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The North Valley Grimoire Series #1
The North Valley Grimoire
Magic is leaking into our world, and an oppressive government will stop at nothing to keep it a secret. 1984, 007, and The Craft collide in an all new magical spy thriller from Blake Northcott, the international best-selling author of Arena Mode!
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First published October 1, 2018
27 people are currently reading
97 people want to read
About the author
Blake Northcott
61 books344 followersBlake Northcott is a Canadian author and comic book writer.
Northcott's 'Arena Mode Saga' is Kickstarter's most-funded science-fiction series of all time, and the first book in the series was nominated for Britain's prestigious BSFA (Best Novel of 2013).
The series went on to sell over 250,000 copies worldwide and has received over a thousand five-star reviews across multiple platforms.
Blake was a semi-finalist in James Patterson's 2017 Masterclass contest.
In 2018 Northcott's magical spy thriller 'The North Valley Grimoire' was the most-funded and most-backed original fiction novel on Kickstarter; in the first week of pre-orders, it was funding at the pace of a New York Times bestseller.
In addition to writing novels, Northcott has written 'Michael Turner's All new Fathom' and 'Executive Assistant Iris' for Aspen Comics, as well as 'Vampirella' for Dynamite Comics.
She was also an editorial writer for Millarworld, where her columns appeared in a number of comics; Millarworld is the company responsible for 'Kick-Ass', 'Wanted', 'The Magic Order', and 'Kingsman: The Secret Service'.
Her columns have appeared in Comic Book Resources (CBR), Geeks of Doom, CBS Man Cave Daily, and Verily Magazine.
http://www.BlakeNorthcott.com
Northcott's 'Arena Mode Saga' is Kickstarter's most-funded science-fiction series of all time, and the first book in the series was nominated for Britain's prestigious BSFA (Best Novel of 2013).
The series went on to sell over 250,000 copies worldwide and has received over a thousand five-star reviews across multiple platforms.
Blake was a semi-finalist in James Patterson's 2017 Masterclass contest.
In 2018 Northcott's magical spy thriller 'The North Valley Grimoire' was the most-funded and most-backed original fiction novel on Kickstarter; in the first week of pre-orders, it was funding at the pace of a New York Times bestseller.
In addition to writing novels, Northcott has written 'Michael Turner's All new Fathom' and 'Executive Assistant Iris' for Aspen Comics, as well as 'Vampirella' for Dynamite Comics.
She was also an editorial writer for Millarworld, where her columns appeared in a number of comics; Millarworld is the company responsible for 'Kick-Ass', 'Wanted', 'The Magic Order', and 'Kingsman: The Secret Service'.
Her columns have appeared in Comic Book Resources (CBR), Geeks of Doom, CBS Man Cave Daily, and Verily Magazine.
http://www.BlakeNorthcott.com
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
July 25, 2021
Fantastic. Better than expected.
This was better than I anticipated. Not to mention much more serious. I expected a paranormal YA type novel but this was a proper urban fantasy spy thriller with excellent characters, great plot and magic system, and the author never takes her foot off the pedal.
I'll definitely be reading the next books in the series.
This was better than I anticipated. Not to mention much more serious. I expected a paranormal YA type novel but this was a proper urban fantasy spy thriller with excellent characters, great plot and magic system, and the author never takes her foot off the pedal.
I'll definitely be reading the next books in the series.
September 8, 2019
My husband Kickstarted this one and I didn't know anything at all about it when we started reading it. It was pretty fun, though! There are a few too many typos for my comfort, but I enjoyed the characters (Malek and Aphra especially) and will be interested in seeing where a sequel might take things.
January 12, 2019
Blake Northcott’s North Valley Grimoire is an outstanding blend of mystery and the occult. It really can be called a paranormal spy thriller, packed with secret agents, a well developed system of magick, and enough twists and turns to keep anyone hooked. You can easily see the love and dedication the author put into it.
Given that the book is newly released, I will be keeping this spoiler free as much as possible, but even so, there is a lot to say.
I primarily want to bring up three points: delivery of the world building, the protagonist, and what seems to be the target audience.
Any time you find a new series where magic exists in a more modern setting, exposition dumps seem to be a necessary evil, but such is not the case here. Any exposition only serves to give you a taste of the world and makes you want more. I cannot say how impressed I am.
The protagonist (Calista Scott) truly impressed me too. As a seventeen year old girl with an imprisoned mother and a private school attendee, there should be no point where I can feel common ground with her, and that would be fine. As a reader, I don't need to relate to the protagonist, just to find reason to root for them. Yet, I really did relate to her at various points in the story.
And I am also thoroughly impressed with how clean the story is while retaining maturity. It really is a novel that can be read by pretty much anyone.
I cannot recommend this book enough.
