Welcome to the official website of thriller author Sean Cregan

This, courtesy of the elegant Sarah Weinman:

It’s a new name, a new style, and a new publisher for the man once and still known as John Rickards, and I think the change on all writerly fronts is absolutely the right one to make at this point in his career. THE LEVELS is dystopic without being obvious about it, instead creating a tangible, darkened world each of the seemingly doomed characters inhabits, tries to escape from and ultimately accepts in one form or another. It’s the written version of the burnt out, empty buildings captured on film by Godfrey Riggio with Philip Glass scoring underneath – a landscape that repels and attracts but is too busy moving and changing to care what you think or are uncomfortable with.

(I should confess that I’ve never heard of Godfrey Riggio.)

And this from the Australian Senior newspaper group:

SEAN Cregan’s debut novel, The Levels, is a maze of complex characters, intricate sub-plots, and mind-bending suspense. There’s a thrill on every page.

Set in a derelict housing project known as The Levels, on the outskirts of Newport on the US east coast, it opens with ex-CIA agent Nate Turner trying to track down his would-be murderer. As Nate’s quest takes him to The Levels, he encounters a host of characters with names such as Sorrow, Ghost and The Beast. Suspended cop Kate is also there trying to find The Beast, the serial killer who infected her with a deadly virus that is due to kill her within days. This urban gothic thriller will keep the reader spellbound until the last page.

Steve Mosby interviews me and I interview him at Crimeculture. In reality it was a three-hour freewheeling chat over IM, which only goes to show the capacity we both have for talking shit.

A rather spiffy review for THE LEVELS is up at Crimeculture:

The novel’s body horror works both on the level of individual scenes and as a larger metaphor for the breakdown of society. The rollercoaster plot is shot through with themes of insidious infection, incurable disease and poisoned hypodermic needles. These motifs are so pervasive that they’ve transmuted into parts of landscape, such as “the Needle”, a boarded up ex-church where Sorrow’s slaves congregate. Other victims have “burrowed into the broken concrete like termites”, becoming an infestation, a disease, at the same time that they are grotesquely entrapped. Cregan thrusts us down there with them. Down into the “subterranean night beneath the world” and his taut prose propels us through to the explosive ending of this gothic-punk thriller.

Modesty compels me to admit I wasn’t planning anything metaphorical – I just make this stuff up as I go along – and that I don’t know who wrote Akira; I can just yell “KANEDAAAAA!” or talk about being attacked by giant toys. Barbarian in Rome, and all that.

Congratulations to Sarah Callaghan for the marvelously ambiguous and UNKNOWN ARMIES-ish Ken Sheridan, and to Jason Bull for the strikingly mental ‘Auntie’ Long. An honourable mention for Kate Horsley’s ‘Sugar Goodrich’; it was, frankly, a toss-up between all three and I’m still not sure which order they’d go in, but since I know Kate has the book already… There were some wonderful suggestions – and some that were, frankly, batty as hell – so thank you all for playing!

Well, here we are at the official launch date for THE LEVELS (though I know Amazon and other online retailers started selling it when they got their stock a couple of weeks ago). To celebrate, and to give you sexy, wonderful, intelligent people the chance to get your mitts on a copy gratis, amongst other things, here’s a competition for you.

I’m in the middle of first draft edits on the next book, THE RAZOR GATE, and this is your chance to contribute and get a cameo. Write a 3-4 sentence description of an unusual/eccentric character who may or may not be based on your good self (there’s a lot of these individuals in both books) and email it to sean [at] seancregan [dot] com with “COMPETITION ENTRY” in the subject line. For (a poor) example…

“Birds” Cregan is a man of indeterminate age, usually to be found wandering the streets in a battered opera coat and top hat, pockets stuffed with dead birds and seemingly endless scraps of paper. He makes a living of sorts batering messenger services using the flock of mangy pigeons housed in cages on the roof of his home. Rumour has it he was a respected zoologist who cracked following the death of his wife from cancer.

The best two entries, as picked by a panel of experts*, will win their lucky creators signed hardbacks of THE LEVELS as well as – the cruel pen of my editor allowing – seeing their creations make cameo appearances in the next book**.

You’re welcome to make as many entries as you feel like, but I’ll still pick two people to win. Deadline for entries: whatever time I crawl out of bed on Feb 1st and check my email.

** By entering this competition you grant implicit consent for me to use or not use the character you create in any and all future works without pay, thanks, entitlement to vacation or dental insurance, a statue erected in your honour or the like, blah blah blah.

From the debonair Kevin Wignall at Contemporary Nomad:

And finally, a word for The Levels by Sean Cregan, which I’ve just read in manuscript form. It’s out early next year and it’s a fascinating book. Imagine some of the big-hitting thriller authors of today, throw in a little of Alan Moore, maybe “Blade Runner” and a dash of “The Matrix”, and you might just be somewhere close to what this book is like. I’ll be interested to see how it does when it’s published.

From the rugged Russel McLean at the ITW:

A smart, fast moving American urban thriller by a writer from, of all places, Eastbourne, THE LEVELS is a cracking read. Whiplash pacing and a brilliant central conceit that credibly creates an utterly alien world smack bang in the centre of what should be a familiar Urban setting, THE LEVELS feels like no other thriller out there. Cregan’s writing feels fresh and controlled, and should have a wide appeal, especially to those looking for something a little different in their thrillers. Just pray the Furies don’t wind up at your door.

From the discerning Jonathan Dean at Infinitas bookstore, Sydney:

Cregan has written a hard core first novel, with a style reminiscent of Gibson cyberpunk crossed with Lansdale or Child, creating a gritty, realistic look at the near future, where corruption & mismanagement rule, and all you can do is try to stay alive. With the emphasis on ‘try’. Escaping Police, avoiding assassins from the Tower, deals with underworld figures, designer drugs, high tech weapons & a quest for answers, all combine to make this a fascinating read and a good indicator of an author to keep an eye on for future books. It will definitely be interesting to see whether he can maintain the pace & style in future novels.

I’m Sean, writer of the gothic-punk contemporary urban thriller (try saying that after a few pints) THE LEVELS, due out next year from Headline. There’s not much here yet, is there? Just a Wordpress placeholder post and whatever horrible broken code I’ve managed to cock up in the background. There will be more though, and soon.