Of course, optimists like Mark and myself always assume doing such a project will be fairly straightforward, take a couple of months, bit of learning on the way . . . yeah, jobs a good'n. In fact the whole project has been a vast learning curve - a good one, but vast, for sure. Narrating, sound production, hours and hours of editing, composing and playing the compositions, and learning new software, working with our PR man, and much more. But it's been a brilliant journey, and one we shall embark on again very soon.
Press release by Will Gethin of Conscious Frontiers.
Londonia: Dystopian Drama Hits Close to Home
Dickens meets Mad Max in this stunning audiobook adaptation of Kate A. Hardy’s post-apocalyptic masterpiece
Mirroring the crises of today’s post-Covid world, the author’s vision for future London feels eerily prescient …
LONDONIA AUDIOBOOK RELEASE: MONDAY 03 February, 2025
Londonia Podcast Launch: Monday 20 January, 2025
“This is a beauty! I was captivated by the protagonist’s situation in a heartbeat. Kate A Hardy is a highly compelling storyteller.” Sir Robin Millar, record producer and social commentator
Monday 03 February 2025 heralds the launch of the spellbinding new Londonia audobook, adapted from Kate A. Hardy’s gripping dystopian novel, which envisions a post-apocalyptic London set in 2072 and imagines how people might survive in that future time. The audiobook will be available on Findaway Voices by Spotify, Audible and all major audiobook platforms.
Narrated by Kate A. Hardy, and with musician/composer Mark Lockett designing the immersive soundscape and musical score, the new audiobook brings the momentous satirical tale and visceral fantasy world of Londonia - with its time-altered language and outlandish cast of characters - vividly to life.
Originally published by Tartarus Press in 2020, Londonia, recounts the adventures of sassy 30-something protagonist, Hoxton, who having lost her memory, takes up residence in a disused church in Shoreditch with her horse Kafka, and sets out to uncover her past, embarking on a precarious new work path as a ‘Finder’ (sourcer/trader of rare goods). As Hoxton weaves between the lawless sprawl of Londonia (the city’s outlying area) and the hyper-central power state, the Cincture, the story unfolds to the backdrop of an apocalyptic event of 2038, referred to as the “Final Curtain”. Popularly held to have been caused by a global internet crash, the Final Curtain has plunged the world into a technological descent, which combined with the devastating effects of climate change has transmuted the formerly high-tech cityscapes of London into a visceral urban jungle, reminiscent of Mad Max meets Oliver Twist.
Kate A. Hardy, whose previous books include childrens’ story Alfi Beasti, don’t eat that! (published by Puffin) and the Going out in the Midday Sun trilogy, says: “The Londonia audiobook offers a deeper dive into the world I created. With Mark Lockett's bespoke sonic environment amplifying the tale’s mood and atmosphere, we’ve brought Londonia to life in a way I could only have dreamt of when writing the book.”
This new audiobook adaptation invites listeners to fully immerse themselves in Hoxton's world, with the evocative narration and captivating soundscape capturing the essence of life in Londonia – a feral hinterland whose gun-toting inhabitants variously sleep in disused rail carriages, trade teeth fixing for sex, wash in bath houses, toast bread over fires, correspond via messenger pigeons and risk death from violence and poxes. Meanwhile, behind the towering metal walls of the Cincture, the wealthy elite continue their lavish, speed-fashion lifestyles in denial of the impoverished Dickensian quarter that surrounds them.
As in real life, we face economic crisis and impending climate breakdown, the Final Curtain and the disordered post-internet world described in Londonia may be nearer than we like to think. Yet the book brings a message of hope, as Kate elucidates: “My aim has been to present Londonia as a dyst-hopian tale. There may be strife, hunger and plague but this harshness is placated by times of convivial community spirit, humanity and humour.”
A raucous satire on our consumer society, the gap between haves and have-nots and the vacuous, fickle nature of fashion, Londonia is a rollicking romp of a ride, which also offers timely signposts for how we can live more lightly on our beleaguered planet - recycling and reusing, growing food and foraging, less immersed in screens and more connected to ourselves, to each other and to nature. “I hope the audiobook accentuates the book’s mission to explore what can emerge in the future while also satirising where we are now,” Kate concludes.
Providing a free taster for the audiobook, a Londonia podcast series will launch on Monday 20 January in advance of the audiobook’s release (03 February), sharing the first six chapters of the audiobook over a six-week period.
For more information about the new Londonia audiobook and podcast, visit: https://kateahardy.com
To listen to an introduction to Londonia, complete with visuals and a glossary of Londonia-speak, visit: https://youtu.be/NEiBJzKmMTk
Press preview copies of the full audiobook are available on request
Press Images are available in this DROPBOX
Kate A. Hardy and Mark Lockett are available for interview
Biographies are attached
For Media Enquiries contact Will Gethin at Conscious Frontiers: 07795 204 833 • will@consciousfrontiers.com
Notes to Editors:
- Narrated by Kate A. Hardy, with music and soundscapes by Mark Lockett, the Londonia audiobook will be released on Findaway Voices by Spotofy (and all major platforms) on Monday 03 February
- To preview the first few chapters of the audiobook, visit: https://www.youtube.com/@londonia-e5b
- To watch the showreel for the audiobook, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DP14XkBEBaI&t=53s
- The Londonia podcast, launching on Monday 20 January, will be available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and all major podcasting platforms
- Smithi, Kate A. Hardy’s hotly anticipated sequel to Londonia, is coming soon – watch this space!
Critical praise for Londonia (the novel):
"A deeply engaging and always-entertaining novel, the author’s superb use and invention of future language is brilliant." Paula Guran, Locus magazine
"Enchanting . . . Hardy’s almost hopeful view of the world’s inevitably chaotic future lifts this entertaining and well-told tale.” Publishers Weekly
"Fantastical yet believable, it also shares hopeful messages for the future about how we can live more simply.” Psychologies magazine
"This is a superbly written book retaining dialogue, place and characterisation to a masterful level. You believe in Hardy’s world and it should hardly be long before a producer is clamouring to make her highly visual future London into a film or series… it strikes at the heart of what we consider to be important in life – something all of us are thinking about at this strange time." Kindred Spirit
No comments:
Post a Comment