A tale of Saints and Sinners
An interview with Victoria Mier on their novel Holy Wrath
I’m honoured to share my first author interview with all of you!
I first found Victoria Mier’s novels while trawling through the explore page on Instagram. They’d posted a stunning promo of Holy Wrath featuring, of course, that soft, somehow sexy, gorgeous cover and I was instantly hooked (a great reminder to indie writers that yes, posting about your book is really the only way people will get to know about your book).
I must’ve been one of the first people to purchase the audiobook on Libro.fm the day it came out. Victoria didn’t slip me a code or mail me a copy. Not knocking that, because I love a free book, but I just want to be clear that I bought the book with my. own. money. The day it came out. That’s how enticed I was by the premise.
I’m a mood reader and I was absolutely in the mood for medieval revival and sapphic yearning. The book delivered and then some.
Holy Wrath reads like a dark faerie tale that doubles as an astute observation of cultish power structures. It asks who gets to decide who is a saint and who is a sinner? It offers genuine and tender romance without ever shying away from the kind of rage that can burn down a corrupt system of oppression.
This was a beautiful book from start to finish. You can feel every ounce of love Victoria has for their characters. I was fascinated to find touches of Faerie throughout, especially with the Fatum. Indeed, Victoria cites their Polish background, Welsh and Irish folklore, and even circa 2000s YA angelcore (which is honestly an underexplored subgenre that needs a comeback) as inspiration. The themes of religious oppression also rang so clear for me, as a former church girl and reformed people pleaser.
Holy Wrath feels like an ancient and modern story all at the same time, adding to the romantic atmosphere and tone in a way that feels fresh while harkening back to familiar classics. I’m so glad I had the chance to read this book and to share it with you today.
I want to thank Victoria again for being willing to do this interview. It was an absolute pleasure and I cannot wait to read more of their incredible writing! Links for Holy Wrath are at the bottom of the page. Support your local bookstores! And if you enjoyed this post, please remember to like, comment, share, and subscribe. It means so much to me and helps to support my delusions of quitting my corporate 9-5 in favour of reading and writing books all day!
For fans of THE KNIGHT AND THE MOTH and THE FALL THAT SAVED US comes a sapphic high fantasy about the fierceness of queer love and two women who no longer want equality once they’ve tasted revenge.
This interview, questions and answers, is presented verbatim in its entirety to preserve authenticity. Do not republish or use any part of this interview without explicit permission from Victoria Mier and myself.
What inspires you to write?
An old photo, a strange slant of light, a song lyric I can’t stop thinking about, a tarot card that keeps falling out of the deck, a man in an old-fashioned suit on the train platform, the work of Susanna Clarke, Helen Oyeyemi, Elizabeth Hand, Holly Black and Tracy Deonn, and perhaps most of all, Toni Cade Bambara’s writings and famous quote: “The role of the artist is to make the revolution irresistible.” I often feel like I am less inspired and more so compelled. Perhaps it is fair to say my rage and my grief, most of all, inspire me to write.
For Holy Wrath, you utilise the imagery of a dove and a wolf. These animals aren’t often paired together, so what made you choose them for this novel?
I wish I could say I chose this imagery from the beginning, because that makes me sound very thoughtful and in-control of my work. But like most of my writing, it’s something I divine (for lack of a better word) in the drafting process. Originally, Nyatrix was called the Umbra Knight, but Ophelia kept describing her in wolf-like language, so the Lupa Knox she became. Nyatrix called Ophelia “little dove” in one of the first scenes I wrote with her. I trusted them, and then when I zoomed out and analyzed it from a more critical lens in terms of imagery supporting the overall themes, it absolutely worked, so it stuck.
Why did you decide to tackle the subject of religious trauma?
My primary and secondary schooling was at Catholic institutions, and I went to mass at least once a week until I was about 16 or 17. Though I had some wonderful teachers, as I grew older, it felt very apparent that my queerness had been stifled by these religious environments. I don’t even think I understood I was disabled until college because of my ingrained beliefs about wellness and morality. It was an experience I knew I could not be alone in, and when Ophelia first began “talking” to me, it was clear she was coming from deep within the cult of a similar religion. Fairly early on in this project, I heard Paris Paloma’s song “the fruits,” which sort of cemented that this book was about religious trauma.
Who or what made the biggest impact on your writing career so far?
Allison Carr Waechter, an incredible author who I am honored to call my best friend. A mutual friend introduced Allison and I when she released her first book, which I stocked in my bookshop. From there, we collaborated on Wyrd & Wyse, a now-defunct literary magazine. Though I had published short stories and poems, Allison was the person who made me believe in my work and encouraged me to try indie publishing. Her writing moves me, her friendship sustains me, and her support is a large part of any success I can make claim to.
Some of these characters seem to pay homage to Irish Faerie folklore, especially Nyatrix. Was that your intention or were you inspired by a different folklore/mythology?
Yes! I’m an American of Welsh and Polish descent, and both cultures have rich folklore with lots of fascinating creatures. Though nearly every culture has some version of elves or faeries, I tend to particularly draw on the Welsh Tylwyth Teg and the Irish Tuatha de Danann. I thought of Nyatrix, and all of the Fatum in Holy Wrath, as a mix between these folkloric faeries and the angels you used to see in gritty, early 2000s YA urban fantasy.
If you could change any one thing about the current state of the publishing industry, what would it be?
Only one thing?! I would like to change at least fifty things! If I’m forced to pick one, I think it has to be the appetite for virtually identical books, particularly in romantic fantasy and romantasy. There’s nothing wrong with knowing what you like, and the romance genre in particular has a time-honored tradition of sticking to specific formulas. However, I feel as though the trends we’re seeing transcend that; it’s the same main character, the same romance, the same plot, the same setting. Not only will this inevitably create a market that disenfranchises marginalized authors even further, but it also paves the way to replace creatives with AI. The more this industry convinces us that we only want one kind of story (which somehow always manages to be white, straight, thin and entirely inoffensive to the empire), the more we flatten human storytelling and encourage publishers to be even more risk-averse than they already are.
Do you have any advice for up-and-coming writers?
This is the hardest thing you’ll ever do, and you should probably do it anyway. Read widely. I firmly believe you cannot write well if you do not read. Find other writers and build community with them. Your peers are not your competitors. Remember how much you love writing even on the hardest days. Our work is inherently political. Be brave. Make the revolution irresistible.
Are you working on anything at the moment and/or releasing anything soon?
Yes! Thank you for asking. Between the Rival Courts releases in April. It’s an Arthurian retelling about sanctified violence, weaponized religion, conquest and empire. Though it’s the prequel to the Fatebound Duology, you can read it in any order due to the timey-wimey nonsense I have engaged in. If you enjoy doomed love, enemies to lovers, morally grey characters, medically inadvisable amounts of yearning, and when the big tall scary knight falls for the short angry woman who yells at him a lot, you’ll probably like this one.
Any parting words you’d like to finish with?
Let’s go with Adrienne Rich.
“Art means nothing if it simply decorates the dinner table of the power which holds it hostage.”
Holy Wrath is available now! You can find a copy at
and more!