A Goodreads user
asked
Kat Ross:
I loved "The Midnight Sea" and found it so fascinating how you included actual ancient history, personages, places, etc. but with a fantasy twist. How'd you get this idea?
Kat Ross
Thanks for your question, Josh! I talked about some of that in the note at the end, but we all know that nobody ever reads those, so this is a perfect place to explain a bit of the research since The Midnight Sea is a mix of fact and fiction (mostly--okay, almost entirely--the latter).
The story began with the daevas. In the Zoroastrian religion, they're evil spirits that embody every imaginable sin. But it wasn't always so. They started out as gods that were later considered false. They were demonized, in other words, which I found fascinating. And I loved the word daeva. It seemed beautiful and mysterious. And I began to imagine how such a downfall might come about.
To be clear, The Midnight Sea is not at all an alternate history, although it is set in a specific time period: the collapse of the Achaemenid Empire, around 330 B.C. Alexander the Great defeated the Persian King, Darius III, in two decisive battles and went on to take the capitals of Persepolis and Susa. I couldn't resist weaving a (very twisted) version of those events into my story.
But the wicked king in The Midnight Sea bears little resemblance to Darius III, who may have been a mediocre general but didn't seem like a bad guy. In fact, the empire he ruled was pretty benevolent as empires go. Although Zoroastrianism was the official religion, other practices and customs were respected, gay people weren't persecuted, and women had property rights and could be economically independent. The Persians had the world's first charter of human rights (and the first postal system), among many other achievements.
They invented polo, which they called chaugan, and the letter from the king to Alexander taunting him with a mallet and ball was real. Other real things: The Hall of a Hundred Columns (where my Darius was sentenced), the general description of the palace complex at Persepolae, and the ass-kicking Pantea, who had command of the Immortals during the reign of Cyrus the Great and was sort of the sheriff of Babylon.
Alexander did hurl a spear into the ground and claim the Persian Empire for his own, although it was after he crossed the Hellespont. One of the best stories I read about the Hellespont involves the Achaemenid King Xerxes, who got so mad when a storm destroyed the bridge he'd made (in an attempt to invade the Greek mainland) that he ordered his soldiers to administer three hundred lashes to the strait and throw manacles in the water. That'll teach it!
Most of my place names are made up, but correlate roughly to a map of the empire at that time. The Midnight Sea is the Black Sea, the Salenian Sea is the Caspian, and the Middle Sea is, of course, the Mediterranean. The Great Salt Plain is Iran's central plateau, known today as the Dasht-e Kavir, or Great Salt Desert.
I also want to stress that my version of Zoroastrianism is only superficially related to the real religion, which many people still practice around the world. This is obviously a work of fiction, and the real magi did not oppress any supernatural beings, although they did worship fire and preach good thoughts, good words and good deeds, which I think sounds nice.
Dogs had a special place in Zoroastrianism. Weirdly enough, the holiest of them all, Water Dogs, were actually otters and were believed to hold the reincarnated souls of a thousand former actual dogs. Still with me? Well, killing one was just about the worst thing you could do, and was reportedly a capital offense.
What else? Zarathustra is the Greek name for Zoroaster. He died in 551 BC, at the founding of the Achaemenid Empire. He preached the importance of being good and kind and honest in this life, which I agree with wholeheartedly.
The word Druj comes from the ancient Avestan language, and means the embodiment of evil and sin.
The Char Khala range is the Caucasus. As far I know, Bactria was never infested with Undead demons. But I will be returning to my Bactria, the lair of Queen Neblis, and so will Nazafareen and Darius. I hope you'll come with us.
The story began with the daevas. In the Zoroastrian religion, they're evil spirits that embody every imaginable sin. But it wasn't always so. They started out as gods that were later considered false. They were demonized, in other words, which I found fascinating. And I loved the word daeva. It seemed beautiful and mysterious. And I began to imagine how such a downfall might come about.
To be clear, The Midnight Sea is not at all an alternate history, although it is set in a specific time period: the collapse of the Achaemenid Empire, around 330 B.C. Alexander the Great defeated the Persian King, Darius III, in two decisive battles and went on to take the capitals of Persepolis and Susa. I couldn't resist weaving a (very twisted) version of those events into my story.
But the wicked king in The Midnight Sea bears little resemblance to Darius III, who may have been a mediocre general but didn't seem like a bad guy. In fact, the empire he ruled was pretty benevolent as empires go. Although Zoroastrianism was the official religion, other practices and customs were respected, gay people weren't persecuted, and women had property rights and could be economically independent. The Persians had the world's first charter of human rights (and the first postal system), among many other achievements.
They invented polo, which they called chaugan, and the letter from the king to Alexander taunting him with a mallet and ball was real. Other real things: The Hall of a Hundred Columns (where my Darius was sentenced), the general description of the palace complex at Persepolae, and the ass-kicking Pantea, who had command of the Immortals during the reign of Cyrus the Great and was sort of the sheriff of Babylon.
Alexander did hurl a spear into the ground and claim the Persian Empire for his own, although it was after he crossed the Hellespont. One of the best stories I read about the Hellespont involves the Achaemenid King Xerxes, who got so mad when a storm destroyed the bridge he'd made (in an attempt to invade the Greek mainland) that he ordered his soldiers to administer three hundred lashes to the strait and throw manacles in the water. That'll teach it!
Most of my place names are made up, but correlate roughly to a map of the empire at that time. The Midnight Sea is the Black Sea, the Salenian Sea is the Caspian, and the Middle Sea is, of course, the Mediterranean. The Great Salt Plain is Iran's central plateau, known today as the Dasht-e Kavir, or Great Salt Desert.
I also want to stress that my version of Zoroastrianism is only superficially related to the real religion, which many people still practice around the world. This is obviously a work of fiction, and the real magi did not oppress any supernatural beings, although they did worship fire and preach good thoughts, good words and good deeds, which I think sounds nice.
Dogs had a special place in Zoroastrianism. Weirdly enough, the holiest of them all, Water Dogs, were actually otters and were believed to hold the reincarnated souls of a thousand former actual dogs. Still with me? Well, killing one was just about the worst thing you could do, and was reportedly a capital offense.
What else? Zarathustra is the Greek name for Zoroaster. He died in 551 BC, at the founding of the Achaemenid Empire. He preached the importance of being good and kind and honest in this life, which I agree with wholeheartedly.
The word Druj comes from the ancient Avestan language, and means the embodiment of evil and sin.
The Char Khala range is the Caucasus. As far I know, Bactria was never infested with Undead demons. But I will be returning to my Bactria, the lair of Queen Neblis, and so will Nazafareen and Darius. I hope you'll come with us.
More Answered Questions
Brit
asked
Kat Ross:
Yay! Will you be doing audio versions as well? I love it when authors release their audiobooks on the same day as the print book (hint hint, nudge nudge) 😃. Will Queen of Chaos have an audio version coming out soon? But again, WOW what a wonderful series! The world building is amazing and unique! And the romance is subtle and no insta love or triangles it's refreshing.
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