Wayfarer

By Janalyn Voigt

Description:

Elcon, an untried youth, assumes his duties as High King. But as trouble stirs between nations and rebellion threatens Faeraven, his position is far from secure. Can Elcon trust that the Elder youth accompanying Kai is the DawnKing, sent by the High One to deliver his people? Or has something gone horribly wrong?

Driven to prove himself, Elcon embarks on a peace-keeping campaign into the Elder lands, where he meets a beautiful Elder princess. But Aewen is betrothed to another, and Elcon has promised to court the princess, Arillia, upon his return. Declaring his love for Aewen would shame them both and tear apart the very fabric of Faeraven.

Elcon’s choices lead him into the Vale of Shadows, where he learns that to deliver his people, he must first find his own redemption.

Book Takeaway:

When we forsake our own will and bow to the ruler of our soul, deliverance can follow.

Why the author wrote this book:

The story that became Tales of Faeraven, my epic fantasy trilogy, began as a fairytale I made up for my bored young daughter while on a car trip. Long after my daughter had forgotten the people and places of Elderland, they lived on in my imagination. Any writer might hope for such deep inspiration, but there was a problem: after a series of disappointments (including a book contract that fell through), I had given up on writing.

Years passed, during which I attempted a hodgepodge of careers that were far removed from my calling to write. I delivered mail, studied music and performed in operas, worked in a real estate office, and even spent several years on the top floor of a Seattle skyscraper as an assistant underwriter for an insurance company. Although I was successful in every endeavor, nothing stuck and I always moved on.

Meanwhile, the world of Elderland evolved. The story simply would not let me go. It took a recommitment to my Christian faith to make me see that nothing could substitute for what I had been called to do. I needed to return to writing. More specifically, I had to write DawnSinger, which became book one of Tales of Faeraven. I had no guarantee my manuscript would ever see publication, but that didn’t matter as much as taking this step of faith and releasing the story that had haunted my thoughts for so long. Finding a publisher was a nice bonus.