Whitfield, Kit 1977(?)-

PERSONAL:

Born c. 1977.

ADDRESSES:

Agent—Sophie Hicks, Ed Victor Ltd., 6 Bayley St., Bedford Sq., London WC1B 3HE, England. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER:

Author. Has worked as a chef, masseur, Web site editor, quote hunter, toy shop assistant, and publisher.

WRITINGS:

(Editor) Where Dogs Dream, Barron's (Hauppauge, NY), 2003.

Benighted, Del Rey Books (New York, NY), 2006, published as Bareback, Jonathan Cape (London, England), 2006.

ADAPTATIONS:

Warner Bros. has bought the movie rights to Benighted.

SIDELIGHTS:

Kit Whitfield's first novel, Benighted, is set in a world where the vast majority of inhabitants are "lunes"—creatures that, like werewolves, become crazed during the full moon and roam the cities looking for blood. The few "nons" who lack the werewolf gene are treated as second-class citizens and are charged with keeping order during these rampages. The book's protagonist, Lola, is a non and a lawyer who works for DORLA (the Department for the Ongoing Regulation of Lycanthropic Activity) to catch marauding lunes. Lola is assigned to the defense of a vicious lune who has attacked her partner, but when the partner is killed before the case reaches court Lola finds herself investigating a crime of unexpected complexity. While Washington Post Book World contributor Paul Di Filippo expressed disappointment that the book "sloughs off the interesting implications of its promising premise in favor of a noir-lite mystery with a ninny for a heroine," other critics wrote more positive reviews. A Publishers Weekly contributor found the novel "impressive" and praised it as a "nuanced exploration of prejudice," while a reviewer for the Guardian described it as a "gritty and original" story. Owen Jones, writing in SFFWorld.com, commented that the "lycanthrope-dominated world is real and deep in a way few fantasy novels are able to achieve, blending the mundane and recognisable with a concept that is fantastical and an execution that is never anything but convincing." Every character, Jones added, is "well-rounded, complex and believable."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, August 1, 2006, Sally Estes, review of Benighted, p. 58.

Library Journal, September 15, 2006, April Davis, review of Benighted, p. 55.

Publishers Weekly, July 31, 2006, review of Benighted, p. 58.

Washington Post Book World, October 15, 2006, Paul Di Filippo, "Women on Mars and Werewolves on Earth." p. 12.

ONLINE

Kit Whitfield Web site,http://www.kitwhitfield.com (April 17, 2007).

SFFWorld.com,http://www.sffworld.com/ (April 17, 2007), Owen Jones, review of Benighted, and interview with Kit Whitfield.

Zone,http://www.zone-sf.com/ (April 17, 2007), Tony Lee, review of Bareback.