Black City Saint is a tale of a dragon slain by an ancient spear, its soul living inside Nick Medea. Nick himself is a dead guy who isn’t dead in a city overrun by gangsters. You get a vibe directly out of Sin City, but it’s the 1920s Chicago in Richard Knaak’s action-packed Urban Fantasy Noir where the Fairie and Human worlds collide.
We’ve had the pleasure of talking to Richard A. Knaak about his new book due to be released tomorrow.
First of all can you tell us a bit about Black City Saint?
Black City Saint takes place at the height of Prohibition, shortly after Al Capone comes into the scene. However, while most people are focused on the bootlegger wars, Nick Medea is concentrating on seeking out any hint of supernatural activity. Although supposedly a ghost chaser, he’s actually the reluctant guardian of the gateway between our world and that of Feirie. He is responsible for making certain that elements on both sides of the Gate — especially the Wyld, the worst of the Feiriefolk — don’t upset the balance. Nick has followed the gateway for centuries as it moved of its own accord from one location to another before shifting to Chicago. He has no choice in that matter. After all, he slew the original guardian, a dragon, centuries ago when Nick was not Nick but rather the man who would become St. George. ‘Slew’ is perhaps the wrong term, too, for the essence of the dragon now resides in him and is ever seeking to find a way to permanently take control.
Of course those aren’t Nick’s only problems. There is the trouble of trying to keep the woman he loves from dying yet again, not to mention the fact that his own past is literally coming back to haunt him.
What are your expectations now that Black City Saint is being published?
Thus far, it seems to be receiving good advance reviews, so I’m hoping that readers will pick it up and enjoy it. That’s all any author should expect. I had a terrific time writing it and already have plans for the sequel.
How did you come up with the idea?
I’ve always been fascinated by the legend of St. George and the Dragon and so I began to think about how I could take that legend and turn it on its head. Notions concerning St. George’s state of mind and how they relate to the Dragon began to formulate. I wanted to show him as a very human saint, not a godly one. I think his story can reverberate better that way. Then, I decided to throw in elements that could be said to be as far away from the legend as one could get.
Set in the 1920s Chicago against the backdrop of Capone vs. Moran. Why did you choose this as the setting?
Having grown up near Chicago, I’m very familiar with the stories concerning the Prohibition years. When I thought about where I wanted to drop St. George, I thought why not put him into the worst of times, where he’ll have to question not only the state of humanity, but his own beliefs.
If a book can give away a vibe I surely get a very black & white movie type of vibe from this one. Is that just me or something you’ve purposely tried to achieve?
The noir mood is definitely intended. I think it gives a flavor the period. I’m a big fan of movies like the Maltese Falcon and so it shouldn’t be surprising that the tone of those movies infiltrates my writing.
Can you tell us a bit about your main protagonist Nick Medea and why you think he is the perfect character for this story?
As mentioned, Nick is, or rather, was, St. George. Just as legend says, he slew the dragon, saved the princess, and sometime afterward, was betrayed by the emperor he thought was his friend and executed. Not a past that has left Nick a very complacent saint, a fact only strengthened by the fact that he has learned he cannot trust anyone. He doesn’t like the thought of being anyone’s servant or pawn, especially since it too often means the death of others.
Can you tell us a bit about the cover and how it came about? How involved were you in the process?
Curiously, I had little to do with this cover, although in general I’ve always been at least able to suggest something. What is really fascinating is that the cover you see was intended simply as a temp one until an artist could come up with a final idea. However, Jacqueline Nasso Cooke, the designer, did such a terrific job that everyone agreed that we couldn’t have something better. It perfectly catches the story and the time period. I’ve had some great covers, but I think this is one of my very favorites.
The book stands very good on its own, but there is also room for a follow up. Any plans?
Although I did make sure to write it to stand alone, I’m certainly hoping to return. There is one very important story that would require an arc of two to three more books. Beyond that, there are a number of other directions I can foresee. We’ll see!
How do you go about the marketing aspect and especially related to your online presence? Anything you’ve seen work better than other things?
Due to other factors, I am not able to get around as much as I would like, but I try to have a strong presence online. I continually reach out not only to sites, but also directly to the readers. I am always in contact with my readers in one way or another and I feel that is essential. Meanwhile, I have some terrific people at Pyr, including Jill Maxick, Jake Bonar, Lisa Michalski handling things over there and they’ve done a great job spreading the word on their end from what I’ve seen.
What’s next? Do you have more new and exciting projects you’re working on?
Well, as I mentioned, I’m planning the sequel to BLACK CITY SAINT. I have a Pathfinder novel coming out late this year. I’ve also got a number of other projects, including KNIGHTS OF THE FROST, the first in a new trilogy for my long-running Dragonrealm series. There’s also the sequel to Dragon Mound. After that, there’s more, but not concrete enough to announce just yet.
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Interview by Dag Rambraut – SFFWorld.com © 2016
