1/8/10
This great review of The Prophecy is worth reprinting in full, I think! I particularly like the attention to detail, such as providing a suggested listening. Thanks to Jazz Johnson, of About Books Blog....
What I Thought of This Book
Ollie Wright at Red Telephone Books sent me a review copy of this. I would just like to thank Ollie before I get started. Now on to the fun stuff.
You know those sci-fi novels
that are so crazy and scientific you don’t know what happened? This is
not one of those. Yay! The Prophecy is advertised as futuristic science
fiction adventure for young adults. It is all of that with several
fantasy elements thrown in. I thought the book was very much like its
theme, which focuses on the inclusion and acceptance of other cultures.
I personally thought that a wide variety of people would like this,
even if you are not a young adult or don’t usually read science fiction.
It took a couple of pages to get
into the story. However, that is not uncommon with the science fiction
genre. There is quite a bit of set up involved in that genre and it is
usually important. I didn’t have an issue with that. I thought the
explanations of the futuristic tools and gadgets were handled very
well. I could imagine them very easily. I like the idea of people
living on different planets with different cultural backgrounds. I also
thought it was an interesting choice to base the prophecy in the story
on the biblical story of The Tower of Babel.
The writing style was different
from what I’m used to, but I enjoyed it. Gill James wrote in a way that
you were able to experience things though the main characters eyes. I
usually feel like characters are friends that I visit for a while, but
with this book, I often felt like I was the character. Super cool!
I have always been fond of
stories contain miracle children or chosen ones. Since Kaleem is close
enough to being one of those, I suppose it was a given that I was going to
like this book. I really loved the sections about his mother as well.
The Prophecy is going to be part
of a trilogy. As I was nearing the end of the novel, I got worried Gill
was going to leave me hanging when the book was over. I was relieved
that she did not. She closed enough of story line that I felt complete,
but left enough for the story to continue.
I thought it was a very nice
relaxing book. I would definitely read the not yet published sequel if
I had the chance. Of course, The Prophecy is currently only published
in the UK. Thus, if you want it you will have to pay for it in British
pounds. You can find all the info on how to get The Prophecy on the Red
Telephone Books website.
Facts I Found Interesting
I suggest looking on Gill James’ website. She wrote her own biography on it, and I just think it is adorable for some reason.
The Movie
No movie. I saw it like a movie in my head, so maybe they will make one some day.
Music To Read By
Favorite Albums
When I started this book, something about it said classical music to me. Thus, I listened to some Mozart and Bach.
I found out later that I could listen to anything while reading this
book. I could put my mp3 player on the highly rated playlist and enjoy
a variety of music. On the final chapters of The Prophecy I listened
to, The Boy Who Never by Landon Pigg and Waking Up by One Republic.
The Prophecy Playlist
Kyrie Eleison - Mozart
Earth (Instrumental Version) - Imogen Heap
Different Names For The Same Thing - Death Cab For Cutie
Caring Is Creepy - The Shins
The Boy Who Never - Landon Pigg
Prelude, Cello Suite #1 - Bach
Alone In Kyoto - Air
Secrets - One Republic
Reverie - Debussy
Funeral/Rebuilding Serenity - David Newman
16/5/10
Bridge House's new anthology Gentle Footprints, starring Richard Adams, was featured in this week's Independent on Sunday: -

Back to The Prophecy - Maggie of Maggie's Bookshelf has interviewed Gill, after enjoying the book. You can read the article here.
13/5/10
Another good review for The Prophecy, this time from Corinne Leegstra at Lost For Words: -
5/5/10
Smashing review for Gill's The Prophecy, from Lauren James of I Was A Teenage Bookgeek, here.
6/4/10
The Prophecy is reviewed here, by Maggie Desmond-O'Brien of Maggie's Bookshelf, scoring 3.5/5.
31/3/10
The prizewinners for our 2009 competition have been selected and notified. Many thanks to all who entered!
More soon on the winning novel, Alex Smith's Calling For Angels.
21/2/10
A review of The Prophecy has been posted here by Trillian711.
19/2/10
We have now shortlisted four of the entries to our 2009 competition.
13/2/10
100 Stories For Haiti is now available to pre-order from Bridge House Publishing. It's incredible how quickly Greg McQueen has managed to put this project together and we're delighted to be able to help.
12/2/10RT's parent company Bridge House are pitching into help the relief effort in Haiti, through the publication of a new anthology, 100 Stories for Haiti. Pre-order details will be posted on this website as soon as we have them.
11/2/10Gill James and The Prophecy were featured in the Radcliffe Times last week - here's a link to the article, on This Is Lancashire.
11/2/10
The Red Telephone Novel Competition 2009 - Longlisted Entries
- Tori Ley Davis - Darkseed: Awakening
- Beth Fisher - Losing Agir
- Richard Gibney - The Online Adventures of Poj and nilfisk
- Michele McGrath - Ghost Diaries
- Helen Shay - The Fixed Lands
- Tamsyn Lee Simmons - Everleigh House
- Alex Smith - Calling For Angels
Congratulations to the longlisted authors and many thanks to everyone who entered. We will be selecting the three prize winners in due course.
Thanks again!
Ollie @ TRT
25/1/10
To celebrate the publication of ‘The Prophecy’, author
Gill James is visiting schools across the UK to give free readings.
In her free school
visits, the author reads excerpts from the novel and takes questions from the group.
Gill also offers
schools the chance to extend the free visit to a HALF-DAY or FULL-DAY
SESSION, which includes workshops
for pupils on topics such as: -
- The
writer’s life
- Getting
published
- How to be
successful in learning a foreign language
Workshops can be adapted for any school age group.
To book Gill, or for further information about the visits, please contact Ollie Wright via admin@theredtelephone.co.uk.
11/1/10
8/1/10We have now compiled a longlist of six from the many excellent entries to our 2009 competition. These six authors will be contacted shortly.
More news when we have it!
22/9/09
Check the microsite on the left-hand navigation bar for more information on The Prophecy, which is available now on Amazon.
17/6/09
Cover art for The Prophecy has been completed...

13/6/09
Welcome to Red Telephone Books. Announcements about future releases and events will be posted here. For now, please check out details of our competition.