Jon Cronshaw's Blog, page 7

To Grip the Bright White Chains (A Dystopian Tale of Desperation and Hope)

In this episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw invites us into a bleak near-future where hope seems all but extinguished.

“To Grip the Bright White Chains” follows Elsie, an elderly woman navigating a harsh world of addiction, poverty, and environmental decay. When we first meet her, she appears to be engaging in a dubious transaction with a desperate young addict. But as Cronshaw gradually reveals Elsie’s true intentions, we discover her quiet act of resistance against the desolation surrounding her.

Themes & Topics

• Finding hope in dystopian circumstances

• The importance of creating safe spaces

• Memory and nostalgia as motivating forces

• The power of simple pleasures

• Intergenerational connection

• Environmental deterioration

• The cycle of addiction

Listener Discretion

This episode contains references to drug addiction and child poverty that some listeners may find affecting.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that finds light in the darkest of futures. His stories often focus on characters who maintain their humanity and compassion despite overwhelming societal collapse, offering glimmers of hope in otherwise bleak landscapes.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit ⁠patreon.com/joncronshawauthor⁠ to learn more.

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Host (A Dark Post-Apocalyptic Body Horror)

In this chilling episode of Speculative Fiction Tales, Jon Cronshaw delivers a nightmarish glimpse into a post-apocalyptic world where human reproduction has been fundamentally altered by plague.

“Host” follows an unnamed narrator confined to dark tunnels, their body transformed into an incubator for the children of surviving humans. Neither male nor female, the host has become something “other”—revered yet feared, necessary yet loathed.

In just a few paragraphs, Cronshaw creates a deeply unsettling vision of reproductive horror where the boundaries between human and other have collapsed, raising profound questions about bodily autonomy, reproductive rights, and what constitutes personhood in the aftermath of catastrophe.

Themes & Topics

• Body horror and reproductive nightmare

• Post-apocalyptic adaptation and survival

• Dehumanization and objectification

• The thin line between reverence and revulsion

• Reproductive enslavement and bodily autonomy

• The cycle of othering and violence

Listener Discretion

This episode contains disturbing imagery related to body horror, forced reproduction, and infanticide that some listeners may find deeply unsettling.

About the Author

Jon Cronshaw crafts speculative fiction that examines bodily autonomy and social hierarchies through visceral, often disturbing imagery. His flash fiction often condenses complex ethical questions into brief but powerful narratives that linger in the mind.

Support the Show

If you enjoyed this story, please consider supporting Jon Cronshaw by becoming a patron. Your support helps bring these stories to life and gives you early access to audio stories plus exclusive text versions of every episode. Visit ⁠patreon.com/joncronshawauthor⁠ to learn more.

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🐉 Double Launch Week & A Passion Project Grows | Author Diary – April 18, 2025 📚✨

It’s been a big week!

I launched two new books:
Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne, Book 2)
Blade of Sorrows (Guild of Assassins, Book 3)

On top of that, I’ve started work on Book 4 of Ravenglass Legends.

I’ve made the decision to expand this into a seven-book series, with this fourth instalment serving as a mid-point in the larger story.

While it’s not my bestselling work, Ravenglass Legends remains my passion project—a world and cast of characters I care deeply about.

I’m writing it for the love of the story and hope readers will join me for the journey ahead.

follow jon on YouTube.

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Blade of Sorrows is Here – And Guild of Assassins is Just 99p/99c!

I’m thrilled to announce that Book 3 in the Guild of Assassins series, Blade of Sorrows, is out now!

If you’ve been following Soren’s journey, you’ll know this marks a major turning point in his transformation from sculptor’s apprentice to a weapon of the Guild.

This one goes darker, deeper, and bloodier.

What to Expect from Blade of Sorrows

Soren survived the Guild’s brutal initiation, but apprenticeship is something else entirely.

He’s now expected to master the craft of death—not just physically, but emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually.

The boy who once held a chisel now holds a blade that cuts both ways.

But the past hasn’t let him go.

The truth behind his father’s murder still haunts him.

And the Guild’s shadow stretches further than he ever imagined.

Expect:

Vicious training and deadly missionsTwisted loyalties and rivalriesMore insight into the Guild’s reach and secretsA protagonist who’s walking the line between hunter and hunted

It’s a story of transformation, vengeance, and the cost of survival.

