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The Protagonist Speaks

Interviews with the characters of your favourite books

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Prof Benjamin Dinerstein (of The Ibbur’s Tale, by Lenny Abelson)

Dear readers, tonight we’re chatting with an English literature professor who encountered a most unusual ghost. Straight out of Eastern European Judaic mythology, it has led him on a journey of discovery and mysteries.

TPS: We were pleased to have the opportunity to speak with Professor Emeritus Benjamin Dinerstein about his experiences with an ibbur and the remarkable history the two of them uncovered. Professor, welcome!

BD: Thank you very much, and please call me Ben. It is a pleasure to meet you.

TPS: Likewise. Well, Ben, it is now more than twenty-two years since your encounter with the ibbur. Have you had any further contact either with her or Zephaniah, the mysterious old woman who played such a prominent role in the narrative?

BD: Sadly, I have not.

TPS: But you are quite certain that you actually encountered an ibbur, in this case, the ghost of your former student, Miriam?

BD: Excuse me. I hate to wax pedantic, but I must make a quick correction. An ibbur is not to be confused with a ghost. It is a very specific type of possessive spirit. Miriam came to me seeking my assistance. She had one last mitzvah, a good deed, to perform, and that was to finish her uncle’s quest. In fairness, she would surely have completed the task herself had she not been killed in the automobile accident. That said, I am absolutely certain that the entity I encountered was indeed Miriam.

TPS: I understand. In fact, I found the story quite convincing myself. Why, there’s so much history — not only her family’s saga, but European history, from before World War One through World War Two…

BD: … and, as you probably realized as quickly as I did, it all “fits.” As implausible as it might seem, these events took place almost exactly as Susanna, whom Miriam had planned to contact, described them.

TPS: I found Susanna absolutely fascinating. What remarkable strength she must have had!

BD: I got to know her quite well over the years, and she was a wonderful woman. She died just a few months ago, though not before she had seen five great-grandchildren.

TPS: But Naomi was her only child?

BD: Yes. It seems that irony ran rampant in that family. Michael Goldberg, Susanna’s husband, had had a bad case of mumps and was apparently unable to have children of his own. Similarly, Zephaniah told me that the man Yosef Müller believed was his father had also been rendered sterile by that disease. However, it seems as though everything fell into place nevertheless, didn’t it?

TPS: Indeed. Now, I must ask you something a little more personal. You have long described yourself as a skeptic, yet you seem so willing to accept an encounter with a purported ibbur without any reservations. Did you step out of character? Did you make an exception because of your feelings toward Miriam, your former student?

BD: Not at all! Like the ancient Greek skeptics, I tend to withhold assent, at least initially. Thereafter, I reserve judgment until I have gathered sufficient information. The image of Miriam convinced me that she was indeed my brilliant student, and the strange family saga that we unfolded was considerably more believable than the appearance of an ibbur. Everything made sense, except —

Continue reading “Prof Benjamin Dinerstein (of The Ibbur’s Tale, by Lenny Abelson)” →
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Maru Hosokawa (of Ghost Train, by Natalie Jacobsen)

Dear readers, tonight with us is a Samurai’s daughter from the 19th century Meiji era. She is here to speak about encountering ghosts, mysteries, and a kitsune who offers her help in exchange for confronting a demon.

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

I live in the most beautiful city in the world: Kyoto. The homes, teahouses, and shops are all made of wood slats or bamboo and shine in the sunlight, and we have smooth stone streets. I love the willows that drape themselves over the creeks and alleys that are lit by red lanterns. However, lately, Emperor Meiji has taken away from the beauty with his western inventions. There are these ugly…electricity wires running across our sky, and train tracks cutting through our city now. I worry for our future.

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

This is a wonderful question! It takes me back to more blissful days, when my mother was alive and my father was around – at least, when he wasn’t saving lives on duty as a samurai. He had a lot of tasks back then, and so many relied on him for help. But when he was home we would play Hanetsuki, usually under the shade of the trees away from the hot summer sun. We each had a paddle – if we had paints, we’d decorate them – and a small ball with feathers stuck in it, that we would toss between us.

With my friends at school, we sometimes ran with kites to see if we could catch the wind. I loved their bright colors. We’d paint them with figures from folklore or kabuki!

My favorite memories were enjoying each of the seasons in the mountain paths with my parents. We’d bring fruit or rice balls on our walks, and watch the sunset or pick flowers or leaves along the way. Sometimes we’d press them in mother’s poetry books – which I need to find…

What do you do now?

