The Fall of Avalon (Paperback)

Avalon is the shining kingdom in the land of Androma. Its queen, Titania of the Fae, has ruled since its founding nearly 1,000 years ago. The image of the perfect ruler, Titania carried herself with poise, elegance, and presence. On the night of the celebration of one of the most significant events in the history of Androma, darkness descended upon Avalon. A mysterious swordsman appeared and declared his intent to annihilate Titania and all those who stand with her. After delivering his threat, he vanished into the darkness of night. Titania must once again devise a solution to save her kingdom from certain destruction, but as the mystery of this swordsman unfolds, is everything what it seems? Is Titania the noble, heroic Queen she professes to be, or a cunning, devious villainess the Swordsman declares her to be?

My name is Carl Houston Roach IV. I grew up in a small house in Miami, Florida. Since I was very young, writing has been my passion. I had a wild imagination as a child, and even now as an adult, I have refused to let it burn out. Consequentially, I have developed my very own world and filled it with life and with people, with legends and lore, mythos and religion, all of which reflect the nature of our own world in creative and fantastical ways. I aspire to tell stories of heroic triumph in the face of daunting adversity. That is what I believe the quintessential characteristic of humankind to be. We, as people, face battles and struggles and trials in our lives that push us to our breaking points. Some of those battles become floods that wipe us out. We're left scarred, damaged, sometimes cynical and resentful. Yet, I believe every single one of us has the capacity to recover. Like the Phoenix, we have the capacity to renew and rise from the ashes of complete and utter destruction. We have the power to orient ourselves towards the highest good, to transform ourselves into our greatest ideal through determination, perseverance, and resilience. These are the characteristics of the heroes in the stories I will tell in my writing. I also intend to explore the complexity of what it is to be a hero. I don't believe the definition of being a hero is someone who always walks the line and does the right thing to the point of a fault. While characters such as those represent the ideal hero, heroes - even in legends - are men and women with their own faults and flaws, oppression and resentment, trials and circumstances that set their course. They make mistakes, they can lose their way as easily as anyone, the line they walk between good and evil can become blurred. The foremost question I aim to answer by way of the different heroes I will write about is simply this: what is it that makes a hero? Is it someone who stays true to their convictions through thick and thin? Is it someone who discovers what their principles are through trial and error? Is it someone who makes a hard choice and bares the consequences of that choice? Those who read my books will go on that very same journey of exploration with me, in this world where anything is possible.