Blade of Sorrows is available now.

Get your copy HERE..

New to the Series? Perfect Timing.

To celebrate the release, Book 1 – Guild of Assassins – is on Kindle Countdown for just 99c/99p for a limited time.

This is where it all begins.

A young artist witnesses his father’s murder and ends up inducted into the most feared organisation in the world—the Guild of Assassins.

Trained in poison, stealth, and the art of death, he’s forced to become the very thing he despises—all while searching for the truth behind the betrayal that shattered his life.

If you enjoy:

Dark, character-driven fantasyMoral ambiguity and impossible choicesTension, action, and political shadowsStories where no one gets out clean…

…then this series might be for you.

Guild of Assassins – just 99c/99p for a short time.

Get your copy HERE.

Thanks so much to everyone who’s read, reviewed, and supported this series. It means a lot.

And if you’re just joining us, welcome to the shadows.

Things only get darker from here.

Jon

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Is The Fall of Wolfsbane Your Next Epic Fantasy Read? A Story of Conquest and Resistance

The Fall of Wolfsbane is the first book in my epic fantasy series, Ravenglass Legends.

It is a story about war, empire, and survival. It is a story about identity and resistance in a world shaped by conquest.

I wanted to write a fantasy novel that didn’t shy away from the complexity of empire.

This isn’t a simple tale of good versus evil. It’s a story about people caught in impossible situations.It’s about the cost of survival and the price of power.

The novel follows two main characters.

Ragnar Wolfsbane is a warrior and heir to the northern territory of Meerand.

His world is destroyed when the expansionist Ostreich Empire conquers his homeland.

He watches his father executed. He is taken hostage. He is forced to live among the people who murdered his family and renamed his home.

Ragnar is a character shaped by loss and rage. But he is also a character who learns to adapt.

He forms alliances. He learns the language of the Empire. He survives by understanding his enemies.

Maja Wolfsbane, Ragnar’s younger sister, is taken to the imperial capital and is forced into the role of a court project, paraded as proof that the Empire civilises its captives.But Maja has her own quiet resistance.

She learns their ways while never forgetting her own. She uses their lessons against them. She plots her escape in secret.

I wanted the dual narrative to show two sides of the same war.

One sibling survives within the Empire. The other fights to break free from it.

The world of The Fall of Wolfsbane is shaped by politics, power, and cultural conflict. It’s a world where ancient magic exists but comes at a cost.

Magic in my story is tied to blood, memory, and sacrifice.

Ravenglass is a rare black mineral that can be forged into weapons.

These weapons aren’t just tools—they are bound to the person who creates them.

To forge a ravenglass weapon, blood must be spilled, tears must be shed.

I wanted magic to feel dangerous. I wanted it to feel personal.

At its heart, The Fall of Wolfsbane is about identity.

It’s about what we cling to when everything else is taken. It’s about how we change when we are forced to survive in hostile worlds.

The story is gritty and violent at times, but I never wanted it to feel nihilistic.

There is honour in resistance.

There is courage in survival.

Ragnar and Maja both carry the spirit of their lost home, even as they are shaped by the Empire.

They are both forced to make impossible choices.

Sometimes they win. Sometimes they lose. But they endure.

I wrote The Fall of Wolfsbane for readers who enjoy complex worlds and morally grey characters, for readers who want their fantasy to feel real, grounded, and emotionally honest.

If you enjoy stories about empire, rebellion, and the quiet strength of those who resist, I think you’ll find something here for you.

This is a story about conquest. This is a story about resistance. This is a story about magic that hurts and heals in equal measure.

This is The Fall of Wolfsbane. And this is only the beginning…

Start reading today.

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Out now: Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne: Part Two)

The next instalment of The Ravenglass Throne is here!

As ravenglass corruption threatens to tear the Kingdom apart, the three royal sisters must confront enemies within and beyond. With wyvern bonds failing and trust fraying, the stakes have never been higher.

Irmin hunts for traitors among the ranks. Adelinde fights to protect the kingdom’s magical core. Elana faces growing danger in the political court of Molotok.

But the deeper they go, the more they realise: the true rot lies closer to home…

Wyvern’s Shadow is available now in ebook format.
This gripping high fantasy serial continues with magic, betrayal, and sisterhood under pressure.

