The Linear Cycle continues its march to the end with “The North Wind Blows”, released August 14, 2017. This fifth installment is a bit different. It’s an outsider point of view, yet it’s also not. There are no more Touched, there’s no more magic, and now the hardest part for everyone is figuring out how to get through the coming winter. Here’s the blurb, which should give you some idea of what’s happening:
Winter has come at last to the fallen Valtian Empire, a season to match its mood. The Touched are gone, the tainted souls having driven away the last vestiges of magical energy in the empire’s network of lines even as they scattered the land’s people like autumn leaves.
To the empire’s north lies the kingdom of Norbrad, a cold land ruled by a cold king. There, Leliya, a Valtian princess caught in a loveless royal marriage, watches from afar as her countrymen choose to brave both weather and scorn to build a new life in her adopted realm.
But the long, dark nights are only beginning. Sensing weakness in the Valtian heartland, neighboring Esteca is on the march. First, they came as raiders and spies. Now, they come as an army, and Leliya must convince her husband’s people to come to the aid of her own. Because without its magic, the Valtian Empire cannot stand on its own.
As always, “The North Wind Blows” is available DRM-free for a $1/month pledge on my Patreon, and you can also pick up a copy from the Kindle Store for only 99 cents.
The epic conclusion, “The Final Sacrifice”, comes in only a few short weeks, so keep watching. If you’ve made it this far, you have to see how it ends!