About the Book

Book: Quest of Fire: Resurgence of Dawn

Author: Brett Armstrong

Genre: Christian, Epic Fantasy

Release Date: December 19, 2023

Hope returns with the dawn…

Haunted by tragedies and failures, Anargen and Jason each struggle to find their way. Night has fallen in the Lowlands and neither teen has an easy road ahead. In Anargen’s Era, Monarch Ilyron’s powers and influence grow, forcing Anargen and his dwindling list of allies to travel the length of the Lowlands in a desperate attempt to keep the Quest and all they hold dear from falling into ruin.

Jason meanwhile must find Aria and her grandfather to help unite the Knights of Light from across the Lowlands against his brother, Dorian. But agents of darkness and painful vestiges of his past mix with vindictive new enemies to make the hope of seeing the dawn of the longed-for King’s Day ever so faint. If either teen gives in and surrenders, doom will come swiftly on their world.

Click here to get your copy!

About the Author

Brett Armstrong has been exploring other worlds as a writer since age nine. Years later, he still writes, but now invites others along on his excursions. He’s shown readers haunting, deep historical fiction (Destitutio Quod Remissio), scary-real dystopian sci-fi (Day Moon and Veiled Sun), and dark, sweeping epic fantasy (Quest of Fire). Every story is a journey of discovery and an attempt to be a brush in the Master Artist’s hand. Through dark, despair, light, joy, and everything in between, the end is always meant to leave his fellow literary explorers with wonder and hope. Always busy with a new story, he also enjoys drawing, gardening, and spending time with his wife and son.

More from Brett

Resurgence of Dawn takes the main characters, Anargen and Jason, and those they care deepest about through some intense trials. Everything seems to be falling apart around them and each character has a mountain of guilt weighing down on top of them. They know that their mistakes in Shadows at Nightfall enabled the forces of darkness to advance their evil campaign. The lives of others they cared about were lost or endangered and the Quest is overlooking the precipice of failure and ruin. They have repented of their errors and turned back onto the path of light but these consequences still haunt them. And in that haunting lies a continuingly heinous fear that they will falter again. Things are only complicated further when trusted allies abandon and betray them.

Epic fantasy stories are often filled with darkness, but the best of these stories show that the light is never so far away as we imagine. When I write the entries in this series, I’m acutely aware that in our world too it seems as if darkness is winning the war. It’s my sincere hope that as readers encounter the perseverance and surrender to the High King’s will that Anargen, Jason, and so many other characters choose to pursue, they will be encouraged to do the same in our world. I have watched friends fall away from the faith, been buffeted by the storms of life, and been battered by the continual assault on my faith that come from living in our fallen world. I know others have endured the same and often far worse. So, if these stories of Knights and valor and steadfastness as the world crumbles can encourage one person to pursue the Light and hold fast to the Way, the Truth, and the Life; then every hour spent in dreaming and drafting and agonizing over edits is worth it to me. Stories can and should entertain, but they should also inspire and encourage readers to face the real world when the story ends. All the more, because “the night is far gone; the day is at hand.” *

* Romans 13:12a, ESV

Blog Stops

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, December 5

Artistic Nobody, December 6 (Author Interview)

Locks, Hooks and Books, December 7

Simple Harvest Reads, December 8 (Author Interview)

The Lofty Pages, December 8

Texas Book-aholic, December 9

Through the Fire Blogs, December 10 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, December 11

Library Lady’s Kid Lit, December 12

For the Love of Literature, December 13 (Author Interview)

Blogging With Carol, December 14

Tell Tale Book Reviews, December 15 (Author Interview)

Splashes of Joy, December 16 (Author Interview)

Holly’s Book Corner, December 16

Jodie Wolfe – Stories Where Hope and Quirky Meet, December 17 (Author Interview)

Guild Master, December 18

Giveaway

To celebrate his tour, Brett is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card, copy of Resurgence of Dawn, and digital extras (exclusive map and music)!!

To celebrate her tour, Terrie is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 gift card and paperback copy of book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/29247/resurgence-of-dawn-celebration-tour-giveaway

Interview with Brett

How did you get started in writing?

