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Bitroux: Book 1: The Metalsmith - Illustrated Edition
How much can the bonds between twins survive? Can they survive anger, distance, arguments left unsettled and a lifetime of experiences left unshared?
Merouac is full of regret about the way he left things with his twin sister Malaena.
Now she’s gone and he’s got his hands full taking care of her young daughter; a wilful and curious girl intent on giving him a crash-course in parenting.
As Merouac juggles taking care of Evra and the pressures of his job as head metalsmith on the Transcontinental Railroad, a series of mysteries begin to emerge. A new star appears in the night sky; evidence that Ahm’s protective shield is down. Strange blue apparitions make themselves known to Merouac, chanting the words ‘Down, Down.’ And then the mystery of Malaena’s death deepens, leaving Merouac with twice as many questions and no answers.
As Merouac goes in search of his sister, he embarks on a journey across space and frequency and discovers that both memory and reason are fragile, and that the bonds of the heart may be more resilient than the planets themselves.
Merouac is full of regret about the way he left things with his twin sister Malaena.
Now she’s gone and he’s got his hands full taking care of her young daughter; a wilful and curious girl intent on giving him a crash-course in parenting.
As Merouac juggles taking care of Evra and the pressures of his job as head metalsmith on the Transcontinental Railroad, a series of mysteries begin to emerge. A new star appears in the night sky; evidence that Ahm’s protective shield is down. Strange blue apparitions make themselves known to Merouac, chanting the words ‘Down, Down.’ And then the mystery of Malaena’s death deepens, leaving Merouac with twice as many questions and no answers.
As Merouac goes in search of his sister, he embarks on a journey across space and frequency and discovers that both memory and reason are fragile, and that the bonds of the heart may be more resilient than the planets themselves.
- GenresScience Fiction
232 pages, Kindle Edition
First published November 17, 2014
5 people are currently reading
26 people want to read
About the author
Jordan Harcourt-Hughes
3 books46 followersJordan is an abstract painter, writer and communications professional. She’s passionate about all aspects of creativity, life-long learning and personal wellbeing. Over the last fifteen years she’s led, coached and developed creative professionals across the Asia-Pacific region.
Jordan’s books, studio workshops, courses, coaching and resources are an invitation to explore the rich landscape of creative experiences open to all.
High Country is Jordan’s second novel set in the world of Bitroux.
Jordan’s books, studio workshops, courses, coaching and resources are an invitation to explore the rich landscape of creative experiences open to all.
High Country is Jordan’s second novel set in the world of Bitroux.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 4, 2017
3.5 stars
Jordan Harcourt- Hughes is well known as a talented artist and now, after the release of her debut novel, she can add successful author to her long list of accomplishments.
Bitroux is a fantasy set on the fictional planet Ahm. The protagonist, Merouac, is a metallurgist building the transcontinental railway line. Merouac has a real feel for the metal he works with and he spends his spare time at the forge working with metal in a new way, more for looks than practicality, making artisan pieces.
Heyla, a gypsy, becomes interested in Merouac and his trinkets after she holds one of the pieces and feels they have a special power. A power that, unbeknown to him, Merouac has imbued in them. Heyla thinks this power may be able to open portals to other worlds.
The one problem I had with this book was that I had no idea where the story was going. The plot seemed to be all over the place which made the story drag. As soon as the plot became clearer the story held my interest. The second half was engaging with wonderfully fleshed out characters. The scenes were vividly described which gave the reader a good sense of place.
Bitroux is an excellent debut novel and I’d be happy to read more from this author.
Jordan Harcourt- Hughes is well known as a talented artist and now, after the release of her debut novel, she can add successful author to her long list of accomplishments.
Bitroux is a fantasy set on the fictional planet Ahm. The protagonist, Merouac, is a metallurgist building the transcontinental railway line. Merouac has a real feel for the metal he works with and he spends his spare time at the forge working with metal in a new way, more for looks than practicality, making artisan pieces.
Heyla, a gypsy, becomes interested in Merouac and his trinkets after she holds one of the pieces and feels they have a special power. A power that, unbeknown to him, Merouac has imbued in them. Heyla thinks this power may be able to open portals to other worlds.
The one problem I had with this book was that I had no idea where the story was going. The plot seemed to be all over the place which made the story drag. As soon as the plot became clearer the story held my interest. The second half was engaging with wonderfully fleshed out characters. The scenes were vividly described which gave the reader a good sense of place.
