It’s been a productive pandemic—I mean, summer

Without belittling the importance of the COVID-19 pandemic, I can say that I’ve had a productive few months.

Since March, I have:

  • finished the second Dark Age novel, The Children of the Seventh Son
  • rewritten the second Hawaiian Storm full-length novel, Dead Man Lying
  • outlined a completely new novel, a near-future dystopian thriller.

What you can expect from Scott Bury this fall

The Children of the Seventh Son

The Dark Age, Book 2
This is the sequel to my first published novel, The Bones of the Earth.

That book ended with the young barbarian, Javor the Sklavene, settling down in Constantinople with several chests of Kobold gold, after learning a little about the true nature of the bones of the earth and its deep powers.

The second book jumps ahead five years. Our autistic hero, now known as Javor Sklavenius, has married the daughter of a rich merchant and has become something of the official monster slayer of the mysterious Order.

Where The Bones of the Earth had three parts, The Children of the Seventh Son is divided into seven—one per child. There is also one major monster per part.

A different kind of story

What sets the Dark Age series apart from other fantasy novels is that it’s firmly rooted in a real time and place. History plays a major role in the events that happen to Javor and his family. Specifically, the history of the seventh-century (there’s that number again!) Eastern Roman Empire, which most people today call the “Byzantine Empire.” Emperors, Empresses, usurpers, Patriarchs and heretics from history all appear in the plot.

As in Bones, all the names are real, out of history. As are the nationalities: Sklavenes, Avars, Scythians, Sarmatians, the Enarei. Strange as they are, they were real people.

I have also borrowed heavily from the mythologies of ancient peoples: not only the Greeks, Romans and early Christians, but the Gnostics, the Sarmatians and the Hurrians. While there is a pretty bizarre sex scene between a god and a cliff, I did not make that part up. Nor did I make up the deaf, dumb and blind, but sentient stone pillar named Ullikummi, nor the Dreaming God, Upelluri.

My editor, the indefatigable Gary Henry, is going through the manuscript. Once he’s finished, it will go to beta readers—or should I say, the Alpha Team. And then, I will start sharing sneak peeks.

I have also engaged an honest-to-gods French painter to create a cover.

I will be able to share with you a few advance chapters very soon. Alpha Team members first—so if you want to be one of the first to read them, sign up now.

Next post: The new Hawaiian Storm.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *