Sean Thomas Russell (born 30 January 1952) is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

writer of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

, and of

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 featuring the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...

. His work has been published under the names Sean Russell and S. Thomas Russell as well as his full name, and he has collaborated with Ian Dennis (also born 1952) under the joint pseudonym T.F. Banks.

Life

Sean Russell was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

, in 1952. At the age of three his family moved to the outskirts of the city, where they lived in a cottage at the beach of

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

. At the age of ten he decided to become an author, and the fantasy genre caught him years later, while reading

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

's ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an Epic (genre), epic high fantasy novel written by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's book ''The Hobbit'' but eventually d ...

''. After university, he moved to

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, and two years later to

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest ...

, where he still lives with his family. He published his first novel in 1991. His first historical naval novel ''Under Enemy Colours'', published in 2007, introduced a new Royal Navy hero, Charles Hayden, and HMS ''Themis'', a fictional

fifth-rate In the rating system of the Royal Navy used to categorise sailing warships, a fifth rate was the second-smallest class of warships in a hierarchical system of six " ratings" based on size and firepower. Rating The rating system in the Royal N ...

ship of the Royal Navy.

Works

Initiate Brother

The series is laid in a fantasy empire combining aspects of China and Japan. *Vol. 1: ''The Initiate Brother'', DAW Books, 1991, *Vol. 2: ''Gatherer of Clouds'', DAW Books, 1992,

Moontide and Magic Rise

*Vol. 1: ''World Without End'', DAW Books, 1995, *Vol. 2: ''Sea Without a Shore'', DAW Books, 1996,

The River into Darkness

This fantasy duology is a

prequel A prequel is a literary, dramatic or cinematic work whose story precedes that of a previous work, by focusing on events that occur before the original narrative. A prequel is a work that forms part of a backstory to the preceding work. The term ...

to the "Moontide and Magic Rise" duology. *Vol. 1: ''Beneath the Vaulted Hills'', DAW Books, 1997, *Vol. 2: ''The Compass of the Soul'', DAW Books, 1998, *Vol. 1-2: ''The River into Darkness'', Science Fiction Book Club, 1998, (omnibus)

Memoirs of a Bow Street Runner

Sean Russell wrote these books in collaboration with Ian Dennis under their common pen-name T. F. Banks. *Vol. 1: ''The Thief Taker'', Delacorte Press, 2001, *Vol. 2: ''The Emperor's Assassin'', Dell Books, 2003,

Swans' War

*Vol. 1: ''The One Kingdom'', HarperCollins, 2001, *Vol. 2: ''The Isle of Battle'', HarperCollins, 2003, *Vol. 3: ''The Shadow Roads'', HarperCollins, 2005,

Themis series

Written as by Sean Thomas Russell, these books are historical fiction about HMS ''Themis'', a Royal Navy frigate, at the time of the French Revolution. *''Under Enemy Colours'' (2007) *''A Battle Won'' (2010) *''A Ship of War'' (2012); US title, 2013, ''Take, Burn or Destroy'' *''Until the Sea Shall Give Up Her Dead'' (2014)

References

* With bibliography. * With bibliography. *

External links

Sean Russell website
includes fantasy and "Bow Street Runner" novels
S. Thomas Russell website
includes HMS ''Themis'' novels *

* (includes S. Thomas Russell) {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Sean 1952 births Canadian fantasy writers Canadian historical novelists Living people Nautical historical novelists