In The Lies of Solace, a novel set in the world of Arkham Horror, three strangers race to unravel clues that hold the key to their destiny. Will they escape their pain and suffering, or will they be engulfed by a horrifying future? Soon, you can find out in John French’s The Lies of Solace.

Today, we are lucky enough to get some insights from the author himself. Mr. French, who has contributed to the Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, and Deathwatch roleplaying games, was kind enough to answer a few questions, and here are his answers.

Discussing the grotesque

The Lies of Solace continues The Lord of Nightmares Trilogy, which was started by Alan Bligh. Can you please talk about the process of working with Alan Bligh to achieve continuity on the trilogy?

It is actually all a dark and cunning plan, and one we hope readers will enjoy as it unfolds across the sequence. The Lies of Solace is the second book in the Lord of Nightmares sequence, but it was always the plan that Alan would write the first book and I would write the second. Alan and I have collaborated for over half a decade, and in writing this trilogy we jumped at the chance to work together again. We planned all three books before we started, and wove together plots that would cross over between the first two books and converge in the third. Each book follows different characters and events but both narratives are set to meet when the stars are right and The Hungering God rises...

What aspect of the Arkham Horror universe most excites you?

I love the idea of characters being drawn into terrifying events they don’t understand, and that their every action pulls them deeper and deeper into a spiral of horror. Just like in the board game things accelerate rapidly and become more desperate with every turn.

What character from the Arkham Horror setting did you most enjoy developing?

Do I have to pick one? Can I have two? One existing character, and one new? Was that a ‘Yes’? I think it was…

Dr. Lyman Fields, partly because his motivation is one that I think resonates, and partly because of where that takes him in the story. I also really enjoyed writing about Jacqueline Fine. I loved her character background text from the game; it was so evocative and implied a whole character. Seeing that character realised in a narrative was a lot of fun. Without spoiling anything, can you give fans some idea of what to expect from The Lies of Solace?

It is a story about ordinary people’s desperations and what happens when the impossible tempts those people. It is also a mystery story about three people trying to stop something they do not understand. It also has cultists, blood, other places in space and time, ill-advised visits to Arkham Asylum, and equal measures of heroism and tragedy. Thanks, John. Look for The Lies of Solace to arrive in the second quarter of 2012. In the meanwhile, preorder your copy of The Lies of Solace on the iBookstore.