GYDO: Elizabeth May

Elizabeth May, Author of The Falconer

When I tell people a little about THE FALCONER, it often tends toward a bit of an awkward conversation that goes something like this:

Me: Well, it’s set in Scotland in 1844 and is about a young debutante from a wealthy family who hunts and kills faeries.

Other Person: O__O Faeries?

Me: Faeries.

OP: Like Tinkerbell.

Me: No. Not like Tinkerbell. Really.

OP: But why does she kill them?

Me: Because they are evil creatures who snatch people off the street and kill them.

OP: O_________O Oh. Okay.

Lately, I’m under the impression that the fae have had a lot of great PR since Peter Pan. Faeries in movies and books are sexy, mysterious, trickster-like figures – which isn’t necessarily wrong, but is only half the picture.

In legend, those sexy, mysterious, trickster-like figures used their wiles to lure people. Into the sea to drown. Onto a road at night to drain their victims of blood. They stole children. They seduced men and women into the mounds for what seemed like a few hours . . . only, hundreds of years had gone by. They went off in packs on wild horses and hunted people down like deer.

The number of different defences against faeries that exist in lore are a sign of how feared they once were. People wore iron for protection, or sacred symbols (the cross), holy water, bread or salt, bells, St. Johns Wort, or daisies. People walking alone at night turned their clothes inside out to avoid the fae, and if chased, they leaped across running water. Iron horseshoes were sometimes hung in various places around the house. Iron was occasionally put near sleeping babies to protect them from being snatched from their cradles.

Milk was put out in wee bowls to appease the fae. Honey, too. Sometimes jewellery, or clothing, or other shiny objects.

The fact remains that the fae were considered temperamental creatures. When they became intimate with a human, that affection was often upset by the fact that once the faery left, no other human relationship would ever compare. Humans wasted from a faery’s affection. But heaven forbid a human turn down one of the fae, because they are quick to anger, and quick to kill.

I conceived of and wrote THE FALCONER based on these Scottish myths and legends about the fae. I wrote them the way that I had always learned about them: as creatures to be feared. The fae in THE FALCONER are, thus, not gentle creatures. They are not romantic. They are conquerors. Predators. A warring society that finds value and strength in a slaughter.

Thus, there is one important rule that exists in Scottish lore and in THE FALCONER: never, ever trust the fae.

The Falconer Blurb
Edinburgh, Scotland, 1844
Lady Aileana Kameron, the only daughter of the Marquess of Douglas, was destined for a life carefully planned around Edinburgh’s social events – right up until a faery killed her mother.
Now it’s the 1844 winter season and Aileana slaughters faeries in secret, in between the endless round of parties, tea and balls. Armed with modified percussion pistols and explosives, she sheds her aristocratic facade every night to go hunting. She’s determined to track down the faery who murdered her mother, and to destroy any who prey on humans in the city’s many dark alleyways.
But the balance between high society and her private war is a delicate one, and as the fae infiltrate the ballroom and Aileana’s father returns home, she has decisions to make. How much is she willing to lose – and just how far will Aileana go for revenge?

Author Bio

Elizabeth May was born in California, where she lived during her formative years before moving to Scotland. She has a BA from Marlboro College in Vermont, and is currently working on her PhD at the University of St Andrews.  When she isn’t writing or doing academics, she can be found with a camera in hand; her photography has been published in an array of book covers and magazines.

She currently resides in Edinburgh, Scotland, with her fiancé, Mr May. THE FALCONER is her début novel, and will be published in September 2013 in the UK, and May 2014 in the US.

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