Jo Walton

Jo Walton is a distinguished author of science fiction and fantasy novels. She was born in Wales but currently resides in Montreal. Walton is prolific in her writing, having authored several series, full-length novels, short novellas, and collections. She has a clear plan for her life, aiming to live to the age of ninety-nine and write a book every year.

Walton's novels are highly varied, and the best starting point depends on the reader's preferences. Among Others, which won both Hugo and Nebula awards, is a fantasy novel about a fifteen-year-old girl who reads science fiction. Written in diary form, it explores the life of Mori, who must cope with life and the ethics of doing magic after saving the world. Lent, a historical fantasy, is set in Florence and Hell between 1492 and 1498, and might appeal to readers who enjoy historical fiction like Wolf Hall. What You Will, published in 2020, is a metafiction novel about a character living in a writer's head and fearing what will happen to him when she dies.

My Real Children, which won the Tiptree award in 2015, is an alternate history about a woman with dementia in a nursing home who remembers two different versions of her life. It is a crossover with women's fiction and has been translated into French. The Thessaly trilogy, consisting of The Just City, The Philosopher Kings, and Necessity, explores the establishment of Plato's Republic through all of time, featuring gods and philosophers. The Small Change trilogy, comprised of Farthing, Ha'Penny, and Half a Crown, is alternate history set in a world where Britain made peace with Hitler in May of 1941. Tooth and Claw, a World Fantasy award winner, is a sentimental Victorian novel about dragons who eat each other. Walton's first three novels, The King's Peace, The King's Name, and The Prize in the Game, are related, with a female hero and Arthurian fantasy elements.