Child of Etherclaw
Matty Roberts
Publication date: August 2nd 2022
Genres: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Young Adult
The bonds of family go well beyond blood.
But can those bonds hold when the blood itself carries a devastating secret?Fenlee’s opal necklace had always radiated a certain warmth since her mother’s death. But now, at sixteen, her world begins to unravel as the stone sparks to life, revealing itself to be an otherworldly artifact of untold power.
Between her mechatronics studies at the academy and scavenging expeditions beneath the sprawling city of New Cascadia, Fenlee and her adopted brother, Elliot, try to decipher the mysteries of her necklace and its link to events in Fenlee’s past.
But they’re not alone in their search.
Strange undercity dwellers offer cryptic warnings, drones track their movements, and deadly corporate agents lurk in the shadows. When tragedy rips Fenlee’s family apart, she must learn to use the artifact’s power to save those who are deeply precious to her. But nothing can prepare her for the dark truths that she will uncover on that journey…
“Lee,” Elliot mumbled. “I’m not who you think I am.”
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EXCERPT:
Thoughts of etherclaw and worries about her father had kept Fenlee up, so she’d spent almost the entire night installing and integrating the Elixir chip to keep her mind elsewhere. She got it working, but sleep still wouldn’t come, so she composed a message to her father. It’d be expensive to send, but she had to say something.
Hi, Dad. Hope you’re well. Me? I’m great. Except that I’ve been shitting myself because, you know, after Mom died, we all promised we’d never leave each other. And that’s kind of what you’re best at these days. But, hey, it’s all fine because I found a chip that’s most likely stolen and worth probably half this apartment block, but in order to get it to work, I had to go into the Lunarinto Market for an adapter. But the adapter wasn’t exactly free, so I’m going to start working a part-time job while you’re gone to pay it off. In the Lunarinto Market. You know, the place you hate for me to even go near. One of my legs is just short enough to be constantly uncomfortable because I decided to wreck the one you gave me, my underwear is somehow still riding up my ass from the bike ride home yesterday, and I’m hyperaware of how bad my pits stink. Doesn’t matter because I got no sleep and I don’t have time to do much about it before academy. Also, Mom’s opal, which isn’t real, by the way, might actually be some kind of weird magic device from aliens. Woo! Oh, and your adopted son is smuggling a stray cat. Thought you should know. Don’t get yourself blown up. Love you!
She stared at the comm unit for an eternity before deleting it. Her opal felt cold on her chest in the morning gloom.
Author Bio:
Matty Roberts began their career in journalism where they earned an Emmy and had the privilege of working on several other award-winning projects. They hold an MS from Johns Hopkins University and are now an engineer in renewable energy in Denver, Colorado where they live with their wonderful partner, two extraordinary kids, and the best doggie ever.
In addition to writing, engineering, and parenting, Matty is a vegan enby nerd who is in love with this world and will forever be doing all they can to make it a better place. And they may be known to occasionally play in a punk band here or there.
For more information about Matty and their upcoming books, visit www.mattyroberts.io.
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This sounds interesting! The blurb is very intriguing.
Congrats to the author. 🙂
Thank you! It’s exciting to finally have it released. 🙂
This sounds very interesting!!
Love the cover!
Matty Roberts is a new author to me but I want to thank this blog for the introduction.
I look forward to reading this book.
Very nice to meet you, Audrey! I hope you enjoy Child of Etherclaw. 🙂
Sounds like a wonderful read!
Child of Etherclaw by Matty Roberts has a very highly detailed and interesting front cover.
I love the cover artwork!
Sounds like a great book.
Happy Book Birthday, Matty! I enjoyed the excerpt and I know my granddaughter will love Child of Etherclaw and I like the cover! Good luck with your book and the blitz! Thanks for sharing it with me and have a spectacular day!
Thank you so much! I hope she enjoys it. 🙂
Great cover for this dystopian read. Looking forward to learning more about this opal necklace artifact.
Looks like its going to be a interesting story.
Really nice cover and excerpt, looking forward to reading this!
I love the cover art, synopsis and excerpt, the sci-fi/dystopian genre is one of my favorites an Child of Etherclaw sounds like a must read for my teen-aged grandchildren and I. Thank you for sharing the author’s bio and book details
Thank you so much! I’m excited for you both to read it, and I hope you enjoy. 🙂
This sounds super good and one I would so like to read this summer.
This sounds like a great read.
You mentioned you’re a Vegan, isn’t it difficult nowaday’s what with inflation being so high?
Hi, Cindy! Great question. A vegan plant-based diet can go either way for sure. For those who eat nothing but the faux meat substitutes, it can get pretty pricey pretty quick. But if, like most vegans, you stick to tofu, beans, lentils, nuts, vegetables, etc, it ends up being far less expensive than a typical omnivorous diet. Additionally, it can also be exceedingly healthy, or extremely unhealthy—eating nothing but Oreos all day every day does technically qualify as vegan! 🙂
What an exciting book! Great cover and excerpt. I’d love to read more.
What inspires your book plots?
Hi, Tracy! Thanks for the question. In the case of Child of Etherclaw, I wanted to create an environment that portrayed a plausibly dystopian future, while also demonstrating the power of hope, friends, and found family. My experiences and observations of the world have shown me the value in those elements and it was important for me to bring those elements to life through the characters. I also wanted to explore what a post-climate change world might look like if humanity was brought to the brink, but then began the process of recovery and reconstruction.
great!!
Sounds interesting. I like the excerpt!
intriguing
Sounds like a great book.
Fenlee and Elliot sound like interesting characters. Smuggling a stray cat! I love them already!
Sounds like a great read! I enjoyed the excerpt.
Who else has dreamt of having a magic necklace? It’s neat to think about your inner dreams coming true.