The Story Behind the Story with Author S.C. Eston of Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada.

 

One of our most popular guests is back!

 

With a new book on the shelves, Steve is anxious to share the SBTS. The novel is garnering a lot of attention. I am quite a ways into the story and enjoying it tremendously. I highly recommend it.

He's been a guest many times and if you missed them, please go HERE.

Read on, my friends.

 

 

Steve C. Eston is a fantasy and science fiction author with a lifelong passion for the fantastical and the scientific. He wrote his first story in elementary school—a tiger-masked ninja battling mystical monsters—and has been writing ever since. When not spending time with his family, Steve enjoys reading, gaming, sports, music, movies, puzzles, and travel. He is the author of six books, including Deficiency, The Lost Tyronian Archives series, and The Baneseeker Chronicles series.

 

Title: Defeat (Book 2 of the Baneseeker Chronicles)

 

Synopsis:

The young warrior-sorceress Lyna sets her course on Brecon, one of the largest and richest cities of Tilia. There, she plans to visit the grand library and learn more about the Territories of Sij, a land where her ancestors once lived, a place she hopes to eventually call home. 

But evil seems to follow Lyna wherever she goes, and one of the sinister bane cores looms near Brecon, sowing discord, twisting hearts, claiming lives. She’s the only one who can feel its presence. She’s the only one who can stop it. 

Yet as she sets out to destroy the accursed object, she unwittingly befriends the family who harbors it—and who possibly created it. Quickly, it becomes clear that the misery wrought goes much deeper than Lyna could have imagined, making her doubt her own senses, her own judgment. 

Time is running out and Lyna must decide: take the knowledge she discovered about her ancestors and run, or stay behind and attempt to eliminate the bane core, at the risk of destroying those she now calls friends.

 

The Story Behind the Story:

I wrote The Baneseeker Chronicles because I wanted to spend more time in Arvelas—a world that has been growing with me since my teenage years, when it first took shape through tabletop role-playing games. Decades later, I’m still playing in that world, but I’m also writing stories in it. Arvelas has become the setting for multiple works, including The Conclave, which I often recommend as a good introduction to the world before diving into The Baneseeker Chronicles. I believe I’ll continue to travel to Arvelas for many years to come. It’s a place I love that continues to evolve and to surprise me.

The series is dark fantasy at its core, blending elements of classic epic and high fantasy with mystery, horror, action and adventure.

Defeat, the second book, takes place three months before Surrender and explores the events that shape Lyna and lead her to where she ends up in the first book. She was a character in some of our past games, and I always felt there was more to her story than what we’d seen at the table. This series gives me the space to dive into her journey—her struggles, her choices, and the way she grows and shapes the world around her. In many ways, it’s a series about discovering Lyna, and rediscovering Arvelas, all over again.

 

 

Website – Please go HERE.

A question before you go, Steve:
Scribbler: Who was your favourite author, or story, growing up?

Steve: Growing up, my favorite authors were Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Some of the very first fantasy books I read were the Dragonlance Chronicles and Dragonlance Legends—they had such an engaging storyline and an exceptional cast of characters that they made me fall in love with the fantasy genre. From there I devoured more of their work, including the Darksword series and The Rose of the Prophet trilogy, but the series that has stayed with me the longest is The Death Gate Cycle.

The Death Gate Cycle is a seven‑book fantasy saga that takes readers through a richly imagined multiverse where ancient races, elemental worlds, and deep conflicts all intertwine. The series opened my mind to the possibilities of fantasy—not just as escapism, but as a way to explore experiences, motivations, and transformations that echo real life. Weis and Hickman’s blend of deep world‑building, memorable characters, and thoughtful themes are a huge part of why I enjoy and write fantasy today, and why I keep returning to the genre time and time again.

An Excerpt from Defeat:

(Copyright is held by the Author. Used by permission)

The white knight jumped off her horse with surprising ease. A puddle from the previous night’s rain splashed as her boots connected with the ground. The elven woman placed the reins on a low branch and staked her silver lance in the dirt. Then she pulled out packed rations from a pouch hanging from the saddle.

