by Keira Drake
“Always be mine, Vaela Sun, and no shadow shall ever pass before me.”
I kiss him lightly on the lips. “I am yours, Noro. Now, and always, in war and peace, on the Continent or anywhere else.”
A light breeze kicks up around us, swirling dust from the field into spinning cones that sweep across the plain. I look into the eyes of the man I love, and I know peace once again. For now.
Sometimes, now is enough.
* * * * *
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU TO MY BEST friend forever and partner in everything, Declan Drake. He had the audacity to tell me that the first novel I wrote (a sci-fi romance) was awful (it truly was), and to detail exactly what was wrong with it (he was right). But he also had confidence in me, and when he read The Continent and smiled, I smiled, too.
Thank you to my daughter, for whom this book was written. Pea, you are my shining star, and I love you infinity.
Thank you to my mom and dad, who instilled in me from a very young age the belief that I could accomplish anything to which I set my mind. They also suffered through years of short stories about vengeance-seeking elk and all other kinds of ridiculousness, and paid twenty-five cents to sit through theatrical reenactments of my favorite stories—including one very busy performance of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle, in which I played all of the characters. In short, they loved me, they encouraged me and they put up with me. They are the best.
Thank you to my agent, the amazing Jim McCarthy, for believing in The Continent and finding the perfect editor for my work—Natashya Wilson at Harlequin TEEN (more on Tashya in a moment). Jim is not only The Best Agent in The Entire World, but he is also my friend and my calmer-downer, and I’m grateful every day to know and have the privilege of working with such an incredible person. Also, his beard is intense.
Natashya Wilson (my aforementioned editor) had the insight to help me polish The Continent into the book it is now. The notes she provided were nothing short of AMAZING! We clicked from our first phone call, and she helped me to take my story from “I like it but something is missing” to “NATASHYA, YOU ARE BRILLIANT.” I am so grateful for her guidance and keen editorial eye!
I must also thank the rest of the people at Harlequin TEEN. From Day One, their collective enthusiasm level has been nothing short of a confetti-exploding cannon. Thank you to Lauren Smulski, Siena Koncsol, Bryn Collier, Loriana Sacilotto, Evan Brown, Ashley McCallan, Rebecca Snoddon, Olivia Gissing, Shara Alexander, Margaret Marbury, Erin Craig, Kathleen Oudit and everyone else for your hard work and faith in the book!
Thank you to Valerie Noble, who is not my agent but who is an absolute Agent Extraordinaire. Without Valerie, I might still be querying. She was generous to give me incisive notes that ultimately resulted in my becoming agented. Also, she’s just adorable, and good at tennis, and is the INCREDIBLE author of The Energy Crusades series (reeeeead it!). Speaking of other agents, thank you to Brent Taylor, Uwe Stender, Elana Roth Parker and Kathleen Rushall for always being supportive and wonderful.
I’d like to include a huge shout-out to a few of my favorite video-game composers—without their music, I don’t know how I would write: Nobuo Uematsu, Darren Korb, Jesper Kyd, Koji Kondo, Jeremy Soule, Inon Zur and Yasunori Mitsuda, just to name a few.
Thank you to my primary beta readers: Cidne Balzer, Lucille Hamilton, May Bridges, Tonja Tomblin and Jeff Baumgartner. I could not have done this without your support, encouragement and criticism. ALL THE LOVE!
And last but not least, let me thank all of my friends—IRL and on Twitter. You make every day brighter, and there are too many of you to name, but I love and appreciate you all!
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1.The Continent is a book about war and peace, voyages and home, what we know and what we think we know—and, ultimately, it is a book about people. How does the author use characters to illustrate the contradictions in human nature? Discuss.
2.Vaela views the violence on the Continent from afar in the heli-plane and then in person on the Continent. What does the author show about the nature of violence from these different perspectives? How do Vaela’s reactions and opinions differ in each situation?
3.Aaden and his parents hold different views on the nature of the Topi. What seeds does the author plant through their dialogue, and how does it inform Vaela’s perceptions once she is stranded on the Continent?
4.The fictional world of The Continent is inspired by both Edwardian times and futuristic ideas. How does the author combine different influences to create a unique sense of time and place? How does setting affect Vaela, both on the Continent and in the Spire?
5.When Vaela lands in the pod and sees the heli-plane go down, she wishes she were still on board. When she does what she must to survive, she lands in a potentially worse situation as a captive. What pushes her to keep going in the face of her circumstances? What strengths and weaknesses does she have in those first moments of survival, and how does she change by the end of the story?
6.Vaela moves from being a cherished daughter with a strong sense of her place in society to a stranger in a strange land. What kinds of assumptions does she make about her new situation when she first arrives in Hayato? How do her perceptions change as she spends time there?
7.When Vaela and Noro first discuss her interest in cartography, Noro does not see the purpose in making maps other than for tactical purposes. Why did the author include this dialogue? What theme does she express via Vaela’s and Noro’s points of view? Is either of them right or wrong? When Vaela and Aaden discussed cartography after Vaela first witnessed violence, Vaela herself seemed to have changed her mind about its purpose. How does her conversation with Aaden contrast with her conversation with Noro, and why?
8.The Topi and the Aven’ei have been at war for centuries. The war, we learn, was instigated by the Aven’ei, who now desire peace. Had Vaela and the West not interfered, what might have happened? Is it possible to achieve peace when people are determined to fight? What measures might the Aven’ei have taken to resolve the conflict?
9.Shoshi Kaken dislikes Vaela at first sight. What does Vaela learn from working for Shoshi? What does Shoshi learn from his experience with Vaela? Why does Shoshi help Vaela in the final battle? Why did the author include his character in the book?
10.When Vaela finally makes it back to the Spire and has the choice to stay or go back to the Continent, why does she choose to go back? What, if anything, is she giving up? Did the West’s choice to help the Aven’ei surprise you? Why or why not?
ISBN: 9781489220882
TITLE: THE CONTINENT
First Australian Publication 2018
Copyright © 2017 Keira Drake
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Keira Drake, The Continent