Frankly, I hate my job. I couldn’t ever tell my father though, or I know he would be hurt. I should be grateful for it – being an assistant in a teahouse to a prestigious geisha. Many would kill for a job like mine, with that kind of exposure to her high-level clientele and work with such an esteemed teahouse. But it is a nightmare to me. I know it’s temporary, while my father is rebuilding our wealth as a merchant, ever since being a samurai was outlawed. So we need to make money somehow! But I hate serving the men who get drunk and just want to play games or tell silly stories. They reek, and can be so rude to us. Adakichi, the geisha who runs my teahouse, is so effortlessly patient, but behind closed doors, I sometimes wonder if she is possessed by a demon… she can be so cruel, so easily.

Someday I’d love to do something else, but my destiny is likely to marry and support my family clan. I don’t know what that looks like yet. If only something could change around here, or someone could offer me a chance to do something else; I’d love to be able to help others like my father did for so many years as a samurai… I am a samurai daughter, after all.

What can you tell us about your latest adventure?

I was at one of my favorite festivals, dancing with my friends and enjoying the night of music – it was magic, if I may. But after the festival, I had the strangest encounter. The festival is popular for chasing away demons and yokai, and yet – after the festival – I met a fox. AND IT TALKED! But now stranger things are happening. Emperor Meiji is changing Kyoto every day, and my father hasn’t bene in touch at all since leaving me behind. So I am feeling lonelier than usual, and quite impatient. The fox found me at a strange time in my life, and now I can’t stop seeing…other yokai.

Continue reading “Maru Hosokawa (of Ghost Train, by Natalie Jacobsen)” →
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Janet Douglas, Lady Glamis (of Kindred Spirits: Royal Mile, by Jennifer C Wilson)

Dear readers, tonight with me is the ghost of the trusted lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots. She is here to tell us of royal life in in sixteenth century Scotland.

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

Ah, Scotland. We were a mobile household, but that’s what life was like in sixteenth century Scotland. I was one of seven, so they were lively times. That’s the thing about a good castle; what’s designed to protect and defend in times of siege and attack is great fun for children, left unsupervised by busy and worried parents. We ran riot. You ask about a favourite toy, but really, I wasn’t that keen on playing with toys; I preferred to lose myself in my thoughts, or play with my brothers and sisters. We practiced our courtly behaviour, making sure we were ready to take our places in society. You grew up fast in those days, especially when your brother was stepfather to the King of Scotland; we were practically royalty.

What do you do now?

It’s ironic, really, now, to be the trusted lady-in-waiting to Mary, Queen of Scots, after what happened between her father and I. Happily, she believes that I never truly tried to kill him, and I was certainly never a witch. Queen Mary, she understands how times were, and is glad to have somebody by her side who can truly support her, with an empathy as to what she went through herself.

My days are largely my own, especially when the Queen is not in town. I don’t accompany her out of town, although I hope if she ever goes on a progress, that I would be able to attend her. When she is in town, I greet her each morning, we agree her itinerary for the day, and whether she needs any support from myself or Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange, her right-hand-man these days. He’s such a good man; we make quite the team.

What can you tell us about your latest adventure?

Her Grace Queen Mary’s latest visit. She comes every year, at least once, usually during August, so she can enjoy what the festival has to offer. This year has been, interesting. She cares about her court, truly, but this year, the problems have been closer to home, what with her father’s mood lowering so badly, and then, well, other matters. We have all had to pull together, the ghosts of the Royal Mile. But then, that’s what we are good at. Whether it’s consoling the poor lad down in the tunnels, or keeping Greyfriar’s Bobby out of trouble, we know our roles, and we carry them out. Even the Covenanters know their place, once they are reminded of it.

And don’t forget the haunting. There’s nothing like a good haunting to lift the mood around here. They make it easy for us, with all the ghost tours; we can have our pick of victims, either the guides or the guided, depending on how we feel. Continue reading “Janet Douglas, Lady Glamis (of Kindred Spirits: Royal Mile, by Jennifer C Wilson)” →

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Tom Islip (of Shadows of the Lost Child by Ellie Stevenson)

Dear readers, tonight with me is a boy from Victorian Curdizan, a fictional version of York, England.

He’s here to tell us about his life, and how it changed when he met Alice. Alice, you see, is from our own time – though she can visit the past, and interact with Tom and his mates.

Read on to find out about Tom’s life and time-crossing adventures.

Tell us a little about where you live. What’s it like?

Curdizan Low? Well, I like it, but I doubt you would. If I say, back street pubs, narrow lanes and open drains, you get the idea? Being just a lad, I’ve never known anything else, of course, but Louise, my mate, she told me once she couldn’t wait to get out of the place. But, then, she lives in Curdizan High, it might sound posh, but it’s definitely not  – she lives in a place called Pearson’s Tenements, five stories high. I once saw a woman jump from the top. She didn’t die, but she never walked the same after that. The rats in the High are the best thing about it. I didn’t even see Louise – she’s vanished from sight.

So what makes Haversham Road in the Low better?

