Gregory Keyes
Encyclopedia
Gregory Keyes is an American writer of science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...

 and fantasy who has written both original and media-related novels under both the names "J. Gregory Keyes" and "Greg Keyes". He is famous for his quartet The Age of Unreason
The Age of Unreason
The Age of Unreason is a series of four novels written by Gregory Keyes:* Newton's Cannon , ISBN 1-56865-829-X* A Calculus of Angels , ISBN 0-7394-0260-9* Empire of Unreason , ISBN 0-345-40609-5...

, a steampunk
Steampunk
Steampunk is a sub-genre of science fiction, fantasy, alternate history, and speculative fiction that came into prominence during the 1980s and early 1990s. Steampunk involves a setting where steam power is still widely used—usually Victorian era Britain or "Wild West"-era United...

/alchemical story starring Benjamin Franklin
Benjamin Franklin
Dr. Benjamin Franklin was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. A noted polymath, Franklin was a leading author, printer, political theorist, politician, postmaster, scientist, musician, inventor, satirist, civic activist, statesman, and diplomat...

 and Isaac Newton
Isaac Newton
Sir Isaac Newton PRS was an English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian, who has been "considered by many to be the greatest and most influential scientist who ever lived."...

. He wrote the Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...

 Psi Corps
Psi Corps
In the fictional universe of Babylon 5, the Psi Corps is an agency of the Earth Alliance responsible for all humans with telepathic or other para-psychological abilities anywhere within Earth controlled space. All persons with Psi abilities are required to either join the Corps, face lifetime...

trilogy, a history of the Psi Corps and a biography of Psi Corps member Alfred Bester
Alfred Bester (Babylon 5)
Alfred Bester is a Babylon 5 character played by Walter Koenig. He is a senior Psi Cop and a recurring antagonist in the series. J. Michael Straczynski named the character after the science fiction writer Alfred Bester, since telepathy is a recurring theme in his work .-Early Life and Career:The...

.

In 2003 he began a fantasy series titled The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone
The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone
The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone is the name of a fantasy novel series by Gregory Keyes, written between 2003 and 2008. They follow the story of Anne Dare, descendant of Virgenya Dare, a famed ruler who used her magic to aid the kingdom...

, the first volume of which was The Briar King
The Briar King
The Briar King is first novel of four in the series The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone, by writer Greg Keyes.-Plot summary:The first book in the Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone series....

. The second book in the series The Charnel Prince
The Charnel Prince
The Charnel Prince is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It is a sequel to The Briar King and the second book of The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

was published in 2004 and the third, The Blood Knight
The Blood Knight
The Blood Knight is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It's a sequel to The Charnel Prince and the third book of The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

, was published in July 2006. His fourth and final book of the quartet, The Born Queen
The Born Queen
The Born Queen is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It's the fourth and last novel in the series The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

, was released in March 2008.

In 2009 it was announced that Keyes would be writing two novels based on the successful computer game The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is a single-player action role-playing video game developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks and the Take-Two Interactive subsidiary 2K Games...

. The first of these, The Infernal City, was published by Random House
Random House
Random House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...

 in November 2009.

Keyes was born on 11 April 1963 in Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi. It is the sixth largest city in the state and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area...

, to a large, diverse, storytelling family. He received degrees in anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

 from Mississippi State University
Mississippi State University
The Mississippi State University of Agriculture and Applied Science commonly known as Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in Oktibbeha County, Mississippi, United States, partially in the town of Starkville and partially in an unincorporated area...

 and the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...

 before becoming a full time writer. He lives and fences in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

. Greg is also the head coach of the Savannah College of Art and Design
Savannah College of Art and Design
SCAD, the Savannah College of Art and Design, is a private, accredited and degree-granting university with locations in Savannah and Atlanta, Georgia, Hong Kong, and Lacoste, France.-History:...

's fencing club.

Style

Greg Keyes builds his stories around multiple main characters who meet only rarely, but allow the reader to follow different threads of the same events. Most of the chapters in his books focus on one of the main characters, and often end in a surprise or a cliffhanger
Cliffhanger
A cliffhanger or cliffhanger ending is a plot device in fiction which features a main character in a precarious or difficult dilemma, or confronted with a shocking revelation at the end of an episode of serialized fiction...

 when the story moves to follow another character.

