After a tense bidding war, Entertainment 360 has won the rights to adapt author V.V. James’ upcoming fantasy novel, Sanctuary. Orion Books will publish the novel on August 8. Via Deadline, Entertainment 360 will produce the adaptation alongside Monumental Pictures’ Alison Owen and Debra Hayward.
Sanctuary takes place in a small Connecticut town that has just endured the death of its star quarterback. When looking for a murder suspect, all signs point to his girlfriend, the daughter of a local witch. James’ story is described as a commentary on “blame culture” of modern times.
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James is also the author of the Gilded Cage trilogy of dystopian novels, which she published under the name Vic James. Additionally, she works as a TV documentary producer and director. Previously, James indicated that this job inspired Sanctuary’s depiction of mob mentality.
James shared her general thoughts on witchcraft in a statement via SciFiNow.
“It’s not surprising that angry and disappointed women turned to witchcraft,” said James. “Magic has long been a tool for women’s expression — and oppression. I did my PhD on early 17th century British history, when witchcraft executions were at their peak as noble men curried [favor] with demonology-obsessed King James I by scapegoating poor and illiterate women. And yet the sort of knowledge that often landed these women in the dock — herbal medicine, midwifery — were skills women could master at a time when education was all but denied them. Witchcraft was mundane, and yet also perceived as terrifyingly powerful (although curiously, never powerful enough to save its practitioners from the noose).”
What are your thoughts on Sanctuary’s premise? Will you be checking out the book and its adaptation? Give us your thoughts in the comment section below!