“This is as good a spot as any,” she said, turning to her companion.

Lyna acknowledged the invitation with a brisk movement of her head.

Dalahana had selected a glade just off the main road, an open space shielded by the thick mottled canopy of a crooked tree with bark the color of amber. A talsarius tree, unique to these regions, if Lyna remembered correctly. The fall season had already started to dye its leaves in fiery hues.

“I have my own food,” Lyna said as her companion placed a round loaf of bread, fresh cheese, and purple berries on the flat surface of a large boulder.

“Do not be like that,” said the elven knight. She took off her grand helm, freeing her silver hair and revealing the three emerald pearls forming a vertical line on her forehead. “Share my meal, and keep what you have for when you need it.”

The pearls identified Dalahana as one of the elites of Quilanis, and yet she called Telstar, a human city, her home.

“Brecon is but half a day away,” Lyna said. “Why not spend the night there?”

“That’s your destination. I need to return to Telstar. I’ve been absent for too long.”

Although Lyna had expected nothing less, she couldn’t help being disappointed. Her friend, her only elven friend, had dedicated her life to the White Shield and serving the queen. She had abandoned her own motherland for Telstar, a city she continued to believe to be the long-lost City of Light.

“Do you see the silhouette above the tree line?” asked Dalahana.

Lyna nodded.

“It is the first statue of the guardians of old. Brecon lies yonder.”

Lyna had noticed the statue the night before. Its size alone awed anyone looking upon it. It soared above the trees, standing in front of a high cliff, detached from it and yet born of its rock.

“Have you walked the streets of Brecon before?”

“No.” Lyna had traveled these roads but had never veered off to visit Brecon or look upon the guardians. She didn’t quite care for this realm. Once, she had been fond of Telstar, more particularly its temple dedicated to Tyr. But those days were past. “How many statues are there?”

“Forty-three, carved into the cliff’s I more than fifteen hundred years ago.”

“By whom?”

“The carvers of Kurtor, as a peace offering. All but one still stand strong.”

Here was a truce that had endured through the centuries, remaining intact even as some kingdoms fell and others rose. Kurtor and Tilia, dwarves and humans, forever allies, or so it seemed.

“Who were the Silver Guardians?” Lyna asked.

“Defenders of the weak during the Time of the Beasts, the third era. A fascinating age, although little is known about it other than the fact that dragons and hydras ruled the world. Did you know that most of the guardians were of our kin?”

Lyna lifted an eyebrow.

“Surprised?”

From the little she had heard, Lyna had assumed that the guardians had been human. The fact that they were elves, of the Ilth’Ilanor, meant that once some of her ancestors might have walked and inhabited these regions.

“That’s why Altanos chose Brecon, isn’t it?” she asked.

“Possibly,” said Dalahana, “and also because its library rivals the one in Var Galdin, although it is much less frequented. A quieter place to study and learn. Altanos values his privacy and space.” Her friend studied Lyna for a moment. “I hope he can offer some assistance, although I continue to believe you’ll be disappointed in the end.”

Lyna ignored the note of disapproval in Dalahana’s voice. Instead, she grabbed some of the bread and cheese, both of Quilanis. Neither would ever spoil, staying as fresh as the day they had been prepared.

Dahalana continued to look toward the statue, eating slowly, her face inscrutable yet serene, as if she had no worry. Even with a cloudy sky, the round emeralds on her forehead glistened.

“Why not head farther north instead?”

“No,” said Lyna, “not Kolt.”

“How long has it been since you left?”

“Not long enough.”

“I think you should go finish what you started.”

This time, condescension.

“There is nothing there for me.”

“So you keep telling me, but who are you trying to convince?”

 

Buy the book HERE. 

Thanks for being our guest this week, Steve. We wish you continued success with your stories. 

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