R. J. Barker

R. J. Barker (or, RJ Barker) is a British author of fantasy literature. He is best known for his Wounded Kingdom trilogy and the Tide Child trilogy.

R. J. Barker
Born	Leeds, England
Occupation	Author
Language	English
Genre	Fantasy
Notable works	Wounded Kingdom trilogy Tide Child trilogy
Website
www.rjbarker.com

Career

Barker is from Leeds, England. He played in a band for many years before realizing he "was never a very good musician", after which he turned to literature.^[1]

Barker served as a judge for the 2018 James White Award.^[2]

In 2021, Barker sold a new fantasy series the Forsaken trilogy to Orbit Books.^[3]

Personal life

Barker has Crohn's disease. He has used his personal experiences to explore the presentation of disabled characters in fantasy literature.^[4]

Reception and awards

• Age of Assassins, the first book in the Wounded Kingdom trilogy, was nominated for the 2018 British Fantasy Award for Best Novel^[5] and the 2018 Morningstar Award for Best Fantasy Newcomer.^[6]

• The Bone Ships, the first book in the Tide Child trilogy, won the 2020 British Fantasy Award for Best Novel.^[7]
• Gods of the Wyrdwood was winner of 2024 American Library Association's Reading List – Fantasy.^[8]

Bibliography

Wounded Kingdom trilogy

• Age of Assassins (2017)
• Blood of Assassins (2018)
• King of Assassins (2018)

Tide Child trilogy

• The Bone Ships (2019)
• Call of the Bone Ships (2020)
• The Bone Ship's Wake (2021)

Forsaken trilogy

• Gods of the Wyrdwood (2023)
• Warlords of the Wyrdwood (2024)