Bitroux is an excellent debut novel and I’d be happy to read more from this author.
April 22, 2018
What can I say? That was definitely a great read. There were some parts where you had to "tune in" to get the full series of events but for the most part the story was what a Science Fiction story should have...action, adventure, futuristic or foreign elements and alien creatures destroying things and last but not least a character whose abilities awaken in the wake of tragedy to protect those in his care. Well done.
April 9, 2015
Review originally posted at Tea in the Treetops blog in April 2015:
Merouac is overseeing the construction of one of the railway lines being built across the continent, and building metal trinkets in his time off. He has just started looking after his young niece, Evra, after her mother died. Merouac thinks he might be losing it when he begins to see a strange object in the sky, plus odd hazy blue apparitions around his workshop, but it seems his niece can also see them. Then Heyla, one of the Ayuherica gypsies, turns up, insisting that Merouac has the ability to tune metal – to allow it to pick up frequencies from other realms across the Broadsphere.
I was delighted to win an illustrated digital edition of this book in the Australia Day giveaway back in January. The cover and several of the pages are covered in beautiful, colourful illustrations, along with sketches for each chapter heading. As part of the prize I also won a framed print of one of the coloured pieces!
The story itself is one of the most unique and imaginative stories I’ve read in a while. The presence of railroads on an obviously alien planet with two moons is quite fascinating, as is the network of hahma power lines below the world’s surface. The idea of being able to tune metal and put together a portal to another realm or across the stars is a little bit Stargate and I loved it!
This is a really very well written and presented book, especially since it’s self-published. Jordan Harcourt-Hughes is actually a designer and content marketer herself and the polish really shows in Bitroux. I’m not sure whether she had someone to help with editing – the story is a little slow in places but it flows very well, the characters are personable and believable and over all, the book presentation is beautiful.
The only downside of this story is that it’s so short. At only 232 pages, there’s barely time for any world-building, and I was left with plenty of questions. What was the planetary shield for? Where did Evra’s mum go? What does the railroad actually carry? Where does the electrical hahma power come from? I feel like I’ve barely dipped a toe in a much wider story, and I really hope that some of my questions can be answered in future books in this series.
4.5 Stars – A fantastic debut and a unique story, just a little too short to fully explore the ideas and flesh out the world building. I loved it though! More please!
Merouac is overseeing the construction of one of the railway lines being built across the continent, and building metal trinkets in his time off. He has just started looking after his young niece, Evra, after her mother died. Merouac thinks he might be losing it when he begins to see a strange object in the sky, plus odd hazy blue apparitions around his workshop, but it seems his niece can also see them. Then Heyla, one of the Ayuherica gypsies, turns up, insisting that Merouac has the ability to tune metal – to allow it to pick up frequencies from other realms across the Broadsphere.
I was delighted to win an illustrated digital edition of this book in the Australia Day giveaway back in January. The cover and several of the pages are covered in beautiful, colourful illustrations, along with sketches for each chapter heading. As part of the prize I also won a framed print of one of the coloured pieces!
The story itself is one of the most unique and imaginative stories I’ve read in a while. The presence of railroads on an obviously alien planet with two moons is quite fascinating, as is the network of hahma power lines below the world’s surface. The idea of being able to tune metal and put together a portal to another realm or across the stars is a little bit Stargate and I loved it!
This is a really very well written and presented book, especially since it’s self-published. Jordan Harcourt-Hughes is actually a designer and content marketer herself and the polish really shows in Bitroux. I’m not sure whether she had someone to help with editing – the story is a little slow in places but it flows very well, the characters are personable and believable and over all, the book presentation is beautiful.
The only downside of this story is that it’s so short. At only 232 pages, there’s barely time for any world-building, and I was left with plenty of questions. What was the planetary shield for? Where did Evra’s mum go? What does the railroad actually carry? Where does the electrical hahma power come from? I feel like I’ve barely dipped a toe in a much wider story, and I really hope that some of my questions can be answered in future books in this series.
4.5 Stars – A fantastic debut and a unique story, just a little too short to fully explore the ideas and flesh out the world building. I loved it though! More please!
July 24, 2017
A lovely book with an excellent design with a charming and compelling story. Recommended for fans of fantasy, although the book is short enough that even those not usually fans of the genre can give it a try.
See my complete book review at: Complete Review
See my complete book review at: Complete Review
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews