Title: Heart of the Storm
Author: Marie Howalt
Editor: Nate Ragolia
Change is coming to the far-future Tuscan wasteland, and it will leave no one untouched.
Things are finally stable in the small community of rebels who have reclaimed the ruins of Siena. And more people are leaving the safety of Florence to cross the barren landscape and try their luck in the new settlement.
When a new Covey of wanderers arrive, Teo offers them respite and starts to dream of new horizons. Renn finds himself eager to rejoin the wanderer life and is faced with a difficult decision. In his own home, Luca begins to tire of his comfortable, post-apocalyptic routine of technological tinkering.
Meanwhile in Florence, the political climate is shifting, leaving a family of four in the outer city slums, and the powerful Mayor’s own son questioning their safety.
Heart of the Storm is the final installment of Marie Howalt’s Moonless trilogy. Picking up the threads from the previous two books, it weaves the personal tales of the post-apocalypse into a thrilling conclusion as Renn, Luca, Teo and the other Sienans tackle their biggest challenges yet.
ISBN: 978-1-951393-11-3
Price: $14.50 (paperback) $2.99 (ebook)
Release Date: 9/25/2021
Praise for HEART OF THE STORM:
“I read through the whole book in one sitting. Yes, you read that right. It took me a single 8-hour sit-down to finish the whole book. Every page absorbed me in. Simply a magnificent testament to Howalt’s talent.
“There are no worlds to save or big armies to slay in Marie Howalt’s Moonless Trilogy. Just a small candle of hope at the end of the world held on with decency and heart, by characters of dreams and life, written from Siena, with love.”
— Aden Ng, author of The Chronicles of Tearha, adenng.com
“A thought-provoking adventure through a post-apocalyptic world unlike any other. While the stellar worldbuilding takes center stage in this one, the primary adventure story is smooth and the characters’ personal storylines also keep us curious and cued in. In the wake of 2020, Heart of the Storm hits home and feels oddly timely in discussing life post-apocalypse. We may not have taken it this far last year, but the smart writing of this novel offers astute glimpses into the realities of the after-effects of life-changing events. The prose is witty, thoughtful, and captivating. You’re going to want to see this far-future Tuscan wasteland.”
— Robyn-Lee Samuels, Independent Book Review
“Poignant, evocative, and thoroughly gripping… Howalt offers a brilliant mix of exhilarating hope and grim reality… Highly entertaining with surprising emotional depths, this series conclusion is just as much fun as the earlier two books. SF aficionados won’t want to miss this one.”
— The Prairies Book Review
“While in the post-apocalyptic genre, [Heart of the Storm] is definitely its own story, and does not follow the standard post-apocalyptic formula at all, focusing on individuals, and not societal dramas and high-ranking officials and heroes. Howalt makes the characters come alive, which is perhaps my favorite thing about the writing, though it’s hard to pick. My only complaint is that the series is over.”
— Laura Morrison, author of How to Break an Evil Curse, Grimbargo, and Come Back to the Swamp, and creator / producer of the Space Mantis Show Podcast
“Marie Howalt’s Heart of the Storm captures the sense of instability that comes with hiding and protecting all that is dear and necessary. A world where “civilized” life beneath the domes is as dangerous to outsiders as the vast wastelands of sand storms and ruins they are forced to call home. The struggle of the marginalized is experienced in Howalt’s vivid descriptions, and the work thrills with action as we become intimate with the struggle between oppressor and the oppressed. I came to this series late, so I am relieved that there are more opportunities to experience this world Howalt has conjured!”
— William M. Brandon III, author of The Exile The Matriarch & The Flood
Spaceboy Books 