Cover Reveal - Antara by Tade Thompson
Helllooo!
Today something special for you thanks to Luna Press Publishing I am sharing the cover for Tade Thompson’s excellent new historical fantasy epic Antara coming out 23rd March 2027. We may know Thompson for his excellent science fiction in the form of The Wormwood trilogy that began with the Clarke award winning Rosewater, his horror in the Molly Southbourne novellas or his nightmarish literary fiction in the form of the excellent Jackdaw but now he has yet again something a little different to share.
One century before Islam….
The Arabian Peninsula teems with tribes embroiled in conflict.
Out of this cauldron comes an insistent romance…
Somewhere between legend, myth and history sits Antara ibn Shaddad.
In the century before Islam, in the harshest environment in the known world, this greatest of Arabian warriors struggles to ascend from slavery to the heights of his society, blasting through prejudice with the quickness of his sword, the incandescence of his temper, and the transcendence of his verse. But there is a cost for everything. Can he gain the whole world for himself and his family while keeping his soul?
I’ve had the pleasure of reading this novel and it’s quite remarkable as mix of a tale exploring the history and culture of the sixth century Middle East and Horn of Africa that gets mixed in with gods, djinn and at the heart of it all Antara. We watch him struggle for acceptance and freedom as a slave of mixed race and then how he becomes a figure of bravery, violence and legend.
Thompson smartly uses language to underline this is a smart piece of the world with science, medicine and yet is mixed with regular warfare and tactics. The story can move from brutal violence to humour and heartfelt romance very quickly and Antara really is a force of nature taking each page in his stride even as a young child. You wonder what he will do next and what the next challenge over the horizon will be. Gentle Readers you are in for a treat!
A few others have been able to give their opinions too!
‘I loved it: it’s fresh, original and wonderfully written’ - Joanne Harris
‘Marvellous, thoughtful, epic and deeply engaging’ - Wole Talabi
‘A perfect ending, readable and fast paced, love the evocation of the ancient world…religion, spirituality, mysticism, and plurality are interwoven so seamlessly’ - Kate Elliott
‘The word epic gets bandied around a lot. Then a book comes along that reminds you what it really means. Antara is that book’ - Mike Carey
A great book needs a great cover and Alison Samson is responsible for the beautiful cover below. Samson is an award winning and Eisner award-nominated artist working on comics, graphic novels, editorial and book covers. They have worked for the BBC, The Guardian, , Marvel Comics, Warner Brothers/ DC Comics, Image Comics, Subterranean Press, Pantheon Books, Dark Horse Comics, IDW Publishing, Boom Studios (PRH), Oni Press and many many more. They’ve also collaborated with people such as Stephen and Owen King, Lee Bul, Mike Mignola, Iron Maiden, Tori Amos, Adrian Tchaikovsky and more
Alison's work often includes concepts, cultural and biological references and representation methods which add to the narratives she illustrates, from historical paint colours to the stories we tell, and she often draws on her practice and experience as a contemporary Architect and conservation consultant to bring more to the party. Alison described the process below
“Tade and Francesca gave a brief which included mention of the pre-Islamic cultural background of Antara ibn Shaddad al-Absi and which also asked for something conceptual. So we started with Antara's hand on a sword. Hands on swords can be as expressive as hands doing anything in life, so there were a few choices to be made. What were we trying to say? Do we show vulnerability or something more obdurate? And what sword? And how much can one know truly about events that took place fifteen centuries ago. We cannot be sure what Antara's sword was like, but I chose a straight sword with a crossguard. Beyond this I chose to make the sword a story, just as the book is. But even a story is based on solid research, so there was lot to look into. Artistic depictions of Antara and Abla, Actual contemporary photographic reference for people who could be Antara and Abla. Historical sword research specific to Arabia in pre-Islamic times. Typography, hairstyles, textiles, artistic motifs, costumes, headwear, nature, archaeological finds; ways of getting real people from history to speak in the present.
What was very helpful was that Antara was in the midst of what would have been an advanced civilisation of the time, and the region is well documented and many, many artists have drawn Antara and Abla before me, so there is both guidance and material. But it was not those literal depictions we wanted to use, rather needing to pick something important from them that was more tactile. I looked at typography from the region and looked at what might speak to the reader, discounting lines scratched in stone and wood. This would have produced a suitably brutal result and looked good, but it evaded the point and had too much risk in getting it wrong. I did want to show civilisation, not lack of it. I chose a textile pattern taken from goods found in the tomb of a child in Lower Egypt at round the time or a bit before Antara was alive and another contemporaneous textile, so it is history you can touch, a hand like a window and literally someone from then looking back at you. That with the hand like a rocky crag with flourishes (there's lots of ways of drawing hands) and our couple off balance made a book cover that hopefully does not look like anything else, but speaks for this story. Antara and Abla look at each other without their well referenced headgear, as their naked selves, on an intense raw background of fiery red and yellow earth colours, across the inevitable sword, together, but always divided. Finally, our colour design brings the story to the present day, in harsh relief: a story for the ages seen from the 21st Century. “
See below for how the history and concept art worked to create the beautiful cover and how this all comes together in the final look. Next year I’ll tempt you with a review but for now why don’t you get your pre-orders now ? You deserve a treat!
