Well, well, well, my tour of the UK and US is completed, and it was quite an experience. Obviously I’ve done a lot of events in the UK before – I think I first toured with the Heroes back in the distant mists of 2011, but this was the first time since Covid I’d done a proper tour, and events had definitely taken a step forward.

Highlights were two of the church-based events (appropriately enough): London, with the audio maestro himself, Steven Pacey:

And Edinburgh, with Justin Lee Anderson, both of which had 250-300 people.

But those paled in comparison to some of the ones across the pond. I’ve done a few bookshop events in the states before, though quite a while ago, as well as a couple of conventions and comic cons, but never anything you could call a proper tour. This was 9 events over 12 days and every one a ripper. Here’s New York with Joe Hill:

Albuquerque with GRRM:

Austin with C. Robert Cargill:

Denver with Stephen Graham Jones:

Salt Lake City with Brandon Sanderson:

Gatecrashed as it happens by one Pierce Brown:

Seattle with Robin Hobb in the cavernous Third Place books which apparently had 650 people in attendance…

And the Wentz Concert Hall Naperville with Pat Rothfuss:

Truly amazing, humbling conversation partners and attendances, not forgetting Evan Leikam and MJ Kuhn in Detroit and Jenn Lyons in Atlanta, but the real treasure was the first law related tattoos we encountered along the way:

Not to mention the First Law related t-shirts:

I even signed a book for a guy called Joe Abercrombie. Another guy called Joe Abercrombie. From Idaho. I’ve got a photo of his driving licence, but I won’t post it for fear of some kind of identity theft… All of this means, of course, that the Devils is now published in the UK and the US, as well as large areas of Europe, in fact. Delighted to say it made NUMBER ONE on the Sunday Times hardcover bestseller list:

I’ve made it as high as 3 a few times in the past but this is my first number 1 – a big testament to my editor Gillian and the whole team at Gollancz. Perhaps even more impressive the book has stuck in the bestseller list at no. 5 for its second week. It also made no. 5 in the US (where I think 13 was my previous high water mark) which is a big testament to my editor Lindsey and the whole team at Tor, as well as being the no. 1 audiobook on audible. In fact it sold more on audio than in hardcover in that first week in the US, which is a big testament to the reading of the aforementioned Steven Pacey.

So well done to the whole team, and my thanks to everyone who came out to the events. I’m gonna be in Spain in July: Madrid 9th-10th, Barcelona 11th-14th, and Aviles 15th-20th. Further details on exactly what I’ll be doing when I have them…

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