by Mark Bowsher
But he wasn’t sure if the next place he would be visiting was going to be that full of ‘wonders’. The devil’s words, her description of the new world, echoed in his ears…
All stars made of gas, yes, but these stars … these stars POWERED by gas! Huge globes of glass, glowing yellow, covered in pipes! Billowin’ gas! Floatin’ around a world of steel! No skies! No clouds! All world in one huge, huge, HUGE metal box! All walls, no skies! Stars float around not far above the ground, watchin’ over all, makin’ everythin’ stink from the fumes! No, boy … these stars different … And this time, the one you seek, the one what knows how you is gettin’ the Myrthali, knows yer comin’ …
He’d been afraid of leaving again but now he felt different. Krish had never been the confident type but now he knew what he was capable of. He smiled at the idea that nobody would know, as he sat there quietly in class, other kids making fun of him for being rubbish at maths or something, that he had dived into a pitch-black ocean, torn down a palace, had a king bow before him and fought fear itself.
His Mum’s face kept coming back to him. The way she’d looked at him in the hospital. A warm but small, almost weak smile. She seemed afraid to blink, as if he might not be there any more by the time she opened her eyes again.
Mulling over his Mum’s face made Krish feel happy and sad all at once. He tried to think of other things and his mind began to unwind and then, at last, he fell into the deepest sleep he’d had in a long time. The last thought to flicker through his brain as consciousness ebbed away from him was that he was ready. Ready to face the world of KnockThrice.
Acknowledgements
My Mum Jacqui Knighton for proofreading the very first and the very last draft as well as for support and encouragement throughout. Jake Martin for pulling out all the stops to shoot a great video for the Unbound promo. My brother Jack Bowsher for all his encouragement (he was the one to pledge a second time and get the book over the 100% line) and his wife / my sister-in-law Alex Bowsher, also for encouragement and telling me what the underside of an NHS hospital bed looked like.
Sam Melling, Sue Pagram and Alison Barron for proofreading the first full draft when the book was still called The Time Thieves. I have to single out Alan Mandel Butler and Samantha Neill-Paton for their in-depth feedback, which really helped me reshape some parts of the story. Hugh David, Sophia Chrisafis and Tim Berry also did a fair bit of proofreading for me early on which I really appreciate.
Helen McVittie who kept me going throughout the writing process. Much of her fire, her no-nonsense attitude and her determination went into Balthrir, the scene with the feather in chapter 24 in particular.
Lyall McCarthy for his amazing artwork and Mark Ecob for his adaptation of Lyall’s work for the final cover.
My structural editor Craig (C M Taylor) whose feedback made me go a little mad and come up with four more chapters (it wasn’t quite what he’d expected but we were both pretty pleased with the results!). Copy editor Helen Pisano, who was a real joy to work with, despite how brief it ended up being! Typesetter Andrew Chapman and proofreader Helen Angove.
Thanks for support throughout from Unbounders Georgia Odd, Phil Connor and Xander Cansell. But out of everyone at the Unbound camp I really must thank both Mathew Clayton and Kwaku Osei-Afrifa the most, for the simple reason that this book would not have been published without them. I pitched by tweet, Mathew responded and made sure that the book was considered. Kwaku was the man who sent me this email which made a dream come true:
Mark,
Been reading Time this afternoon. I’m a fan. Let’s move with it?
K
I’d love to name all the Unbound authors who gave me so much advice, social media support and generally cheered me on… so I will. In no particular order: Karen Attwood, Stevyn Colgan, Michael Smith, Jessica Martin, Julie Warren, Maximilian Hawker, Virginia Moffatt, Alice Jolly, Lucy Sullivan, Sarah Marr, Owen Michael Johnson, Elaine Chambers, John Michael, Roman Krznaric, Abda Khan, Sabeena Akhtar, Nasrin Parvaz, Lucy Crehan, Adam Roberts, Gautam Malkani, Amy Kean, Ronnie Le Drew, Sheila Parry, Nii Ayikwei Parkes, Philip Womack, Wayne Garvie, Jillian Edelstein, Keith Tutt, Charles Fernyhough, Jane Hayward, Patrick Kincaid, Raz Shaw, Martin Cohen, Aidan McQuade, Beth McColl, Lev Parikian, Kerensa Jennings, Mary Horlock, Dave Dawson, Tom Cox, Damon Wakes, Tamsen Courtenay, Eli Allison, Ste Sharp, Wallis Eates, Andy Bush, Imola Unger, Patrick Wildgust, Judy Pascoe, Lucien Young, Ben Cameron, Happy BirthTime!, Hannah Wroblewski, Lily Dunn and Sarah Lee.
And finally, all the friends, family, colleagues, clients, random people I met on trains, in bookshops or on the intersplat who supported and encouraged me in so ways. You kept me going. Thank you!
If I’ve forgotten anyone it’s because I’m an absent-minded, unappreciative berk.
