The Great Fighting Fantasy Book Ranking

Over at the http://www.fightingfantasygamebooks.com/ forum, regular poster Zagor has ranked all 67* Fighting Fantasy gamebooks according to his personal preferences.

It's certainly provoked a lot of discussion and some of my contributions to the series have fared better than others. However, I'm pleased to say that Howl of the Werewolf made it to the heady heights of number 12 in Zagor's list.

#12 - Howl of the Werewolf by Jonathan Green

In my mind, Jon's best gamebook (sorry Theme Park Panic fans), Howl of the Werewolf has some great horror moments and plenty of interesting characters and encounters. It also has some excellent extra rules as you become more powerful through your lycanthropy. With many paths through the book, it's very replayable too, though perhaps a minor complaint is some paths are alot longer than others. It's looking like this might be the last FF at present but at least the series will finish on a high.

I don't agree with all of the rankings of course, because it's all based on personal preference, but kudos to Zagor for tackling such a monumental task and for playing every single FF gamebook, and then writing an erudite review of each and every one.

Maybe in the future we'll see how other people rank the books in the series. But for now, if you would like to check Zagor's ratings out for yourself, click here.

* '67? Are you sure?' I hear you cry. Let me explain. Puffin Books published 59 normal FF gamebooks, the 4 that formed the Sorcery! epic and the 2-player Clash of the Princes. Wizard Books have since released 3 original titles. Hence 67 in total.

Inebriated in charge of equine transportation

This story caught my eye the other day.

Using a 19th-century law, a British court has fined a man £150 pounds after be admitted riding a horse while drunk.

Godfrey Blacklin pleaded guilty to a charge under the 1872 Licensing Act of being drunk in charge of a carriage horse, cattle or steam engine. Prosecuting lawyer David Thompson told Newcastle Magistrates Court it was "not a charge you see every day."

He said 31-year-old Blacklin was stopped by police while riding bareback in Newcastle, northeast England, in October. Officers found he was unsteady on his feet and slurring his words. Blacklin's lawyer said the defendant accepted he was drunk at the time.

Magistrates on Friday ordered him to pay the fine £35 pounds in costs.

It reminded me of this story that appeared in the press back in April 2007.

Today, I have been mostly listening to...

Mike Oldfield, or rather re-discovering him. I have a number of his albums and find them ideal to work to because so much of his music is purely instrumental. But today I've been listening to Elements, a nineties best of compilation, on cassette. Yes, cassette!

And it's ironic that I put Elements on today - which was purely coincidental - when you consider what I'm working on at the moment... but I can't say anymore about that at the moment. It's all rather hush-hush, but don't worry, as soon as I can post something here I will - have no fear!

Human Nature reviewed in Death Ray #17

As was Leviathan Rising before it, Human Nature has been reviewed by Guy Haley of Death Ray Magazine. The review appears in the latest edition (issue #17) which awards the book three stars.



I think the review reads rather well, and Haley kindly comments that, 'Green... improves as a writer with each book'. (But if that's the case, why did Human Nature only get three stars when Leviathan Rising got three and a half?)


Anyway, you can pick up your copy of Death Ray Magazine here and a copy of Human Nature here, so that you compare what you think of the book with the reviewer's opinion.

Human Nature from Abaddon Books

Here's the rather cool advert for Human Nature that's appeared in recent issues of 2000AD and Judge Dredd the Megazine.

You can pick up your copy of Human Nature here.

Abaddon Books

Publishing high quality British fiction for the Commonwealth

since 2006!

What's the point?

"I can't understand why a person will take a year to write a novel when he can easily buy one for a few dollars."
~ Fred Allen (1894 - 1956), US radio comedian.

Pax Britannia at Forbidden Planet

So last night I went along to the Forbidden Planet store in London to sign copies of my latest Pax Britannia novel Human Nature. As it turned out, mine was the first signing of 2009. And the first signing of 2008 was... Henry 'The Fonz' Winkler!

I must have signed around 70 copies of Human Nature but a special shout-out goes to Sundaram. I even got to sign the signing desk, joining such luminaries as Robert Rankin, Graham McNeill, Dan Abnett and many others.

Talking of the 'many others', Gav Thorpe will be signing copies of his new Warhammer Time of Legends novel Malekith today (Saturday 10 January) from 1.00-2.00pm.

Thanks to Matt (for the delicious hot chocolate), John Harrison (for his support during the course of the evening) and Danie Ware (for sorting it out). Hopefully I'll see you guys there again when the next book comes out!

Signing this evening at Forbidden Planet, London

Jonathan Green

Pax Britannia: Human Nature

Join Jonathan Green at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, on Friday 9th January 6.00pm – 7.00pm.

Ulysses Quicksilver is chasing a mermaid – right up to the industrially polluted North of England and the fishing village where she was supposedly caught. What he finds are the horrors of man’s own selfishness; as he’s trapped within the very heart darkness, threatened in body and mind, he has to escape a fate that is literally worse than death.


This is a fantastical, steampunk science fiction novel from the co-creator of the Pax Britannia world!

The worst horrors are those spawned by Man's own selfish nature

Yes - it's here! Pax Britannia: Human Nature arrived at the Green household this morning and a very nice job of it Abaddon's designers have done too.

Here's what it's all about:

The Whitby Mermaid, prize exhibit of Cruickshanks’ Cabinet of Curiosities, has been stolen. But have no fear; consulting detective Gabriel Wraith is on the case. And he’s not the only one, for wherever there is a mystery to be solved, Ulysses Quicksilver is never very far away. What does the theft of what would appear to be a poorly-conceived fake have to do with the mysterious House of Monkeys? And what of the enigmatic criminal known only as the Magpie?

When Ulysses probes further into the case, he finds himself embarking upon an adventure that will take him to the industrially-polluted North of England and the fishing town where the curious creature was supposedly caught. But there are worse things awaiting him there than mermaids. The moors of Ghestdale are haunted by the savage Barghest beast, while in the abandoned mines beneath the Umbridge estate, impossible abominations lurk in the darkness, waiting. And yet Ulysses Quicksilver is about to discover that the worst horrors are those spawned by Man's own selfish nature.

Trapped within the very heart of darkness, with his body and sanity threatened, can he escape a fate worse than death ­ with both still intact ­ before one man's insane quest for immortality comes to fruition?

The novel includes the brand-new, specially-commissioned short story Christmas Past, and some unique Magna Britannia-style advertisements in the back.

Remember, you can pick up your copy of Human Nature, and get it signed by me at the same time, at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, Shaftesbury Avenue, London, tomorrow - Friday 9 January - between 6.00pm and 7.00pm.

A week today...

You'll be able to get yours hands on the new Pax Britannia novel Human Nature at Forbidden Planet megastore on Shaftesbury Avenue, and have it signed by me at the same time. I'll be there on Friday 9 January, between 6.00pm and 7.00pm, signing books and generally up for a bit of a chit-chat. I look forward to seeing you there too.