by Amanda Sun
In the morning, Griffin and I will lead the willing to the lava lands, and I will see the fields and lava flows that shaped his early life. I will hunt the behemoths with Aliyah and Griffin, and Elisha will herd the pygmy goats and the chickens to the once-deserted barns.
The world has not ended with Ashra’s descent. It has begun, and we will not let the monsters stand in our way. We will rend a new world from the old, one where we look to each other and not to the Phoenix for strength.
And when the world begins to thrive, when the villages are restored and a new generation of hunters have beaten the monsters back, then Griffin and I will return to the ocean, letting our footsteps sink into the sand and the foam of the surf. We will let the grains stick to our soles, and we will float on our backs without monsters lurking in the water, without shadows floating in the sky to blot out the warmth of sunlight enrobing our skin.
This is our world now, no longer a sheltered life aloft. We live on the ground, surrounded by beauty and danger, by risk and by possibility. This is humanity’s new dawn, a fire lit from a single smoldering ember of the past.
May we rise anew.
* * * * *
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
SINCE I WAS LITTLE, floating continents have been hovering in the corners of my thoughts. They drift about there with cities and waterfalls, mountains and plains. What would it be like to live on a floating world? What would it be like to survive on the earth below, looking up?
Thank you to my editor, T. S. Ferguson, for helping me answer these questions in the most elegant way possible. Without your help and your amazing edits, I could never have woven the stories of Kali and Griffin together in the way they needed to be. Thank you to the Harlequin TEEN team for all the work you put into this book, from the cover to the interiors, copyedits and promotion. It’s all most appreciated.
Melissa Jeglinski, it’s such a privilege to have you as my agent. You’re always there for me, and you lift me up when I feel like something is beyond what I can write or accomplish. Thank you!
To my sister, Jen Conquergood, for her love, friendship and massive support with my books and my life. You keep me going and you’re always there for me. I’m the luckiest in the world to have you as my sister. Love you so much.
To my dear friends, for their support and inspiration—the MSFVers, the Lucky 13s, Tanya Gough and Lance Schonberg for your camaraderie with this writing thing we do.
Julie Czerneda, thank you. You’re an inspiration to me, a friend and a mentor. Your encouragement pushes me to improve with each book, and it’s thanks to your belief in me that I continue to grow.
And to my own family, Mum and Dad, who stand by me during the entire emotional arc of creating a book, and Kevin, Emily and Alice. Without your constant support, I couldn’t raise floating continents into the air at all. From the long plot conversations, park visits and gaming matches while I write, to your support and encouragement for what I do. Emily and Alice, you’re the reasons I paint worlds and adventures on the page for you to explore.
To readers, who climb floating islands and tumble off edges with me. Thank you. You keep me aloft.
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ISBN: 9781489211637
TITLE: HEIR TO THE SKY
First Australian Publication 2016
Copyright © 2016 Amanda Sun
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Harlequin Enterprises (Australia) Pty Ltd
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
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