Grab your copy today and continue the journey. Visit: books2read.com/wyvernsshadow.

Missed book one?

Get your FREE copy at joncronshaw.com/shatteredkingdom.

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📚 Podcast Launch, Book Releases & A New Steampunk Adventure | Author Diary – April 11, 2025 ⚙️🐉

This week has been all about juggling projects and getting things ready for some exciting releases.

I’ve been busy preparing my short stories for a new podcast—Speculative Fiction Tales. You can find it on your favourite podcast app or over on my YouTube channel.

I’m also gearing up for the launch of two books next week:
Wyvern’s Shadow (The Ravenglass Throne Book 2)
Blade of Sorrows (Guild of Assassins Book 3)

On top of that, I’ve started work on a new side project—a steampunk adventure novel featuring Lord Sidebottom.

I’ve written several shorts with this character over the years, and I’m excited to finally have a novel concept that I’m really pleased with.

Lots happening—and plenty more to come!

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The Perfect Daughter – A Speculative Fiction Short Story

What if artificial intelligence could handle the emotional labour of family relationships?

The Perfect Daughter is a speculative fiction short story that explores the intersection of technology, memory, and connection. In a near-future setting, a successful professional uses an AI app to manage phone calls with her mother. As the calls become increasingly intimate, she realises she’s not the only one outsourcing her emotions.

This story blends psychological drama with soft science fiction, examining the cost of convenience and the nature of authenticity in an age of digital optimisation.

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New Sci-Fi Podcast Explores the Dark Side of Digital Convenience

In a world run by screens and algorithms, Speculative Fiction Tales dares to ask what we’ve already given up.

Jon Cronshaw’s new audio fiction podcast doesn’t look to the far future—it holds up a cracked mirror to the present.

Launching this month on all major podcast platforms, the series delivers unnerving stories where human connection and digital convenience clash.

The opening episode, The Perfect Daughter, paints a near-future where family bonds become another item on the optimisation checklist.

Ellie, a high-flying consultant, finds VoiceEase—an AI service that mimics her voice and personality.

What begins as a shortcut to dodge her mum’s guilt-trips soon spirals into something far darker.

Without knowing it, both women leave their AI doubles to handle the emotional labour—while the real versions grow distant, automated, and eerily hollow.

This first episode sets the tone: sharp, emotionally rich stories about the hidden costs of technological ease.

In Infinite Scroll, Cronshaw imagines a digital afterlife with no peace—just an eternal feed.

A teenager, stuck in a social media loop, can’t even remember his own death.

It’s relentless, calculated engagement—purgatory disguised as entertainment.

Then there’s The Gibson Continuum, a more playful but equally unsettling tale.

Here, a content creator begins seeing ghosts of digital culture past, flickering into his augmented reality feed.

It’s nostalgia turned parasite, feeding on relevance and memory.

What sets Speculative Fiction Tales apart is its quiet horror.

No killer robots. No world-ending AI.

Just the creeping dread that we’ve already let too much slip.

Find Speculative Fiction Tales wherever you listen to podcasts.

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Forged in Blood is Here – Enter the Guild of Assassins

The wait is over!

Forged in Blood is now available on Kindle, Kindle Unlimited, and paperback.

Welcome to Welttor, where assassins are trained, loyalty is a liability, and the only way forward is through blood.

Soren never sought out the life of an assassin. He was a sculptor’s apprentice—until the night his father was murdered.

Now, he and his closest friend, Alaric, have joined the secretive Assassins’ Guild, training under Raz, the very man responsible for his father’s death.

Their brutal education will push them to their limits, demanding mastery of combat, stealth, and deception.

But survival in the Guild is not guaranteed.

As their training intensifies, the line between ally and rival begins to blur.

Their final test will determine who deserves a place among the Guild’s ranks—and who will be left behind.

If you enjoy dark fantasy, morally complex characters, and the brutal path from apprentice to assassin, Forged in Blood belongs on your shelf.

No romance. No mercy. Just a blade between you and the next step forward.
Perfect for fans of Scott Lynch, Joe Abercrombie, and Brent Weeks.
Read now on Kindle or Kindle Unlimited.

Sharpen your blade. The Guild awaits.

get your copy.

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