James Barclay
James Barclay (born 15 March 1965) is a British high fantasy author who has written multiple series including Chronicles of the Raven and Legends of the Raven. The Bookseller has called him "One of the UK's most popular genre fantasy authors."
James Barclay
- Born
- James Barclay was born on 15 March 1965. · Felixstowe.
- Nationality
- United Kingdom
- Occupation
- writer · novelist · blogger · actor
- Education
- Sheffield Hallam University
- Languages
- English
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James Barclay (born 15 March 1965) is a British high fantasy author who has written multiple series including Chronicles of the Raven and Legends of the Raven. The Bookseller has called him "One of the UK's most popular genre fantasy authors."
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Note VALÉORINE
James Barclay was an actor, blogger and novelist, among other activities, of British nationality. The actor was born in Felixstowe. James Barclay was educated at Sheffield Hallam University. Languages used include English.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 01 October 2026
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wikidata · Q1378375 · wikipedia · James Barclay
In this article
Early life
Early life
Barclay was born in Felixstowe, Suffolk in 1965. He attended Sheffield City Polytechnic. Prior to his breakthrough as an author in 2004, Barclay worked as an actor and a policeman. He was also an advertising manager for a financial investment company.
Writing career
Writing career
Barclay said his main inspirations as a writer were David Gemmell and the novel The Legacy of Heorot by Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, and Steven Barnes. A reviewer has since compared his work with Gemmell's. An origin story of the company of The Raven entitled "Or So Legend Has It" appears in the 2013 short story collection Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell.
Chronicles of the Raven series
Chronicles of the Raven series
• Dawnthief. Gollancz, 2002. • Noonshade. Pyr, 2009. • Nightchild. Pyr, 2009.
Legends of the Raven series
Legends of the Raven series
• Elfsorrow. Pyr, 2010. • Shadowheart. Pyr, 2010. • Demonstorm. Pyr, 2011. • Ravensoul. Gollancz, 2008.
Elves series
Elves series
• Once Walked with Gods.Gollancz, 2010. • Rise of the TaiGethen. Gollancz, 2012. • Beyond the Mists of Katura. Gollancz, 2013.
The Ascendants of Estorea series
The Ascendants of Estorea series
• Cry of the Newborn. Orion Publishing Group, 2005. • A Shout for the Dead. Gollancz, 2006.
Other novels
Other novels
• Heart of Granite (Gollancz, 2016) • The Queen's Assassin (Gollancz, 2022)
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1965
James Barclay was born on 15 March 1965.
2009
[Ravensoul] [by: James Barclay] (2009) is digitised and catalogued by Internet Archive.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
James Barclay was born at Felixstowe.
Birthplace
Felixstowe.
Birth place
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1."James Barclay." Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors, Gale, 2012. Gale Literature Resource Center. Accessed 18 April 2023.
- 2."Science fiction and fantasy" by Michael Rowley, The Bookseller, 9/17/2004, Issue 5146, pages 37-40.
- 3.Elitist Book Reviews. James Barclay Interview. 17 December 2010.
- 4."Attack of the Tomes," The Bookseller, Issue 5068, 3/14/2003, page 38.
- 5.Abercrombie, Joe. Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell. NewCon Press. October 2013. 978-1-907069-57-4.
- 6.Dawnthief: Chronicles of the Raven by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 7.Noonshade: Chronicles of the Raven, Book 2 by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 8.Nightchild: Chronicles of the Raven, Vol. 3 by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 9.MBR: MBR Bookwatch, January 2010. www.midwestbookreview.com.
- 10.Elfsorrow: Legends of the Raven, Book 1 by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 11.Elfsorrow. Library Journal.
- 12.Shadowheart by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 13.Shadowheart. Library Journal.
- 14.MBR: MBR Bookwatch, January 2011. www.midwestbookreview.com.
- 15.Demonstorm. Library Journal.
- 16.MBR: MBR Bookwatch, February 2011. www.midwestbookreview.com.
- 17.Yon, Mark. Ravensoul by James Barclay. SFF World. 24 November 2008.
- 18.Once Walked with Gods by James Barclay. Publishers Weekly.
- 19.Yon, Mark. Elves: Once Walked With Gods by James Barclay. SFF World. September 2010.
- 20.SFFWorld Review of the Year, 2012 Part 1. SFF World. December 2012.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Secondary witnessreference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q1378375: James BarclayWikimedia Foundation
Secondary witness
Further particulars
Held on the record
Further particulars
Open the remaining particulars
James Barclay is recorded with the occupation novelist. Recorded as writer, novelist, blogger and actor.
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 17 August 2026.
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