Delving into darkness

AUTHOR Stephen Bachmann’s latest book, A Drop of Night, seems to involve an amalgamation of genres.
Fortunately, this genre-­bending thriller remains polished, despite the different elements it tackles.
In an email ­interview with theSun, Bachmann, 22, ­described the book which was published in the US in March as “a little bit of ­everything”.
“It has elements of sci-fi, ­historical, ­survival horror, shades of Resident Evil, and also the ­classic set-up of a monster movie,” Bachmann said.
“But essentially, it’s about an angry girl trying to survive a dark place.”
In A Drop of Night, readers are ­introduced to the ­sassy and ­sarcastic main ­character, Anouk.
The 17-year-old along with four ­others – Will, Hayden, Lilly and ­Jules – have been ­chosen to be part of an ­expedition to Paris to ­investigate and excavate the underground Palais des Papillons, or Palace of Butterflies, from the era of the French Revolution.
The teenagers think they are the first to set foot in the 200-year-old palace buried a hundred feet below ground, but things (and people) are not what they seem, and far more sinister elements are soon unearthed.
The book marks Bachmann’s debut into young adult novels, as his first two books – The Peculiar (2012) and The ­Whatnot (2013) – are aimed towards younger readers.
“It was a bit of an ­experiment, since I had never written anything in that style, or with those sorts of ­characters before,” the talented young writer revealed.
He said that this novel took four years to complete, calling it “the longest and hardest writing process” he’s had so far.
“I started it in 2012, and sent the first draft to my editor in early 2013. That draft was so different from what’s on the shelves now,” he observed, explaining that the plot was rewritten and polished over the last couple of years.
Interestingly, Bachmann shared that the plot was inspired by a dream he had involving “a baroque, gilded corridor, and five teens ­running down it in a bloody panic”.
“I knew the teens were ­underground and I knew ­something bad was after them, but I woke up ­before I could find out the ­details,” he ­recalled.
As the ­characters’ ­adventures ­unfold, the book alternates ­between the modern-day ­narrative of Anouk and the struggles of Aurélie, a young woman and daughter of a French nobleman from the 1790s, who is trying to flee the Revolution.
Anouk’s and Aurélie’s stories skilfully mirror each other, making the storyline even more engaging.
Organising the plot within these two timelines proved to be quite a challenge for ­Bachmann.
“We were tweaking details until literally weeks before the book was to be on the shelves. That was a bit scary,” he admitted.
“For some ­reason, all the books I’ve ­written up to now have been dual-narrative. I’m not sure why, but ­switching back and forth ­between ­characters ­appeals to me a lot.
“Maybe, ­because it keeps me ­interested as a writer, too.”
While the book was a definite ­page-turner, the true stars were the ­headstrong and ­courageous lead characters, Anouk and Aurélie, who have much in common, leading to a ­surprising ­connection between the two young women.
“My older sister is a weapons expert with the Swiss police, and also a rare books ­collector, and she’s smart and blunt and doesn’t tolerate nonsense from anyone. I think there’s ­definitely a bit of her in Anouk and ­Aurélie,” Bachmann reflected.
The author, who currently studies music at the Zürich University of Arts, published his first book at the tender age of 16; but has been writing since he was around 11 or 12 years old.
He ­attributed his strong ­foundation as a writer to ­spending his ­childhood ­between ­Switzerland, where he grew up, and his home ­country of the US, as this lent him an ­interesting ­perspective.
“I write my books for me, kind of to teach ­myself a ­lesson about ­something, or work through my thoughts within the ­framework of a ­fictional universe,” he ­confessed.
“For me, this book is about making your own choices and owning them, and not letting other people define who you are.”
As for his upcoming work, he will be gravitating back to ­children’s books. It’s going to be an old-­fashioned fantasy about a secret society of children with strange powers living in the sewers of a Renaissance city ruled by monsters.
“It’s much warmer and ­fuzzier than A Drop of Night, and I’m very ­excited about it,” ­Bachmann said.