Dear readers, tonight with us is a British lady from the time of the Napoleonic wars, who — quite unlike other ladies — is one of Sir Arthur Wellesley’s renowned spies and assassins. Call her a love-interest at your peril, but we did interview the protagonist from these books before.

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

My name is Felicity Brockenhurst and I was born in British India in 1789. Sadly, my mother died giving birth to me, so I was raised by my father who provided me with the best private tutors, and an all around education which was quite unconventional for young ladies.

Did you have any favourite toys as a child? Any cherished memories?

Toys? No, there was very little time for such frivolities. My tender years were spent in training and preparation. Riding, hunting, fishing, shooting, handling all forms of weaponry like knives, guns, swords and even lances. I am quite fond of the custom pepperbox revolver my father gave me aged seven though.

What do you do now?

Well, normally I am not so indiscreet, but since you asked so nicely. By day, I am a… I suppose what you might call an operative, an instrument, one of Sir Arthur Wellesley’s most renowned spies and assassins. The French call La Rosignol, the Nightingale and have all manner of wild tales of my accomplishments. It is said I smuggled Trouvier out of the Bastille hidden beneath my skirts, liberated the plans for invading Iberia from a locked strongbox under the Empereur‘s bed, and even eliminated the unfortunate General Lanoir through the sheer vigour of my lovemaking…  Modesty forbids me telling you which of these contain more than a grain of truth.

What can you tell us about your latest adventure?

Ah, the affair of the Shadow of the Serpent? It is Gaston Dubois’ tale truly of course, that brave, foolish, hot-blooded chap. He’s an absolute clod sometimes, but a brave one and an undeniably handsome one with those moustaches and cadenettes. He is one whom I must confess, I have more than a trifling affection for.

In this tale from his memoirs, Dubois is drummed out of this beloved hussars over a foolish duel and sent in disgrace to the “Accursed 31st” Dragoons who he is charged with turning into a proper fighting force (accompanied by his loyal sergeant the redoubtable Bastien Sacleaux, of course). There he earns the enmity of the countryside and a local bandita by the name of La Espina, the Thorn, who seems determined to have this head. While it is a trying experience, it is also an instructive one, for it is during this epic travail and through the battles he fights, first against La Espina’s wiles and then against the Spanish army, that he first begins to learn the real truth behind the Eternal Struggle which governs the age of Napoleon. It is where he is first set on the path that will bring him into the light to become a Keeper of the Hidden Flame, as am I.

What did you first think when you discovered the truth behind the malevolent menace of the mythos?

Fortunately, father’s tutors also provided a comprehensive education into the eldritch and esoteric, so from a very early age I was cognisant of the supernatural mysteries and monsters, the true horrors, which haunt the world of men. So it came as no real surprise when I first encountered one such during  the affair of the Clockwork Sailor. Colonel Segal was a fine specimen of manhood and a superficially most charming man who revealed himself to be a ravening beast. I shot him through the eye and then slammed an enchanted gem down his throat. He did not survive the experience.

What was the scariest thing in your adventures?

Fear is not really an appropriate response for someone who hunts monsters, human or supernatural, for a living. It serves no purpose and it is likely to get you killed, so it was trained and conditioned out of me. There are some very useful mantras which help control one’s natural impulses on such occasions.

What is the worst thing about your life as a spy and assassin?

Regret is an indulgence, but I do sometimes wonder what it might have been like to have had a more conventional upbringing, to have smaller horizons, to think of nothing more than reading novels quietly, my newest dress and how to secure a rich husband. That kind of thinking rarely lasts more than a moment though.

What is the best thing about it?

Experience is a wonderful thing and I have seen such wonders, such delights and marvels that it would make a lesser woman faint in her corsets. I have seen much of the world, travelled extensively on tall ships, climbed snowy mountains, walked through parched deserts, bathed in strange seas. Not all of them of this world. But it is the people who stay with you the longest and I am blessed to have met some extraordinary men and women in my adventures.

Tell us a little about your friends.

Dubois and Sacleaux I have already told you of and you will learn more by reading their adventures, but it is the mysterious Major Seraph whom I most ardently admire. Such a strange man but a powerful one, a sorcerer and magician and keeper of much forbidden knowledge. Yet he bears this burdens with such lightness and grace, such calm and equanimity. I believe he has lived many lifetimes and yet he always remains a perennial champion for mankind, often at great risk to his own wellbeing.

Any romantic involvement?

A lady rarely tells, but as I mentioned I am rather fond of that rascal Dubois, even though I rarely let him know it.

Whom (or what) do you really hate?

I loathe the cabal of villains who prolong this war for their own fell purposes. You will learn more of them in Dubois’ tale. To a certain extent I can understand their motives for they at least in their own vile way are worshipping their dark god, but it is their human pawns who I absolutely despise. Vile creatures who seek power for their own ends, even if it means the slaughter or sacrifice their fellow humans. They disgust me.

What’s your favourite drink, colour, or relaxing pastime?

Well, I rarely have time to relax but I am fond of a glass of a robust Bordeaux or Burgundy and a chance to read a novel or two, Miss Shelley’s Frankenstein is a favourite. It is much frowned upon, especially for a lady, but I do enjoy a good cheroot or cigar once in a while.

What does the future hold for you?

Dubois’ adventures will continue in his next chronicle Keeper of the Hidden Flame and I am glad to say our paths intersect a great deal more during that particular affair. What begins in Shadow of the Serpent is just the first step on a thrilling, momentous and deadly adventure through the battles and campaigns of the age of Napoleon. I do enjoy Dubois’ memoirs despite his sometimes florid prose and occasional mangling of our great language. I can assure your readers that they are in for a thrilling and unpredictable ride.

Can you share a secret with us, which you’ve never told anyone else?

Secrets are for keeping, not for sharing, I wouldn’t be much of a spy if I simply gave them away. Suffice to say, I foresee plenty of thrilling adventures in Dubois’ future and my own as we and our fellow keepers confront the forces of mythos and mystery who shape and define the eternal struggle during the Napoleonic Age.

John Houlihan is a novelist and short story writer publishing works including The Seraph Chronicles and Mon Dieu Cthulhu! series, The Cricket Dictionary and the BSFA-award nominated The Constellation of Alarion. He has also appeared in numerous sci-fi and fantasy short story collections including Signals, Near Future Fictions, When Shadows Creep, Corridors, Forgotten Sidekicks, Musketeers vs Cthulhu and many more. He currently works for Modiphius Entertainment as an ENNIE-award winning game designer, creative lead and narrative director.

You can meet Felicity on the pages of the Mon Dieu, Cthulhu! series, including the recently released Shadow of the Serpent.

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