Greg's knowledge of fencing and linguistics
Linguistics
Linguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....

 also play a big role in his books. For example, Stephen Darige, one of the main characters in The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone
The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone
The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone is the name of a fantasy novel series by Gregory Keyes, written between 2003 and 2008. They follow the story of Anne Dare, descendant of Virgenya Dare, a famed ruler who used her magic to aid the kingdom...

, is an adept linguist, and his knowledge and skills play an important role in the development of the story.

Chosen of the Changeling

  • The Waterborn (1996), ISBN 0-345-40393-2
  • The Blackgod (1997), ISBN 0-345-40394-0

The Age of Unreason

  • Newton's Cannon
    Newton's Cannon
    Newton's Cannon is the first novel in Gregory Keyes's The Age of Unreason series. The main protagonist for the novel is Benjamin Franklin, other key characters to the novel are James Franklin - Ben's brother, John Collins - Ben's friend, as well as Adrienne and King Louis XIV - the Sun King.-The...

    (1998), ISBN 1-56865-829-X
  • A Calculus of Angels
    A Calculus of Angels
    A Calculus of Angels is the second book in Gregory Keyes' The Age of Unreason series. It was initially published by Del Rey on March 30, 1999...

    (1999), ISBN 0-7394-0260-9
  • Empire of Unreason (2000), ISBN 0-345-40609-5
  • The Shadows of God (2001), ISBN 0-345-43904-X

Babylon 5: The Psi Corps Trilogy

  • Dark Genesis: The Birth of the Psi Corps
    Babylon 5: Dark Genesis - The Birth of the Psi Corps
    Babylon 5: Dark Genesis – The Birth of the Psi Corps is a Babylon 5 novel by J. Gregory Keyes.-Plot summary:In 2115, existence of telepathy has been proven. The resulting media frenzy, panic, violence, and bloodshed lead to the creation of the Metasensory Regulation Authority, the precursor of the...

    (1998), ISBN 0-345-42715-7
  • Deadly Relations: Bester Ascendant (1999), ISBN 0-345-42716-5
  • Final Reckoning: The Fate of Bester (1999), ISBN 0-345-42717-3

Star Wars: The New Jedi Order

  • Edge of Victory I: Conquest (2001), ISBN 0-345-42864-1
  • Edge of Victory II: Rebirth (2001), ISBN 0-345-44610-0
  • The Final Prophecy
    The Final Prophecy
    The Final Prophecy is a novel in the New Jedi Order series, written by Greg Keyes. Published and released in 2003, it is the twentieth installment of the series, which is set in the Star Wars universe.-Summary:...

    (2003), ISBN 0-345-42875-7

The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone

  • The Briar King
    The Briar King
    The Briar King is first novel of four in the series The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone, by writer Greg Keyes.-Plot summary:The first book in the Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone series....

    (2003), ISBN 0-345-44066-8
  • The Charnel Prince
    The Charnel Prince
    The Charnel Prince is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It is a sequel to The Briar King and the second book of The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

    (2004), ISBN 0-345-44067-6
  • The Blood Knight
    The Blood Knight
    The Blood Knight is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It's a sequel to The Charnel Prince and the third book of The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

    (2006), ISBN 0-345-44068-4
  • The Born Queen
    The Born Queen
    The Born Queen is a fantasy novel by Greg Keyes. It's the fourth and last novel in the series The Kingdoms of Thorn and Bone.-Plot summary:...

    (2008), ISBN 0-345-44069-2

The Elder Scrolls

  • The Infernal City
    The Infernal City
    The Infernal City is a book by Greg Keyes. It is the first of two planned books based on The Elder Scrolls series of video games.-Plot:...

    - based on The Elder Scrolls
    The Elder Scrolls
    The Elder Scrolls is a role-playing video game series developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks.-History:...

    video game series.
  • Lord of Souls
    Lord of Souls
    Lord of Souls is a book by Greg Keyes. It is the second of two planned books based on The Elder Scrolls series of video games.-Plot:Like its predecessor The Infernal City, the novel Lord of Souls takes places about 40 years after the events of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and The Elder Scrolls...

    - based on The Elder Scrolls
    The Elder Scrolls
    The Elder Scrolls is a role-playing video game series developed by Bethesda Game Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks.-History:...

    video game series.

External links

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