Xirca: Episode One: The Mountain - Tapa blanda

Deep within the Langerhorne Mountains on the continually dark side of planet Xirca, a cave-dwelling civilization carries on their daily routines. They are unaware that life beyond the cave entrance exists and are forced to serve a ruler who keeps them there for his own purposes. When a fifteen-year old boy is framed for the murder of his best friend, he is forced to leave the safety of his cave-home to venture into the uninhabitable snow-covered mountains. Armed with a sword, a hunter's specialized gliding cloak, knee-slides, and the ability to glide through the air, Brody takes on the unknown. Eventually, he is led by a pair of strangers to a nearby community where he contemplates his situation. When he is ready to rally troops and return to the mountain to set things right with the evil dictator that he once served, events don't exactly unfold as expected. While developing and executing his plan, he is involved with a professional sport competition, the flying mountain cats of the king's army, a motorized six-wheeled sandscooter, and a colorful character who may hold the answer to his problem. On a planet where creatures and cultures are different than ours, love and loss, loyalty and betrayal, are still powerful motivators.

Beth Woods is a public high school geometry teacher with an interest in travel. She has led groups of teenagers to England, France, Italy and Egypt and enjoys watching her students learn about the world through experience. Her interest in foreign culture and her love for realistic fantasy inspired her to write her debut novel, Xirca. Beth lives in central Virginia with her husband Dale, daughter Lauri and son Kody.