Brennan, Thomas 1965–

(Tom Brennan)

PERSONAL: Born 1965, in Liverpool, England; married; wife's name Sylvia.

ADDRESSES: Home—Liverpool, England. Agent—c/o Author Mail, Five Star, 295 Kennedy Memorial Dr., Waterville, ME 04901.

CAREER: Novelist and short story writer. Worked variously as a civil servant, information technologist, and freelance communications contractor.

WRITINGS:

The One True Prince (novel), Five Star (Waterville, ME), 2004.

The Debt (novel), Five Star (Waterville, ME), 2005.

Contributor of short stories to Richmond Review, Wilmington Blues, Writers of the Future, Crimewave, StoryHouse, and Whistling Shade.

SIDELIGHTS: Thomas Brennan became a full-time writer in 1999 after leaving a career in information technology. A self-described voracious reader, particularly of science fiction, Brennan published numerous short stories in publications such as the Richmond Review and Writers of the Future. He then turning to novel writing, publishing his first two books, The One True Prince and The Debt, in quick succession.

The One True Prince is a post-apocalyptic tale in which technology is hoarded by Earth's ruling class and the rest of the populace live like feudal peasants. A dying king has summoned his five sons—four of them cloned—in order to reveal which of them is the one true prince; a conspiracy results in one prince being assassinated and the remaining sons subsequently attempt to evade death while seeking the murderer. Jackie Cassada stated in Library Journal that The One True Prince "deftly combines high fantasy with elements of technology—cloning, pistols, and teletype—to create a believable alternate world with likable male and female protagonists." In a review for the Radford, Virginia Chronicle, Don D'Ammassa praised Brennan for his "nicely done setting, a sort of future England where cloning and sorcery are equally at home" and added that "the setting is sufficiently diverse to keep the novel from blending in with scores of similar tales of court intrigue." Harriet Klausner, in a review for Allscifi.com, called The One True Prince "a fascinating work of speculative fiction" that would likely spawn sequels.

In The Debt a well-known horror writer traveling the beat with New York City police officers shoots a thief who has ambushed them. In order to cover up the fact that he was carrying a concealed weapon, the writer claims his now-discarded gun was dropped by the now-dead criminal. When the gun is later linked by police to the murder of a Vermont college student with connections to the famous writer, one of the recovering police officers attempts to track down the truth. Library Journal reviewer Rex E. Klett commented that "smooth prose, bumptious characters, entertaining plot and surrounds makes this a good choice." Klausner wrote in a review for MBR Bookwatch that The Debt "is an intriguing personnel drama" with an "action-packed storyline" that "moves forward rather quickly whether it takes place on the streets of New York or small town Vermont."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Chronicle (Radford, VA), June, 2004, Don D'Ammassa, review of The One True Prince, p. 41.

Library Journal, May 15, 2004, Jackie Cassada, review of The One True Prince, p. 119; January 1, 2005, Rex E. Klett, review of The Debt, p. 83.

MBR Bookwatch, January, 2005, Harriet Klausner, review of The Debt.

ONLINE

Allscifi.com, http://www.allscifi.com/ (March 21, 2005), Harriet Klausner, review of The One True Prince.

Shots Crime and Mystery Magazine Online, http://www.shotsmag.co.uk/ (March 21, 2005), "Thomas Brennan."