Pronunciation
Ahava
Ahava-(like ‘have’ with the word ‘a’ at the beginning and end)
A-have-a
Althrain
Al-(like ‘all’)-thrain-(like ‘pain’)
All-thrain
Alvaris
Al-(like ‘pal’)-varis-(like ‘paris’)
Al-varis
Argyrhyr
Ar-(like ‘far’)-gyr-(like ‘gear’)-hyr-(like ‘here’)
Ar-gear-here
Baa-la
Baa-(like ‘bar’)-la
Bar-la
Bahrtakrit
Bahr-(like ‘bar’ but you can make the ‘h’ sound like you’re about to spit it out)-tak-(like ‘tack’)-rit-(like ‘bit’)
Bahhhr-tack-rit
Balthrir
Bal-(like ‘pal’)-thrir-(like the start of ‘through’ with ‘ear’ added at the end)
Bal-threar
Benhu’in
Ben-(like the name)-hu-(like ‘who’)-in
Ben-who-in
Betsarhldeth
Bet-sarhl-(like ‘snarl’)-deth–(like ‘Beth’)
Bet-sarl-deth
Calcara
Cal-(like ‘pal’)-cara-(like ‘para’)
Cal-cara
Elwynt
El-(like ‘smell’)-wynt-(like the end of ‘squint’)
El-wint
Eshter
Eshter-(like the name ‘Ester’ with a ‘sh’ in the middle)
Esh-ter
Evia
Ev-(like the start of ‘ever’)-i-(like ‘bee’)-a
Ev-ee-a
Falkesh
Fal-(like ‘pal’)-kesh-(like ‘mesh’)
Fal-kesh
Faltura
Fal-(like ‘pal’)-tur-(like ‘pure’)-a
Fal-ture-a
Gilimed
Gil-(like a fish’s ‘gills’)-i-(like ‘bee’)-med
Gil-ee-med
Goonmallinn
Goon-(like ‘spoon’)-mall-(like ‘snarl’)-inn
Goon-marl-in
Gulwin
Gul-(like the end of ‘seagull’)-win
Gull-win
Hri
Hri-(like ‘free’)
Hree
Ilir
Il-(like ‘spill’)-ir-(like ‘ear’)
Ill-ear
Jarhi
Jar-(like ‘far’)-hi-(like ‘bee’)
Jar-hee
Jashir
Jash-(like ‘bash’)-ir-(like ‘ear’)
Jash-ear
Kalrah
Kal-(like ‘pal’)-rah-(like a lion’s ‘raa!’)
Kal-raa
Kalrika Mavalrh
Kal-(like ‘pal’)-rik-(like ‘reek’)-a Mav-(like ‘have’)-al-(like ‘full’)-rh-(like a lion’s ‘raa!’)
Kal-reek-a Mav-ull-raa
Lal’Fryaill
Lal’-Fryaill-(like ‘frail’)
Lal-frail
Maiylyr
Maiyl-(like ‘male’)-yr-(like ‘ear’)
Male-ear
Malshrael
Mal-(like ‘pal’)-shrael-(like ‘pale’)
Mal-shrale
Marraghir
&nb
sp; Marra-(like ‘para’)-ghir-(like ‘gear’)
Marra-gear
Mersha
Mer-(like ‘fear’)-sha
Mear-sha
Meslahir
Mes-(like ‘mess’)-la-hir-(like ‘here’)
Mess-la-here
Mikan
Mik-(like ‘Mike’)-an
Mike-an
Myrthali
Myr-(like ‘fear’)-thal-(like ‘snarl’)-i-(like ‘bee’)
Mear-tharl-ee
Nahbrin
Nah-(like ‘bar’)-brin
Nar-brin
Nboosa
N-(like the French number ‘un’ said from the back of the mouth, almost through closed lips)-boo-(like ‘boo’)-sa
Un-boo-sa
Obsendei
Ob-send-ei-(like ‘eye’)
Ob-send-eye
Oorarka
Oo-(like ‘boo’)-rark-(like ‘dark’)-a
Oo-rark-a
Palseferous
Pal-(like ‘pull’)-sef-(like ‘deaf’)-er-ous
Pull-seaf-er-ous
R’ghir
R’gh-(like ‘rug’ – roll the ‘R’)-ir-(like ‘ear’)
Rug-ear
Salvean
Sal-(like the start of ‘Sally’)-ve-(like ‘bee’)-an
Sal-vee-an
Sia
Si-(like ‘sea’)-a
Sea-a
Tyraah
Tyr-(like a ‘tear’ that you cry)-aah-(like relaxing in a nice warm bath)
Tear-aah
Ugethrid
U-(like ‘you’)-geth-(like ‘Beth’)-rid
You-geth-rid
Ullwihr
Ull-(like ‘dull’)-wihr-(like ‘wire’)
Ull-wire
Viona
Viona-(like the musical instrument ‘viola’ with an ‘N’ instead of an ‘L’)
Viona
Vira
Vi-(like the start of ‘virus’)-ra
Vi-ra
Vra’hool
Vra-(like ‘spa’)-hool-(like ‘fool’)
Vra-hool
Vulrein
Vul-(like ‘dull’)-rein-(like ‘rain’)
Vul-rain
Patrons
Jane & Roger Adams
Sarah Agha
Sabeena Akhtar
Wendy Aldiss
Lucy Anderson Jones
Tamsin Andrews
Karen Attwood
Florence Ayisi
James Aylett
Alexander Baines
Paul Bains
Janet Baldwin
Anthony Barnett
Alison Barron
James Benmore
Chloë Berry
Tim Berry
Sarah Bikhit
Mart Bira
Happy Birthtime!
