THE WAY OF THORN AND THUNDER: THE KYNSHIP CHRONICLES

The Tale

The Everland has been home of the forest-dwelling Kyn and the other Eld-Folk since time immemorial, a deep green world of ancient mystery and sacred shadow. The wyr-powers of the Kyn and their kith have preserved this lush region from the ravenous greed of Humanity for over a thousand years, since the catastrophic Melding that merged their world with the mortal world of Men, but those powers are now under siege, for the assimilationist Kyn Shields seek to purge their people of the wyr, seeing only savagery in its mysteries and in its guardians, the Wielders. As the power of the Shields grows—and as the hungry eyes of Men turn once more to the Everland and its rich bounty—the leaders of the seven nations of the Folk gather together to seek a way of surviving the growing storm.

Born into a town dominated by the Shield creeds, Tarsa’deshae, a headstrong Kyn warrior, awakens to the long-suppressed wyr-ways after an act of courage goes horribly awry. Exiled from Red Cedar Town, and struggling to understand her new calling as a Wielder, Tarsa is swept into a dangerous world of political and spiritual struggle, where the old wyr-ways of the Greenwalkers clash with the fragmenting intrigues of the “civilized” Shields and their allies. As the Everland is torn apart by treachery and the ever-encroaching threat of Humanity, the Redthorn Wielder and her companions fight both flesh and spirit to heal their wounded world.

NEVER SINCE THE MELDING HAVE THE FOLK FACED SUCH DANGER.
WILL THEIR ROOTS HOLD FAST, OR WILL THEY BE LOST UPON THE STORM?

The Way of Thorn and Thunder: The Kynship Chronicles was published in 2011 by the University of New Mexico Press. A fully updated and revised omnibus edition of The Way of Thorn and Thunder trilogy (Kynship, Wyrwood, and Dreyd). Includes maps, interior art by the author, and a comprehensive glossary. Go to Bookstore for links to order.

All three original volumes of the trilogy are available from Kegedonce Press. These editions feature cover and interior art by Cree artist Steve Sanderson, maps by the author, and glossaries.

COVER ART

SHORT FICTION SET IN THE WORLD OF KYNSHIP

KEEPER OF THE BONES

Set during the time of the Expulsion chronicled in The Way of Thorn and Thunder, this is the story of Dweggo, a Tetawa bonekeeper who struggles to fulfill his duties to his dead kith while an exile/captive among Humans in far-away Chalimor. The story was published in a collection of multicultural fantasy, Myriad Lands, Volume 1: Around the World (Guardbridge Books, 2016), edited by David Stokes.

THE ADVENTURES OF DENARRA SYRENE

“High Fashion and the Necromantic Arts”

Featuring Denarra Syrene, a character who plays a major role in Books Two and Three of The Way of Thorn and Thunder. The story originally appeared in Girls Who Bite Back: Witches, Mutants, Slayers, and Freaks (Sumach Press, 2004), edited by Emily Pohl-Weary

“Ander’s Awakening”

The story of how a young and unhappy he-Strangeling named Ander Bandabee became the fabulous she-Strangeling Wielder, Denarra Syrene. The story originally appeared in W’daub Awae/Speaking True: A Kegedonce Press Anthology (Kegedonce Press, 2010), edited by Warren Cariou, and reprinted in Sovereign Erotics: A Collection of Two-Spirit Literature (U of Arizona P, 2011)

Praise for the Kynship chronicles

“A powerful heroic fantasy, notable for being set, not in the familiar myth-Europe of most such fantasies, but (like Liliana Bodoc’s haunting Saga de los Confines) in the Old World of the Western Hemisphere, the Native American world, where the true, deep roots of magic are threatened by conquest and destruction.”

–Ursula K. Le Guin, author of The Earthsea Cycle

“With The Way of Thorn and Thunder, Daniel Heath Justice has proved to be a world builder in the manner of Tolkien and Philip Pullman. His treatment of gender, environmental issues might remind some of Ursula Le Guin, but his insight is unique and indigenous, complete with the world tree, colonization. Fans of high fantasy will welcome this book from a writer to watch.”

–Linda Hogan, author of People of the Whale

“Justice has created a fantasy epic so rich in history and so complex with all of its inhabitants and mystery that you’re never going to want The Way of Thorn and Thunder to end. What a treasure for anyone looking for heroes and adventure in a series based on Aboriginal philosophy and wisdom.”

–Richard Van Camp, author of The Lesser Blessed

“There is action and adventure aplenty in this epic tale . . . but there is something deeper as well. Like the magic that imbues his imagined world of spirit-trees and talking beasts, a true sense of wonder and enchantment wells up through Daniel Heath Justice’s words. This is a realm that fantasy fans can immerse themselves in, and return to again and again; a realm that feels at once fresh and new, yet old as the oldest myth.”

