Local author Samuel Sykes has recently released his first epic fantasy novel, Necrosis: Chronicles of the Lightbearer.
Sykes, father of three sons, is originally from Shongaloo, but has since moved to Sarepta, his wife’s hometown.
The inspiration for his book came from the title of a novel (The Necromancer). Without ever reading the story, he wondered where the author was planning to go with such a title, and he found himself thinking about the story he would tell. His wife urged him to write his story.
“I would call it a Christian work even though there’s some made-up dark magic stuff going on,” Sykes said. “The basis of it is a redemption story, and that is the message I was trying to convey: Why is the bad guy the bad guy, and can he be saved?”
The book, which has a setting similar to the Anglo Saxon period, contains references to many types of folklore such as Irish faeries and Celtic giants as well as ideas taken from Hebrew culture and Christianity. In future novels he plans to expand into Middle Eastern folklore, incorporating genies and djinns.
While Sykes has published a story called Feral on Kindle Vella, this is his first full-length novel, which is a whopping 444 pages long.
“The story kept being laid out in front of me, and I just kept going. The first draft just fell out of my head,” said Sykes. He gives credit to his beta readers for keeping him writing. “One guy read the chapters as I dropped them. He kept saying, ‘send me more, send me more,’ and he really kept me inspired.”
“Old stories package moral themes and ideas into hero stories so that they both entertain and teach, and I hope that I pull that off. I hope that what I write can glorify God and carry forth the wisdom I have gained through my life from Him.”
The sequel is already in the works and Sykes hopes to have it ready by next year.
Necrosis: Chronicles of the Lightbearer is being sold exclusively on Amazon. It is available in paperback or Kindle versions.
