Robert J. Harris (Bob) is a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

academic and author, particularly of children's

fantasies Fantasy is a genre of fiction. Fantasy, Fantasie, or Fantasies may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Fantasia (music), a free-form musical composition * ''Fantasie'' (Widmann), a 1993 composition for solo clarinet by Jörg Widmann * ...

and

historical novel Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the setting of particular real historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literature, it can also be applied to oth ...

s, best known for his collaborations with

Jane Yolen Jane Hyatt Yolen (born February 11, 1939) is an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, and children's books. She is the author or editor of more than 400 books, of which the best known is '' The Devil's Arithmetic'', a Holocaust novella. H ...

. He also designed the fantasy board game ''

Talisman A talisman is any object ascribed with religious or magical powers intended to protect, heal, or harm individuals for whom they are made. Talismans are often portable objects carried on someone in a variety of ways, but can also be installed perm ...

'' and its sequel '' Mythgardia''.

Life

Harris was born in Dundee and studied at the University of St. Andrews, achieving a first class honours degree in Latin. Harris lives in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

and is married to

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

author

Deborah Turner Harris Deborah Turner Harris (born March 4, 1951) is an American fantasy author, best known for her collaborations with Katherine Kurtz. Life Born in 1951 in Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. ...

Works

His recent adult suspense-adventure works ''The Thirty-One Kings'' and ''Castle Macnab'' feature the return of

John Buchan John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir (; 26 August 1875 – 11 February 1940) was a Scottish novelist, historian, British Army officer, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation. As a ...

's classic adventurer-spy character

Richard Hannay Major-General Sir Richard Hannay, KCB, OBE, DSO, is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist John Buchan and further made popular by the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock film '' The 39 Steps'' (and other later film adaptations), very loosely b ...

, first made famous in

The Thirty-Nine Steps ''The Thirty-Nine Steps'' is a 1915 adventure novel by the Scottish literature, Scottish author John Buchan, first published by William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh. It was Serial (literature), serialized in ''Argosy (magazine)#The All-Story, ...

book and films.

Young Heroes

(Written with

, based on

Greek Mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

) #''

Odysseus In Greek mythology, Greek and Roman mythology, Odysseus ( ; , ), also known by the Latin variant Ulysses ( , ; ), is a legendary Greeks, Greek king of Homeric Ithaca, Ithaca and the hero of Homer's Epic poetry, epic poem, the ''Odyssey''. Od ...

in the Serpent Maze'' (2001) #''

Hippolyta In Greek mythology, Hippolyta, or Hippolyte (; ''Hippolytē''), was a daughter of Ares and Otrera,Hyginus, ''Fabulae'', 30 queen of the Amazons, and a sister of Antiope and Melanippe. She wore her father Ares' ''zoster'', the Greek word foun ...

and the Curse of the Amazons'' (2002) #''

Atalanta Atalanta (; ) is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia (region), Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene (mythology), Clymene and who is primarily known from the tales of the Caly ...

and the Arcadian Beast'' (2003) #''

and the Lost Amazon City'' (2003)

The Stuart Quartet

(with Jane Yolen) *''Queen’s Own Fool'' (2000) *''Girl in a Cage'' (2002) *''Prince Across the Water'' (2004) *''The Rogues'' (2007)

Young Legends

(Young adult adventure series focusing on young versions of

Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci (15 April 1452 - 2 May 1519) was an Italian polymath of the High Renaissance who was active as a painter, draughtsman, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor, and architect. While his fame initially rested o ...

and

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, respectively) *'' Leonardo and the Death Machine'' (2005) *''Will Shakespeare and the Devil's Fire'' (2006)

The World Goes Loki

(Children's series based on

Norse Mythology Norse, Nordic, or Scandinavian mythology, is the body of myths belonging to the North Germanic peoples, stemming from Old Norse religion and continuing after the Christianization of Scandinavia as the Nordic folklore of the modern period. The ...

) *''The Day the World Went Loki'' (2013) *''Thor is Locked in my Garage'' (2014) *''Odin blew up my TV'' (2016)

The Artie Conan Doyle Mysteries

(Children's adventure series about a young Arthur Conan Doyle as a schoolboy) *''The Gravediggers Club'' (2017) *''The Vanishing Dragon'' (2018) *''The Scarlet Phantom'' (2019)

Richard Hannay Major-General Sir Richard Hannay, KCB, OBE, DSO, is a fictional character created by Scottish novelist John Buchan and further made popular by the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock film '' The 39 Steps'' (and other later film adaptations), very loosely b ...
Returns

(Historical thrillers featuring

character) *''The Thirty-One Kings'' (2017) *''Castle Macnab'' (2018) *''Redfalcon'' (2024)

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...
in WWII

(

Sherlock Holmes Sherlock Holmes () is a Detective fiction, fictional detective created by British author Arthur Conan Doyle. Referring to himself as a "Private investigator, consulting detective" in his stories, Holmes is known for his proficiency with obser ...

pastiches set during the Second World War, specifically based on the 1940s film series starring

Basil Rathbone Philip St. John Basil Rathbone MC (13 June 1892 – 21 July 1967) was an Anglo-South African actor. He rose to prominence in the United Kingdom as a Shakespearean stage actor and went on to appear in more than 70 films, primarily costume drama ...

and

Nigel Bruce William Nigel Ernle Bruce (4 February 1895 – 8 October 1953) was an English character actor on stage and screen. He was best known for his portrayal of Dr. Watson in a series of films and in the radio series '' The New Adventures of Sherlo ...

) * ''A Study in Crimson'' (2022) * ''The Devil's Blaze'' (2022)

Short fiction

*"The City of Brass" (with Deborah Turner Harris) (1995) *"The Ragmore Beast" (1997) *"Studies in Stone" (with Jane Yolen) (1998) *"The Company of Three" (with Deborah Turner Harris) (1998) *"Last Kingdom" (with Deborah Turner Harris) (1999) *"Old Jim Croaker Jumps Over the Moon" (2000) *"Straight and True" (2000) *"Requiem Antarctica" (with Jane Yolen) (2000)

References

*Estes C. Queen’s Own Fool. School Library Journal. 2000;46(6):156. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=3213305&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Crinklaw D. The Devil’s Blaze: Sherlock Holmes 1943. Booklist. 2022;119(5/6):29. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=160129726&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Monaghan K. Prince Across the Water. School Library Journal. 2004;50(12):154-155. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=15396959&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Picker L. The Greatest Regeneration. Publishers Weekly. 2021;268(14):43. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=149629658&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *The Rogues. Kirkus Reviews. 2007;75(14):739. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=26053700&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *The Devil’s Blaze: Sherlock Holmes 1943. Publishers Weekly. 2022;269(38):48. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=159052170&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Girl in a Cage (Book). School Library Journal. 2003;49(10):54. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=11125897&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Jones TE, Toth L, Charnizon M, Grabarek D, Larkins J, Reynolds AJ. Jason and the Gorgon’s Blood (Book). School Library Journal. 2004;50(2):154. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=12207169&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *PRINCE ACROSS THE WATER (Book). Kirkus Reviews. 2004;72(18):923. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=14586442&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site *Jason and the Gorgon’s Blood. School Library Journal. 2006;52(2):60. Accessed June 22, 2025. https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=lkh&AN=19582951&lang=ru&site=eds-live&scope=site

External links

The Website of Deborah Turner Harris and Robert J Harris
* Living people Scottish fantasy writers Scottish thriller writers Scottish crime fiction writers Writers from Dundee Writers of Sherlock Holmes pastiches 1955 births Alumni of the University of St Andrews {{Scotland-writer-stub