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Bard Hard: Song of the Exiles, Book 1
From the multi-award-winning, Amazon bestselling author of The Chronicles of Jonathan Tibbs comes a thrilling new fantasy series.
In the Miers, a fragile peace has held for the twenty years since the Spirit Wars. Mortals stay within their boundaries, and the Faen keep to the Lost Green. Anything else is suicide. Renly Teurig, a young musician, unwittingly binds himself to a Bardic War Lute, becoming the reluctant Champion of Tetulinok, a Celestial Muse. Acting on the Muse's will soon ends in disaster—his sister Chloe is left unable to walk, scarred beyond recognition, and Renly is exiled in disgrace.
Years later, Tetulinok sends Renly to a town on the edge of civilization to find a mysterious young woman. Shyloh is the mirror image of his sister, down to the last freckle—but untouched by the injuries that led to his banishment. As strangers from across the land converge on Shyloh, Renly uncovers a web of danger and secrets far greater than he imagined. Pieces are moving into place, setting in motion a calamity not seen in over three thousand years—and Renly might be the one to tip the scales.
Redemption, a found family of misfits, powerful mentors with secrets, ancient prophecies, and reluctant heroes. Bard Hard is fantasy at its best, combining immersive world-building and intricate magic systems with a quick-witted narrator. Dive into the breathtaking world of Kiir through the eyes of Renly Teurig, one of its most enigmatic and conflicted inhabitants. Epic quests, thrilling battles, and unexpected twists, this is a tale of destiny, identity, truth, sacrifice, and the power of a story well told.
In the Miers, a fragile peace has held for the twenty years since the Spirit Wars. Mortals stay within their boundaries, and the Faen keep to the Lost Green. Anything else is suicide. Renly Teurig, a young musician, unwittingly binds himself to a Bardic War Lute, becoming the reluctant Champion of Tetulinok, a Celestial Muse. Acting on the Muse's will soon ends in disaster—his sister Chloe is left unable to walk, scarred beyond recognition, and Renly is exiled in disgrace.
Years later, Tetulinok sends Renly to a town on the edge of civilization to find a mysterious young woman. Shyloh is the mirror image of his sister, down to the last freckle—but untouched by the injuries that led to his banishment. As strangers from across the land converge on Shyloh, Renly uncovers a web of danger and secrets far greater than he imagined. Pieces are moving into place, setting in motion a calamity not seen in over three thousand years—and Renly might be the one to tip the scales.
Redemption, a found family of misfits, powerful mentors with secrets, ancient prophecies, and reluctant heroes. Bard Hard is fantasy at its best, combining immersive world-building and intricate magic systems with a quick-witted narrator. Dive into the breathtaking world of Kiir through the eyes of Renly Teurig, one of its most enigmatic and conflicted inhabitants. Epic quests, thrilling battles, and unexpected twists, this is a tale of destiny, identity, truth, sacrifice, and the power of a story well told.
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Published March 13, 2025
About the author
T. Ellery Hodges
6 books472 followersT. Ellery Hodges was born in Sacramento, Ca in 1981. He moved to Seattle at nineteen and received his Bachelors of Science from the University Of Washington.
Somewhere in high school and early college, he gravitated toward writing. Then he forced unsuspecting students, who had made the mistake of taking creative writing during the same period as him, to endure the reading of his short stories.
During his twenties he worked in a laboratory performing drug trials, traveled most of Washington State fixing computers for Apple, sold gym memberships, and helped manage an international supply chain for a chemical distributor. Yet, much like the rest of his generation, he found that he wasn't well suited to doing any type of work for long.
So, he brushed the metaphorical dust off the novel he'd been writing in his head for the last six years. Then, he looked up the definition of 'metaphorical' because he was pretty sure that people who called themselves writers knew that one. He found that there was at least one thing he could endure doing for forty hours a week for the rest of his life.
There is a lesson in all that about ignoring what you want to do for what you think you should, but this is a biography not a lecture.
Currently, he lives with his wife, sons, and daughter, in Seattle. He has two dogs, a Border Collie and a Doberman, Darwin and Dharma, respectively.
In the 2015 Reader's Favorite book award contest, T. Ellery Hodges' debut novel, The Never Hero, was awarded an honorable mention in the category of Science Fiction. In 2017, the sequel, The Never Paradox, was awarded a Bronze Metal for the category of YA Urban Fantasy.
Somewhere in high school and early college, he gravitated toward writing. Then he forced unsuspecting students, who had made the mistake of taking creative writing during the same period as him, to endure the reading of his short stories.
During his twenties he worked in a laboratory performing drug trials, traveled most of Washington State fixing computers for Apple, sold gym memberships, and helped manage an international supply chain for a chemical distributor. Yet, much like the rest of his generation, he found that he wasn't well suited to doing any type of work for long.
So, he brushed the metaphorical dust off the novel he'd been writing in his head for the last six years. Then, he looked up the definition of 'metaphorical' because he was pretty sure that people who called themselves writers knew that one. He found that there was at least one thing he could endure doing for forty hours a week for the rest of his life.
There is a lesson in all that about ignoring what you want to do for what you think you should, but this is a biography not a lecture.
Currently, he lives with his wife, sons, and daughter, in Seattle. He has two dogs, a Border Collie and a Doberman, Darwin and Dharma, respectively.
In the 2015 Reader's Favorite book award contest, T. Ellery Hodges' debut novel, The Never Hero, was awarded an honorable mention in the category of Science Fiction. In 2017, the sequel, The Never Paradox, was awarded a Bronze Metal for the category of YA Urban Fantasy.
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