About this Event
We're so excited to welcome two fantasy authors to Sevenoaks this autumn!
'How hollow is the heart of a mortal... How starving the soul'
A sweeping romantic epic, full of the joys of fantasy and yet brilliantly genre-defying reimagining of the Faustus legend. Set across three time periods, it follows Harding, a girl born under inauspicious stars, who is stalked by a demon determined to take her soul as her own.
- Date: Monday 21 September
- Time: 7pm
- Venue: The Writers' Cafe, Sevenoaks Bookshop, 147 High Street, Sevenoaks, TN13 1XJ
- Tickets: from £12
Choose from :
Ticket only £12
Book & Ticket: £15 - includes entry and a copy of 'As Many Souls as Stars'
Sapphic Bundle: £25 - includes entry, a copy of 'As Many Souls as Stars' and Tasha Suri's book 'The Isle in the Silver Sea'
'Lyrical, haunting, captivating . . . reminiscent of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Filled with soul stealing lines, this is a book that will stay with you' Rachel Greenlaw, author of The Ordeals
'Dark longing waltzes hand-in-hand with historical elegance in this hypnotic gothic tale' S. T. Gibson, author of A Dowry of Blood
'This is a gorgeously written tale of a Faustian bargain and a dangerous game of desire and destruction across the centuries. Vividly conjuring up different time periods and the shadows that haunt those women who are called monstrous, the book kept me as spellbound as any of the circles of salt within its pages' Sarah Brooks, author of The Cautious Traveller's Guide to the Wastelands
As Many Souls as Stars
1592. Cybil Harding, daughter of a secret alchemist, was born under cursed stars. Destined to bring disaster to those around her, Cybil is trapped in a grand house with a mother paralysed by grief and a father willing to sacrifice everything in pursuit of magic.
Miriam Richter is a creature born of shadow. Forged by the dark arts, she is doomed to exist for eternity and destined to be alone - consuming the souls of mortals for sustenance.
Everything changes when Miriam meets Cybil, whose soul shines with a light so bright, she must claim it for herself. Miriam offers a bargain: she will grant Cybil reincarnation and the chance to change her stars in exchange for her soul.
Thus begins a dance across centuries as Miriam seeks Cybil in every lifetime to claim her prize. But Cybil isn't inclined to play by the rules. As the two women circle each other, drawn together inescapably as light and dark, the bond forged between them grows stronger. In their battle for dominance, only one of them can win... but perhaps they can't survive without each other.
Natasha Siegel's fantasy debut is full of transporting historical detail, with thrilling twists and an abiding, thought-provoking romance that feels at once epic and deeply personal. Ambitious, gothic, and magical, As Many Souls as Stars is about the lengths we go to protect ourselves, our legacy, and those we love.
Natasha Siegel
Natasha Siegel is a writer of historical fiction, fantasy, and romance. She was born and raised in London, where she grew up in a Danish-Jewish family surrounded by stories.
She studied English and History at the University of York, and she has an MA in Early Modern Studies from University College London, where her research specialised in Anglo-Jewish, and colonial history in the 17th century. Her studies inspired a passion for historical narratives and folklore: her novels interweave magic and real-world settings to tell stories about queer, Jewish, and otherwise marginalised characters throughout history.
She has a particular fondness for Early Modern tragedy and romance, which have informed much of her work, including her first fantasy novel, As Many Souls as Stars: a sapphic historical fantasy inspired by the Faustus legend. She lives in North-West London with her partner and spends her spare time chasing after the family dog, a rescue lurcher named Cleo.
Natasha was shortlisted for the Foyle's young poet of the year award. Her US debut, Solomon's Crown, was a New York Times editor's choice. As Many Souls As Stars released in October 2025 with Bloomsbury UK and is her UK and fantasy debut.
Tasha Suri
Tasha Suri is an award-winning author, a writing tutor, an occasional librarian and a cat owner. She has won the Best Newcomer (Sydney J. Bounds) Award from the British Fantasy Society, the Starburst Brave New Words Award, and has been nominated for the Astounding Award and Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel. Her debut novel Empire of Sand was named one of the 100 best fantasy books of all time by TIME magazine. When she isn't writing, Tasha likes to cry over TV shows, buy too many notebooks, and indulge her geeky passion for reading about South Asian history. She lives with her family in a mildly haunted house in London.
The Isle in the Silver Sea
From World Fantasy Award-winning author Tasha Suri comes The Isle in the Silver Sea, a heart-shattering romantasy of sapphic longing, medieval folklore and a love that spans the centuries.
In a Britain fuelled by stories, the knight and the witch are fated to fall in love and doom each other over and over, the same tale retold over hundreds of lifetimes.
Simran is a witch of the woods. Vina is a knight of the Queen's court. When the two women begin to fall for each other, how can they surrender to their desires, when to give in is to destroy each other?
As they seek a way to break the cycle, a mysterious assassin begins targeting tales like theirs. To survive, the two will need to write a story stronger than the one that fate has given to them.
But what tale is stronger than The Knight and the Witch?
Some of the ticket options that don’t include the author’s book, or are specially priced for couples, are limited in number and can sell out quickly. Our aim is to try and bring the best and most interesting authors to our town. We are always trying to balance accessibility and affordability for our audiences, alongside requirements from publishers to sell enough books for events to be worthwhile enterprises for their authors.
Event venue & nearby stays
Sevenoaks Bookshop, 147 High Street, Sevenoaks, United Kingdom
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