Miss Bennet’s Dragon Wins 2021 Award for Fantasy
Pride and Prejudice retelling wins prestigious Royal Dragonfly Award with Austen empowered by Dragons
January 31, 2022
Retellings of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice” range from Afro-Latino pride to shambling zombies. In M. Verant’s bold “Miss Bennet’s Dragon,” Elizabeth Bennet commands dragons, bookish Mary is an activist, and the story has a message—society’s prejudices have not changed between 1812 and 2022. Now the novel, published by Acerbic Press, is a 2021 Royal Dragonfly Award Winner for Science Fiction and Fantasy.
Jane Austen’s England is usually portrayed with elegant ladies in beautiful gowns, but women’s rights were severely curtailed. Workers protested income inequality. The slave trade was reviled but lucrative. And progressive activism was driven by women…
Miss Bennet’s Dragon launches as Amazon #1 HOT New Release
Verant’s retelling of Pride and Prejudice is a hit!
May 10, 2021
Miss Bennet’s Dragon, M. Verant’s fantasy retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, has had a exceptional first week in release, consistently ranking as an Amazon #1 Hot New Release and receiving a 4.7 star overall rating.
Readers are raving about the humor, engaging writing, authenticity… and of course, dragons:
“Enthralling! I had things to do today but instead I read this book straight through. Once started, I couldn't abandon it! Rarely have I read a book that has captured me so thoroughly.” — VINE VOICE
“Outstandingly original and yet still an Austen Variation. Well written, edited, and researched, this one is a pleasure to read. Mr. Verant does a wonderful job of staying true to Austen and yet spinning her characters out into a bold direction. I read via KINDLE UNLIMITED and then purchased to keep. (That is my highest recommendation!)” — JA Lowcountry
“Woah!! This is the best book I've read in a while and I read a lot. I stayed up until 2 am to finish. It was riveting. Such a cool blend of fantasy and Pride and Prejudice, effortless and authentic while so removed from the real story. Wow.} — Heather
“I am in awe. Such a great book! If you love P&P and you love dragons, you have to read this one. I don't do spoilers, so you'll have to see other reviews for that. Read this book. You will not regret it. The only thing you'll want to know is how long until books 2 and 3 are written and released.” — A. Bishop
“I am so pleased readers enjoy the book,” Verant said. “Miss Bennet’s Dragon was really a personal homage to Austen’s wonderful story. I’m happy that other Austen fans appreciate it as well!”
Miss Bennet’s Dragon is available in paperback, ebook, and—releasing today!—audiobook.
Power in the Age of Lies—It’s Not about Trump
A few thoughts on “Power in the Age of Lies”
Jan 28, 2019
POWER is not a political polemic. Readers have compared POWER to Rand’s “Atlas Shrugged,” and there are similarities—both books are thrillers with political and philosophical themes, and both have female protagonists whose power rises from brilliance in industry.
But the differences matter. Obviously (and thankfully!) POWER is vastly shorter than Rand’s novels. One reason for the heft of Rand’s writing is maniacal repetition as she pounds her message into the reader. In contrast, the theme of POWER is the search for truth, both objective and self, and the courage to act morally on that truth. With this theme, hammering a personal political formula would be hypocritical. In fact, a principal character conflict—Madison, fighting for coal power to save people’s lives, and Conrad, advocating renewable energy through abstract economics—is never neatly resolved. Real-world challenges like wealth inequity and climate change are massive and nuanced. The solutions do not fit on a bumper sticker. …
M. Verant Crushes Trump’s Wall in New Novel
Trump’s Wall Splits America in a New Thriller about Power, Truth, and a Country on the Brink of Civil War
Jan 22, 2019
SAN FRANCISCO, CA, January 22, 2019 — Political fiction is hot. George Orwell’s novel “1984” shot to No. 1 on Amazon’s best-seller list after Trump’s election. But M. Verant’s new novel “Power in the Age of Lies,” published by Acerbic Press, takes political fiction to the next level by bluntly portraying a corrupt Trump conspiring with Russia while building his Wall. And in Verant’s world, the Wall splits America itself. The West Coast has become the Free West, a technological superpower leading resistance to Trump’s authoritarian rule.
The real-life political battle over funding for Trump’s wall echoes in the novel, where Conrad Vega, a fictional Democratic senator, is “yelling about blocking funding for the Wall.”
“In both the novel and reality, the Wall is the defining symbol of Trump’s presidency,” said Verant. “The story portrays Trump as driven by ego and insecurity. He’s compelled to hang his name on buildings in twenty-foot-tall letters. Trump’s ego makes conflict over the Wall inevitable.”
For a book that is virtually a liberal manifesto, “Power in the Age of Lies” has an unexpected protagonist. Madison Padgett begins the story as a passionate advocate for coal power.
“Trump has an infamous history as a misogynist,” said Verant. “So the hero had to be a brilliant, powerful woman. But the book’s theme is rejecting lies and prejudice to find truth and act with compassion. We all have biases and blind spots to overcome. Madison is trying to save her dying Kentucky coal town. She is heroic because she challenges her own biases while remaining true to her values. And then she rises as a champion for others.”
And what will happen with Trump’s wall? Verant quotes his heroine: “We will unite and tear down that wall. Because these are the values we share as Americans.”
American novelist M. Verant pens a political thriller for the Age of Trump
Oct 19, 2018
American novelist Mike Verant’s debut political thriller ”Power in the Age of Lies” tells the story of a coal engineer, a woman, who’s fighting to save her destitute Kentucky mining town, and whose honesty and ethics force her to re-examine her own climate change denialist thinking and, ultimately, to challenge a corrupt U.S. White House administration that she has joined. …