Guest Post: Jason Parent on Victoria and Coming of Age Novels

Victoria and Coming-of-Age Novels

My latest release, Victoria, is a mash-up of several genres, but at its core, it is essentially a coming-of-age novel following a rather unique teen whose life experiences go far beyond that of most kids her age in some respects and fall far short in so many others.

Victoria has seen much of the globe, been immersed in diverse cultures, learned the best and worst of what the world has to offer. But she has been denied social norms, healthy friendships, traditional upbringing, or even a place to call home.  Worst of all, since the age of seven, she has been deprived of parental guidance, reared instead by a temperamental spider living inside her head.

I am generally not a fan of coming-of-age novels, which feature young protagonists as they grow into adulthood.  They usually involve those hallmarks of teenage conflict: first love, sexual discovery, financial independence, leaving home, etc.  Sure, there have been many great coming-of-age novels from Catcher in the Rye and The Book Thief to It and Boy’s Life.  A couple other good ones for horror/thriller fans from authors perhaps not yet as famous as King and McCammon are Bay’s End by Edward Lorn and The Other Side of Elsewhere by Brett McKay.

For me though, more often than not, coming-of-age novels involve whiny teens dealing with melodramatic issues.  They also tend to focus on a whole lot of talking and not enough action.  So with Victoria, I set out to write a coming-of-age story that would appeal to me as a reader, while also hopefully appealing to fans of coming-of-age novels and fans of the universe in which the novel is based, originally appearing in my first novel, What Hides Within.

But how to do that?  First off, screw the whining.  My protagonist, Victoria, is a strong, ass-kicking teenage girl with a penchant for crime.  She’s done some pretty bad things in her short life, but compared to my antagonist, she poops ice cream (not literally).  Second, Victoria is a twist on (or a twisted version of) a coming-of-age story.  Without giving too much away and while the novel may have some of the hallmarks of the genre previously mentioned, it doesn’t necessarily follow in the path of its predecessors and is hopefully unpredictable and gloriously so.

But you be the judge.  Pick up Victoria and give it a read. At the very least, I am confident you will be entertained.

About Victoria -

Victoria Menard has had a hard life. She’s an orphan and a thief… and perhaps even a murderer. Worst of all, her only friend is a talking spider named Chester that lives in her head.

For the last eight years, Victoria and Chester have traveled the world, seeing the sights, learning half a dozen languages, and terrorizing communities indiscriminately.  Now sixteen, Victoria wants her independence. But the parasite inside her won’t let her go.

Chester has big plans, but Victoria’s brain may no longer be big enough for the both of them.  How can a girl rid herself of an unwanted guest when that guest refuses to leave?


Victoria is a stand-alone novel set in the same universe as the EPIC award finalist novel, What Hides Within.

From the author's bio - Jason is an author of horror, thrillers, mysteries, science fiction, and dark humor, though his many novels, novellas, and short stories tend to blur the boundaries between these genres.  From his award-winning first horror/mystery novel, What Hides Within, to his widely applauded police procedural/supernatural thriller, Seeing Evil, Jason’s work has won him praise from both critics and fans of diverse genres alike.  His work has been compared to that of some of his personal favorite authors, such as Chuck Palahniuk, Jack Ketchum, Tess Gerritsen, and Joe Hill.

Jason grew up near Fall River, Massachusetts, the setting for several of his novels.  He has lived in New England most his life, currently residing in Rhode Island.