Carrying A Torch

by Xanxa Symanah

First of the Virian Companions, telling the back-stories of Mustapha Morphew and Malawi Redigan, the lovers who never really were.

Mustapha comes from one of the old Northern Virian travelling clans, but a chance meeting with a sorcerer from another world makes him yearn for more than the usual routine. His curiosity leads him in unexpected directions and his fascination with gambling shapes his future in ways which he could never have imagined.

Malawi was born into a privileged Southern Virian family, growing up in a large mansion on the outskirts of the capital. She always feels overshadowed by her glamorous and graceful elder sister. The enduring feelings of jealousy shape her life and lead her to embrace the darker side of her nature.

When the two meet, strong feelings are unleashed and their lives are transformed beyond all expectations. Mustapha pursues the unattainable Malawi, even though she regards him as a mere plaything, to be discarded once the initial excitement wears off.

Eventually, Mustapha realises that she will never love him, but by that time, his life is in ruins, with no prospects for a happy future. Can he find love in the arms of another woman or will he be forever doomed to a life of poverty and misery?

548 pages, Paperback

Published January 16, 2023

About the author

PLEASE NOTE - THIS AUTHOR DOES NOT SEND OUT REVIEW COPIES!

Sarah Xanxa Wallace (AKA Xanxa Symanah) has always been involved in creative writing. Before she learned to read and write, she would make up stories, telling them to anyone who would listen, or simply reciting them to herself when she lacked an audience.

She is also a poet, having had some of her poetry published in an anthology which was brought out by a Brasilian University publishing house. Some of her poems have also featured on drug abuse awareness websites, youth club websites and other creative communities online.

Her main area of work is contemporary fantasy. She has written seven fantasy novels with the collective title The Virian Chronicles, along with offshoot series collectively entitled The Virian Companions and The Vyrdigaan Prophecies. She has also written one detective novel and published a collection of her dark poetry. She is currently working on a new series of fantasy novels entitled The Feniyaan Archives.

She is married to the home-based progressive rock musician Ian Wallace (formerly known as Ian Raggatt) and she wrote a novella to accompany one of his albums, The Presence, telling the story of the concept in her own words. The novella was distributed with the first batch of CDs released but is now only available in ebook format.

Besides creative writing, she has a keen interest in fantasy and science-fiction movies and TV shows, travel, languages and music.

Reviews

[K.V. Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Before reading this, I read books 1-3 of the Virian Chronicles. This book is part of the Virian Companions, which are spin-offs and prequels to the main series. I picked this up because I saw that this book contained the backstory of Mustapha Morphew, my favourite character from Neurotic Mothers’ Battleship (Virian Chronicles, book 3). Each of Symanah’s books builds on the complex and exciting world of the Fenian Galaxy. I wasn’t certain what to think of the story’s direction for the majority of this book, because Malawi is EVIL. Part of me was bothered by the fact that she’d grow up and have a daughter of her own. And yet, at times, the author depicted her in such a way that the reader would feel very sorry for her. And there is a reason for the way Malawi acts – one only the priestesses know. The writing was expertly done and, despite the book’s length, I found it highly entertaining and difficult to put down. Mustapha's story of how he got his name was endearing.