A PEMBROKESHIRE author is set to release a new book based in the county.
John Roberts grew up at Merrion just outside Pembroke and took inspiration from the county for his latest novel A Fiendish Roar.
Mr Roberts, who now lives in Leeds but regularly returns to visit his mother and younger brother in Pembroke, based the fantasy fiction novel on the perils of two communities in South Pembrokeshire during the Stone Age.
As a child, he lived at Merrion Court Farm and would regularly look at the ancient fort on the hillside and would wonder what life was like for those who lived there all those years ago.
He said: “I have sought to describe some of the key challenges facing our ancient ancestors. The last chapter reveals the present-day names of a beach and village, so local readers will be able to visualise where the action took place.
The book covers two Stone Age settlements who have differing views on how to deal with a local dragon called Morgana.
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One group of settlers live quietly alongside the beast while a second group expand their nearby village but their hunters stray onto the dragon’s territory, which sees Morgana beginning to kill people to protect her food supply.
This leaves both communities at loggerheads, with the smaller group wanting to remain at peace with Morgana but the larger group want to put an end to the dragon.
When an ingenious plan to slay the dragon fails, hostilities quickly escalate. As the death toll mounts, there are difficult decisions to be made. Do they move home to avoid further retaliation from the dragon? Do they stay put and seek to survive alongside her? Do they go on the offensive with a second attempt to kill their nemesis?
In the Stone Age, people knew very little. Their limited knowledge of matters such as astronomy, meteorology and medicine is revealed as their stories unfold. Despite this, they are clever enough to overcome all the tests handed down to them. Across time, they pass on to us the virtues of teamwork, sound reasoning and common humanity.
A Fiendish Roar is available on Kindle and on Amazon. It is also available for purchase in Waterstones.
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