Bizenghast while Lalibela, a holy town in northern Ethiopia, inspired Bali Lali's. Another minor character, Dr. Morstan, takes his name from Mary Morstan, Dr. Watson’s wife. "марионетка", the Russian word for marionette, inspired the name of the antagonist Maphohetka. LeGrow comments that the series "is about life, death and fabulous outfits (not in that order)" and notes that there are "a lot of religious themes" present. The town of Bizenghast "represents a world cut off from that sort of constant access [of technology]." The series was initially written to span about fourteen volumes and be divided into three seasons: the first
Mary Pilkington Mary Pilkington Mary Pilkington ("née" Mary Susanna Hopkins) (1761–1839) was an English novelist and poet. She was born in Cambridge, England. Her father died when she was aged 15, and she went to live with her grandfather. The man who had taken over her father's medical practice became Mary's husband in 1786. While he was away working as a naval surgeon, she took work as a governess. Many of her novels (of which she is known to have produced over forty in the years up to 1825) were written for children. Pilkington's portrait, painted by Joseph Slater Jr., is held