Coming first from Continuing Press

The Cloaked
Savior

The scales lie. The ledgers agree. And in Hearthollow, that makes injustice law.

Front cover for The Cloaked Saviour by Guus KooijFirst-edition cover

In Hearthollow, Lord Draeven does not need to rule by chaos. His books are neat, his orders lawful and his scales only slightly wrong. That is enough to keep a valley hungry, indebted and afraid.

Cricket has spent seventeen years learning how to notice what everyone else has learned not to see. The masked Wanderer has spent even longer acting before anyone can stop them. When their paths cross over stolen grain, each recognises something useful in the other.

But a rebellion built around one impossible figure carries its own danger. The more Hearthollow believes someone will always come to save it, the more carefully it learns to wait.

As Draeven tightens the arithmetic and the cost of resistance rises, Cricket and the Wanderer must build something harder than a legend: a way for ordinary people to act, argue, remember and hold power to account even when no hero arrives.

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01

Masked rebellion

A folk hero is useful. Depending on one is dangerous.

02

Practical resistance

Ledgers, signals, supply lines and choices matter as much as blades.

03

Community agency

The real question is what people can build together after the hero leaves.

04

Consequences that stay

Injuries, grief and political choices do not reset when a scene ends.

90 second reader quiz

What would you protect in Hearthollow?

No spoilers. No email gate. Just eight uncomfortable choices and the role you would probably end up playing when the rules stop being fair.

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Written by Guus Kooij.

The Cloaked Saviour was written entirely by me. AI did not write the book or any part of the manuscript.

I use AI tools, primarily ChatGPT by OpenAI, as part of the editorial process much like an additional reviewer: to look for contradictions and continuity issues, flag unclear passages, examine pacing and structure, identify possible errors, and provide feedback on drafts. I decide what, if anything, should change. The writing, creative decisions and final voice are mine.

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