Well … well, well, well. Is it time to resucitate the Satis name? Time for a return to epic, dark fantasy?

I think so!

So I recognize that I haven’t posted here in months, and I haven’t posted consistently for years, and that most of you will have forgotten who I am. However, I’m still here, still alive, and still working.

First of all, I want you to know I haven’t been neglecting the Redemption of Erâth series. (Well, I have actually, but for good reason.) You see, in the time I’ve been absent, I’ve written and published a Young Adult novel under my real name called 22 Scars. You can find it here, here and here. It’s gone exceptionally well, and is one of the pieces of work I’m most proud of. It’s dark, dismal, depressing and uplifting, and was something utterly important in my life.

But it’s done—the book is written, it’s out there, and it’s (slowly) garnering reviews. Which means that, while I still intend to work on that side of things, the time has come to return to Erâth.

As you may or may not remember, the third book in the series, Ancients & Death, is in fact fully written. It needs some significant editing and trimming, but the point is, it’s done. And I’ve let it slide for so long, I almost forgot how good it is.

As in, it’s really good. Though I may only be speaking for myself, it’s by far the best Redemption of Erâth book so far, with some of the best revelations, shocks and emotional scenes I’ve ever written (for fantasy). I really, really can’t wait to get it out there.

To that extent, I’m going to (re)start something I tried a little while ago: I’m going to post a chapter of Ancients & Death every few days for the next few weeks, so that I can share with you just how excited I am about it. I want you to read it. I want you to enjoy it. And if you like it, or if you want to know how Brandyé and Elven came to be where there are, I’m going to go a step further: if you want a free copy of books one and two, just send an email to satiswrites@icloud.com, and I’ll pass one on to you!

I can’t wait to see what you think!

Chapter Four: A Greener Kingdom

By the following morning, the rain had abated only a little, and Elven was thoroughly as wet and miserable as he had ever been. No one had spoken much since Tharom’s song of the previous evening, and it was in grim silence they set out in the gray dawn, Elỳn leading the way. Farathé’s party would have advanced some miles since the day before, it was assumed, and so they followed the stream from the village as it meandered south and west: it would cross Farathé’s path eventually, Elỳn said. It was not easy going, for there was no road, and the stream had grown wide and spilled over its own banks, creating great marshes and swamps from the grasslands.

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Chapter Three: The West Road

The greatlord, it seemed, had set up camp in the outskirts of the town, and though he rode on horseback with his men he did not travel without comfort. A great tent had been erected, fit to house a battalion of soldiers, and within it was laid out what seemed almost to be a palace in miniature, resplendent in golds and reds, with a grand table in the center for dining. The many carriages it took to carry all of this were arranged in a crescent around the tent, with the opening facing the north.

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