Hi All; this month sees the release of MOTHER OF DAEMONS, the fourth and final book of The Sunsurge Quartet. Another series comes to an end, which is always a bit of a gut-wrenching feeling. I have spent so much time with these characters – with Lyra and Ril, Kyrik and Valdyr, Waqar and Tarita and all the rest – that they are part of me. I hear their voices, and their actions haunt me at night, as do the crimes of the villains they face. And of course, there are always so many little sub-plots and matters to resolve. Fantasy takes over from reality, in a fun but exhausting way.

One thing I’ve observed is that a lot of fantasy series start strongly, and get weaker. In writing The Moontide Quartet, and The Sunsurge Quartet, I have been determined not to let that happen. In my view, and that of my editor, both of these series have got stronger as they progressed. I was especially happy with Book 3 of Sunsurge (Hearts of Ice) and I believe that we’ve nailed it with Mother of Daemons.

So where next?

Although Mother of Daemons brings Sunsurge to a very definite ending, it is not (in my mind at least) the end of the story of the world of Urte. One question I get repeatedly asked by Moontide readers is, “What happens to Ramita’s missing twin boy?”; well, his story is told in a planned sequel series, which hopefully I will get to write

In the meantime, I have a new series coming out with Jo Fletcher Books (the publisher of the Urte books). It’s a trilogy set in a new fantasy realm, and is more adventure-focused than the Urte books, with a more linear plot and faster pacing than an epic fantasy. It’s a trilogy, called The Tethered Citadel, and Book 1 – MAP’S EDGE – will be released in Q3 of 2020. I’ve had a lot of fun writing Map’s Edge (we’re editing it at the moment) and I look forward to sharing the cover art in due course.

So, I hope you all enjoy Mother of Daemons, and that it rounds out the series in the way you hope – and I hope you will stick with me on the next journey – to The Tethered Citadel, hopefully back to Urte, and beyond…

thank you all for your support (interest),

David

Wellington, New Zealand