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J. Kathleen Cheney

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United States

October 19

Website

http://www.jkathleencheney.com

Twitter

jkcheney

Genre

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Romance, Mystery & Thrillers

Influences

Georgette Heyer, Ansen Dibell, C-J Cherryh, Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha ...more

Member Since

June 2008

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/jkathleencheney

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J. Kathleen Cheney is nothing if not versatile in her story telling. But, weaving through her work is a common thread, that of the improbable heroine. From worlds set in humanity’s distant post-apocalyptic future to alternate worlds of today or of the near past, Kathleen’s heroines include a siren who with help from a gentleman of the city must stop a regicidal plot, the neglected daughter of an absent king coming to terms with her shapeshifting ancestors, a blind teenager who dreams of others’ deaths and who uses her gift of touch to find their killers, and the widow of a trainer who with a most unusual horse must save her farm and way of life. All use their unusual gifts and talents to overcome obstacles and find their place in the world. J. Kathleen Cheney is nothing if not versatile in her story telling. But, weaving through her work is a common thread, that of the improbable heroine. From worlds set in humanity’s distant post-apocalyptic future to alternate worlds of today or of the near past, Kathleen’s heroines include a siren who with help from a gentleman of the city must stop a regicidal plot, the neglected daughter of an absent king coming to terms with her shapeshifting ancestors, a blind teenager who dreams of others’ deaths and who uses her gift of touch to find their killers, and the widow of a trainer who with a most unusual horse must save her farm and way of life. All use their unusual gifts and talents to overcome obstacles and find their place in the world.

In 2005 Kathleen decided to pursue writing as a full-time endeavor and has since enjoyed seeing her stories published in Shimmer, The Sword Review, and Baen’s Universe. Her novella “Iron Shoes” was a 2011 Nebula nominee. Kathleen twice attended the summer Writer’s Workshop at the Center for the Study of Science Fiction under the tutelage of James Gunn. She lists C. J. Cherryh, Arthur Conan Doyle, and Georgette Heyer among the writers who influenced her most–as well as Ansen Dibell, whose ghostly fingerprints can be seen all over her work.

Born and raised in El Paso, Texas, Kathleen’s parents actually were rocket scientists (they worked at White Sands Missile Range), which made for interesting dinner-time conversations. After graduating with degrees in English and Marketing she worked as a menswear buyer for retail department store chains before changing careers to become a teacher, where she taught mathematics ranging from 7th Grade Arithmetic up to Calculus. Kathleen also served a brief stint as a Gifted and Talented Specialist. She coached the Academic Team and the Robotics Team and was the Chess Club sponsor.

When not writing, Kathleen likes to don a mask and get sweaty fencing, both foil and saber. Quieter hobbies include putting on her Wellingtons and getting her hands dirty in the garden. She also enjoys traveling and taking care of her dogs. Two large, hairy, dogs.

Her first novel, "The Golden City" came out from Ace Books, November 2013. ...more

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Popular Answered Questions

Why did you choose Portugal for the backdrop of your Golden City series? What made Portugal ideal as a location?

J. Kathleen Cheney To be perfectly honest, it was a bit of an accident.

The original version of the novel was a short story. I set the very first draft in Venice, but ve…moreTo be perfectly honest, it was a bit of an accident.

The original version of the novel was a short story. I set the very first draft in Venice, but very quickly decided that I wanted somewhere else for the setting. I glanced down at a map and said to myself, "Hmmm....Portugal has a lot of coastline."

And that was how I picked Portugal. When you're writing a short story, there's not a huge committment to setting, so it didn't call for tons of research. Just enough.

What I didn't know was that this would turn into 3 novels...and that meant tons and tons of research on Portugal.

It was an interesting conincidence, but as I was researching, trying to read the sort of books that my main character, Duilio, would have read, I ran across the epic poem, "The Lusiads", which is about the voyages of Vasco da Gama, as reimagined by Camões. The mythology of "The Lusiads" worked well with my sereia, and gave me a starting place for their culture. Portuguese history is actually fascinating, and I found myself wishing that we'd studied it when we were kids. (I grew up on the Mexican border, so if we studied Iberia at all, it was Spain.)

And it turns out that not a lot of people are familiar with Portugal, so I felt like I was given a change to introduce them to the country (which is a great place to visit, also)--even if it was the slightly-alternate version that I was working in. (less)

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Hi, my name is Cintia and I'm from Argentina. Being a writer is what I want the most in this world, nothing makes me happier than writing, but I'm more and more frustrated with each passing day, because I've been blocked for 3 years. And it is not that I have an unfinished story. I have NOTHING AT ALL. A blank page in front of me, that only makes me sadder... Is there a way to overcome this? How do you handle it?

J. Kathleen Cheney I would suggest that you try prompt of some kind. Force yourself to write a story that includes an object that someone else picks out. I've done this …moreI would suggest that you try prompt of some kind. Force yourself to write a story that includes an object that someone else picks out. I've done this before, and 24 hours later had my story "Fleurs du Mal." (KD Wentworth had given me a glass globe with flowers in it. The actual object wasn't in the story, but it inspired something similar.)

