The Long Dark Cloak by Vicki D. Thomas
A little bit about Author Vicki D. Thomas…
Much of my career has been in the arts, starting as a fashion illustrator, a watercolor teacher to young people, and now as a fine art artist. I continue to be active in the arts and enjoy every minute of creating.
Two decades ago, writing fantasy for young people struck me like a cyclone. My passion for writing and creating characters drove me to produce seven hand-written books, which I’m now rewriting and editing. The first book in the Relics Adventure series is The Long Dark Cloak, which I’m focusing on in this article. The second book is The Golden Lantern, released in late March, 2019, and The King’s September was released in 2024. I’m in the process of editing book four, and it promises another exciting adventure for my protagonist, Ivan Kimble, who enters the mystical West Forest in Southern England to find his older brother. The search is fraught with danger from the very beginning, but love of family prevails.
This is Author Vicki D. Thomas’s writing and publication journey in her own words…
Inspiration to start writing…
It should be no surprise that JK Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, is my main inspiration, as well as C.S. Lewis, and Tolkien, author of The Hobbit series, and many more.
To help keep the characters straight during my protagonist’s dangerous journey, and since I’m an artist, I sketched people and scenes, and drew a map to guide me through the mystical forest.
Even today, it amazes me where these ideas came from, and how they are defined on the written page. It’s a joy and a blessing that I’m deeply grateful for.
Vicki’s works…
The Long Dark Cloak Blurb
Fifteen-year-old Ivan never expected to be targeted for death when he went on a quest to find his older brother who was spotted in the infamous West Forest.
Only an hour from his farm home, Ivan travels there, but his mission is interrupted with a plea to save the life of an ancient Kingwood Oak by retrieving a magical tree sap.
Sebastian, a kindly spirit imbued in The Long Dark Cloak, becomes Ivan’s guide through a myriad of strange and mythical creatures that hinder their progress.
When war is declared in the forest, Ivan finds himself a reluctant hero fighting to save the forest, his brother, and his own life.
One of Vicki’s favourite scenes from The Long Dark Cloak…
Ivan panicked as he imagined Zephyrus dying minutes before their arrival. His fingers tightened on the reins. Rivulets of sweat made their way down the sides of his face, wetting his collar
and chilling his neck. After all the challenges he’d endured, risking his life and his beagles, the thought of failing now left him shaken.
“The Dark Army is advancing,” Sebastian wailed, breaking Ivan’s tortured thought. “We can’t risk losing another second!”
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