Cover artist: Author’s wife
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: May 31st, 2024
I am thrilled to be hosting this cover reveal for a debut self-publishing author, who I first met at FantasyCon in 2022. When Will asked me if I would help him out with his reveal, I didn’t hesitate. And when I saw the cover for the first time, I was even more excited that he asked me to be the one to share it with you.
Blurb
The Gods have lost, and the world fallen to ice and darkness.
All Pel has ever known are the frozen hills and safe walls of home, but that is about to change. Now he must travel to Brightfont, the last city. Deadly creatures roam the wasteland and not everyone is who they claim, but he carries with him a message and a secret that will change the world, and he must survive.
In an era before the Gods fell, Saphielle lived for her daughter first, and her country second. That was until the brutal slaughter of her brother. Now her father – the King – seeks retribution and stokes the fires of a holy war. Whilst armies clash, Saphielle alone hears the voice of her goddess warning of an ancient and forgotten enemy, one only she can defeat. She must succeed or condemn the world to ice, unless war tears it apart first.
Separated by time, connected by prophecy, the fate of Eberia rests on their shoulders.
Here are some quotes from the novel, provided by the author:
The great white creature reared before her. Its huge wings beat and the wind they created was like a winter storm. Its body was that of a lizard, a thousand times larger than any that ran around the palace gardens. It brought its spined head lower on a long, twisting neck to sniff the air around her. There was a cunning behind its cold blue eyes. Its lips peeled back to reveal rows of fangs and Saphielle could have sworn it smiled cruelly.
Choice is an illusion. We never truly get to decide our fate, even if it seems at times that we do. Life is lived in-between inevitabilities and this is one of those focal points we get swept towards without knowing. Best just to get it over and done with.
Stories, it turns out, are what sustain people. Told around fires the length and breadth of the land night after night.
Above the paper, a section of mist billowed outward. In the swirling greyness a shape began to form. It emerged from the fog like a great bird, except it was larger than any bird he’d ever seen. At that distance the shape was only as large as his thumbnail, but given it flew over the peaks and he could still make it out, the thing must have been enormous. Larger than a house for certain, perhaps a row of houses. It spread pointed wings and blew the mist into swirling eddies with each beat.
About the Author
Will was born in Canterbury, Kent. He learnt to read early and spent most of his free time with his head in a book or a Beano. As a child, his father would read the Chronicles of Narnia at bedtime and this instilled his love of fantasy, enhanced in later years by Redwall, Eragon, Gemmell and Tolkien.
His love of books and stories has followed him since those earliest days. Aged five, he wrote a six line story about Farmer Tom which was so good it won him a Head Teacher’s Award! His lunchtimes at secondary school consisted of being a student librarian and writing (and rewriting and rewriting) a fantasy novel with his friend and future co-best man. This book will never see the light of day. It did, however, kindle a passion for writing that has continued to this day.
Echoes of a Lost Goddess, book one in the Voices of the Ilskini series, is Will’s debut novel and will be published in May 2024.
You can follow Will at his website and on social media, via X and BlueSky, for further updates:
https://x.com/InkbornBlade?t=Abfbz3cP6kxP9sB0TGFdIg&s=09
https://bsky.app/profile/inkbornblade.bsky.social
A note on the cover artist: Will’s wife does not want any exposure (yet), but I think you’ll agree that she has done an epic job with the cover art. I just wanted to include this note as assurance, and on behalf of the author, that a human being is responsible for this excellent cover art.
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