Historical fiction, stranger than fantasy. The Four Lights series, languages from the dawn of civilisation, the world of 8500 years ago. Free chapters here or download the ebook free from BookFunnel.
Hope you enjoy it Thomas. I do agree that the Anatolian / European Neolithic in particular is neglected. Large villages, towns really, matrifocal societies, emergent symbolism and beautiful items of daily use.
Above all: PEACE. Very little evidence of human-on-human violence, at least in Eastern Europe before the Kurgan time.
I can’t say I’ve seen many novels about the flooding of the Black Sea. An interesting concept. I’ve slowly been studying more ancient history so this sounds like it could be cool.
This looks like my sort of thing. I read part of the first chapter on Amazon preview. I will read no further until the paperback version arrives. Could be a while, I wait until I have a few stacked up, but it will get here in its own good time.
Stephen Thomas has written an enchanting story that draws the reader into a vividly imagined world and into the very heart of what it means to be alive. It is a world rich with adventure and quiet wonder, where beauty and danger sit side by side, and where the deepest human questions are woven naturally into the fabric of the narrative.
There is a depth here that will especially appeal to readers of The Lord of the Rings. Like Tolkien, Thomas creates not just a setting but a living culture—layered with language, tradition, and an atmosphere of mystery that lingers beyond the page. Yet this is no imitation; it is a distinctive and original voice, one that invites the reader to slow down, listen, and enter fully into its world.
At its core, this is a story of compassion, courage, and the fragile beauty of human life. It is both epic in scope and intimate in feeling—a rare and compelling combination.
The premise sounds interesting! You got my full attention when you started teaching me new words lol. Very impressed by the evident knowledge and research done here.
OK your voucher should be in your email. Please let me know if you have any problems getting the book! I just love seeding out these free copies! Don't forget to tell your friends if you like it! And if you don't, tell me!!
Beautiful cover! Gobsmacked by the research that must have gone into this. Kudos, Stephen!
In 5th grade, my teacher read us a book called The Magic Amulet about a prehistorical boy named Tragg who gets left behind by his tribe who are hunting mastodon. It's out of print now, but I still think about this story...many decades later! https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Amulet-William-Steele/dp/0152504273
Thank you for your encouraging feedback, particularly on the cover. It felt like a difficult part of the process! Also very interesting to hear about the Magic Amulet.
I am so lucky to have stumbled on this period, really unexplored between the beginning of farming and what people think of as "the first civilisations" in the Middle East. Such a lot was happening, and it was such a different way of running society—no patriarchy!!
Isn't it interesting how powerful positive engagement can be? I did something with that positive feeling. Peeped at your Posts and the very top one was right at the centre of my current writing interest as I wrestle with my POV from behind the eyes of a bad person.
I could write a book about just that word. Maybe one day I will!
A few thoughts on your comment just to whet your appetite to learn more...
- The Latin language flourished as a living language between around -1000 BC and 500 AD, with a long extension in the religious and academic sphere to around 1500 AD.
- The word deus was a category. It meant something like "god, member of the pantheon" near the beginning of that period. A supernatural being, part of the providential structure of the universe, invokable, appeasable, maybe even bribable. Near the end it meant what it means now in Christianity: God. An immense term, definitely another book.
- Its ancestor dyewus phter (sky father) pops up millennia before this, around 3000-4000 BC, in the Proto-Indo-European language. This was the name of the "sky father" or the "bright sky". The context was the warlike Kurgan society that was sweeping across Europe from East to West, replacing all the male genes with their own (another book). Father meant strong, warlike Lord at this time I suspect.
- Now we enter the realms of speculation. Fact: society 2000 years before the Kurgan invasion was gentle, sustainable, ecologically adaptive, mostly governed by women. More artistic than warlike. My supposition: an even older, simpler ancestor, Déya, still mapped to the daylight and the sky, but without a male violence vibe, without imagining it as a human being, but possibly already attracting the word "father" into its name, as a nourishing, irradiating counterpart to Earth Mother, deghóm.
Hope you enjoy it Thomas. I do agree that the Anatolian / European Neolithic in particular is neglected. Large villages, towns really, matrifocal societies, emergent symbolism and beautiful items of daily use.
Above all: PEACE. Very little evidence of human-on-human violence, at least in Eastern Europe before the Kurgan time.
Yes! Exactly, should cover it (let me know if not)!
Fiction set in prehistory is an under appreciated niche. I can't wait to read your book.
I can’t say I’ve seen many novels about the flooding of the Black Sea. An interesting concept. I’ve slowly been studying more ancient history so this sounds like it could be cool.