It’s a house not a room, although our house does back onto the mill. That’s why it’s dark, there aren’t any windows at the back and not much light at the front either, the mill’s silo blocks it out. My da, Scotty, works at the mill, or that’s what he calls it, when he’s not drinking, and I go to school, they feed us there! The school’s not far from the tenements. When I can, I bunk off for a bit and visit my mate, Ben Tencell, he’s the man who makes the coffins and buries the dead. It’s a bit creepy in his workshop, with all those coffin lids on the walls. Even Norah, the horse is scared. Ben’s house has a secret tunnel, under the workshop, that leads to the church. That’s how we had our adventure… Continue reading “Tom Islip (of Shadows of the Lost Child by Ellie Stevenson)” →

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Tynan Selvantyr (of Into the Darkness, by A. M. Rycroft)

Dear readers, tonight with me is a man long departed, contacting us from the other side.

Once the realm’s greatest sell-sword and adventurer, he sealed his sword in a dark cave, and placed a curse upon it. He spent a century in the caves as a ghost, until someone found a way to accesses the deepest reaches of the caverns and trigger the curse.

He’s here to tell us about his adventures as a ghost, mentoring the young woman who retrieved his sword and triggered the curse.

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

I was born in the bustling port city of Acantha. It’s close to the Golden Peaks, south of Cathell itself. My father was a well-known merchant there and our family was quite influential across the region. I found it a stifling environment, however, with too many expectations I had no desire to meet. I made every attempt to leave as soon as I was old enough to set out on my own.

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

No, not really any favorite toys I can recall, other than my stuffed bear Rufall. My father did not believe in a lot of play time for his children. He pushed learning on us more. I had favorite books instead. Histories of the realm and the rise of the Tae’Ahjin Empire. And my magik primers, of course.

What do you do now?

Well, as a ghost, I don’t have many worldly demands on my time anymore. However, I was once Cathell’s greatest adventurer. The bards sang of my exploits across the realm. I genuinely miss being an adventurer — the thrill of exploration and hunting out treasures that farm-hands only dream about. There are few things as exciting as that. And of course, a good clash of swords and trading spells with rival adventurers and mercenaries! I have to admit, when the chance arose for one last adventure, I jumped at it. Perhaps I should have warned Aeryn, before I gave her my sword, but sometimes the path to a good adventure requires a little subterfuge at first. Continue reading “Tynan Selvantyr (of Into the Darkness, by A. M. Rycroft)” →

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Valya Svetlova (of Soul of the Unborn by Natalia Brothers)

soul-of-the-unborn-natalia-brothersDear readers, tonight with me is Valya Svetlova, a young Russian student with a side job of a folklore tour guide. But not any tour. Valya’s flier asks: “Vishenky’s Legends and Supernatural Phenomena: Are you brave enough to experience them?” – a premise we know our readers would love to explore!

She is here to tell us about all the wonderful culture and attractions that Russia has to offer tourists, including her guided tours based around legends of supernatural phenomena.

 

 

 

Nice to meet you, Valya. Is everything okay? You look a little…pale.

A long and stressful day after a sleepless night. My guests have no idea what it will take for me to keep them alive.

I thought you were a folklore tour guide. What makes your excursions so dangerous?

“Tour guide” is my cover story. In real life, I’m a postgraduate student. I had to invite a group of Americans to stay in my summer home. I promised them a folklore tour in a quaint village not far from Moscow. But Vishenky is a perilous place.

In what sense?

Supernatural occurrences. I knew my plan was dangerous. What I couldn’t foresee was how quickly everything would whirl out of control, or how much effort it would take to ensure my visitors’ safety.

Then why don’t you send your guests to Moscow?

This is my only chance to prove I’m not a soulless monster destined to perish in another dimension. Continue reading “Valya Svetlova (of Soul of the Unborn by Natalia Brothers)” →

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Daina Harrow (of Skeletal by Katherine Hayton)

SkeletalDear readers, tonight on the guest couch we have Daina Harrow. Daina has been a victim of a terrible crime, and is here to impart a powerful message. 

 

 

What was your favourite toy as a child?

I used to own a fluffy blue duck which accompanied me everywhere. Even when my mother wrenched it from my hands to wash it, I’d stare at the washing machine and the clothesline to make sure it was safe. When my brother died my father boxed up my duck with his belongings by mistake. Dad retrieved it but the duck didn’t feel the same afterwards. For some reason, it wasn’t as fluffy or as comforting.

How do you feel about not ageing while seeing your old friends get on with life?

Considering the poor choices my old “friends” made with their lives, it hasn’t been upsetting. I still have my true friend with me here, and he’s not getting any older either. Besides, it’s not like I’ve been sitting still, watching them the whole time. I came back for the inquest because it’s all about me. If it were only them, I wouldn’t bother. I’m sure the reverse applies. Continue reading “Daina Harrow (of Skeletal by Katherine Hayton)” →

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