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Vic James

Goodreads Author

Website

http://www.vicjames.co.uk

Twitter

DrVictoriaJames

Genre

Fantasy, Fiction, Thriller

Member Since

November 2014

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Vic lives in London’s Notting Hill, but her life is more action-adventure than rom-com.

She studied History and English at Merton College, Oxford where Tolkien was once professor. Relocating to Rome, she completed her doctorate in the Vatican Secret Archives (they’re nothing like The Da Vinci Code), then spent five years living in Tokyo where she learned Japanese and worked as a journalist. She now alternates writing full time with directing documentaries for the BBC.

Vic has scuba-dived on Easter Island, camped at Everest Base Camp, voyaged on one of the last mailboats to St Helena, hang-glided across Rio de Janeiro, and swum the Hellespont from Europe to Asia. But there’s little she loves more than lying in bed till midday with a good book ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

What was the first kernel of this amazing world that popped into your head? How did it grow from there?

Vic James What a lovely question - thank you! The characters of Luke, Abi, Daisy and Silyen had been with me a long time, and I knew their world was an alternat…moreWhat a lovely question - thank you! The characters of Luke, Abi, Daisy and Silyen had been with me a long time, and I knew their world was an alternate contemporary Britain, with magic. But I couldn't quite see the shape of that world. Then while producing a TV documentary series called 'The Super Rich and Us', I heard a lot of talk about 'the 1% and the 99%', and whether money was producing a class of people set apart from the rest of us. And the idea just came to me: What if these people didn't just have unimaginable wealth? What if that power took another form, too: magic? And everything clicked.
Then the world deepened thanks to all sorts of experiences: my childhood spent visiting the great aristocratic houses of England; my experience as a working-class girl at one of Oxford's grandest college's (like Abi, sent among the elite and having to figure out their ways!); my PhD research into the English Civil War, and from the deep myths, legends and poetry of the British Isles. I just put everything I believe to be important and love most into one story! (less)

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This question contains spoilers... (view spoiler)

Vic James Oh my gosh I only just saw this - so sorry for the late response, Carolina! I've been hard at work on book 2, which picks up with what Abi does next, …moreOh my gosh I only just saw this - so sorry for the late response, Carolina! I've been hard at work on book 2, which picks up with what Abi does next, after her escape. It's been so much fun to write, though it goes to dark places and puts Abi, Luke (and many more) through testing times... As for the Jardine boys, I do love all of them: in books 2 Gavar comes to some shocking realisations, Jenner must make the hardest choice between his family and the commoner girl he loves, while Silyen's schemes may utterly transform the game that everyone else thinks they're playing ;) Thank you so much for reading! (less)

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Combine Editions
Vic James’s books

Average rating: 3.79 · 16,186 ratings · 2,952 reviews · 10 distinct works • Similar authors

	Gilded Cage (Dark Gifts, #1) 3.66 avg rating — 10,050 ratings — published 2016 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Tarnished City (Dark Gifts, #2) 4.01 avg rating — 3,535 ratings — published 2017 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bright Ruin (Dark Gifts, #3) 4.03 avg rating — 2,554 ratings — published 2018 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	2016 Del Rey Sampler: Excerpts from Upcoming and Current Titles by Katherine Arden (Goodreads Author), Michael J. Sullivan (Goodreads Author), Indra Das 3.46 avg rating — 28 ratings — published 2016	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	2017 Del Rey Sampler: Excerpts from Upcoming and Current Titles by Katherine Arden (Goodreads Author), Callie Bates (Goodreads Author), Terry Brooks (Goodreads Author) 3.93 avg rating — 15 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dark Gifts 4.33 avg rating — 6 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Libres: Les Puissants 3 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Os dons sombrios 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Dones Oscuros 1. La Jaula Dorada (Libros digitales nº 85) (Spanish Edition) by Vic James (Goodreads Author), Ángeles Leiva (Translator) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Vic James: Audible Sessions: FREE Exclusive Interview by Elise Italiaander, Vic James (Goodreads Author) (Narrator) 0.00 avg rating — 0 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Vic James…

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Vic James's Blog

Immigration: How British Politics Failed

BBC2 2×60’ 9pm (2025)

“The first instalment fields Tony Blair, Nigel Farage, Suella Braverman, David Cameron and Michael Howard … there’s no safe place to rest your eyes, ears or brain”
The Guardian

Sunday Times Critic’s Choice

View more on Vic James's website »

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Published on February 02, 2025 09:10

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Series by Vic James

Dark Gifts (3 books)
by

Vic James (Goodreads Author)

3.79 avg rating — 16,139 ratings

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Vic’s Recent Updates

Vic James wrote a new blog post This World: Vaccine Wars BBC Current Affairs / BBC2, 1×60’ 9pm (2018-19) “Victoria James’s excellent film … was as important as it was troubling”Telegraph
Feb 03, 2025 04:08AM · like

More of Vic's books…

Quotes by Vic James (?)

“Always look at the people, not at the mass. A face, not the crowd. Look at the world, not at the ground. Every little detail you see is a victory.”
― Vic James, Gilded Cage

13 likes

“She didn't do people, dammit. She did books. A world of difference”
― Vic James, Gilded Cage

tags: books, bookworm, people

9 likes

“There's no magic more powerful than the human spirit.”
― Vic James, Gilded Cage

tags: determination, human, human-spirit, magic

7 likes

See all Vic James's quotes »

Polls

Which February New Release would you like to read in March?

Books were randomly chosen from Goodreads' "Most Popular Books Published In February" list.

** Write-ins are allowed. If you do so, please include title, author and series name.

Rebel of the Sands (Rebel of the Sands, #1) by Alwyn Hamilton

Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton
(Rebel of the Sands #1)

4 votes, 44.4%

Into the Fire (Night Prince, #4) by Jeaniene Frost

Into the Fire by Jeaniene Frost
(Night Prince, #4)

2 votes, 22.2%

The Turn (The Hollows #0.1) by Kim Harrison

The Turn by Kim Harrison
(The Hollows #0.1)

2 votes, 22.2%

The Dragon's Price (Transference, #1) by Bethany Wiggins

The Dragon's Price by Bethany Wiggins
(Transference, #1)

1 vote, 11.1%

King's Cage (Red Queen, #3) by Victoria Aveyard

King's Cage by Victoria Aveyard
(Red Queen, #3)

0 votes, 0.0%

A Conjuring of Light (Shades of Magic, #3) by V.E. Schwab

A Conjuring of Light by V.E. Schwab
(Shades of Magic, #3)

0 votes, 0.0%

Gilded Cage (Dark Gifts, #1) by Vic James

Gilded Cage by Vic James
(Dark Gifts, #1)

0 votes, 0.0%

Shadow's Seduction (Immortals After Dark, #17; The Dacians, #2) by Kresley Cole

Shadow's Seduction by Kresley Cole
(Immortals After Dark, #17; The Dacians, #2)

0 votes, 0.0%

Born of Vengeance (The League, #10) by Sherrilyn Kenyon

Born of Vengeance by Sherrilyn Kenyon
(The League, #10)

0 votes, 0.0%

Lifeblood (Everlife, #2) by Gena Showalter

Lifeblood by Gena Showalter
(Everlife, #2)

0 votes, 0.0%

9 total votes

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