The idea is that writers can write about anything, but sometimes if it's too close to their heart, they struggle with it more. Pick out something you don't have an emotional investment in, and write about that. That will force you to use your craft. And because writers often have to produce on a schedule, they often have to push past writing what they want or writing when they have no inspiration. So it has to be learned eventually...(less)

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J. Kathleen Cheney’s books

Average rating: 3.94 · 3,453 ratings · 622 reviews · 46 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Golden City (The Golden City, #1) 3.76 avg rating — 1,172 ratings — published 2013 — 6 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
	The Seat of Magic (The Golden City, #2) 4.04 avg rating — 592 ratings — published 2014 — 11 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
	Dreaming Death (Palace of Dreams, #1) 3.99 avg rating — 317 ratings — published 2016 — 6 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
	The Shores of Spain (The Golden City, #3) 3.90 avg rating — 292 ratings — published 2015 — 9 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
	Iron Shoes: Three Tales from Hawk's Folly Farm 3.82 avg rating — 125 ratings — published 2011 — 5 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
	The Seer's Choice (The Golden City, #3.5) 3.99 avg rating — 91 ratings — published 2015 — 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
	In Dreaming Bound (Palace of Dreams, #2) 4.20 avg rating — 64 ratings — 2 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
	Oathbreaker 4.13 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2016 — 2 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
	Dreams from the Grave (Tales from The Palace of Dreams Book 2) 4.34 avg rating — 47 ratings — 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
	The Amiestrin Gambit (The King's Daughter, #1) 4.30 avg rating — 47 ratings — 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

More books by J. Kathleen Cheney…

611 posts
J. Kathleen Cheney's Blog

Finally…

Last April I said here that new versions of my Golden City books were coming, but then I discovered something I overlooked–I had only been given rights back to two of the books, not The Golden City itself. And that put an end to the idea of re-releasing those books then.

This spring, my former agent went to bat for me again, and this time around, Penguin gave in and reverted the rights to that las

Series by J. Kathleen Cheney

The Golden City (3 books)
by

J. Kathleen Cheney (Goodreads Author)

3.87 avg rating — 2,184 ratings

Palace of Dreams (2 books)
by

J. Kathleen Cheney (Goodreads Author)

4.07 avg rating — 418 ratings

Tales from Hawk's Folly Farm (3 books)
by

J. Kathleen Cheney (Goodreads Author)

3.83 avg rating — 193 ratings

The Horn (3 books)
by

J. Kathleen Cheney (Goodreads Author)

4.19 avg rating — 117 ratings

The King's Daughter (3 books)
by

J. Kathleen Cheney (Goodreads Author)

4.35 avg rating — 110 ratings

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J. is Currently Reading

J. is currently reading

City of Bones (The Mortal Instruments, #1)

by Cassandra Clare (Goodreads Author)

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J.’s Recent Updates

J. Kathleen Cheney wrote a new blog post Finally… Last April I said here that new versions of my Golden City books were coming, but then I discovered something I overlooked–I had only been given right Read more of this blog post »
Nov 14, 2025 01:03AM · like
J. has read Things She's Seen by Pat Esden (Goodreads Author)	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
Sep 28, 2024 08:10AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Things She's Seen by Pat Esden. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Things She's Seen by Pat Esden <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
J. has read Spellswept (The Harwood Spellbook, #0.5) by Stephanie Burgis (Goodreads Author)	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
May 02, 2024 12:52AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
J. liked a quote “I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.” Jane Austen
Apr 08, 2024 09:36AM · like · more quotes by Jane Austen

More of J.'s books…

Quotes by J. Kathleen Cheney (?)

“His eyes narrowed. “Is this where the elephants come in? Because there was something about elephants in that French book.”
― J. Kathleen Cheney, The Seat of Magic

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Polls

What should our December 2017 hiatus pick be?

First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones

40 votes 27.6%

Ice Massacre by Tiana Warner

22 votes 15.2%

Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco

22 votes 15.2%

The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare

20 votes 13.8%

Pride and Prejudice and Mistletoe by Melissa de la Cruz

15 votes 10.3%

Hexbreaker by Jordan L. Hawk

12 votes 8.3%

Dreaming Death by J. Kathleen Cheney

9 votes 6.2%

The Virgin Blue by Tracy Chevalier

5 votes 3.4%

145 total votes

1 comment

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The Life of a Boo...: ButterflyCager's 14 in '14 Challenge	69	102	Mar 20, 2014 07:15PM
Sci-fi and Heroic...: 2014 Locus Award WINNERS announced	6	56	Jun 29, 2014 04:28AM
The Geek Girls Bo...: Summer Reading 2015!	5	75	Jun 14, 2015 12:57AM
Vaginal Fantasy B...: Newer Book Suggestions	23	322	Jun 27, 2015 05:24PM
Vaginal Fantasy B...: Wishing This Was	7	67	Jul 14, 2015 05:33AM

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J.’s Quotes

“Let other pens dwell on guilt and misery. I quit such odious subjects as soon as I can, impatient to restore everybody not greatly in fault themselves to tolerable comfort, and to have done with all the rest.”
― Jane Austen, Mansfield Park

tags: writing-philosophy

127 likes

“His eyes narrowed. “Is this where the elephants come in? Because there was something about elephants in that French book.”
― J. Kathleen Cheney, The Seat of Magic

1 likes

“Courage is knowing what not to fear.”
― Plato

tags: courage, fear

543 likes

“laughed. “It really vexes you, doesn’t it?” “You know it,”
― Fiona West, More Than We Bargained For

1 likes

“I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.”
― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice