The Beholden, page 50
The world needed death if it were to keep on turning.
Celestia turned away from the river and followed the path back up to Cross Winds. She was free from her obligation, but the weight of her actions weighed heavily on her.
A figure moved in one of the windows. Omaira, standing in the nursery with Izar, watching as Celestia glided over the grass. And despite everything, Celestia brightened at the sight of them. She stopped, and smiled, and waved.
When Omaira smiled back, it was the opposite of a war. It was the opposite of grief.
And so Celestia kept walking toward this strange new life.
Acknowledgments
The Beholden had a long gestational period, and many people have helped take it from my initial germ of an idea to the book you now hold in your hands (or which exists in the aether of your e-reader).
Thank you to my critique group, Space City Critters, both in its current incarnation and the incarnation who read and critiqued an early draft of The Beholden at my house over brisket: David Young, Kevin O’Neil, Chun Lee, Chrissa Sandlin, Holly Walrath, Michael Glazner, and Tria Wood. In addition, heaps of thanks to my other writerly friends, Bobby Mathews and Amanda Cole. We don’t talk much about writing these days, but those conversations were instrumental in helping me with every book I write!
As always, thank you to my agent, Stacia Decker, for her feedback on the manuscript and her work on finding it a home.
Thank you to the team at Erewhon Books: my editor Sarah Guan for her excellent revision notes, which helped to uncover and elucidate exactly what I was trying to accomplish with the book; Martin Cahill for working so diligently to ensure the book finds its place in the world; Kristina Carroll, whose beautiful painting graces the cover of the book; and Dana Li, who turned that painting into a book cover.
Finally, thank you to my parents, for all their love and support over the years.
About the Author
© Lightbox Photography Studio
Cassandra Rose Clarke is the author of Star’s End, Our Lady of the Ice, and The Mad Scientist’s Daughter, as well as several novels for young adults. Her work has placed in the Rhysling Awards and been nominated for the Philip K. Dick Award, the Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award, the Pushcart Prize, and YALSA’s Best Fiction for Young Adults. She holds an MA in creative writing from the University of Texas at Austin, and in 2010 she attended the Clarion West Writer’s Workshop in Seattle. She grew up in south Texas and currently lives in Virginia, where she writes and tends to multiple cats.
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
THE BEHOLDEN
Copyright © 2022 by Cassandra Rose Clarke
First published in North America by Erewhon Books, LLC in 2022
Edited by Sarah T. Guan
All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
Erewhon Books
2 W. 29th Street, Suite 3S
New York, NY 10001
www.erewhonbooks.com
Erewhon books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk for premiums and sales promotions as well as for fund-raising or educational use. Special editions or book excerpts can also be created to specification. For details, send an email to specialmarkets@workman.com.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2021952047
ISBN 978-1-64566-035-4 (ebook)
Cover art by Kristina Carroll
Cover design by Dana Li
Chapter head and line break image by vectortatu/Shutterstock
First US Edition: January 2022
Cassandra Rose Clarke, The Beholden
