Day Of Vengeance Blog Tour: Q & A With Johnny O’Brien
Today as part of the Day of Vengeance Blog Tour I am delighted to welcome the author of the Jack Christie Adventures to Books 4 Teens.
Q & A With Johnny O’Brien
Day of Vengeance is a story which see’s time travellers witness an attempt to assassinate Hitler (a fascinating story) – was there anything in particular that inspired you to write it?
Day of Vengeance takes Jack and Angus back to the twentieth century and the Battle of Britain, the defeat of France in 1940 and Hitler’s visit to Paris (which you can see astonishing actual footage of on YouTube – very spooky and sinister). The Second World War changed the world and was the worst military conflict of all time. The period is really without match in history – in terms of scale and significance. In some ways, a lot of our history since then has been about people trying to make sure it never happens again. One of the things I like about modern history, particularly the Second World War, is the availability of real footage of events – it helps bring it to life. When I discovered that Hitler visited Paris in 1940 (the only time he went there) and there was actual footage of the event – I just had to build it into the story. There is a famous picture of Hitler standing in front of the Eiffel Tower during the visit together with Albert Speer and Arno Breker who accompanied him. He is supposed to have said to the photographer, “Take one of me here, take the next one in front of Buckingham Palace and the one after that in front of the skyscrapers…” 
Of the three books in the Jack Christie Adventure series, Day of Assassins, Day of Deliverance and Day of Vengeance which would you have preferred to have lived through?
Day of the Assassins is the first in the series and is based around the assassination in Sarajevo in 1914 which triggered the First World War. What fascinates me about this period is how the First World War, which ended in nearly ten million deaths and changed the world, almost didn’t happen. The build up to the war is a mixture of comedy, farce and tragedy… one that might easily have been avoided – and I suppose that is the central idea of ‘Assassins’.
The next in the series is called Day of Deliverance and is based in Elizabethan England around the time of the Armada. This is a fantastic period of history. Not only have you got the great political and religious turmoil of the age but you have this incredible artistic renaissance – Shakespeare, Marlowe and much more besides. Again, you’ve got a big historical turning point – the defeat of the Spanish Armada – which of course is one of the great stories in European history and features in the book.
Although I like modern history and probably know a little bit more about it – I think the Elizabethan period, as depicted in ‘Deliverance’ would be the one I would like to have lived through.
The time machine both VIGIL and the Revisionists use is called a Taurus, is there any reason you chose this name (apart from being a very good star sign that is hehe)?
The name ‘Taurus’ is from a very loose association with the Joint European Torus (JET) project which investigates the potential of fusion power. Experiments centre on the use of a tokamak which is a large device which uses a magnetic field to confine a plasma in the shape of a torus (a doughnut). Essentially, this device is one candidate for producing fusion power. Magnetic fields are used since no solid material can withstand the high temperature of the plasma. I was interested in the experiment and liked the name – but the spelling was changed, and the science is, er, a little different .
If you could travel to any time where would you most want to go and what would you do?
Like many young people, I guess, my first interest in history was probably around modern history – for example – the Second World War and the First World War. I suppose as I learnt more about these conflicts, something always nagged away at me: I was astonished that people, sometimes only two generations back, would sacrifice everything and ‘go to war’ – I always wondered what I would do in that situation. Would I do the same thing and if I did, could I do it? Would I be a hero or a coward? This is the thing I think first grips you about history – what was it really like? And, what would I do in that situation?
As you learn more about history, you realise that every period has its own fascination – amazing characters, extraordinary events. So as my interest has developed I have become interested in other periods. I would love to visit the Elizabethan period or maybe Rome or ancient Egypt.
But I think the thing I would really like to do is go back and meet my Grandfather who I never knew and who fought in the First World War. It was finding his old army stuff in a cupboard at home – medals, uniform, maps – that got me thinking about what he must have gone through and what it would be like to go back and experience the things that he went through, and to understand what I would have done in the same situation. I’d like to meet him – and maybe give him my books as a bit of ‘YA’ culture
Could you sum up Day of Vengeance in 5 words?
A thrilling adventure mixing fantasy and reality. (Sorry that’s 7 words)
Do you have any plans for any new books in the pipe line that you would like to share?
The topics in the first three ‘Jack Christie’ adventures are probably better known bits of history. For that reason, for the fourth book, we’re going to go somewhere a bit different and take our readers to China. This story features the Taiping Rebellion. Never heard of it? Well you will. It was a civil war in China about a hundred and fifty years ago and more people died in it than in the First World War. It’s going to be great to take Jack and Angus somewhere new, where many people know a lot less than they do about some of the other periods they have been to. Hopefully you will agree!
If the Day of Vengeance was turned into movie who would your star cast be?
Great question – but to be honest, I would love the stars to be some kids who had never acted before and maybe this could be their big break!
Thank you for answering my questions Johnny, is there anything else you would like to add?
Thanks for the interest and for reading… I hope you enjoy Day of Vengeance!
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