THE EYE OF WINTER
TEARING THE DARKVEIL
BOOK ONE
Hopeful Dark Fantasy
Stop the heist. Save the world. Or die trying.
In a city of thieves and traitors, one reckless rogue is all that stands between hope and ruin.
Birger has survived Anthir’s frostbitten streets alongside his Robin-Hood-like guild of thieves. But when the rival gang's leader sets her sights on stealing a piece of a god, Birger is drawn into a desperate mission: not to steal it — but to stop the heist before it’s too late.
Invited into an uneasy alliance with a band of misfit spies, Birger must outwit his enemies, survive deadly encounters, face treacherous magic, and wrestle with the ghosts of his past. Yet as dangers close in, the greatest threat may be the one inside himself: the fear that he’ll never be the hero others believe he could be.
The Eye of Winter is a hopeful dark fantasy adventure perfect for fans of Mistborn, The Blacktongue Thief, and Critical Role — featuring a reverse heist, political conspiracies, found family, and a spark of light in even the darkest times.
What to Expect:
🛡️ A daring reverse heist
🧭 Found family and a creature companion
⚔️ Battles, betrayal, and ancient magic
🎲 Dungeons & Dragons campaign feel
🌘 Hopeful heart in a dark world
❤️No Spice
WHO IS
JAQUES SMIT EPIC FANTAST AUTHOR
In 2009, in the thick of a difficult period in my life, I started a book. It was inspired by the pen-and-paper role-playing game world that I created. But soon I ran into a roadblock. Though I love storytelling, due to difficulties with ADHD I was not very well read, which affected my work.
I went on to travel the world as a game designer, got married and had a son. Then I discovered coaching and Positive Psychology. What a wonderful gift, I thought, enabling others to excel! So, I dedicated myself to learning all about it and, through it, I refined my purpose. But it also brought me something unexpected.
I was a creative for most of my career, and now I spent all my time enabling others to create. I missed being a creator myself. What’s more, I was working so hard I was getting drained. I needed to find balance.
Through it all, I never gave up on my book. I continued to read, research, write and play. After all, you get better at what you focus on. And if there’s one thing ADHD is great for, it gives you hyper focus!
When I thought of that first amateurish attempt, I knew I could do better. I’m not saying I’m great now. You begin to decline when you think you are. I strive to consider myself a forever beginner because embracing this mindset opens up my thinking.
I sat down to rewrite the story and wanted two things. First, a setting worth playing in. I prepared the maps, so that one day, players could walk in the streets of Anthir and hoping that the Magpies’ Code might live in another Game Master’s world.
Second, I wanted to bring into the book my personal vision of creating a world where every person feels valued, purposeful and empowered. I laced my story with concepts from Positive Psychology, hoping to galvanize a Positive Fantasy movement.
Back on the topic of fantasy, allow me a moment to share the story of a seven-legged jumping spider who made its home in my hallway. It was a hardy soul, hanging around for weeks, becoming something of a family pet. My young son Liam and I named it Bob. Since my son was a fan of my writing, I decided Bob should be in the book.
Bob would later be renamed Snow as he took shape in the pages, but this little bit of inspiration became a defining factor in how my magic system came to life and evolved – giving birth to the ecology of the Weave and all its unique features.
Creating this book has been a long journey. At times draining, but most of the time it was life-affirming.
I chat to Monica about the journey that led me to write The Eye of Winter.
Review Tails published an article about The Eye of Winter – More than a Hero’s Journey by Jaques Smit
The generous Anthony W. Eichenlaub wrote a review on The Eye of Winter!