Update on “The Riven God” & “Antebellum” (A Sneak Peek)

Hey all! I’ve been promising some information regarding The Riven God, the third and final book in The Armor of God trilogy for a while, and I’m barely now getting down to actually do it. I’ve been rather busy with a whole bunch of different projects, some of which you’ve heard by now and others which will be unveiled pretty soon. Also, you know, I’ve been writing the book itself. It doesn’t matter; what matters is that I’m finally hard at work on everything relating to the release of this third and final book, after which I’ll be moving on to a new series.

But now, let’s talk about The Riven God. Yes, I’ve changed the title. First off, here’s the cover:

Pow! As it was with the first two novels, the cover was made by Álvaro de Cossio, and it’s sexy as hell. You dig?

During the final word I wrote after The Unfinished World, I mentioned that this third book would probably take a lot longer than the others for a number of reasons. First, I took a year off the Armor universe to finalize the beastly Reverie of Gods. Also, I’m doing a very secret special something with this finale that I hope to do right because if I do, it’s sure to be something really enjoyable for both readers and myself. The thing is that pulling off that cheap trick means spending more time writing the novel, so I’m sad to say that I don’t see it being published in late 2017 as I originally wished. Hopefully it’ll see the light of day sometime around Q2 2018.

This is a massive undertaking for me, and it presents a new set of really exciting challenges, and even if it means I’ll take longer, I really want to make it count. This trilogy has become very important to me and, shockingly, a bunch of fans, and I want to blow their minds with the finale. As I promised, it will not end with a whimper. I want all the momentum and drama carrying on from book 2, and all the way through book 3. Now, as I did before in this post, I want to share with you guys the chapter titles of the novel.

As always, they are subject to change as I write. With this, you might notice some patterns and connections with the chapter titles of the first two books. It’s very vague and very hidden and very tin-foil-hat, but that’s how I like to roll.

Now, on to the second part, the few bullet points I’d like to share to prepare readers for The Riven God.

• Book 1 had one POV character (Ezra); Book 2 had two POV characters (Ezra and Poole); Book 3 will have at least seven as the narratives diverge and entwine with one another.
• I’d be reluctant of calling Ezra Blanchard the protagonist of The Riven God.
• As always, there is a huge revelation about the Creux and the pilots in the prologue.
• It’s probably the darkest thing I have ever written (and alpha readers have asked me to tone it down).
• The characters don’t find all the answers, though you the reader probably will.
• Having rid the world of Laani Flecks during the second book, there is an important new threat (and if you pay attention in the last scene of The Unfinished World, you’ll see what it is).
• Of course there are several character deaths; it’s expected for the end of the story.
• Two minor characters in the first book play big roles in the third.
• Family is one of the main themes.

And, finally, the pièce de résistance:

An (unedited) sneak peek of the book itself. Click on the image above to get a quick glimpse at one of the first scenes of the novel.

There are a lot more things about The Riven God coming up, and I hope to keep you excited until the book arrives.

Thanks for reading, and see you soon!

–