The Legend of the Great Horse

Check out the Excerpt Series from The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy!

John Allen Royce’s debut title, Eclipsed by Shadow, has been nominated for a Global eBook Award in the Young Adult Fiction category.

“Thrilling and intelligent fantasy … a great blend of academic and adventurous reading that is beach-ready.” ~ US Review of Books
The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy is an award-winning adventure about horsemanship in civilization … history comes alive as a teenager travels back in time and experiences how horses were used in the past.
Book [...]

Why I wrote “The Legend of the Great Horse”

A tragedy sparked The Great Horse trilogy (of which Eclipsed by Shadow is the first volume). I came to know of this sad event because I lived in Cambridge, MA, where it occurred.
It happened in the 1990’s as a wave of corporatization washed over Harvard Square, which [...]

I recently wrote that the spark to my writing “Eclipsed by Shadow” was triggered by the corporatization of Harvard Square and the loss of its venerable old bookstores. It was alarmingly easy to relate ancient nomadic destruction of religious settlements to the commercial invasion of these hallowed shelves. Both invaders had as their object mere [...]

Chariots of early history (16th century BC)

This is my third “Mirror” post in a row, and where I finally explain the use of the metaphor and close the barn door after it.
In the first post of this Mirror trilogy, I mentioned becoming interested in reading about history while browsing the shelves of the doomed used [...]

The Legend of the Great Horse trilogy takes place across many historical eras, from pre-history to modern times, and research was fundamental to telling an accurate story. I followed a method I found enjoyable and fascinating, and which I believe brought authenticity to the work.
Basically, I gathered writings from each era visited in the book, [...]

Eclipsed by Shadow was recommended in May 2008 by Library Journal, the largest US trade publication for libraries:

Belongs in most libraries’ Adult and Young Adult collections | Library Journal
“Following the birth of a palomino foal, 12-year-old Meagan names the young horse Promise, and an uncommon bond forms between the two. Told by an elderly woman [...]