All The King's
Bastards is the last of the four novels in The Price of Freedom
sequence.
My name is Sumto and I
was once content to drink and gamble and idle my days away in the
company of good books, dubious friends and casual women. Still, money
and power have their lure and I have accepted I must acquire them as
a matter of survival.
As the son of a Patron,
Sumto has set his feet unsteadily upon a path that will one day allow
him to take his place amongst the Assembly of Patrons, the rulers of
the city. Banned from remaining in the north, Sumto must return to
the city to face trial for a range of charges that culminate in
treason. A trial he confidently expects to win.
Unknown to Sumto, his
enemies in the Assembly have other plans for his future and have
already taken action against him.
The last of four novels
that follow the career of Sumto, a reluctant hero of dubious
morals.
Book One: The Last King's Amulet
Book Two: The Key To The Grave
Book Three: The Invisible Hand
Book Four: All The King's Bastards
The four novels are best considered to be one novel in four parts, though each is novel length.
Book One: The Last King's Amulet
Book Two: The Key To The Grave
Book Three: The Invisible Hand
Book Four: All The King's Bastards
The four novels are best considered to be one novel in four parts, though each is novel length.
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Great news! You will publish at smashwords and kindle right?
ReplyDeleteHi, Alexander. Yes. On Sunday the 19th - smashwords should be available pretty much at once, Amazon within 24 hours, though it has often been faster. As usual, it will take little while to filter through to the Apple ibookstore, Barnes & Noble, and all other retailers. I'd make it faster if I could but that is out of my hands.
ReplyDeleteI bought it from Smashwords (they charged me a dollar more than the listed price) and the copy is weird. It shows that there are 190 pages, current page number changes about every seven or eight pages, the text switches from regular to bold sometimes several times on a page and some pages may only have one or two words on them. I'm almost through the book but have no idea how many pages are actually left. At first I feared that I had paid six dollars for a short story. I understand you don't have any control over how they present your books but you might want to check it out. Makes a bad impression on a good book. Thanks
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear that, Jonathan, and thank you for bringing the problem to my attention. I believe that these issues have been addressed now - could you do me a favour and take another copy from smashwords (you have, of course, already paid so there will be no issue there) and let me know if the problems have gone away? I would appreciate it no end. As to price, there was an early price change (pretty much day one of release, I believe) and that may account for the difference between display and purchase price. I'll also check that out. Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the response. I just downloaded the most resent version from Smashwords and it fixed the type issue of part time bold but now it shows there are 184 pages and increments the page number about every three or four pages.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the book but (as you stated) there is an absolute need to continue his story. You end it with "But I have a secret" for God's sake. Jocasta, Silver, Meran and the whole Darklake situation. You could almost do a book (or two) on Sapphire, What else are the Keeplords hiding in the north? And who would they send to serve Sumto next? Dubaku surely has more left. So get it in gear and start outlining the next seven or eight book.
Well, we're waiting...
Thanks for letting me know, Jonathan. Formatting issues are a perpetual bugbear. I think we have it about as right as it's going to get.
ReplyDeleteI can't even pretend to myself that I can leave the story there. I have a couple of decisions to make before I can continue, though. I wonder how readers would feel about a book from Sapphire's point of view? I'm tempted by this idea. Or from Jocasta's point of view? I am also tempted by that idea. Writing these books would make a neat bridge to part two of Sumto's story. But then, I am also tempted by an idea for a book that takes place toward the end of Sumto's exile... this could make a tidy trilogy, and I'm tempted to head in that direction.
I think you could easily get a book or two out of Sapphire. Not just what he's doing now but how he became what he is and what he wants for his own future. Could Sumto's exile turn into a little empire building and could Sapphire show up (with Jocasta and others) to help? If Sapphire completes his obligation to Sumto's father a book about his interim adventures to join Sumto, with a little retrospection into his own past, could make a great tale. Jocasta's story could deal with Silver and Sumto's unborn son as well as gaining political position that could aid Sumto in building his empire in exile before joining him. Come on, they have to reunite. Forget the trilogy, go for four or more. These are great characters and my guess is there are a lot of readers that would love to see more and get answers to a lot of loose ends. I can see it now, "Sumto", the movie. Hang in there Chris, great characters and stories.
ReplyDeleteYou are pretty much reading my mind there, Jonathan, which tells me something useful. That the pattern of the stories to come is visible in what has already been told. Glad to hear that confirmed - though I shan't comment on the likely development of the relationship between Jocasta and Sumto, perhaps it is enough hear it confirmed that there will be one?
ReplyDeleteSapphire is tugging at my sleeve and pointing to a story that needs telling, one that will shed some light on situations that could use some illumination, so I think it likely that that story will come next. Changing POV in a first person narrative breaks a rule, and I do so love to break rules just to see if I can get away with it, so this does have some added appeal to me.
Of course, the work does need to pay for my time while I do it. If you would like to help me work toward that goal, reviews would certainly be a help. I know it's kind of unpaid work for you, but if you feel inclined a few brief words and a star rating anywhere you feel it easy to add them would be a great help to me. Reviews are one of the things new readers look at before they buy, and visibility is one of the things writers struggle with constantly – after all, no one buys what they don't know about. Though I am beginning to see signs that the series so far will maybe pay for the time to write more, I'm certainly not where I can devote my entire attention to the series.
All the best and thanks for the comments.