The War of Leaves and Scales
by Jonathon Mast
A steampunk fantasy adventure starting with an orphan and her dragon.
For paperback, Kindle, and Kindle Unlimited
Book Two is coming soon!
This series is appropriate for ages 10 and up.
Begin brave Patty Rinkin's adventure with
Dragons of the Ashfall
Book One of the War of Leaves and Scales
A New World is Beginning... and it Starts with an Orphan.
Orphans never have easy lives, but they're especially brutal in the ashfall. Londinium, led by the Gear, is an industrial society where the poor and downtrodden are expected to take physical labor to keep the city in working order. It grinds children to nothing in its factories, forcing them to work hard for money just to pay for their board and food. Survival is a daily struggle, especially for grindery girls - orphans who grind coal into useable bricks.
Patty Rinkin is a rare grindery girl, for she has a last name. She prefers to be one of the crowd, but finds herself the leader after a horrific fire disables the lead girl, who's also her best friend. And one afternoon, Patty finds a dragon's egg among the dust and filth of the factory. But it seems the arrival of dragons is going to just make everything so much harder.
Patty doesn't realize she's been given a gift - a gift that could change the very system in which she's trapped. Will she become part of the Gear's plans to keep its citizens in mortal danger? Or will she learn the dragons can give everyone the opportunity to fight back against the Gear and all the suffering it causes?
"I've enjoyed the immersive worlds that Jonathon Mast builds in his stories, and Dragons of the Ashfall was no exception. The ash and grime and smoke of the city of Londinium almost drift off the pages oft his novel. The introduction of dragons tot his world makes from some intriguing twists. I enjoyed the story's exploration of how the dragons and humans interact... I appreciated that this story wrapped up the first story arc well, moving the characters forward to a satisfactory resting place."
~ Anne Clare, author and reviewer, Amazon five-star review
About the Author
Jonathon Mast watched ThunderCats for the amazing stories. He wanted to know the stories behind all the toys he had growing up. A video game wasn't worth playing if there wasn't a story involved. He started telling stories on the bus to the other kids on the way to school. As he got older, he wrote those stories down. He doesn't just like stories, but stories about stories. He and his wife often argue about stories: what makes stories good? What makes them fail? They'll often overanalyze much of the media they consume.
Jon's stories have appeared in various magazines, on websites, and in anthologies, including A Celebration of Storytelling and Something Wicked This Way Rides from Dark Owl Publishing. His first novel, the fantasy epic The Keeper of Tales, also from Dark Owl, is appropriate for young readers ages 11 and older to enjoy.
Jon currently lives in Kentucky with his wife and an insanity of children. (A group of children is called an insanity. Trust me.)
Visit his website at jonathonmastauthor.com.