Ben Jeapes (born 14 February 1965) is a British
science fiction
Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
writer living in
Abingdon-on-Thames
Abingdon-on-Thames ( ), commonly known as Abingdon, is a historic market town and civil parish on the River Thames in the Vale of the White Horse district of Oxfordshire, England. The Historic counties of England, historic county town of Berksh ...
,
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire ( ; abbreviated ''Oxon'') is a ceremonial county in South East England. The county is bordered by Northamptonshire and Warwickshire to the north, Buckinghamshire to the east, Berkshire to the south, and Wiltshire and Glouceste ...
.
Early life and education
Jeapes was born in
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...
in 1965. He was educated at Hampton Dene Primary School, Hereford,
Little Chalfont Primary School, Lorraine Primary School, Camberley, Dumpton Prep School, and
Sherborne School
Sherborne School is a full-boarding school for boys aged 13 to 18 located beside Sherborne Abbey in the Dorset town of Sherborne. The school has been in continuous operation on the same site for over 1,300 years. It was founded in 705 AD by Ald ...
, and studied Philosophy and Politics at the
University of Warwick
The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded in 1965 as part of ...
.
Literary career
Jeapes began writing science fiction at the age of 18.
[ eapes, Ben ] He has published over 18 short stories, and 7 novels. His first full-length novel was ''His Majesty's Starship'', which concerns the actions of several Earth countries competing for the chance to start again on a new world.
His fourth novel ''The New World Order'', is an
alternate history
Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...
novel set during the
English Civil War
The English Civil War or Great Rebellion was a series of civil wars and political machinations between Cavaliers, Royalists and Roundhead, Parliamentarians in the Kingdom of England from 1642 to 1651. Part of the wider 1639 to 1653 Wars of th ...
in which technologically advanced
Neanderthals
Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...
come to England at the peak of the conflict. The leader of the invading forces attempts to avoid inflicting suffering upon the English people, but soon comes under pressure from superiors who disapprove of his soft-footed approach.
His novel ''Phoenicia's Worlds'', a
space opera
Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes Space warfare in science fiction, space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, i ...
, was published in August 2013 by
Solaris Books
Solaris Books is an imprint which focuses on publishing science fiction, fantasy and dark fantasy novels and anthologies. The range includes titles by both established and new authors. The range is owned by Rebellion Developments and distribut ...
.
"New acquisition announcement: Ben Jeapes is set to bring a world of fire and ice to Solaris with Phoenicia's Worlds ..."
. ''The Solaris Editors' Blog''. Michael Molcher. 21 August 2012. Retrieved 2015-05-08.
Published books
Standalone
*''His Majesty's Starship'' (1998) - published as ''The Ark'' in the US in 2000
*''Wingèd Chariot'' (2000) - republished as ''Time's Chariot'' in 2008
*''The Xenocide Mission'' (2002)
*'' The New World Order'' (2004)
*''Phoenicia's Worlds'' (2013)
''Vampire Plague''
As a ghostwriter
A ghostwriter is a person hired to write literary or journalistic works, speeches, or other texts that are credited to another person as the author. Celebrities, executives, participants in timely news stories, and political leaders often h ...
, Jeapes wrote the first three books in the '' Vampire Plagues'' series ( Scholastic UK, 2004 to 2006), published under the collective pseudonym Sebastian Rook. The series was completed with three subsequent books written by Helen Hart.
Collections
* ''Jeapes Japes'' (2009), published by Wizard's Tower Press.
References
External links
*
*
*
Sebastian Rook
(shared pseudonym) at LC Authorities, with 3 records
* Articles by Jeapes at Upcoming4.me
Story behind His Majestys Starship
Story behind Jeapes Japes
Story behind Phoenicias Worlds
1965 births
English science fiction writers
Alumni of the University of Warwick
Living people
{{England-novelist-stub