The Dawn Chorus: A Bone Season novella (The Bone Season)

by Samantha Shannon

He played like a storm in the shape of a man.

‘Listen to the storm,’ he said. ‘It has the potential to destroy. It is neither quiet, nor gentle, nor soft. That does not make it unnatural.’ Lightning illuminated his features, the flash of blue making his orange eyes stand out. ‘Let the storm into you, Paige. Hold it inside. See yourself as a force of nature, vast enough to defeat a god, and carry that image for all of your days.’

‘I can never fully understand what was done to you. Only you know that,’ he said. ‘But I know what it is to believe oneself broken, Paige. To feel the chains even in liberty.’

‘I am looking at you, Paige Mahoney. I see a warrior who sacrificed herself to a brutal enemy for a better world. And despite all the wrong that was done to her, all the pain and humiliation she endured, she did not speak one word to betray the revolution. She did not condemn her friends. And yet, as always, she is blind to her own courage.’