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Veil series

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The Myth Hunters (The Veil -1) by Christopher Golden

The Myth Hunters (The Veil #1) by Christopher Golden

The Veil series by Christopher Golden.

Genres and Sub-Genres[]

Dark Fantasy, Urban Fantasy

Series Description or Overview[]

In this enthralling series from bestselling author Christopher Golden, one man is drawn into a realm just across the veil from our own, where every captivating myth and fairy tale is true, the vanished exist—and every fear is founded. ~ Veil - Christopher Golden

In this enthralling new tale from bestselling author Christopher Golden, one man is drawn into a realm just across the veil from our own, where every captivating myth and fairy tale is true, the vanished exist-and every fear is founded…. Yielding to his father's wishes, Oliver Bascombe abandoned his dream of being an actor and joined the family law firm. Now he will marry a lovely young woman bearing the Bascombe stamp of approval. But on the eve of his wedding, a blizzard sweeps in-bringing with it an icy legend who calls into question everything Oliver believes about the world and his place in it…. Pursued by a murderous creature who heeds no boundaries, Jack Frost needs Oliver's help to save both himself and his world—an alternate reality slowly being displaced by our own. To help him, Oliver Bascombe, attorney-at-law, will have to become Oliver Bascombe, adventurer, hero-and hunted. So begins a magnificent journey where he straddles two realities…and where, even amid danger, Oliver finds freedom for the very first time.

Themes[]

  • every myth and folktale is real

Books in Series[]

Veil series: 

  1. The Myth Hunters (2006)
  2. The Borderkind (2007)
  3. The Lost Ones (2008)

World Building[]

There are dozens of fairy tale creatures including those from many cultures...

Setting:[]

  • Our World: Wessex County, Maine
  • Borderkind: alternate reality where every myth and legend is real
  • Two Kingdoms: Euphrasia and Yucatazaca, separated from the human world by the magical Veil—a land populated by the myths, legends & folklore of our various cultures. Also found there are humans that went missing from our world, or they descendants, like Amelia Earhart's descendants.

Places:

  • Twillig’s Gorge:
  • Kitteridge: Town in Maine, "a beautiful town, replete with both wealth and the culture that had made it an artists' colony for decades before the artists couldn't afford to live there anymore."
  • Perinthia: The capital of Euphrasia
  • Truce Road: Road to Perinthia
  • Cottingsley: Small town in Maine.
  • Atlantic Bridge: Bridge that spans a river behind the veil that represents the Atlantic Ocean.
  • Chadbourne Bridge:
  • Battersea Park:
  • London:
  • Paris:
  • Scotland:
  • New York:
  • San Francisco:
  • Trafalgar Square:
  • Canada House:
  • Palenque:
  • Jokao:
  • Virginia:
  • Atlanta:
  • Ufland:
  • Sakai:
  • Rulem:
  • Greece:
  • Jamestown, Virginia:

Supernatural Elements:[]

✥ Magical sword, fox-shifter, shape changers, man made of pure ice, winged killers, albino giants, monsters, sorcerers, palace dungeon, alternate reality, other side of the Veil, demons in cherry trees, Greek gods, trolls, goblins, giants,

  • Mythic beings: Jack Frost, Kitsune, Sandman, Dustman, La Dormette, Wee Willie Winkee, Sandmen, Johnny Appleseed (harvest god), . . .

Glossary:[]

  • Veil: a magic border that is difficult to cross
  • Myth Hunters: group known as Myth Hunters, a cadre who intend to kill all of what Frost calls "the Borderkind"
  • Borderkind: mythical beings able to cross the Veil that lies between our world and theirs.
  • Kitsune: Japanese fox-woman with an agenda of her own
  • Sandman: The original Sandman legend that eats the eyes of children who are not asleep when he visits them at night.
  • Sandmen: a bunch of Red Caps (aka Bloody Caps), who went to work for him a long time ago in an effort to save their own butts and help sanitize his legend
  • Dustman: a being who in in the folklore of England protects children while their sleeping.
  • Lost Ones: human beings who accidentally crossed the Veil and are now forever trapped in the realm of the legendary.
  • Legend-Born: ages-old prophesied saviors of the Lost Ones—and the key to a war that threatens the existence of the Borderkind and the hope of the Lost Ones—possibly the Bascombe twins.

WORLD[]

✥ In “The Myth Hunters”, that alternate reality is known as the Two Kingdoms, a land populated by the myths, legends & folklore (also known as Borderkind) of our various cultures, which is separated from ‘our world’ by the Veil. The world of the Two Kingdoms is beautifully crafted, possessing an almost child-like wonder à la Alice In Wonderland, inhabited by an array of memorable creatures based on real-life mythology both commonly known and obscure. . . Alternating between the two realities, “The Myth Hunters” flows along at a great tempo, interjecting elements of suspense, mystery and visceral horror alongside the fantastical in a tale brimming with plenty of action, drama and surprises, all told with a flair that just makes the words come vividly to life.

Protagonist:[]

✥ The key to appreciating this trilogy is to realize that Oliver is an Everyone, not a Superman. As Golden says according that sword: 'The Sword of Hunyadi hung heavily at his side. Though he had acquitted himself well with it back on Canna Island, he felt foolish carrying the thing. He was no warrior. No hero. He was just a smartass New England lawyer who wished he was an actor.' Oliver muddles through doing the best he can -- a refreshing change from the sword-wielding Hero who kills everything with a single stroke of His Mighty Broadsword without working up a sweat. And he looks at the world this side of The Veil with a sense and wonder. Oliver truly grows as a person in the course of this novel -- here, separated from everything he knew in the other world, he truly is aware of who he is. ~ Greennam Reviews

Sidekick[]

  • Name: / What: / Sidekick-to: / About: / Book First Seen:

Recurring Characters[]

more Chars: The Veil Series

Characters What About
Oliver Bascombe Collette Twin brother brought through the Veil by Jack Frost to help the Borderkind; he must be destroyed for enemies to reach their goals;
Collette Bascombe Oliver's Twin sister abducted and held prisoner
Jack Frost legendary spirit of cold and snow hunted by a killer known as the Falconer; brings liver through the Veil;
Kitsune Japanese fox-woman join with Oliver and Jack Frost; agenda of her own
Falconer Killer, Myth Hunter hunting Jack Frost
Sandman murderous being escaped his cage, killed his guards; his escape is bad news for Oliver's family; (not the kindly dream-entity)
Det. Ted Halliwell Detective investigates Oliver's disappearance, finds similar cases in other places;
professor knowledge of the land beyond the Veil may be invaluable
Julianna Whitney fiancé Oliver disappeared before the wedding; teams with Det. Ted Halliwell;
Jenny Greenteeth A borderkind
Marra A Hunter being with the body of a human and the head of a ram
Wayland Smith
Ty’Lis Atlantean sorcerer
Blue Jay,
Max Bascombe Oliver’s father intimidating; died, Detective Ted Halliwell adds it to his case of the missing Oliver & Collette;
Sara Halliwell Ted Halliwell's daughter
Cheval Bayard

To expand the table, in Edit–Visual mode, right-press on a Row of the table (Control-press on a Mac)—choose add Row or Column. Or, in Source Mode: copy-paste rows.

Christopher Golden

Christopher Golden

Author[]

Christopher Golden

Bio: Christopher Golden was voted the third most popular science fiction author of the year 2000 by the readers of SFX magazine. He is the author of several dark fantasy novels and comic books in addition to numerous Buffy the Vampire Slayer adult novels and reference books which have made him a major UK bestseller.

