Book two in The Age of Bronze series, and the sequel to 2022’s fantastic Against All Gods, Miles Cameron’s Storming Heaven is out now – and I’m delighted to present an excerpt from this brand new novel for your enjoyment. Not only that, but Miles has very kindly contributed some additional commentary on this excerpt, first setting the scene and then discussing the historical inspiration behind some of the featured characters. Storming Heaven is out now from Gollancz, so read on to get a taste of what to expect, then you can go ahead and order your copy once this has whetted your appetite.
First though, the synopsis of Storming Heaven:
Before iron helmets and steel swords, when dragons roamed the world, was an age of bronze and stone, when the Gods walked the earth, and people lived in terror.
A scribe, a warlord, a dancer, a mute insect and a child should have no chance against the might of the bickering gods and their cruel games. But the gods themselves are old, addicted to their own games of power, and now their fates may lie in the hands of mere mortals . . .
By divine plan a plague of cannibals has been unleashed across the world, forming an armada which preys on all who cross their path. Meanwhile the people who allied against the gods have been divided, each taking their own path to attack the heavens – if they can survive the tide of war which has been sent against them.
All they need is the right distraction, and the right opportunity, to deal a blow against the gods themselves…
Miles Cameron: A little set up. In my Age of Bronze series, a group of mortals (including several humans, an intelligent insect, a donkey and a bear; it’s complicated) choose, or are coerced into a rebellion against the gods. Era, a former poet and dancer, has become the de facto leader of the rebellion, and in this scene, she and her companions have just fought off several bands of cannibalistic pirates called Jekers. They are currently shipwrecked on the coast of the Hrakans, a people who are both highly disciplined and pacifistic. Era’s people are exhausted and demoralized; there has been too much fighting. And then strangers approach from the landward side…
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‘Era had seen a dozen god-kings and one god-queen, and this woman had more dignity than any of them. She walked across the dry sand with more elegance than Era would have thought possible. Everyone stumbled on dry sand, except this dignified woman in a spotless white sari.
Pavi knelt. Miti fell to her knees; Era had heard the expression used, but in Miti’s case, it was accurate – she went down as if her sinews had been cut. Mokshi knelt with more deliberation but the same respect.
The woman walked straight to Pavi. She spared a single glance for the orange robes of Jawala and Aanat further up the beach, and then she reached out, cupped Pavi’s face with her hand, and said, ‘Nawah.’
Pavi flushed.
The old woman cocked her head slightly to one side.
‘I am a Given,’ the woman said. ‘I am here to thank you.’
Era was surprised, and her face showed it.
The old woman managed a smile. ‘Did you think we don’t know you are protecting us from Jekers?’ She laughed without bitterness.
Era was at a loss to know what to say.
‘Was it so terrible?’ the Given asked. The kindness in her voice was terrible. And suddenly, Era, who thought herself as hard as adamant, had tears in her eyes.
‘Yes,’ she said, and in that admission was everything she’d suffered in the past year.
The Given raised her head. ‘Yes,’ she said. ‘The acts of blood are terrible.’ She nodded. ‘It is better to admit that and face the consequence, then to pretend otherwise.’ She looked at Pavi. ‘Did you fight?’
‘No, Given.’
The woman nodded slightly. ‘And you?’ she said to Jawat.
They were of an age – she all dignity, he strong in a different way.
‘Aye,’ he said. ‘I fought.’
She reached out and took Pavi’s hand, and then Jawat’s. Neither resisted.
‘There are different strengths,’ she said. ‘Today, I give thanks for all our people – that some were preserved from blood, and others gave and took blood for us.’ She looked at Pavi. ‘Are you glad to be alive?’
Pavi bowed her head. ‘I am,’ she admitted slowly, as if embarrassed.
She looked at Jawat. ‘Are you sad to have killed?’
Jawat looked at her. It was clear that for a moment, he considered a flippant reply, but something changed in his face; the hooded eyes blinked, as if he’d been told something wonderful, or terrible.
He spat in the sand, but then his eyes went back to the Given’s face.
‘Lady, I am,’ he admitted, and his voice broke.
The Given held their hands, connecting them.
‘Let each take the other,’ she said. ‘Pavi, take this sadness, that people killed and died that you might live. And you . . .’ She looked at him carefully. ‘Jawat,’ she said, suddenly, as if remembering his name. ‘Take this gladness, to be alive.’
Jawat stumbled as if someone had fallen against him.
‘Is this magic?’ he asked, anger and wonder in his voice.
‘No,’ the Given said. ‘Merely sharing, as we practise it.’
‘But killing is wrong . . .’ Pavi said.
The Given shrugged. ‘Is being alive wrong?’ she asked. ‘I choose not to kill. So be it. But it is not my place to blame others for their choices. It is my place to heal.’ She reached out to Era. ‘Did you kill?’
Era closed her eyes and it was all right there.’
***
Miles Cameron: From the beginning of my idea to write a Bronze Age epic fantasy that was not based on the Iliad, I knew I was going to have pacifists. Or, put another way, I wanted someone to have a voice against violence, and violence for its own sake. Amongst other things, what we know of our own Bronze Age suggests that large parts of it were relatively non-violent, and that for a while, Sumeria, Babylon, Egypt and other cultures tolerated each other and lived fairly peaceably.
And then I found the Indus Valley Culture, whose sites are now located in Pakistan and India. There are a number of very well-documented sites, all Bronze Age, all very ‘advanced’ in terms of design, art, and the presence of baths. But what they didn’t have was weapons. Some scholars believe they may have been the ancestors of modern Jainism. Regardless, they gave me an idea on which to base a culture that was against violence, that had ways of forgiving, or placating, of ameliorating violence that might happen around them or to them.
This scene is one of my favorites in the novel; it goes on a bit, and it represents a leader of the Hrakans (as I call my fantasy IVC analog culture) coming to deal with the ‘adventurers’ who have just fought a battle in defence of their own wrecked ships; a battle that coincidentally probably saved the lies of many Hrakans. I enjoyed the long and somewhat philosophical conversations I had with my friend Rajiv and my friend Matt, looking for ways to express pacifism in a violent world; and have the culture survive and flourish; eventually I decided to make them merchants who controlled the flow of tin and thus bronze.
I coined the term ‘Given’ because those who take the title are not masters, but genuinely servants of their people, healing, and providing small acts of kindness and magic.
I could have chosen one of my signature fight scenes; believe me, there are a few; one of my favourite ever, in fact. But by the end of these books, it will be the character of a Given named Jawala who will make the difference between failure and survival, and I thought I’d give you a look at a Given.
Heroic Pacifism, from the maker of Writing Fighting. 😊
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Thanks so much to Miles and Gollancz for providing this excerpt, and for the brilliant commentary – I hope you enjoyed reading that as much as I did! Against All Gods was fantastic – here’s my review – and I can’t wait to read Storming Heaven.
Visit Miles’ website for more information about his writing (under his various pen names)
In particular, make sure you check out Writing Fighting, an incredible video series focusing on “accurate historical weapons and combat”
Storming Heaven is out now from Gollancz (UK) and Mobius Books (US) – check out the links below to order* your copy:
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