Tim Blanchard
Darren Bloxham
Mark Bolsover
Julia Booth
Jeannie Borsch
Michael Botten
Sabrina Bowsher
Henry Bowsher
Jenson Bowsher
Hannah Brackstone-Brown
Sarah-Beth Bradley
Stuart Brian Mather
Lauren Brown
Alex Buckingham
Sophie Bulcraig
Ali Burns
Helen Busby
Marta Cabot Codina
John Carr
Benita Carter
Elaine Chambers
Jane Chappell
Georgia Clark
Jenny Clarke
Martin Cohen
James Cook
Heather Coombs
Ben Coombs
Gareth Corcoran
John Crawford
Lucy Crehan
Oriana Curls
Ella Daley
Edward Davey
Carl Davidson
Mitch Davison
Dave Dawson
Shakella Dedi
Victoria Denard
Emma Dickman
Philip Doyle
James Duffy
Wallis Eates
Jillian Edelstein
Georgina Edwards
Carolyn Edwins
Angela Ekaette Michaels
Amy Elizabeth
Sara Escriva
Gayle Evans
Gillie Fairbrother
Charles Fernyhough
Alice Field
James Flint
Bryony Forde
Adam Fransella
Stein Fussel
Megan Gragg
Elliot Grove
Mandi Harkett
Phil Harvey
Jane Harvey
Maximilian Hawker
Jane Hayward
Daniel Hitch
Callum Holmes
Sian Hoolahan
Mary Horlock
Marigold Hughes
Jacinta Hunter
Theo Ip
Jodie Jackson
Andrew James
Lisa Jenkins
Annie Jones
Amy Kean
Jamie Kennerley
Rory Kenny
Grace Ker
Abda Khan
Patrick Kincaid
Mark Kinsella
William Klarenbeek
Maik Kleinschmidt
Elysse Knighton-Holland
Roman Krznaric
Mit Lahiri
Emma Lane
Ronnie Le Drew
Marc Lebailly
Sarah Lebrecht
Sarah Lee
Darren Lee Sherry
Kit Leonard
Kim Lewis
Suyi Liangga
Filip Lipiecki
Elena Lopez-Brea Sanchez
Anya Lukover
Dan Mackey
Olivia Maiden
Alan Mandel Butler
Sarah K. Marr
Sheelagh Marshall
Eleanor May Clarke
Priscilla McBean
Lisa McGeoch
Kristina Micakova
Kaz Mills
Christopher Mills
Virginia Moffatt
Kyle Monk
Helen Mullane
Marc Munro Scott
Sandy Nairne
Manuel Nashi
Carlo Navato
Victoria Nixon
Xander Nolan
Joe Nutt
Rosie Owen
Amy Page
Gemma Paget
Sue Pagram
Nii Ayikwei Parkes
Isobel Payne
Jonathan Petherbridge
Johanna Pettersson
Théo Pierre Buchaillard-Davies
Hannah Plant
Iris Pokorny
Mary-Anne Pontikis
Louise Reid
Judy Reith
Laura, Rich & Rosie Rhee
Glenn Rice
Claire Richardson
Ian Ridley
Liam Riley
Adam Roberts
Kate Roberts
Jennifer Robins
Brandon Robshaw
Carina Roots
Rachel Rourke
Marta Rubio
Jo Sally
Jenny Schwarz
Yvonne Servante
Seema Shah
Mike Shanahan
Raz Shaw
Chris Sheryn
Burak Simsek
Rosemary Smith
Shaun Smith
Matt Smith
Shayna Soong
Anne Southgate
Sophie Sparham
Kirsty Stanley
Jean Stanton
Peter Stark
Sarah Steel
Andrew Stern
Nigel Strickland
Lucy Sullivan
Leila Talmadge
Lauren Tansey
Sarah Tattersall
Melanie Tebb
Andrew Tees
Laura Thompson
Helen Thompson
Annie Tremlett
Jackie Tu
rley
Luca Uggias
Imola Unger
Cara Usher
Emma Walker
Thomas Walton
Katherine Ward
Hayley Whitehouse
Wolfgang Wild
Patrick Wildgust
James Wilkins
Jan Willem Dees
Derek Wilson
Philip Womack
Justin Woolhouse
Hannah Wroblewski
Catherine Wycherley
Lucien Young
Mathew Young
Victoria Zeißler
