Release date: January 11, 2020
Subgenre: Science Fantasy
About Steel City, Veiled Kingdom:
Jerimin Icarii’s life is in shambles. Once an ambitious young scientist,
years of hardship on the streets of his homeworld have transformed him
into a desperate man, willing to do anything to get his life back.
In his darkest hour, he strikes a deal with the bizarre Queen of the faerie world. Now her supernatural powers help him keep up appearances while he claws his way back into society. The longer he keeps up the charade, the closer he gets to respect, wealth, and glory. But one slipup will get him killed.
And that’s not even the dangerous part. Because the cost of the Queen’s aid is obedience to her every whim. And Jerimin never knows what she’ll make him do next…
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom is a science fantasy overflowing with intrigue, adventure, and colorful characters you’ll love (and a few you’ll love to hate). It’s the perfect story for any sci-fi/fantasy lover looking for an immersive, inventive read.
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom: The Complete Edition presents the entire story as it was originally envisioned--as a single, complete, epic-length novel. The Complete Edition is only available in digital format at this time. However, all 5 parts of the story are offered as individual volumes in both digital and paperback and are listed here:
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 1: Surface
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 2: Going Underground
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 3: Buried
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 4: Forces of Attraction
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 5: Children of Change
In his darkest hour, he strikes a deal with the bizarre Queen of the faerie world. Now her supernatural powers help him keep up appearances while he claws his way back into society. The longer he keeps up the charade, the closer he gets to respect, wealth, and glory. But one slipup will get him killed.
And that’s not even the dangerous part. Because the cost of the Queen’s aid is obedience to her every whim. And Jerimin never knows what she’ll make him do next…
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom is a science fantasy overflowing with intrigue, adventure, and colorful characters you’ll love (and a few you’ll love to hate). It’s the perfect story for any sci-fi/fantasy lover looking for an immersive, inventive read.
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom: The Complete Edition presents the entire story as it was originally envisioned--as a single, complete, epic-length novel. The Complete Edition is only available in digital format at this time. However, all 5 parts of the story are offered as individual volumes in both digital and paperback and are listed here:
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 1: Surface
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 2: Going Underground
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 3: Buried
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 4: Forces of Attraction
Steel City, Veiled Kingdom, Part 5: Children of Change
Excerpt:
Oceans at the Edge
I once tried to run into the sea to drown myself, but the water
never rose higher than my skinny fourteen-year-old calves.
It didn’t take long before I found the end of the sea, a glass wall
at the very edge of the tower. Jets pumped recirculated water through slots
aimed at my ankles. I stared through the glass at the steel city before me. If
climbed over, I could jump, and if I jumped, I’d fall. I’d close my eyes and
pretend I was flying—at least, until the first autokinet smashed into me. It’d
be a quick death—the machines never stopped in time—and a better one than the
injection in store for me when I failed my final set of tests.
At least this way I get to choose.
My palm had just kissed the glass when my father grabbed me from
behind.
I twisted, but he was too strong. He hauled me, his only son,
through the water, back to where my mother screamed and people avoided looking
at us. My escape had failed.
I’d been paying for that day’s cowardice ever since. You see, I
didn’t score low enough on my final Kakuri-Majinuri tests to warrant death—but
my numbers weren’t high enough to declare me a safe member of society. I fought
the judgment for a couple years, but I eventually got the message and stopped.
Fifteen years later, there was no water. And no wall, either. I’d
found another edge, on an unfinished street. No one would see.
The autokinets thundered at the base of the skyscraper city.
I took a breath, closed my eyes…
And swore. Why did I have to do this? I never did anything wrong! I
never hurt anyone—never wanted to! I’d just been judged unfairly—the tests were
wrong!
But my anger changed nothing. The KM numbers made me unemployable,
so I was penniless. The numbers made me dangerous, so I was friendless, even
among the other city castoffs. And, worst of all, the numbers made me
honorless, so I had no family.
The numbers had stolen my future, and I couldn’t get it back. It
wasn’t fair, but I saw no other solution.
The world grew dim as dusk arrived. I took a step towards the edge—
—and was grabbed from behind again.
But instead of being dragged away, I was swung to the ground. Dazed,
I stared up into the face of a pale-skinned woman with wild black hair. Her
hand pressed on my heart, pinning me down.
“Do not,” she said. “I need you.”
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About Danielle Williams:
Danielle Williams is the author of (so far) four novels and nearly
a dozen other tales of wonder, horror and humor, including Debuts and Dragons, The Girlfriend Who Wasn’t from Delaware and The Witching License. Explore her full collection of stories at www.PixelvaniaPublishing.com today.
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