I got my start from my mom taking me to the library when I was in elementary school. She was a preschool teacher and needed to pick out books to read to her students, so we would spend an hour or two there every other week or so. While she looked at books for younger kids, I started reading some history books for kids and compiled books of the Arthur legends. When I was nine, I was in the middle of reading about the Aztec Empire and somehow it just came to me to write a story about a man who was enslaved when his tribe was conquered by the Aztecs and he escaped being offered as a slave and hid, posing as an Aztec and gradually rising through societal ranks till he was in the position to get his revenge. Then I wrote two sequel stories to that one. After that it was like a switch was flipped on from off and suddenly whenever I had an idea for a story I started writing them and I did that all the way till high school. Later in college, after having given up on writing for thinking I couldn’t possibly do that seriously, I wrote a story for a creative writing class I took for fun. It was about a Roman Senator who was a Christian in secret and who lost everything when that was discovered. Through the story he wrestles with his desire for revenge and his growing conviction that he should forgive those who wronged him knowing full well they may never stop trying to hurt him. Forgiving as Christ forgave. The reaction my secular class had to the story and the realization soon after that having those writing classes after quitting on it felt like a breath of badly needed air made me realize that this was the path to which the Lord was leading me. Ever since, in ups and downs, the Lord has kept me moving forward. Though I have to admit, as I write this, this might be the first time I realized that my first unique story I’d ever written and what became my first novel are both about men who were wronged and lost everything to those who hated them, but the difference in what came after was Christ. And I would say writing to be a brush in His hand, the Master Artist’s hand, is what drives me as a writer and makes all the difference for me too.

What advice can you give to writers trying to break into the publishing world?

Don’t do the things I did! Haha. Kidding aside, there have been several points where I made what appear to be serious mistakes in my writing “career” and publishing journey. I don’t think I can regret them at this point, so maybe a better piece of advice for my fellow Christian writers would be, to trust the Lord and His timing. Pray about what you’re writing, seek His wisdom. It’s easy to get fixated on the milestones of writing and the elements of publishing as a business. Resist that and keep your eyes fully on Christ, remembering everything you do is for His honor. If one does that then you’ll have peace and find yourself precisely where you need to be at each moment along the way. It’s hard to wait and it’s hard when things seem to go against you to not feel like giving up, but resolve not to quit until the Lord Himself tells you to, because stories shape people. And the world needs stories that will help them see the Savior more clearly and poignantly.

What qualities do you look for in a hero and heroine?

I think a genuine hero or heroine is someone who resembles the True Hero, Jesus Christ in terms of their actions and heart. In stories, I think it’s important though that we see the little “h” heroes/heroines make mistakes and falter. Ultimately stories are supposed to help us face reality and a key part of that is providing inspiration when things aren’t going well. But equally as important for us to see our own weakness in them is to see them never abandon their righteous convictions and to not fall back in fear or accept defeat and surrender. It’s like I tell my son, bravery isn’t never feeling fear, it’s doing what is right consistently even when you are afraid. We need that from heroes and heroines. We need to see them struggle, but, no matter the outcome, never give up. Heroes and heroines in that way can forewarn us about bad roads to take even as they inspire us to never stop pursuing goodness and truth ourselves.

What do you plan to work on next?

My next immediate project is to get the next book in Quest of Fire ready to submit to the publisher. It’s not there yet, but I’m enjoying it so far. And as soon as that is done I need to start on the final entry in the Quest of Fire series. It isn’t due out till Fall 2025, but it’s a big story, fittingly so for an epic fantasy series.

Along the way I have some other things I’m hoping to work on. I have a historical fiction novella I’ve been working to finish off and on for years. And I have a space fantasy duology I’ve been wanting to delve deep into writing for quite some time. I don’t know if those will be done before or as Quest of Fire is completed. That’s in the Lord’s hands. One thing I know is having that last Quest of Fire book in hand would be a totally surreal feeling. I recently finished my dystopian sci-fi Tomorrow’s Edge series and that was such a bittersweet thing for me. I can only imagine how it would feel for Quest of Fire, which by 2025 would be 20 years of dreaming, drafting, and publishing to reach that point.

If you could vacation anywhere, where would you go?

It would be incredible to visit some places abroad. I’ve never gotten to walk along the ridgetops in the Scottish Highlands, though I’ve seen pictures and written stories about it or inspired by them. The same with many of the castles across Europe. Though I would really like to see Rome and, most of all, to follow the route of the Apostle Paul’s missionary journeys, stopping at each place Luke recorded. Many of the places I’ve written about I can only visit the sites that inspired them, but seeing the locations of Paul’s journeys, knowing how much his words have affected me and all the believers since his day, that would be a truly beautiful thing.

Where can readers connect with you?

I post most often on Facebook and my website’s blog, but I tend to share cool sketches and other things on Instagram as well. I’m on Twitter (or X if you prefer) regularly and have a newsletter I send out when important events are happening. I’m pretty open to talking about the Faith, writing, books, movies, etc. so readers can feel free to reach out to me.

Website: https://brettarmstrong.net

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brettarmstrongwv

Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/BArmstrongWV