R. J. Barker (or, RJ Barker) is a British author of

fantasy literature Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fan ...

. He is best known for his ''Wounded Kingdom'' trilogy and the ''Tide Child'' trilogy.

Career

Barker is from

Leeds Leeds is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is the largest settlement in Yorkshire and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds Metropolitan Borough, which is the second most populous district in the United Kingdom. It is built aro ...

, England. He played in a band for many years before realizing he "was never a very good musician", after which he turned to literature. Barker served as a judge for the 2018 James White Award. In 2021, Barker sold a new fantasy series the ''Forsaken'' trilogy to

Orbit Books Orbit Books is an international publisher that specialises in science fiction and fantasy books. It is a division of Lagardère Publishing. History Orbit Books was founded in 1974 as part of the Macdonald Futura publishing company. In 1992, ...

Personal life

Barker has

Crohn's disease Crohn's disease is a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that may affect any segment of the gastrointestinal tract. Symptoms often include abdominal pain, diarrhea, fever, abdominal distension, and weight loss. Complications outside of the ...

. He has used his personal experiences to explore the presentation of disabled characters in fantasy literature.

Reception and awards

*''Age of Assassins'', the first book in the ''Wounded Kingdom'' trilogy, was nominated for the 2018

British Fantasy Award The British Fantasy Awards (BFA) are awarded annually by the British Fantasy Society (BFS), first in 1976. Prior to that they were known as The August Derleth Fantasy Awards (see August Derleth Award). First awarded in 1972 (to ''The Knight of ...

for Best Novel and the 2018 Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Newcomer. *''The Bone Ships'', the first book in the ''Tide Child'' trilogy, won the 2020 British Fantasy Award for Best Novel. *''Gods of the Wyrdwood'' was winner of 2024

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

's Reading List – Fantasy.Moore, Ninah.(2024)
Reading List: Year’s best in genre fiction for adult Readers
American Library Association, January 20, 2024.

Bibliography

''Wounded Kingdom'' trilogy

* ''Age of Assassins'' (2017) * ''Blood of Assassins'' (2018) * ''King of Assassins'' (2018)

''Tide Child'' trilogy

* ''The Bone Ships'' (2019) * ''Call of the Bone Ships'' (2020) * ''The Bone Ship's Wake'' (2021)

''Forsaken'' trilogy

* ''Gods of the Wyrdwood'' (2023) * ''Warlords of the Wyrdwood'' (2024)

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, R. J. English fantasy writers British writers with disabilities Year of birth missing (living people) Living people