2001.
Visit her website at www.jenniferfallon.com.
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