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First Steps for a Hero
Living on a farm in the north country of England in 1969, David Eldwick has finished high school and is looking forward to his new adult life. His enemy, Martin, lives on the farm next door. Martin is jealous of David and has made his life at school as unpleasant as possible.
Soon, Martin and his father will try to seize ownership of the Eldwick land by forcing David’s sister into an early marriage with Martin. David warns Martin off, but Martin wants Jenevieve and is determined to have her.
An enigmatic man comes to work on the Eldwick farm, and things begin to change. David discovers the stranger, the Captain, comes from Arrath, an Earth-like world, existing in a parallel universe. He teaches David the Arrathan way of self-defence, and David develops in skill and character.
At the end-of-summer ball, Martin kidnaps Jenevieve. Stronger now and more confident, David faces his adversary. He saves Jenevieve, and the Captain invites him to visit Arrath.
Now David learns that malevolent alien beings have also found their way to Earth, intending to infect it with evil. As he helps the Captain to deal with the dark invaders, he meets the greatest danger of his life, but he must overcome his fear and protect both Arrath and Earth.
What will be David’s path into his future? Does he truly believe the other universe exists and can affect the lives of people on Earth? Will he become a farmer or a warder of Arrath?
Soon, Martin and his father will try to seize ownership of the Eldwick land by forcing David’s sister into an early marriage with Martin. David warns Martin off, but Martin wants Jenevieve and is determined to have her.
An enigmatic man comes to work on the Eldwick farm, and things begin to change. David discovers the stranger, the Captain, comes from Arrath, an Earth-like world, existing in a parallel universe. He teaches David the Arrathan way of self-defence, and David develops in skill and character.
At the end-of-summer ball, Martin kidnaps Jenevieve. Stronger now and more confident, David faces his adversary. He saves Jenevieve, and the Captain invites him to visit Arrath.
Now David learns that malevolent alien beings have also found their way to Earth, intending to infect it with evil. As he helps the Captain to deal with the dark invaders, he meets the greatest danger of his life, but he must overcome his fear and protect both Arrath and Earth.
What will be David’s path into his future? Does he truly believe the other universe exists and can affect the lives of people on Earth? Will he become a farmer or a warder of Arrath?
ebook
Published September 3, 2016
About the author
Judith Rook
8 books66 followersJudith Rook was born and raised in rural Yorkshire in the UK. The nearest city was Bradford, the great centre for wool processing, but she remembers fields running up to moorland much more clearly than mill chimneys.
Judith's early writing was done in old accountants’ ledgers which had blank sheets interleaved with the ruled pages. She wrote on the ruled pages as well. Not thinking of becoming a writer, Judith wrote whatever she felt like writing: stories, poems, reflections. Then life intervened and her imagination went underground. For some time, she worked in education and wrote articles and reviews about music.
After a few years, Judith began to write fiction. Recording ideas that had been bottled up for a long time, she thought that she had become an author. When rejection notices came in she joined two writing groups, developed her technical skills and learned how to write stories for other people.
Judith is an avid reader. Sci-fi is her favourite genre, then come the great classics, followed closely by fantasy. However, her taste is reasonably universal and perhaps one day she will try her hand at thrillers or crime stories. Judith greatly admires good crime writers.
As a young woman Judith emigrated to Western Australia where she lives now with a cat and a computer. From time to time she stirs herself to rally around important social issues and has been known to take to the streets in support, so long as there are good cafés along the way.
Periodically Judith turns to short stories. She finds that the challenges of short story writing refresh and strengthen the techniques which she uses in her novels.
Judith's early writing was done in old accountants’ ledgers which had blank sheets interleaved with the ruled pages. She wrote on the ruled pages as well. Not thinking of becoming a writer, Judith wrote whatever she felt like writing: stories, poems, reflections. Then life intervened and her imagination went underground. For some time, she worked in education and wrote articles and reviews about music.
After a few years, Judith began to write fiction. Recording ideas that had been bottled up for a long time, she thought that she had become an author. When rejection notices came in she joined two writing groups, developed her technical skills and learned how to write stories for other people.
Judith is an avid reader. Sci-fi is her favourite genre, then come the great classics, followed closely by fantasy. However, her taste is reasonably universal and perhaps one day she will try her hand at thrillers or crime stories. Judith greatly admires good crime writers.
As a young woman Judith emigrated to Western Australia where she lives now with a cat and a computer. From time to time she stirs herself to rally around important social issues and has been known to take to the streets in support, so long as there are good cafés along the way.
Periodically Judith turns to short stories. She finds that the challenges of short story writing refresh and strengthen the techniques which she uses in her novels.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 20, 2018
Coming of Age in Two Worlds
‘He wanted to get ready as best he could for the life ahead of him.’
David has finished school and is about to go into higher education. So is his arch-rival Martin, the boy who has bullied him all through school. To make matters worse Martin has designs on David’s sister, who feels about Martin the same way as David does. Then a wanderer - a casual farm labourer - turns up to work on their father’s farm and David learns there is more to the universe than he had ever imagined.
