There’s nothing like the feeling of being beaten to the punch. I uploaded the final edits late last week, linked all the publication pages together, and got ready to make this announcement… and then someone went and figured out the URL and bought a copy before I’d even put this post up. Clever, whoever you are!
Today I’m announcing the publication of my fourth novel, ARC OF FIRE. It’s the final book in my Caliel fantasy series, concluding the story from CITY OF LIGHT from last fall. In a world where mortals rebelled against the gods and won, a ruthless conqueror seeks to ascend to divinity and remake the world in his own image, and only an unlikely band of allies stands in his way as the final, apocalyptic confrontation approaches.
Here’s the full synopsis:
The final battle has come to the world of Caliel.
In a victory beyond all hope, Myrren Kahliana and her friends have recovered the ancient and magical relic known as the Dark Heart. Now, with the priceless artifact in her possession, Myrren is determined to return home at long last. But the journey won’t be an easy one.
Between her and her homeland lies the entire world of Caliel in all its beauty, its grandeur, and its peril: ancient ruins, fierce deserts, vast jungles, ghostly battlefields, cities of thieves and killers, and an uncanny and unnatural pattern of change in the world itself that seems to be following them. And above all else, she and her friends are being relentlessly pursued by a race of demons who want the Dark Heart for their own purposes.
And even in Myrren’s own land, there’s no peaceful homecoming awaiting her. A hero whose coming was foretold in prophecy, a mad tyrant who wields power far beyond that of any mortal being, is closing in for his final assault, and his ultimate goal is nothing less than eradicating Myrren’s people from the earth.
To decide where she stands when the battle lines are drawn, Myrren will have to come to terms with her lost faith and her broken marriage. To have any hope of victory, she’ll have to unite an improbable coalition of allies and overcome deadly treachery from a once-faithful friend. And to save her land and her family in the face of an unimaginable threat, she may have to make the ultimate sacrifice.
If you haven’t started reading my Caliel series, now’s the time! I always promised myself I’d never pull a Robert Jordan and die before finishing what I started (don’t laugh; it happens more often than you’d think), so I like to think I’ve kept my word. On the other hand, if you’ve been keeping up with the series until now:
Read the first three chapters for free (PDF)
Order ARC OF FIRE in paperback
Order ARC OF FIRE on Smashwords (all other e-book platforms)
Don’t forget to visit my books website for all my latest publications and writing news, including free short stories. If you have any other questions about the book, or just general chatter or feedback, let me know in the comments. And my thanks to everyone who’s read and reviewed these books! It’s been a great pleasure shepherding them out into the world. Now I have to start thinking about the next one…
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