–Alison Baird, author of The Hidden World

“The Way of Thorn and Thunder by Daniel Justice is an intricately layered and carefully constructed tale of characters, customs and cultures in conflict during a time of change, with a definite anthropological flavor to it.”–Robin Hobb, author of The Rain Wild Chronicles

“The Way of Thorn and Thunder is a beautifully wrought high fantasy novel, drawing from the unique and fascinating cultures of North America’s aboriginal peoples but successfully creating a world and characters that stand on their own, and are even set apart from what we usually see in high fantasy. Readers who enjoy meticulously created landscapes and cultures, as well as language that is by turns both visceral and elegant, will likely find much to love in The Way of Thorn and Thunder.”

–Karin Lowachee, author The Gaslight Dogs

“Beautiful and tragic; epic in its breadth and scope. Daniel Heath Justice is a master storyteller, effortlessly weaving a luscious tapestry of images and characters that will infuse your dreams, leaving you wanting to know more. The Way of Thorn and Thunder is a powerful allegory bursting with adventure and inspiration. I can’t wait for Book Two!”

— Michelle St. John, Actor, The Business of Fancydancing; Host, Red Tales, Aboriginal Voices Radio

“Within these pages Daniel Heath Justice has created a world as complex and detailed as any we live in. It should be no surprise to find this book sandwiched between Stephen Donaldson and J.R.R. Tolkien, and I’m not just talking alphabetically. It’s a truly clever book.”

— Drew Hayden Taylor, Author, Funny, You Don’t Look Like One: Observations of a Blue-Eyed Ojibway

“If you love the work of J.R.R. Tolkien or the Dragonlance series, you will love Kynship, Book 1 of The Way of Thorn and Thunder. Behold Oinara! It’s Solace of the Dragonlance series and Middle Earth all rolled into one. Justice has created a fantasy epic so rich in history and so complex with all of its inhabitants and mystery that you’re never going to want The Way of Thorn and Thunder to end. What a treasure for anyone looking for heroes and adventure in a series based on Aboriginal philosophy and wisdom.”

–Richard Van Camp, Author, Angel Wing Splash Pattern

“I recommend it to readers who like their good and evil well defined but human enough to entertain, and all who have longed to cheer for nature and the bonds of community in the struggle against an alienating and avaricious lust for progress that is really all about amassing power.”

–Lynda Williams, SF author of The Courtesan Prince

“There is action and adventure aplenty in this epic tale of conflict between Humans and other-worldly Kyn, but there is something deeper as well. Like the magic that imbues his imagined world of spirit-trees and talking beasts, a true sense of wonder and enchantment wells up through Daniel Heath Justice’s words. This is a realm that fantasy fans can immerse themselves in, and return to again and again; a realm that feels at once fresh and new, yet old as the oldest myth.”

–Alison Baird, author of The Hidden World

“The second book in Cherokee author Daniel Heath Justice’s fantasy trilogy The Way of Thorn and Thunder was possibly even better than its predecessor….I highly recommend it even if you’re not usually a fantasy fan. Give fantasy a try!”

–caseythecanadianlesbrarian.com review of Wyrwood (25 May 2015)

“If you like fantasy, you really cannot go wrong with Kynship. Although it’s published by a small Native press in Ontario, I found the whole series at the public library in Vancouver, so it’s not even hard to get a hold of! It’s the imaginative world-building, action, and suspense you can usually expect from fantasy, except with queer people, women, and (implicitly) Native folks at the forefront. There are also two-spirit / non-binary trans characters that straddle the gender worlds. What is not to love, I ask you?”

–caseythecanadianlesbrarian.com review of Kynship (3 May 2015)

“…expertly fuses the genres of fantasy and [I]ndigenous literatures. Although the novel’s setting echoes precolonial America, Justice has succeeded in creating a fantastical world of his own, in which the mystical race of Kyns [sic] struggle to maintain their world.”

–World Literature Today (85.5, Sept./Oct. 2011)

“Some of us read fiction to get away from these dismal political times. But novelist Daniel Heath Justice gives us a better option: escape to an imaginary world where our rage can literally cause trees to uproot and strike the white men taking our community’s land.”

–Daisy Hernandez, Colorlines Magazine (Nov./Dec. 2006)

“…Kynship is a story of will, honour, and tradition, and how they are used to combat colonization. What separates this fantasy novel from others is that the main character, Tarsa’deshae—the Spearbreaker—is a queer female warrior. Tarsa’deshae, a member of the Kyn, is responsible for defending her nation from Men who are trying to rob her peoples’ land, the Everland, of its resources. Does this sound familiar?”

–Jorge Vallejos, Redwire Magazine (Aug. 2006)

“Come on a journey of ancient worlds, mysterious creatures, warriors and primeval tales told through remarkable images and fantasy-driven dialogue. Think of it as Lord of the Rings set in the culture and wisdom of Aboriginal society in North America….Published by Kegedonce Press, this fantasy epic could have been written by J.R.R. Tolkien—if he was Indian.”

—Spirit Magazine, Autumn 2005