This is a wonderful coming of age book with science-fantasy, set in a 1960s Yorkshire farming community. It weaves together the challenges of burgeoning adulthood, alien invasion, standing up for what is right and the cost of doing so, with some careful social comment on the mores of life at that time. It is a thoroughly believable and well-written story.
‘He was David Eldwick, the son of a farmer, due to become a farmer, due to leave for university next week, but during the last hour he had been in fear for his life, and now here he was, stuck up a rock face, about to put a device on his wrist, a device he had been told would take him into a parallel universe.’
The only aspect of the book I would have changed was the amount of description given over to the training element. I think this is something most books which look at young people being trained tend to err in. Whilst it might work on screen to show someone being trained, it makes for rather dull reading. But this is a very minor gripe set against the whole story.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novella, which is rare as I tend not to like most YA I have read, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys coming of age stories, urban fantasy or science-fantasy.
‘He wanted to get ready as best he could for the life ahead of him.’
David has finished school and is about to go into higher education. So is his arch-rival Martin, the boy who has bullied him all through school. To make matters worse Martin has designs on David’s sister, who feels about Martin the same way as David does. Then a wanderer - a casual farm labourer - turns up to work on their father’s farm and David learns there is more to the universe than he had ever imagined.
This is a wonderful coming of age book with science-fantasy, set in a 1960s Yorkshire farming community. It weaves together the challenges of burgeoning adulthood, alien invasion, standing up for what is right and the cost of doing so, with some careful social comment on the mores of life at that time. It is a thoroughly believable and well-written story.
‘He was David Eldwick, the son of a farmer, due to become a farmer, due to leave for university next week, but during the last hour he had been in fear for his life, and now here he was, stuck up a rock face, about to put a device on his wrist, a device he had been told would take him into a parallel universe.’
The only aspect of the book I would have changed was the amount of description given over to the training element. I think this is something most books which look at young people being trained tend to err in. Whilst it might work on screen to show someone being trained, it makes for rather dull reading. But this is a very minor gripe set against the whole story.
I thoroughly enjoyed this novella, which is rare as I tend not to like most YA I have read, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys coming of age stories, urban fantasy or science-fantasy.
February 27, 2018
This is a story that ends a long way from its beginning. A teenage boy in rural Yorkshire learns what he has the potential to be, facing his demons along the way. It is a short read that packs a serious punch and, even for someone like me whose first love is really not YA, it’s a pretty fine ride.
David has put up with abuse from Martin for many years, but when the bad guy goes after his sister he decides to make a stand. With the help of an itinerant worker, he learns how to fight his enemy. And a whole lot more.
I liked: The story and the well-drawn characters.
I didn’t like: Some of the drawn out descriptions of fight training.
Stars: Four and a half rounded up to five
David has put up with abuse from Martin for many years, but when the bad guy goes after his sister he decides to make a stand. With the help of an itinerant worker, he learns how to fight his enemy. And a whole lot more.
I liked: The story and the well-drawn characters.
I didn’t like: Some of the drawn out descriptions of fight training.
Stars: Four and a half rounded up to five
April 6, 2018
In this short tale, I liked that there was no Internet and so many other distractions, which isolate people rather than actual talking /being together. In this Yorkshire community, it was good to see real people with nothing to do with the fake world of social media.
David lives in this community in the 1960s and there is trouble with the neighbours who want his father's land...but there is far more than that.
This is a growing up tale, mixed with fantasy and one that tackles issues from not only a younger perspective but also older. It is a straightforward story about good v evil (on more than one level) and its writing style makes for easy reading.
Overall, a story for a younger readership and nicely done.
David lives in this community in the 1960s and there is trouble with the neighbours who want his father's land...but there is far more than that.
This is a growing up tale, mixed with fantasy and one that tackles issues from not only a younger perspective but also older. It is a straightforward story about good v evil (on more than one level) and its writing style makes for easy reading.
Overall, a story for a younger readership and nicely done.
May 16, 2018
First Steps for a Hero is a story that reminded me very much of the ones I read when I was a kid. An ordinary boy having trouble with a bully as he is finishing school and embarking on adulthood. Then it gets more interesting. The boy learns how to deal with the bully on his own terms. The story is well written and it pulled me in until I read it all and it left me wanting more. The book comes to a definite conclusion, but it left so very much still untold. I do hope that Judith Rook will be making a series of these. It may be for young adults, but I would read more.
I would recommend this book for any young person who is struggling with being bullied. It does contain some mild violence, but nothing at all gory. I really appreciate that young hero doesn't learn how to beat the bully, only how to keep himself from being beaten.
I would recommend this book for any young person who is struggling with being bullied. It does contain some mild violence, but nothing at all gory. I really appreciate that young hero doesn't learn how to beat the bully, only how to keep himself from being beaten.
January 22, 2019
If you overlook the chauvinist environment in which it is set, it becomes quite enjoyable and you end up appreciating the main character's development.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews