Many fans know Cassandra Clare for her long-running and ever-popular Shadowhunter Chronicles, which includes multiple series of novels, a movie, and a television series. But Cassandra has always had a dream to write a “giant” fantasy epic. Sword Catcher is the first in that dream. Told through the dulcet tones of narrators Fiona Hardingham and Christian Coulson, this is a story about two overlooked members of a magical society who are nevertheless integral to its functioning. Read on to learn about Cassandra’s story behind the story of Sword Catcher.
Melissa Bendixen: Wow! How does it feel to be writing and talking about a new world? What do you think fans of the Shadowhunter Chronicles (or The Magesterium series) will enjoy most about Sword Catcher?
Cassandra Clare: It’s exciting to be creating a new setting from the ground up! Magisterium and the Shadowhunter Chronicles were both set in recognizable versions of our contemporary world, but with Sword Catcher, I’ve gotten to weave a world that borrows bits and pieces from places and time periods that have always fascinated me—with a good bit of magic and mystery stirred in too.
I think that readers of my earlier books will find a lot of what they’ve loved before in Sword Catcher—adventure, enchantment, humor, and romance—with the added fun of palace intrigue, dissolute nobles, and criminal masterminds!
How long has this story been brewing inside you and what made you start working on it?
As a lover of giant fantasy books, I’ve wanted to write one since I was a kid. I’ve been working on Sword Catcher in earnest for about five years, though the glimmers of it were occupying my mind for several years before that.
Did you find there to be any differences in writing a fantasy geared towards adults?
Sword Catcher definitely has some more adult themes than my previous work. I think that while younger readers also love a twisty plot with exciting reversals, older readers tend to have a bit more interest in political intrigue and stories about the costs of power and the dilemmas of the kind of choices you have to make as an adult. The biggest difference is where the main characters are at emotionally. Rather than being teenagers starting to find their way in the world, Kel and Lin are each on a path and have worked hard to excel at what they do—be that healing people or defending them.
How excited are you about having Christian Coulson and Fiona Hardingham narrate this story?
I’m thrilled! I’ve enjoyed their work before, and I’m excited to hear them bring Lin and Kel’s story to life. I love what I've heard of the life they bring to the tale.
Do you have a favorite listen of 2023 that you can share with us?
Three audiobooks I’ve enjoyed recently are Tom Lake by Ann Patchett, narrated by Meryl Streep How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix, narrated by Jay Aaseng and Mikhaila Aaseng; and White Cat, Black Dog by Kelly Link, narrated by an ensemble cast of Rebecca Lowman, Dan Stevens, Dominic Hoffman, Kristen Sieh, Ish Klein, Tanya Cubric, and Patton Oswalt. It's amazing what the right readers bring to a story.
Author photo by Sharona Jacobs.
