Good Monsters and Evil People {Guest #Author: Melanie Card +Giveaway}

Thank you Farrah for inviting me to your blog today. I’m excited to be here. With Halloween just around the corner, many children (young and old) will dress up as goblins, ghouls, and monsters. They will romp through the darkness, their disguises hiding them from evil spirits (depending on which lore your follow) and gather treats from strangers to take back to the warm security of their homes.

This strange mixture of fear and fun, the blurring between good and evil, monster and not monster is something I often think about, and as such is probably why I’m drawn to writing fantasy stories.

Literary theory states that monsters are representations of the “other” and historically the “other” was anyone who was physically different, a stranger. Stories were told about “others” who were evil, and threatened the lives and way of life of the good characters in the story. Fantasy fiction drew the “difference” even more strongly. These “others” really were monsters, demons and vampires, and terrifying creatures of darkness. They terrorized the good people of the story until the monsters were defeated (usually killed) or the good people were killed (making the tale a tragedy).

As fantasy fiction developed and people gained more experience with their real “other” storytellers started to question the assumed definition that all “others” were monsters. Which brings me back to Halloween, with the “good” kids dressing up as “evil” monsters and the assumption that the “strangers” handing out candy are good. These assumptions go against these long standing beliefs, making a one night only event where monsters are good and strangers are good.

In fantasy, for me, questioning the assumptions isn’t a one night event. Monsters aren’t just creatures of darkness or strangers. They are human and beautiful and sometimes your best friend. Good people, “humans” aren’t just those who look like us or are our friends, they are terrifying monsters in disguise.

In my debut YA fantasy novel, Ward Against Death, the definitions of good and evil and monster or not monster is blurred.

My heroine, Celia, starts off human. By traditional definition this would make her not a monster. But someone has murdered her and when the story opens she’s been risen from the dead by the hero, Ward, and begs him to help her solve her murder. So what does this now make Celia? She’s not alive but she isn’t dead, either. Is she still human? Is she now a monster? And does this change how we perceive her?

As well, my hero, Ward, is a necromancer. Because necromancy is magic over death, necromancers are often portrayed as evil, and usually cast as the villain of the story. Ward, however, is just a normal guy who wants to make enough of living so he doesn’t have to move back in with his parents. Necromancy isn’t evil, but it’s not good either. How each person uses it determines what it is.

And that’s what it comes down to for me: how each person behaves. Just like on Halloween, you never know if the child in the devil costume really is a devil or actually an angel. In fantasy the undead girl may not be a monster, and the boy with the ability to raise the dead might not be evil.

Thanks Farrah for having me today. There are tons of examples in fantasy and paranormal romance fiction of good monsters and evil people. Who are your favorites?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR…Melanie has always been drawn to story telling and can’t remember a time when
she wasn’t creating a story in her head.  Her early stories were adventures with fairies and dragons and sword swinging princesses.

Today she continues to spin tales of magic in lands near and far, while her cat sits on the edge of her desk and supervises. When she’s not writing, you can find her pretending to be other people with her local community theatre groups.

Connect with Melanie:  Facebook  |  Twitter @melaniecard  |  Goodreads | MelanieCard.com

Twenty-year-old Ward de’Ath expected this to be a simple job—bring a nobleman’s daughter back from the dead for fifteen minutes, let her family say good-bye, and launch his fledgling career as a necromancer. Goddess knows he can’t be a surgeon—the Quayestri already branded him a criminal for trying—so bringing people back from the dead it is.

But when Ward wakes the beautiful Celia Carlyle, he gets more than he bargained for. Insistent that she’s been murdered, Celia begs Ward to keep her alive and help her find justice. By the time she drags him out her bedroom window and into the sewers, Ward can’t bring himself to break his damned physician’s Oath and desert her.

However, nothing is as it seems—including Celia. One second, she’s treating Ward like sewage, the next she’s kissing him. And for a nobleman’s daughter, she sure has a lot of enemies. If he could just convince his heart to give up on the infuriating beauty, he might get out of this alive…

Read an Excerpt

• Genre: New Adult/Upper YA Fantasy
• Length: Novel – 285 pgs
• Release Date: August 2, 2011
• ePub ISBN: 978-1-937044-08-4
• Print ISBN: 978-1-937044-09-1

FROM THE BOOK FAERY REVIEWS…Thanks to Entangled Publishing and the author, we’re giving away ONE e-copy of Ward Against Death to a lucky reader of The Book Faery Reviewers. This giveaway is open internationally and runs only until 11:59pm on Halloween, Monday, October 31st.