When I first began writing The Raven Chronicles, it started as a much smaller story than it has become today.
At its heart, it was simply a tale about a family. A father, a mother, and a boy trying to understand the strange world he had been born into. The first book, Setanta and the Lady by the Water, follows that quiet beginning. It is a story about discovery, about a young boy slowly realising that the stories whispered in Ireland’s hills and rivers may be far more real than anyone ever imagined.
But as Setanta’s journey continued, the world around him began to grow.
Ireland itself became a character in the story. Its rivers, bogs, tombs, and mountains began to reveal the older world beneath the surface. Creatures from Irish folklore stepped out of shadow. Ancient spirits stirred. The past refused to stay buried.
By the time we reach Setanta and the Hungry Ones, the story has widened into something larger. Setanta is no longer just trying to understand his family or his past. He is beginning to face the darker forces that move quietly through Irish legend.Now, with Setanta and the Blood King, the scale of the story has grown again. Ancient enemies rise, the dead gather in dark flocks, and creatures drawn from some of Ireland’s oldest myths begin to move openly across the land.What began as a small story about a boy and his family has become something far larger, a saga rooted in Irish mythology, where heroes, monsters, gods, and ancient legends all collide.