Cover Artist[]

Artist:

Publishing Information[]

Cover Blurbs[]

✤ BOOK ONE BLURB—The Myth Hunters (2006): In this enthralling new tale from bestselling author Christopher Golden, one man is drawn into a realm just across the veil from our own, where every captivating myth and fairy tale is true, the vanished exist-and every fear is founded…. Yielding to his father's wishes, Oliver Bascombe abandoned his dream of being an actor and joined the family law firm. Now he will marry a lovely young woman bearing the Bascombe stamp of approval. But on the eve of his wedding, a blizzard sweeps in-bringing with it an icy legend who calls into question everything Oliver believes about the world and his place in it…. Pursued by a murderous creature who heeds no boundaries, Jack Frost needs Oliver's help to save both himself and his world—an alternate reality slowly being displaced by our own. To help him, Oliver Bascombe, attorney-at-law, will have to become Oliver Bascombe, adventurer, hero-and hunted. So begins a magnificent journey where he straddles two realities…and where, even amid danger, Oliver finds freedom for the very first time.

✤ BOOK TWO BLURB—The Borderkind (2007): For centuries they lived amongst us. The frightful and wondrous, the angelic and bloodthirsty. Living in a reality just beyond the Veil, humanity's myths and legends are caught in a struggle for their very survival—against hunters far more powerful than they are. Into this struggle has stepped a New England lawyer who once wanted to be an actor—a man who both longs for the mortal woman he was to marry and is desperate to rescue the sister who's been taken hostage. Neither hero nor warrior, Oliver Bascombe now finds himself brandishing a magical sword, walking in the company of a woman who sometimes appears as a fox and a man made of pure ice, and dueling with albino giants and winged killers. For in the world of the Borderkind—and the realms that exist beyond it—Oliver is discovering just how vulnerable are humankind's myths, the dire consequences of their extinction, and the reason he was chosen to save them.

✤ BOOK THREE BLURB—The Lost Ones (2008): Bestselling author Christopher Golden brings his epic, innovative trilogy, the Veil, to an astonishing conclusion as the mythic realm of heroes and monsters becomes the site of humanity's last—and greatest—showdown. In the world of the legendary, every myth and folktale is real. That is what Oliver Bascombe learned on the other side of the Veil, where humanity's legends have hidden away for centuries. But even legends have legends, and Oliver has learned of a prophecy that many believe he and his sister, Collette, have come to the Two Kingdoms to fulfill. Before they can discover the truth, the Bascombe siblings must help to stop an apocalyptic war that threatens to destroy the Two Kingdoms, unravel a conspiracy, and prevent a powerful sorcerer from severing the world of humans from the realm of the legendary forever. But first Oliver will have to plot an escape from an impregnable palace dungeon where he and his allies have been imprisoned . . . for regicide. As old heroes and friends ally themselves for one last battle, even older enemies stand arrayed against them. Is humanity ready to face its legends head-on? For Oliver Bascombe, the price may be dearer than even he could ever imagine. ~ The Lost Ones (Veil, book 3) FF

First Sentences[]

  1. The Myth Hunters: The promise of winter's first snowfall whispered across the low-slung evening sky.
  2. The Borderkind: Fire engulfed the church, radiating such heat that the show falling around it was vaporized instantly.
  3. The Lost Ones: Oliver Bascombe paced his dungeon cell, wounding when hi captors would decide to kill him and how they would do it.

Quotes[]

Read Alikes (suggestions)[]

See Category links at bottom of page

Awards[]

Trivia[]

Notes[]

But first, let's Christopher set something straight. One of the endearing tropes of fantasy is that swords are magical. Indeed why would a sword exist if it wasn't magical? Not the one here, as he notes in an email conversation I had with him:

It's NOT magical. :)
You'll see it as you're reading, but it's the sword that King Hunyadi used when he was a warrior, and that the king later gave as a gift to Professor Koenig, the previous human 'intruder' who managed to convince the monarchs of both kingdoms to give him a year to prove himself trustworthy. Koenig gave it to Oliver as a calling card, sort of Koenig's seal of approval, by way of introduction to Hunyadi. It carries respect, but no magic.

~ Greennam Reviews

See Also[]

Category links at bottom of page

External References[]

Books:

World characters, etc.:

Content References: 

Reviews:

1- The Myth Hunters:

2- The Borderkind:

3- The Lost Ones:

Interviews: 

Author:

Community, Fan Sites: 

Gallery of Book Covers[]

Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
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