The Servants [Paperback]

Talk about a protean career! The writer Michael Marshall, one might think, already has more than enough strings to his bow: As Michael Marshall Smith, he created some of the most inventive and quirky of cutting-edge science fiction novels; dropping the ‘Smith’ (as Michael Marshall), his bestselling crime fiction is among the most technically adroit and pulse-racing in the field. But here he is with yet another hat on – and as M M Smith, he proves to be just as accomplished a writer for younger readers. The Servants is an absolute spellbinder: a wonderfully engaging yarn that will rivet the attention of both younger readers and those adults lucky enough to pick it up.

11-year-old Mark is well aware – even at this tender age – of the fragility and insecurity of life. After his move from the bustle of London to the more bracing seaside air of Brighton in the winter, he finds he is not enjoying himself. His mother’s illness is distressing, and, worse, he cannot stand his new stepfather. The house he lives in is a strange place, with, what’s more, a strange elderly woman in the basement. The sands of reality are about to shift for the vulnerable Mark, and he may have to rely for help on some people who may not even be real.

Smith’s mastery of the fantasy genre is, thankfully, a skill he has not allowed to wither on the vine, and this is intelligent, allusive writing; both disturbing and evocative. Let’s hope MM/Michael/Marshall/Smith finds time to revisit the genre in between his flesh-creeping adult thrillers. --Barry Forshaw

‘Superb, offbeat contemporary fantasy … Smith portrays a child's irrational anger with devastating accuracy, and Mark's visits to the surreal and intensely symbolic world of the servants are powerfully depicted’ Publishers Weekly

‘A touchingly sweet book that refuses to give easy answers or cheap twists. A perfect rainy-day read that’ll leave you with a lump in your throat’ SFX

‘Damn good storytelling …beautifully conceived and utterly real’ Fortean Times

‘This moving parable delivers strong psychological insights into a child’s powerlessness and anger’ Entertainment Weekly

‘A charming and eerie fantasy’ Sun Herald (Australia)

A uniquely dark and elegant tale that illuminates the loneliness of childhood, the pain of loss and the power of imagination. It will charm and haunt its readers in equal measure.

Eleven-year-old Mark is bored. He spends his days on the Brighton sea-front, practicing on his skate-board. His mother is too ill to leave the house, and his stepfather is determined that Mark shouldn’t disturb her. So when the old lady who lives in the flat downstairs introduces him to rock cakes and offers to show him a secret, he’s happy to indulge her.

The old lady takes a large, old-fashioned key and leads Mark down a dusty corridor to a heavy door. Beyond the door is a world completely alien to Mark’s understanding. For behind the old lady’s tiny apartment, the house’s original servants’ quarters are still entirely intact, although derelict. Mark finds himself strangely drawn to this window onto the past, and when, the next time he visits, the old lady falls asleep, he steals the key and goes to visit the servants’ quarters alone.

And suddenly Mark’s life takes a bizarre turn, as the past seems to collide with the present, dreams invade reality and truths become apparent to this hitherto unperceiving boy.

WHAT IS IT?
The Servants is a short novel about a boy who's forced to leave his home, friends and father in London to come live with his mother and her new husband. He doesn't get along with his step-father, he's bored and lonely, and his mother is unwel, and getting worse. But one night Mark meets the old lady who lives in the basement of their house, and his life starts to change...

WHERE?
The book is set in Brighton, on the south coast of England. A town with a dodgy past - someone once described it as a place that looked like it should be helping the police with their enquiries - but very striking Regency architecture. It's in one of these houses that Mark discovers the old servant, and begins to wonder if it's as abandoned as everyone thinks...

WHY "M. M. Smith"?
Because it's quite different to the conspiracy thriller novels I write under "Michael Marshall". This novel is about a young person coming to terms with changes in his life, the first foreshadowings of impending adulthood, and learning to trust his own imaginings and intuitions. In some ways it's closer to the short stories I've written under the name "Michael Marshall Smith", but it's perhaps even more personal than those. So please allow me to introduce you to... M. M. Smith. I hope you like it. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Things are unreliable.

Things break.

Things fall apart. Even at 11 years old, Mark knows this all too well.

By the time he moves out of London to the wintry Brighton seaside, the situation is already bad. His mother is ill, and Mark hates his new stepfather. There's nothing to do and the new house feels nothing like home, filled with odd sounds and hidden rooms... and a strange old lady in the basement.

Shadows are soon gathering as life goes from bad to worse. Mark knows he has to do something, but he doesn't know what. And the only people who might be able to help him...

... may not even exist.

M M Smith is also know as Michael Marshall, author of the internationally bestselling novels ‘The Straw Men’, The Lonely Dead’ and ‘Blood of Angels’. Before that, he had already established a successful career under the name Michael Marshall Smith: his groundbreaking first novel, ‘Only Forward’, won the Philip K. Dick and August Derleth Awards, and its critically acclaimed successors ‘Spares’ and ‘One of Us’ have been optioned by major Hollywoood studios. He lives in North London with his wife, son and two cats.