Given that the book is newly released, I will be keeping this spoiler free as much as possible, but even so, there is a lot to say.
I primarily want to bring up three points: delivery of the world building, the protagonist, and what seems to be the target audience.
Any time you find a new series where magic exists in a more modern setting, exposition dumps seem to be a necessary evil, but such is not the case here. Any exposition only serves to give you a taste of the world and makes you want more. I cannot say how impressed I am.
The protagonist (Calista Scott) truly impressed me too. As a seventeen year old girl with an imprisoned mother and a private school attendee, there should be no point where I can feel common ground with her, and that would be fine. As a reader, I don't need to relate to the protagonist, just to find reason to root for them. Yet, I really did relate to her at various points in the story.
And I am also thoroughly impressed with how clean the story is while retaining maturity. It really is a novel that can be read by pretty much anyone.
I cannot recommend this book enough.
August 17, 2019
A Lot of Fun
As a first novel from comicbook writer/editor Blake Northcott, this was a blast. Northcott has a great handle on dialogue, keeping things moving with wit & humor, but not bogging things down or going overboard. Her characters all stay pretty true to themselves, & it’s pretty easy to get a handle on their personalities. Northcott’s narrative is entertaining, full of some great lines & descriptive original metaphors you just don’t expect.
The fantasy aspect is handled very well. There were a few times I thought Northcott was gonna cheat, getting her main character out of a bind by breaking the “rules” she’d laid out. At the last second, though, she’d pull that dangling bit bait back & resolve an issue in a way that was pretty satisfactory.
It is pretty easy to see that Northcott has a background in comicbook storytelling, because there were times that things happened fast... not action, so much as plot transitions & emotional jumps. Most of the time, it works, but there were a few points that could have been allowed to play out a little longer. In comics, the writer has 25 to 30 pages to tell a story, & things have to happen a little quicker. In a novel, rushing an emotional transition can lessen the impact on the characters.
This was a great book, & I’m looking forward to the follow ups...
As a first novel from comicbook writer/editor Blake Northcott, this was a blast. Northcott has a great handle on dialogue, keeping things moving with wit & humor, but not bogging things down or going overboard. Her characters all stay pretty true to themselves, & it’s pretty easy to get a handle on their personalities. Northcott’s narrative is entertaining, full of some great lines & descriptive original metaphors you just don’t expect.
The fantasy aspect is handled very well. There were a few times I thought Northcott was gonna cheat, getting her main character out of a bind by breaking the “rules” she’d laid out. At the last second, though, she’d pull that dangling bit bait back & resolve an issue in a way that was pretty satisfactory.
It is pretty easy to see that Northcott has a background in comicbook storytelling, because there were times that things happened fast... not action, so much as plot transitions & emotional jumps. Most of the time, it works, but there were a few points that could have been allowed to play out a little longer. In comics, the writer has 25 to 30 pages to tell a story, & things have to happen a little quicker. In a novel, rushing an emotional transition can lessen the impact on the characters.
This was a great book, & I’m looking forward to the follow ups...
December 5, 2020
I'm not a big fan of comic books, nor even Fiction when it comes to my reading material, preferring instead my source of literature be in the form of Non-Fiction.
But that all changed with Blake Northcott. Whether it's Arena Mode, Vs. Reality, Assault or Attrition or in this case The North Valley Grimoire, Blake's descriptive prose passages and intricately-woven wordplay doesn't just pull you into the fantasy world's she creates, you become entangled in the story and need to see it through to its climactic resolution.
Someone once told me a writer is not an artist, merely a hack whose work is just an extension of their eccentric personality. While the latter is debatable, the former is most certainly incorrect. Blake's gift to paint a visual of dystopian landscapes in your mind's eye transcends those rigid notions of a writer's capabilities. She's a true talent with an already accomplished body of work to her credit. There is no limit to how high she can climb.
My only question now is...when will she make the jump to the silver screen?
Hollywood being so devoid of talent and originality could use her these days.
But that all changed with Blake Northcott. Whether it's Arena Mode, Vs. Reality, Assault or Attrition or in this case The North Valley Grimoire, Blake's descriptive prose passages and intricately-woven wordplay doesn't just pull you into the fantasy world's she creates, you become entangled in the story and need to see it through to its climactic resolution.
Someone once told me a writer is not an artist, merely a hack whose work is just an extension of their eccentric personality. While the latter is debatable, the former is most certainly incorrect. Blake's gift to paint a visual of dystopian landscapes in your mind's eye transcends those rigid notions of a writer's capabilities. She's a true talent with an already accomplished body of work to her credit. There is no limit to how high she can climb.
My only question now is...when will she make the jump to the silver screen?
Hollywood being so devoid of talent and originality could use her these days.
