The Branded by Jo Riccioni Book Review
2024-06-24
The Branded Book Review I am always looking for speculative fiction that examines themes of illness, and The Branded by Jo Riccioni appears to doRead More →
Jo Riccioni
Jo Riccioni studied English at Leeds University in the UK and graduated with a Masters in Medieval Literature. During this time she became obsessed with Icelandic saga, and the Arthurian and Robin Hood legends, often re-imagining these stories with women cast in the hero’s role. However, her first novel, The Italians at Cleat’s Corner Store, was historical fiction set in post-war England and was inspired by a family history that kept nagging to be told. It was published in Australia and the UK, where it won the International Rubery Award for Fiction and was longlisted for the New Angle Prize. Jo finally returned to her love of medieval-inspired worlds with her feminist fantasy series, The Branded Season. The first book, The Branded, was published in October 2022 and was shortlisted for the SPN’s Book of the Year in 2023. The duology’s conclusion, The Rising, was released in October 2023. The series sold to Angry Robot for publication in the UK and North America. Jo continues to write short fiction. Her stories have been published in Best Australian Stories 2010 and 2011, and in anthologies in Australia and overseas. She has won short story awards in the UK, the US and Australia.
Jo works from her shed on Garigal land in Sydney’s Northern Beaches. When not losing herself in imaginary worlds, she teaches creative writing and sex education, but not at the same time.