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The Heroes We Never Were
Not yet published
Expected 8 Sep 26An aging drunk former knight who cannot escape the wreckage of his warlike past, and his lord’s headstrong magick-wielding young daughter with a pet dog named Horse discover there may be an assassin among the guests visiting their castle. But when those guests are made up of their House’s most ruthless enemies, it is more difficult than it seems to narrow down to just one.
War is the only thing Everan Caid was ever good at, and he yearns to return to his old ways. Long ago stripped of his knighthood and all but exiled from the castle of Oldmeadow, he is drunker by dawn than most men can manage all day. Peace, with the lack of killing that it brings, never sat right with him, especially due to the fact he fought on the losing side of the last civil war over Olbaran’s distant throne and has been forced to watch for years as his bitter enemies prospered at his expense. Yet even in the ruin after the war, his loyalty is unwavering to House Kederan and the Knights of Oldmeadow he fought beside, but with the castle suddenly full of visitors who support the usurper king he spent half his life fighting against, the limits of Everan’s oath of peace may soon be reached.
Sera Kederan, on the other hand, rarely finds time for serious things between climbing trees and running about the castle with her favorite bearhounds. Her father may be Lord Kederan, but Sera has little patience for the politics of distant courts…at least until suspicious visitors from those courts arrive at her doorstep. And when she discovers she might have a connection to certain arcane powers, she suddenly feels like she is being hunted in her own home.
With everyone hiding secrets, and a traitor in their midst, the race is on to stop a deadly plot and save their family from a looming war. Yet the deeper they both dig, the more it seems they have uncovered something far worse than they ever could have imagined.
A gritty grimdark tale of loss, betrayal, redemption, and war. With a healthy dose of giant dogs.
War is the only thing Everan Caid was ever good at, and he yearns to return to his old ways. Long ago stripped of his knighthood and all but exiled from the castle of Oldmeadow, he is drunker by dawn than most men can manage all day. Peace, with the lack of killing that it brings, never sat right with him, especially due to the fact he fought on the losing side of the last civil war over Olbaran’s distant throne and has been forced to watch for years as his bitter enemies prospered at his expense. Yet even in the ruin after the war, his loyalty is unwavering to House Kederan and the Knights of Oldmeadow he fought beside, but with the castle suddenly full of visitors who support the usurper king he spent half his life fighting against, the limits of Everan’s oath of peace may soon be reached.
Sera Kederan, on the other hand, rarely finds time for serious things between climbing trees and running about the castle with her favorite bearhounds. Her father may be Lord Kederan, but Sera has little patience for the politics of distant courts…at least until suspicious visitors from those courts arrive at her doorstep. And when she discovers she might have a connection to certain arcane powers, she suddenly feels like she is being hunted in her own home.
With everyone hiding secrets, and a traitor in their midst, the race is on to stop a deadly plot and save their family from a looming war. Yet the deeper they both dig, the more it seems they have uncovered something far worse than they ever could have imagined.
A gritty grimdark tale of loss, betrayal, redemption, and war. With a healthy dose of giant dogs.
680 pages, Kindle Edition
Expected publication September 8, 2026
About the author
Thomas Howard Riley
9 books85 followersThomas Howard Riley currently resides in the wasteland metropolis, where he reads ancient books, plays ancient games, watches ancient movies, jams on ancient guitars, and writes furiously day and night. He sometimes appears on clear nights when the moon is gibbous, and he has often been seen in the presence of cats.
He always wanted to make up his own worlds, tell his own stories, write his own history, create his own people, honor the truths of life, and explore both the light and the darkness of human nature. With a few swords thrown in for good measure.
And some magick. Awesome magick.
He can be found digitally at THOMASHOWARDRILEY.COM
On Twitter he is @ornithopteryx, where he is sometimes funny, always clever, and never mean.
He always wanted to make up his own worlds, tell his own stories, write his own history, create his own people, honor the truths of life, and explore both the light and the darkness of human nature. With a few swords thrown in for good measure.
And some magick. Awesome magick.
He can be found digitally at THOMASHOWARDRILEY.COM
On Twitter he is @ornithopteryx, where he is sometimes funny, always clever, and never mean.
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Review of advance copy received from Author
I was lucky enough to be chosen to proofread this book! Go and read it for yourself, it’s an epic chonk filled with great characters, large dogs and heartbreaking bloody battles, but never losing sight of the difference between loyalty and treachery, right and wrong, bravery and cowardice!
Displaying 1 of 1 review