Want your own? Head on over to Lulu.com
Don’t forget you can still buy an e-book from Amazon, or over at Smashwords (where you can pay whatever you want – get it for free if you like).
Like it? Love it? Hate it? Leave me a review on Goodreads if you get the chance.
… by the lovely Jenaca over at Jenacide by Bibliophile. Go check it out.
Spoiler: She kind of liked it 🙂
Just a heads up that the Smashwords edition of The Stolen Child has been updated to correct some formatting errors. You should be able to download it in a variety of formats, right here:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/599587
Remember, the Smashwords edition is offered on a pay-what-you-want basis; you can download it for free, or set your own price as you see fit.
A very nicely written review for The Stolen Child over at Page Turners. Give it a look, and check out Clay’s other reviews while you’re at it 🙂
https://pageturnersinc.wordpress.com/2015/12/11/the-stolen-child-by-peter-brunton-a-review/
The Stolen Child is officially available for purchase on Kindle, at the Amazon of your choosing.
Canadian readers: http://www.amazon.ca/Stolen-Child-Exiles-Book-ebook/dp/B0197LZAGQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449841660&sr=8-1&keywords=the+stolen+child+peter+brunton
You can also search for the book using the title, or the ISBN (978-0-9949679-0-9).
The book is also available at Smashwords.com, on a pay what you want schema. Or, you can simply download it for free from Smashwords, in a variety of formats.
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/599587
(The Smashwords version is undergoing some slight revisions to formatting. If you download it now, I gather Smashwords will notify you automatically when it updates, but I’ll try to post something about it here as well, to be sure).
All versions are provided as creative commons licensed documents with absolutely no DRM whatsoever. Kindle owners can also use the lending feature.
If you’ve read the book already, I would be incredibly grateful if you could leave a review. It really helps to create interest. And please, share it with your friends, pass the files around, send people to this blog, whatever. I want people to read this and enjoy it.
The print edition is still in the works, but you should be hearing more on that soon enough, along with other possible announcements depending on how some ideas work out.
Whew. And then it’s on to book two. Thank you, everyone, for following with me this far. I’m excited to see what happens next.
Well, here it is. The Stolen Child will be available for sale this Friday (the 11th) on Amazon and Smashwords, in electronic formats. A print edition is still in the works, and I’ll update with more on that when I can.
The price on Amazon will be $2.99 for the ebook. On Smashwords I’ll be offering it on a “pay what you want” scheme, so you can decide how much the book is worth to you.
For those of you who’ve already read the book here, I’d really appreciate it if you could take the time to leave a review, either at the store pages (when they’re up) or on Goodreads where the book is now listed.
Thank you all again for your support. I’m excited to finally be getting this thing out the door, and to be able to start looking ahead to what’s next. I’ve got a lot of awesome ideas for Book 2 that I can’t wait to share with you all (and keep following this blog to hear more on that as I start working on it).
So, I’m still working out a few details (tax forms suck, yo), but we’re getting pretty close to the e-book release of The Stolen Child, with a print release to hopefully follow shortly afterwards.
In the meantime, here’s a sneak peak of the disgustingly amazing and awesome cover art, by the incredibly talented Ameshin.
So this brings us to the end of Book 1. I really do want to thank you all for reading. Seriously, just being able to share what I write means a lot to me, and if I’m really lucky then maybe it left some kind of an impression on you.
So what happens now?
Well, I’m currently waiting on the final cover-art for the book, so that I can put it up for sale on Amazon, Smashwords, and Lulu, for anyone to enjoy in print, or on their favourite e-reader.
I’m also going to be making digital copies of the book available for anyone to download, free of charge, and to share as much as they want. That’s never going to change, and it’s never going to go away. Every book in the Exiles series will available for free, for those that want it.
