All the world’s a stage...or is all the stage a world?

For millennia, The Director has commanded thirty-six terracotta actors, each bound to a nation whose events follow its movements. But when he directs the actor representing Daiset to hurl a claybomb at another nation, the actor cracks mid-direction, cutting his command short for the first time in history.

In the nation of Daiset, fifteen-year-old potter Jopay has no idea she caused the stall. She persuaded the nation’s supreme leader to pause construction of the ULTRA-MASSIVE CLAYBOMB, a weapon whose launch could provoke a retaliatory attack, buying herself one month to stage a play that might change his mind. Now she and Barrett, her deep-voiced, monologuing capybara friend, must assemble the most unqualified troupe of weirdos ever to mount a production.

Meanwhile, The Director enters Daiset himself, moving among its mortals to discover why his actor stopped and how to continue the unfinished direction. As Jopay races toward performance night, his investigation draws closer to the mortal intervention that disrupted his command.

Can their ridiculous play change the nation’s supreme leader’s mind before The Director discovers what Jopay has done and sets Daiset moving again?

The Terracotta Play is an whimsical, absurdist adult fantasy with strong YA crossover appeal, for readers who love the gleeful magical absurdity of Diana Wynne Jones’s Howl’s Moving Castle, the teenage artisan heroine of T. Kingfisher’s A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking, and the theatrical satire of Terry Pratchett’s Maskerade.

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Story by: Irvin Embalsado (irvinembalsado.com)

Cover Design and Illustration by: Jack Hillside (jackhillside.com)

Interior Artwork by: Akmal Maulana (fiverr.com/dooholigan)

Author Bio

Irvin Embalsado is a queer Filipino fantasy author, a member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), and a registered author with the Philippines’ National Book Development Board (NBDB).

A board-certified chemist and theater enthusiast, he discovered his love of storytelling through writing short stories and poetry in his youth, earning several school writing awards along the way. He later brought that passion to the stage, performing lead roles in several university theater productions before pursuing a career in laboratory and corporate work.

While pursuing his MBA in the Netherlands, he found time to read more widely and rekindled his passion for writing. His return to fiction began with his debut fantasy novel, A Particular Boy Among Air Particles. The novel has since become available through major retailers globally, including Barnes & Noble and Walmart.

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Ebook Price: 4.99 USD
Paperback Price: 17.99 USD