I wrote this long epic tale from ideas originating when I was a teenager. I kept the idea alive all of these years waiting until I had time to devote to writing it in the manner in which it deserved. On the way I made a screenplay version, then tried to novelize it twice but failed for lack of identifying the best narrator. Such a grand project as this was supposed to occupy the remaining years of my life. Instead, filled with the Muse, I wrote it out in about six months.
I know the story backwards and forwards, who does what and when, and what the results are. I can stand back and see the entire stage in a single glance. I can craft a blurb that hints at the content of this vast stage play. But what is it about? Really about? Aside from the setting in a future America (c. 3000) where the states we know today have become kingdoms, who are these people? What do they do?
I see A TIME OF KINGS as really being four stories.
The first is about our narrator and how he comes into the story. A boy lost on a battlefield is adopted by the young King of Louis - and by extension also becomes a brother to Princess Cristianna and Prince Fridrick. The first part ends when our narrator, given the name Jack, goes with Cristianna when she elopes with the rugged prince of the Illini, Rodrick, who lives in New Cago - the rebuilt city beside the mounds of old Chicago - capital of the Realm of Chicageaux. (Don't get me started on the Quebecker insurgency!) Jack goes with them as a physician, trained in lieu of being eligible to be a prince. The year is 3000 - New Year's Eve.
The second story could be said to begin with the birth of the twin princes, Nicholas and Darius - although we are not sure who came out first - causing trouble later. They grow as boys will, along with two younger brothers (Argos and Ulris) and a sister (Lira), from rough and tumble antics to sword-fighting lessons, to standing in the Court to watch their father, King Roderick, hold his audiences. In time, daughters of the Minnesot chief come to New Cago and Evina and Jillian become enamored with Nicholas and Ulris. Young love and Courtly romance ensue. They become betrothed, planning to wed in the next year. However, events at Court disrupt those plans. In the disruption, Rodrick decides it is time to divide the Realm among the four sons to rule their own provinces - and keep them away from each other. Lira will wed Duke Tristan and help rule his province.
Nicholas weds Jillian and Ulris weds Evina. All seems well with the Realm. Until evil arrives as the city of New Cago suffers destruction. The insult is personal for Nicholas. Thus begins the third story: the war. Nicholas and Argos know who is to blame: his twin brother Darius who reigns in Cinnati, the city where Jack trained as a physician. Nicholas insists on remaining civil and asks for reparations, yet Darius rebukes him. Finally Argos gets through to Nicholas that only war can settle his grief, and the army marches to Cinnati. Narrator Jack goes as the Chief Medical Officer for the army. The conflict draws in neighboring armies until the Realm is awash with troops. But the battlefield victories do not solve the problem of breaking into the walled city. In the aftermath of victory, a trial is set - trying to keep to Rodrick's system of laws.
The fourth story could be said to begin when the army returns to New Cago and our narrator, Chief Medical Officer Jack becomes a duke for his service. He gains a wife and has a child on the way. Returning to his duties as Royal physician, Jack finds himself engaged in treating the king's melancholy. The effort troubles Jack, but he takes joy in his growing family, wife and children making demands on him. The years turn over and one day someone from the past arrives. All seems to return to the years before the war, but the new arrival instead brings menace. Jack is brought into schemes by Court ministers and prepares for his own end. As the Realm suffers, Jack does what he can to keep matters in balance. Not until the arrival of another person from the past does everything come together.
An epilogue brings us back to the beginning of our story. Jack, reclaiming his rightful birth name of Frank Baumann (yes, of the family at the center of the FLU SEASON Saga), tells his tale to the grandchildren and great-grandchildren of the Court. It is a long and dedicated life he's lived, and he tells his kin to remember and tell the next generation all that has transpired in the Realm of Chicageaux up to that year of 3079.
A TIME OF KINGS is an old-fashion tale of Court life, the medieval battlefield, power and glory, schemes and vile ruses, what turns a man over and what the costs are for setting the world right. Although focused on the twin princes and their conflict, several women's roles are noteworthy: the queen herself, princesses, Court servants, city folk and even women warriors - for those who may wonder "What about the women?" As always, I have strived to create a full-fledged world on all classes and views, as complete as fifty years of rehearsal can bring to bear on a manuscript. I wish you a pleasant read and, if so moved, a review on Amazon or Goodreads or on your own site, would be gratefully appreciated.
BONUS UPDATE: Although I had scheduled the launch of A TIME OF KINGS for August 8, 2026, I inadvertently pushed the launch button early. Thus, the Kindle edition of the novel is now available. The print/paperback edition will still launch in August 8.
Next up: The sequel to A TIME OF KINGS follows the "cozy romantasy" misadventures of Baron Haron, a grandson of Jack now grown up and seeking a worthy wife. Haron meets Nelda, a washer woman in search of a fit husband! Available by the December holidays.
(C) Copyright 2010-2026 by Stephen M. Swartz. All Rights Reserved. No part of this blog, whether text or image, may be used without me giving you written permission, except for brief excerpts that are accompanied by a link to this entire blog.
Violators shall be written into novels as characters who are killed off. Serious violators shall be identified and dealt with according to the laws of the United States of America.
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