Philippa Ballantine
Philippa Ballantine (born 8 August 1971), who also used the pen name Pip Ballantine, is a contemporary New Zealand author of speculative fiction and an avid podcaster. She now lives in Manassas, Virginia, with her husband and collaborator Tee Morris. History. Philippa Jane Ballantine was born in Wellington, New Zealand. She attended Samuel Marsden Collegiate School and went on to graduate from Victoria University of Wellington with a BA in English and Political Science. She also holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Library Studies from The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand. In 2006 Ballantine became the first  New Zealand author to podcast her novel. Ballantine's first Book of the Order, "Geist", was published by Ace Books in 2010, followed by "Spectyr", "Wrayth", and the final in the series "Harbinger". She is also the co-author with her husband Tee Morris of the "Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences" novels. The first, "Phoenix Rising", came out in 2011 and won an Airship Award for best written work. "Phoenix Rising" was also rated in the top 10 science fiction books of 2011 on goodreads.com. The sequel "The Janus Affair" was a Locus Bestseller and won the Steampunk Chronicle Readers Choice  award for Best Fiction. In 2011 she also signed a book deal with Pyr books for a two-book series, the first of which is "Hunter and Fox". The second, "Kindred and Wings", came out in 2013. Written material / podcasts. Verity Fitzroy and the Ministry Seven series. YA novella