Grant, K.M.

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Grant, K.M.
(Katie M. Grant)

PERSONAL:

Born in Cliviger, Lancashire, England; daughter of Simon (a government official) and Mary Towneley; married; children: three children. Education: Glasgow University, graduated.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Glasgow, Scotland.

CAREER:

Journalist and broadcaster.

WRITINGS:

How the Hangman Lost His Heart, Puffin Books (London, England), 2006.

"DE GRANVILLE" TRILOGY

Blood Red Horse, Puffin Books (London, England), 2004, Walker (New York, NY), 2005.

Green Jasper, Walker (New York, NY), 2006.

Blaze of Silver, Walker (New York, NY), 2007.

Contributor to periodicals, including Scotsman, History Today, Scottish Daily Mail, and Spectator.

ADAPTATIONS:

Blood Red Horse was adapted as an audiobook, Recorded Books, 2005; Green Jasper was adapted as an audiobook, Recorded Books, 2006.

SIDELIGHTS:

K.M. Grant is the author of a number of works of historical fiction, including the books in the critically acclaimed "de Granville Trilogy," set in the twelfth century. One of seven children, Grant developed an interest in history after hearing tales of her ancestor, Colonel Francis Towneley, "the last man in Britain to be hanged, drawn and quartered," as the author explained on her home page. According to Grant, Towneley, who was executed for his faith at Kennington Common in 1746, "was my most romantic ancestor and it was his life, but, more particularly, his death, that taught me from an early age that history was not only exotic and thrilling but also full of gruesome details useful for frightening visitors my six siblings and I particularly disliked." Grant, who later studied medieval history at Glasgow University, works as a freelance journalist and broadcaster in her native Scotland.

Grant's debut novel, Blood Red Horse, the first installment in her "de Granville Trilogy," centers around thirteen-year-old William de Granville, William's older brother Gavin, and an orphaned young woman named Ellie. Though Ellie has been promised to Gavin, she feels a greater affinity for William, a gifted horseman. When the brothers and their father join King Richard the Lionheart's crusade against Muslim leader Saladin, William chooses Hosanna, a small, blood-red stallion, as his first warhorse. Once they reach the Holy Land, "Hosanna overcomes mistreatment, attack and injury to inspire both William and Saladin's assistant Kamil, into whose hands the horse briefly falls," noted a critic in Kirkus Reviews. According to Jennifer Mattson in Booklist, Blood Red Horse "transcends boundaries of gender and genre, with something to offer fans of equestrian fare, historical fiction, and battlefield drama alike."

Romance and political intrigue are at the heart of Green Jasper, book two of the "de Granville Trilogy." Having returned to England, battle-scarred Gavin, now lord of the manor, is still betrothed to Ellie. Their wedding ceremony is disrupted by Constable de Scabious, a follower of Prince John, the king's brother, who claims the throne in Richard's absence. When Ellie is abducted by de Scabious, William counsels Gavin to mount a rescue effort, causing a rift with his more cautious sibling. "Grant balances simplistic elements with unsentimental explorations of medieval conflicts between romantic love, brotherly loyalty, and political fealty," observed Mattson, and Horn Book reviewer Vicky Smith called the author's "renderings of characters and their motivations both completely recognizable and in keeping with the times." The "de Granville Trilogy" concludes with Blaze of Silver, which concerns the efforts of William, Gavin, and Kamil to win the freedom of King Richard, who has been imprisoned in Austria.

Another novel by Grant, How the Hangman Lost His Heart, was deemed a "clever and entertaining historical black comedy" by London Sunday Times contributor Nicolette Jones. The novel was inspired by Towneley's harrowing tale and follows Towneley's niece, Alice de Granville, as she attempts to reunite the disembodied head of her beloved uncle with his corpse. "Help comes from two unlikely, but gallant sources—brave [hangman] Dan Skinslicer … and the dashing Captain Ffrench of the King's Dragoons," noted Kathryn Ross in her review of the novel for the Scotsman.

"It is indisputable that my arrival as a historical novelist has been a good deal less painful than [Towneley's] arrival at Kennington Common, but I suppose we have both been on a journey of sorts," Grant remarked on her home page, referencing her tragedy-prone ancestor. "If I ever get to Heaven, I shall thank him. However I suppose the real question is, will he thank me?"