Once Book 1 is out the gate, I’m going to be sitting down to start work in earnest on the next book. There’s obviously a lot of story still to tell. I imagine most of you want to know what happens next for Rachael and Arsha, and where they go now that they have nowhere left to call home. That’s where book 2 picks up, and I’m really excited to begin exploring some of the questions I left you with, and some of those hanging plot threads that I left unresolved. I’m even more excited to get to spend more time with Rachael and Arsha, as we watch them grow up, and really begin to discover who they are. I’ve been carrying these characters around in my head for years now, and there’s so much more of their story that I want to tell.
How I get there is the question. Whatever happens, I want to keep telling this story. I’ve got big plans for future books, and even bigger plans for the ending. It’s going to be crazy epic awesome, and you’ll love it. I’m hoping you guys will support me in getting there.
I want to be clear, I’m not a starving artist. I work a 40 hour a week day job that pays the bills just fine (and I live in Canada, where we have wonderful things like free healthcare). I’m not well off, but I don’t need to be, and I am able to look after myself, and I can afford a few nice toys every now and then. But working an 8 hour day and then coming home to write for another 3 hours isn’t easy, and despite what anyone may tell you, writing is bloody hard work. Yes, it’s satisfying, and fulfilling, and at times immensely enjoyable. But it’s also a mind numbing grind that can suck the life out of you, and it’s not easy to squeeze that in around a full time job. My biggest wish is that I would be able to make enough money from what I write that I can afford to quit my day job, or at least change to part-time work, and focus much more of my time and energy on telling these stories. So every book you buy, or a friend buys because of your recommendation, helps me to do that.
If it sounds strange that I want to get paid for this, but also want to give my work away, believe me, it does make sense. I want people to pay for this because they think it’s worth paying for. But I don’t want to be a gatekeeper. I want people to read my books, enjoy them, and share them, and it’s my hope that enough people will think that’s worth paying something back for that I’ll be able to make a living out of this.
I’m going to be approaching that end two different ways. The first is offering my books for sale, for those who wish to pay for them. It’s not necessary (unless you want a physical copy, because, obviously, those cost money to print and ship), but it is very much appreciated. I’m also going to be setting up a Patreon account, where people who want to can support my work with a very small monthly donation. Basically, Patreon is kind of like busking. I share these stories with you, and if you like them you throw some change in the hat. I think that’s a really cool idea. For those who choose to support me on Patreon, I’m looking at offering some additional content in return. I’d really like to put together some kind of “Director’s Commentary” style podcast where I go through the book chapter by chapter and explain my thoughts and my writing process. I’ve always loved watching that kind of content for films and TV shows, and I think it might be really cool to do the same thing with a novel.
All of this is going to happening over the next few weeks, so for now just keep following this blog if you want all the latest on what’s happening with the Exiles series. Book 2 will be coming, sooner or later. Hopefully sooner. Let’s see what happens.
I’m excited. Nervous, but excited. I am really am incredibly grateful to every one of you for deciding to join me on this. Every like, every share, every reblog, reply or comment, it all makes a difference. And even if you didn’t do any of those things, I don’t care, because just by reading this story you make a difference. A story isn’t a story if there’s no one to tell it to. So thank you for listening.
Good news readers; as of next week (starting Monday the 24th), The Stolen Child will be updating 3 chapters a week, Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
That’s a whole 50% more story per week. With savings like that, we’re practically giving it away!
…
Yeah… I’ll see myself out.
“Have you ever had a dream where you were someplace else, and everything was different? Even simple things like gravity?”
There are roads that are not on any map. There are pathways between worlds that anyone could walk if they only knew the way.
“What if that was a real place?”
A turning in the middle of a field. A crack between two stones that didn’t seem to be there a moment before. A course plotted by stars that can only be seen when the moon is right.
The clouds gathered beneath the city like foam on the waves of a stormy sea. Arsha stood at the railing, the cold air running over her thickly gloved hands even as the bright sunlight warmed her face.
For Arsha, growing up aboard her father’s airship, the Borderlands are the only world she has ever known. Worlds, really; countless worlds, each different in their way, but all of them connected by the hidden paths known as The Ways.