January 20, 2019
I really enjoyed this book. The characters were varied and fun to read along with. The author does a really good job creating an interesting setting for her series.
Blake Northcott blends together a spy thriller with elements of 1984 and the Craft. She even has a British spy in a rather well cut suit with little gadgets (think Q mixed with Merlin).
I had a hard time putting it down, as the story flowed well from one page to the next like a real page-turner. The artwork sprinkled throughout the book added a nice touch to the story.
Blake Northcott blends together a spy thriller with elements of 1984 and the Craft. She even has a British spy in a rather well cut suit with little gadgets (think Q mixed with Merlin).
I had a hard time putting it down, as the story flowed well from one page to the next like a real page-turner. The artwork sprinkled throughout the book added a nice touch to the story.
July 6, 2022
This was a breezy, light read that ran a bit more YA than what I was expecting. Overall, I enjoyed it but I have enjoyed other books by this author more than this one. I listened to the audio for this one and the narrator was a quick speaker. Might have to run a bit slower than your normal to get your footing with it.
December 17, 2018
Such a good book! I guess I'm a sucker for a good supernatural thriller. Also government conspiracies. I really liked the illustrations and the quotes from the grimoire, which really add to the story. I hope there's going to be sequels!
December 21, 2018
A great book in a brand new trilogy from Blake. While there's a touch of Buffy and the X-Files I loved the fresh look at magick. Bring on the next book.
January 7, 2019
Lots of fun, good art, a few minor errors that an edit would have cleaned up, overall Iiked it. Forthcoming podcast review.
February 20, 2019
glad I backed this book on Kickstarter some plot points felt tacked on so im lowering it a bit for that but if your a Buffy fan youll dig this same kinda vibe the movie not the show
February 27, 2019
I really liked this one! Interesting take on familiar subjects, high school setting minus many of typical obnoxious tropes. Good read:)
September 13, 2019
Fun YA Mash-up of Spies & Magick
Review of the Independently Published edition (2018) based on the crowdfunded Kickstarter edition The North Valley Grimoire (2018)
[3.5] I never caught the magic & fantasy bug and only ever managed a few pages of the first Harry Potter. Even adult styled works such as Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell and The Magicians became part of my DNF list. For this current work, I even had to look up that grimoire meant a textbook of magic rather than the sad French mirror of my imagination.
Espionage, dystopia, coming of age, fish out of water and Lovecraftian (sorry, I associate anything with tentacles as Cthulhu-adjacent) are right in my bailiwick though, so Blake Northcott's independently crowd-funded novel was a definite draw. The crowd-funded aspect itself was of interest as it does seem to be an indicator for future publishing with even literary translations such as Cleopatra Goes to Prison (Kickstarter) from Dedalus Press or small Independent Press prizes such as the Republic of Consciousness Prize (previously Kickstarter, now Patreon) being funded through that method. In addition I discovered that Northcott is from my own hometown of Toronto, Canada so let's support our local authors as well!
I did mostly enjoy The North Valley Grimoire but did feel that there was an odd change in allegiances about halfway through the novel that just felt off and which subverted my enjoyment for the rest of the work. Saying anything more about that would be a spoiler. Still it was suspenseful and compelling enough for me to finish and to look forward to what seemed to be the promise of a sequel. Northcott is currently (September 2019) crowd-funding a graphic novel Everglade Angels
Review of the Independently Published edition (2018) based on the crowdfunded Kickstarter edition The North Valley Grimoire (2018)
[3.5] I never caught the magic & fantasy bug and only ever managed a few pages of the first Harry Potter. Even adult styled works such as Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell and The Magicians became part of my DNF list. For this current work, I even had to look up that grimoire meant a textbook of magic rather than the sad French mirror of my imagination.
Espionage, dystopia, coming of age, fish out of water and Lovecraftian (sorry, I associate anything with tentacles as Cthulhu-adjacent) are right in my bailiwick though, so Blake Northcott's independently crowd-funded novel was a definite draw. The crowd-funded aspect itself was of interest as it does seem to be an indicator for future publishing with even literary translations such as Cleopatra Goes to Prison (Kickstarter) from Dedalus Press or small Independent Press prizes such as the Republic of Consciousness Prize (previously Kickstarter, now Patreon) being funded through that method. In addition I discovered that Northcott is from my own hometown of Toronto, Canada so let's support our local authors as well!
I did mostly enjoy The North Valley Grimoire but did feel that there was an odd change in allegiances about halfway through the novel that just felt off and which subverted my enjoyment for the rest of the work. Saying anything more about that would be a spoiler. Still it was suspenseful and compelling enough for me to finish and to look forward to what seemed to be the promise of a sequel. Northcott is currently (September 2019) crowd-funding a graphic novel Everglade Angels
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews