The regime in Iran is thoght to have killed 5000 demostrators. My latest novel Reptiles has feminist Iranian characters living near Oxford who have been threatened by the regime. Mark Turner a filmmaker in a local networking group madea film about the Iranian methods which differ from the Russians.Having watched it, I was relieved that I had got it right in my novel. Many exiled Iranians living the UK are reluctamt to speak up because of threats to them by the regime.
The Netflix film Adolescence delves into the dark underworld of the Manosphere has just won Emmy Awards. On that subject too, Reptiles is also bang up to date. When the editor of the Madras Courier realised I had researched that murky misogynism, he asked me to write a feature on the manosphere. This is what I wrote.
The ‘reptiles’ in my novel are humans ! I had the ungodly task of researching JD Vance and Christian Nationalism. One character, Serena Shriver, is inspired by Phyllis Shaffley. In Reptiles, Serena is an influential Republican Christian Nationalist whose son, Gideon, is working on a DPhil in theology at Oxford who organises harassing demonstrations at Dr. Yasmin Bell’s clinic. She’s a supporter of JD Vance and helped him get elected. My crime thriller has quotes from him, which I included almost as they happened including his jibe at ‘childless cat ladies’. So when he arrived in Oxfordshire it felt PERSONAL and I headed to Charlbury to join in the protests!
My novels are rooted in reality rather than fantasy. Researching Reptiles, led me down a dark rabbit hole. I found myself trawling through the online ecosystem known as the manosphere: a web of forums, podcasts, YouTube channels, and self-styled gurus who peddle varying degrees of misogyny under different banners.
In Oxford, I launched Reptiles at the Oxford Indie Book Fair in the University Examination Schools on Sunday November 23. of which I am a founder. The iconic building is not usually open to the public and our event is free and everyone of all ages and backgrounds feel welcome. I hope to do a launch at Proof Social Bakery in Kennington in February to coincide with Toad Patrol. My novel opens with Toad Patrol, an annual rescue of amphibians as they cross the Old Abingdon Road near where I live. Many from my village take part including me wearing high viz.
My novel opens with Toad Patrol.
In Reptiles and Current of Death, my village goes under the name of Thames Reach.The main local characters are the same as in Current of Death but Reptiles is darker. Locals will understand from the cover that up to the minute local issues are involved too. But no book of mine can be without light and humour. It ends on White Horse Hill which I always visit when I judge the writing at the Swire Art Prize, in Uffington, and hope to have a launch in the local pub The Fox and Hounds to coincide with the Swire exhibition next April. I’ll volunteer to lead a walk after the launch. My first book was a walk book Oxfordshire Rambles and it included one on White Horse Hill.
Endorsements for Reptiles
Well researched and insightful, this engrossing page-turner brings to life the front line of our culture wars across local, national and international contexts. Every page touches a nerve, every turn of the plot vibrates with contemporary angst and builds to a satisfying climax. The characters are intriguing: all are relatable and motivating – I loved sharing their struggles, and being inside the bonds that grew between them. Deeply sad, as an honest-to-God murder story is likely to be, Reptiles raises smiles along the way, and is ultimately up-lifting.
Steve Lunn, author of The Price of Dormice and We’re Not Getting Divorced.
Come for the many twists and turns of a murder mystery thriller – you’ll be swept along by the fast pace of the investigation. But expect much more from Reptiles than a cleverly constructed plot. Well-developed characters and webs of intrigue that are much of the moment will take you far beyond the confines of an apparently ordinary village on the edge of Oxford.
Paul Gamble, Oxfordshire-based writer and poet