A steady drum roll brought Rachael to her senses. Rain hammered against the roof of the cardboard box which had sheltered her, as the chill of the morning air worked its way into her bones.
For Rachael, none of this is real. How can it be, when she’s only ever known the cold grey reality of life in London, a city of glass towers and smoke-stained brickwork? A city that just gets meaner and more frightened by the day.
“There’s a girl. She’s running away from something. She’s scared and in pain. I saw a boy with her, but I couldn’t see his face. He seemed to be made of shadows and smoke. They were standing together, Arsha and this girl. Their hands were bound together with red string, wound all around them, spilling over the ground. The girl, her other hand was covered in a gauntlet of iron, rusted and old. The boy was with them, watching them. I could see his shadow, surrounding them both.”
This is a story about two young women, their lives connected by a single strand of Fate. Across worlds, across realities, their lives bound to each other by a choice that neither of them made.
“It was there, in her palm. The Seed. Oh Fates, Rishi, I could feel it. I could feel its power.”
Because all it takes is one wrong choice, one mistake, to set events in motion that can change lives and change worlds.
The raven’s body was so vast that it could have been an aircraft. Its glistening black eyes were each the size of a beach ball. Talons, ugly yellow and large enough to lift a car, dug deep into the rooftop. Black wings shook out, the backdraft rocking the tiny ship as it pulled away. For a moment the curve of the raven’s beak seemed like a cruel smile.
This is a story about monsters. The kind that snarl in the darkness, lips smeared with blood.
The hand on her ankle yanked hard and her grip gave way entirely. Then he was on her, a mass of hair and bone and muscle and the overpowering stink of him. She felt the sweat of his palms as bony hands caught her wrists.
The kind that hide behind friendly faces, and smile because they love us.
“Why not? Are you seeking some higher purpose in this? Something more than fulfilling a base and selfish need? Everyone is selfish. Anyone who pretends to act only for others is a liar. I will gain power and influence, and you will wash your conscience clean. Both of us selfishly saving the lives of millions.”
And the kind that live inside our thoughts, waiting to drag us down into the darkness with them.
“Did they tell you this would help?” he snarled, gesturing with the clear orange container. “That if you took the pills and closed your eyes, all the scary things would go away?”
It’s a story about finding friendship in the strangest places. The kind of friendship that comes crashing into your life at the moment you least expected, and changes everything about you.
“So… What are we doing here anyhow?”
Arsha grinned, and hoisted herself up to sit on the railing, with her back to the open sky
“Something fun,” she said. Before Rachael could ask what she meant, the girl spread her arms, raised her head, and fell backwards off of the deck.
It’s a story about fear…
Her mind raced, hoping for any idea that might see them to safety, but only one thought came to her, repeating over and over.
“Run.”
And it’s a story about strength…
Her face a picture of cold fury, she slammed the man backwards into the wall of the alleyway and took a single step forwards, bringing one knee up hard into his guts. Then the gauntleted fist snaked out once more, and with a bright flash of blue and a resounding crack Rakesh slumped to the ground, a faint coil of smoke twisting upwards from his bleached white collar.
But most of all, it’s a story about family. The kind we spend our lives searching for… And the kind we spend our lives running from.
Horrified, Arsha could only stare at the scene in front of her. She could scarcely understand what had happened. She had only the vaguest sense, things half overheard, pieces that gathered together, buzzing at the back of her head like angry wasps that she desperately wished to ignore. She did not want to know, did not want to understand. Everything before her was simply too horrible, too nightmarish to be allowed to be real. She wanted to shut it out, to step back from the room, slam the door and run away from it forever.
Rachael continued to cough and retch. Arsha watched with horrified fascination as the puddle of vomit inched towards her boots.
“Rachael… Oh Fates, Rachael… What happened?” She said, as the girl drew ragged breaths.
“I did. It was all because of me.”
This is The Stolen Child.
The Stolen Child 