Matthew J. Kirby

Matthew J. Kirby is an American novelist and fantasy author known for his work on the Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants trilogy. Most of his novels are aimed at young adults.

Biography

Early life

Kirby was born in Utah as the son of a naval officer. Due to this, he lived in various parts of the country, such as, Maryland, California, and Hawaii. Kirby was inspired to become a writer after reading Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea books as a pre-teen.

He would later go on to graduate from Utah State University with a bachelor's degree in history, and later returned to earn his master's degree in school psychology.

Early career

In 2010, he released his debut novel, The Clockwork Three was named one of Publishers Weekly's 2010 Flying Starts. His next novel, Icefall, released in 2011, would make him critically acclaimed as it won the 2012 Edgar Award for Juvenile Fiction. He has also won the the PEN Center USA award for Children's Literature, and the Judy Lopez Memorial Award.

Assassin's Creed

On 18 February 2016, IGN reported that a series of novels was being published by Scholastic in partnership with Ubisoft. The series, titled Last Descendants was announced to be written by Kirby, who at the time was most well-known for writing the historical children's fantasy The Clockwork Three. The first novel was set to release in September of that year with a second novel to follow in January 2017. The first novel, simply titled Last Descendants was released ahead of schedule on 30 August.

The second novel, Tomb of the Khan, also was released ahead of schedule, on 27 December 2016. The majority of the historical parts of the book take place during the Mongol invasion in the early-13th century, Kirby stated that he wished to write about a major Chinese historical event that had not been mentioned or translated much into English. He also commented on how integral the Mongol advance upon Europe was to the history of Asia in general.

In July 2017, the cover and title for the third and final novel was revealed. Fate of the Gods was set to released on 26 December that year. In an interview, Kirby talked about the difficulties that come with writing a young-adult fiction novel based upon a mature-rated video game. He also explained his research process and how majoring in history as an undergraduate helps him. Kirby also commented that he deliberately leaves all his stories open-ended in case Ubisoft ever want to do anything further with the character, or he decides to write a fourth novel.

In May 2020, untitled placeholder listings for a novel based on the Assassin's Creed: Valhalla video game were posted on Amazon, with Kirby later being announced as the author by fansite Access the Animus. Following Ubisoft's first Ubisoft Forward presentation, where the game's release date was announced, the full title of the novel, Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Geirmund's Saga, and its premise were revealed with the cover art set to be done by Korean artist Kim Jung Gi. The novel was then released on 10 November 2020, in eBook form globally and UK paperbacks, a US paperback later followed on 23 March 2021. The book was said by Kirby himself to be an original story that is connected to the events of the game.

Preceding the novel's release, Kirby was interviewed by Michael Dodd of Track of Words on 8 November regarding the novel's setting and its characters. Kirby mentioned that he researched a lot in regards to the historical Geirmund Heljarskinn and the Viking expansion in general. When queried about what was planned for the future, Kirby responded that he was not signed on with Aconyte for another book, but in relation to Geirmund, he had some idea on where his adventures would have taken him next.

Assassin's Creed works

• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants (2016)
• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Tomb of the Khan (2016)
• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Fate of the Gods (2017)
• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla – Geirmund's Saga (2020)