Oh my god this sounds incredible
This looks like my sort of thing. I read part of the first chapter on Amazon preview. I will read no further until the paperback version arrives. Could be a while, I wait until I have a few stacked up, but it will get here in its own good time.
Great to hear it, hope you enjoy settling down with a book beside the Sweet Sea... I recommend the mead.
An enchanting adventure full of life and love!
Stephen Thomas has written an enchanting story that draws the reader into a vividly imagined world and into the very heart of what it means to be alive. It is a world rich with adventure and quiet wonder, where beauty and danger sit side by side, and where the deepest human questions are woven naturally into the fabric of the narrative.
There is a depth here that will especially appeal to readers of The Lord of the Rings. Like Tolkien, Thomas creates not just a setting but a living culture—layered with language, tradition, and an atmosphere of mystery that lingers beyond the page. Yet this is no imitation; it is a distinctive and original voice, one that invites the reader to slow down, listen, and enter fully into its world.
At its core, this is a story of compassion, courage, and the fragile beauty of human life. It is both epic in scope and intimate in feeling—a rare and compelling combination.
This is so intriguing.
Let me know if you want a free copy...
The premise sounds interesting! You got my full attention when you started teaching me new words lol. Very impressed by the evident knowledge and research done here.
Hey Brittany! Would you like a free copy of the ebook?
Hey Stephen! That would be great, thank you for offering :)
OK your voucher should be in your email. Please let me know if you have any problems getting the book! I just love seeding out these free copies! Don't forget to tell your friends if you like it! And if you don't, tell me!!
Got it! It looks like a general gift card that I can use towards the kindle edition?
I think you are in Canada, so I am sending you a voucher from Amazon Canada which you can use to buy it via Amazon.ca!
Beautiful cover! Gobsmacked by the research that must have gone into this. Kudos, Stephen!
In 5th grade, my teacher read us a book called The Magic Amulet about a prehistorical boy named Tragg who gets left behind by his tribe who are hunting mastodon. It's out of print now, but I still think about this story...many decades later! https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Amulet-William-Steele/dp/0152504273
Thank you for your encouraging feedback, particularly on the cover. It felt like a difficult part of the process! Also very interesting to hear about the Magic Amulet.
I am so lucky to have stumbled on this period, really unexplored between the beginning of farming and what people think of as "the first civilisations" in the Middle East. Such a lot was happening, and it was such a different way of running society—no patriarchy!!
Wow ! Stephen ! I'm so proud of you 🌸🌼 this is such a good work. It shows your dedication and such an interesting topic. ❣️
I'm so touched by this comment! You are so consistently positive and uplifting in your contributions Dua.
That's good , Stephen. 🪶 Writers should support one another. 🫶🏻
Isn't it interesting how powerful positive engagement can be? I did something with that positive feeling. Peeped at your Posts and the very top one was right at the centre of my current writing interest as I wrestle with my POV from behind the eyes of a bad person.
*This is the way*
Thank you Stephen. Yes, I saw you interacting with my posts. It feels awesome 🫶🏻 positive engagement is the best thing especially in the world of art.
So Latin „deius“‘s origin literally just means „sky“, not „god“? How interesting.
I could write a book about just that word. Maybe one day I will!
A few thoughts on your comment just to whet your appetite to learn more...
- The Latin language flourished as a living language between around -1000 BC and 500 AD, with a long extension in the religious and academic sphere to around 1500 AD.
- The word deus was a category. It meant something like "god, member of the pantheon" near the beginning of that period. A supernatural being, part of the providential structure of the universe, invokable, appeasable, maybe even bribable. Near the end it meant what it means now in Christianity: God. An immense term, definitely another book.
- Its ancestor dyewus phter (sky father) pops up millennia before this, around 3000-4000 BC, in the Proto-Indo-European language. This was the name of the "sky father" or the "bright sky". The context was the warlike Kurgan society that was sweeping across Europe from East to West, replacing all the male genes with their own (another book). Father meant strong, warlike Lord at this time I suspect.
- Now we enter the realms of speculation. Fact: society 2000 years before the Kurgan invasion was gentle, sustainable, ecologically adaptive, mostly governed by women. More artistic than warlike. My supposition: an even older, simpler ancestor, Déya, still mapped to the daylight and the sky, but without a male violence vibe, without imagining it as a human being, but possibly already attracting the word "father" into its name, as a nourishing, irradiating counterpart to Earth Mother, deghóm.
Thank you 🫶🪴 (Double time, since I see you‘ve just saved me from the bleh-colored numbers 😅)