An Interview with Jerod Ravell, the Husband of a Martian Matriarch

Andrea Smart of the e-zine Smart Interface interviews Jerod Ravell, the husband of Martian matriarch Kelly Ravell, at Scifialiens’s Weblog. It’s
all part of the clever supplemental material author Phyllis K. Twombly has created to accompany her Martian Symbiont series of science fiction novels.

The Martian Symbiont series started with Been Blued (2007), moved to Martian Blues (January 2008), and continues with a forthcoming third novel. According to Twombly’s blog, here’s the storyline so far:

“In Been Blued, an advanced group of people return [to Earth from Mars and deep space] because a space virus has wiped out their women. They each carry a symbiont that allows them telepathy but won’t let them start a family until it senses a willing female. In Martian Blues, the Martians have been successful in starting families, and the symbiont has spread to 92% of mankind. Some of the non-symbiotic humans have formed an underground that seeks to defy all Martian conduct, in spite of Earth largely being at peace. They don’t believe the Martians’ warnings about an invasion of hostile aliens, and they’re really ticked off about the alien the Martians have been passing off as human while he grows up ... in spite of the fact that he’s on Earth’s side. In the third novel (Sorry, can’t tell you the title yet, in case it gets changed,) the underground kicks things off with an almost deadly attack on the Martian matriarch’s niece. Someone must infiltrate the underground to gather evidence, even as the matriarch plans the Martian fleet’s return to space ...”

Interested in learning more about the biological and medical aspects of the Martian Symbiont? Read The Martian Symbiont White Paper, a document in Twombly’s universe of blue.

According to an autobiographical sketch, Phyllis Twombly developed an interest in science fiction due partly to her father's fascination in NASA’s early space exploration programs and the Apollo 11 Moon landing. She also watched a lot of Star Trek and Doctor Who!