FAQ
Inferno’s Silence is a standalone dark fantasy story that lays the groundwork for a larger saga.
It offers a complete and satisfying arc in its own right, following three distinct characters through intertwined journeys of vengeance, transformation, and rebellion.
However, the world is vast, with deeper forces stirring behind the scenes. The events of Inferno’s Silence plant the seeds for a broader narrative that explores the long-term consequences of the rebellion, the rise of exiled gods, and the fate of those marked by their power. Future standalone books will expand on this mythology, delving further into the realms of magic, monstrous evolution, and the slow unraveling of ancient, world-altering secrets.
So while Inferno’s Silence can be enjoyed as a complete work, it also serves as the first step into a dark and sprawling saga, where each story will add another piece to the puzzle.
While Inferno’s Silence is a work of fantasy, it draws inspiration from real historical events, most notably the April Uprising of 1876, a Bulgarian rebellion against the Ottoman Empire. The revolt’s raw intensity, tragic violence, and complexity left a lasting impression on me. After reading The Autobiography of Zachary Stoyanov, a firsthand account of the uprising, I felt compelled to explore similar themes in a fictional setting.
Many of the characters and situations in Inferno’s Silence echo the spirit of those real struggles. Figures like Vasil Levski, a revolutionary who gave everything in the name of freedom, were particularly influential. While Levski served as a key inspiration, Ehrkon is not a fictionalised version of him. Rather, Levski’s unwavering commitment to justice, his vision of a free and equal society, and his defiance in the face of impossible odds helped shape the moral and emotional foundation of Ehrkon as a character, seen through the darker and more fractured lens of the world he inhabits.
The story is also influenced by Eastern European folklore, including its creatures and worldview. These mythic elements helped shape the atmosphere of the novel, infusing the setting with a sense of the uncanny and the sacred, where the supernatural feels both terrifying and intimately familiar.
In addition, the political landscape of Inferno’s Silence reflects the long-standing influence of imperialism in the region. While the Ottoman legacy is a central reference point, the historic and ongoing imperial ambitions of modern totalitarian regimes also served as a source of inspiration. The dynamics of conquest, assimilation, and ideological control are explored through the book’s power structures and their justifications for domination. The story also speaks to the eventual unraveling of imperial power and the inevitability of collapse when tyranny exhausts the people it seeks to subjugate.
Of course, Inferno’s Silence takes place in a world filled with monsters, gods, and divine magic. But the human core of the story, including resistance against tyranny, the weight of sacrifice, and the blurred lines between martyrdom and vengeance, has its roots in real historical pain.
For me, the hardest part wasn’t inventing lore or plotting out the geography. It was about starting the story and figuring out the characters: who’s who, what they want, what their relationships mean, and what drives them.
I had to ask myself: what story am I actually telling? What does this world reflect? What do I want to say with this book, not just in terms of plot, but in spirit? Shaping that into something coherent and emotionally truthful took years. The deeper challenge was not building the world’s history or belief systems, but understanding the emotional and thematic spine beneath it.
Only once that began to click did the rest of the world start to feel alive. It became a place worth writing about, and one that could carry the weight of the story I wanted to tell.
Inferno’s Silence is written for readers who enjoy dark, character-driven fantasy that isn’t afraid to confront the messier parts of human nature. If you’re drawn to stories where heroes and villains are not easily defined, where moral lines blur, and where choices carry weight and consequence, this book may be for you.
You’ll likely enjoy it if you appreciate gritty settings, emotionally complex protagonists, and fantasy that leans into psychological depth. It would also appeal to readers with a taste for sharp, dark humour that often surfaces in the bleakest moments, as well as to those comfortable with vivid, occasionally violent imagery.
This isn’t a story that promises catharsis or clean resolutions. It is for readers who are willing to wrestle with uncomfortable questions, who prefer their magic strange and their gods flawed, and who value intense, immersive storytelling over familiar tropes or easy answers.
Of course there’s magic, but not the kind readers might expect from modern fantasy. There are no neatly defined rules, no schools of spells, no elemental charts or structured systems. The magic in Inferno’s Silence is older, stranger, and far more instinctive.
Some characters wield divine power granted by gods, but that power always demands a price. There are no training montages or academies, no magic points to manage. Only raw, unpredictable force that reshapes the user as much as the world around them. Magic here is never clean or controlled. It comes with consequence, and it always takes more than it gives.
No, there is absolutely no romance in Inferno’s Silence.
It might take some time. Inferno’s Silence took five years to write, and I don’t believe in rushing the process just to meet a deadline. I want every book I release to be worth the wait, fully realised, emotionally grounded, and polished with care.
I can’t give a firm release date yet, but if you enjoyed Inferno’s Silence and are willing to be patient, I promise the next instalment will take the story somewhere deeper, darker, and more daring. And when it’s ready, I will announce it.