Under the Storm

In the quiet English countryside of the mid‑seventeenth century, the Kenton family ekes out a humble life on a modest farm near the town of Bristol. Steadfast, a sturdy fourteen‑year‑old, tends his herd, roams the leafy ravines with his dog Toby, and steals moments of joy in a hidden cave that he and his sisters have claimed as their secret kingdom. Yet the peace of their daily chores is shadowed by loss— their mother has died, leaving the eldest sister Patience to shoulder the household while caring for a newborn brother.

The story opens as a lone figure in a black cassock appears at the edge of the boys’ sanctuary, a reminder that the larger wars tearing England apart are drawing ever nearer. As Steadfast watches the stranger, the reader senses the tension between the world of simple farm life and the looming threat of conflict. The novel invites listeners to feel the rhythm of rural life, the weight of responsibility, and the first stirrings of a larger drama about to unfold.