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Saving Shannon A Dying Town, A Falling Star, A Closely Guarded Secret - a new novel from Sam Hawksmoor Hammer & Tong – KDP ISBN: 978-1-7385181-3-5 Published July 2026 When a huge meteor slams into the mountain near Bryce, the ridge is transformed into a hellscape of steam and fire. The locals, ageing ex-miners in a dying town, are cut off from communications with the outside and gripped by rumors that it was an alien spaceship that crashed to earth. People are vanishing and alien activity is suspected. Then the army arrives and intend to round everyone up for 'tests'. Why? What is going in this small forgotten town... ' 'A gripping science-fiction thriller packed with mysery, suspense, heart and unforgettable characters.' Amazon UK Print and Ebook for USA go to Amazon.com

Chapter One: The Sky Breaks

“Silver... Silveeeer,” she called out again and again.  “Where are you, Silver?”

Shannon stood against the blizzard and tried to listen as the wind whipped through the trees. Snow blinded her, filled her throat. She’s never seen the forest so wild and so cold. She’d come out without her winter coat, wearing just a scarf and her beanie that were already clogged with ice and snow.  She knew she needed to turn back before she lost her bearings. Rationally she knew Silver would go to ground – curl up somewhere safe, his bushy tail to keep him warm. Foxes were great survivors. She knew all that, but she loved him, nursed him back to health when he’d been abandoned as a cub.  She just wanted to know he was safe.

She turned around, suddenly unsure which way was home. She’d grown up in this forest, knew every inch of it, but the blizzard obliterated all the markers, and every white birch tree looked the same. “Silver!” she called out again. She mocked herself with the thought that only a total idiot would look for a white fox in a blizzard.

She spotted a red daubing on a tree – the kill mark of the clear cutters. Her stepfather and the other residents on the mountain had gained a legal block on them destroying the forest and it had held so far, but it didn’t stop them planning to get in and start killing the trees if they won on appeal. Suddenly, more confident she was heading in the right direction, she tacked left and headed up towards home, any earlier footprints already erased by the wind. 

She was growing aware that the forest sounded different in the blizzard – or rather it was the absence of the normal sound of trees creaking that was strange to her ears. She tried to remember when it had last snowed this hard but couldn’t recall it ever being this bad. She stumbled on some buried tree roots, grabbed a branch to steady herself as her mouth filled with snow.  She felt the air changing around her, she turned her head and for one brief nano second saw a brilliant flash in the sky followed by a massive sonic boom as something huge plummeted towards the mountain.

The blast flung Shannon several feet into the air, and she landed hard into a snowdrift, winding herself as she landed awkwardly. She let escape a loud groan of pain as everything changed around her as the temperature instantly rose.  Trees exploded into flames, the snow drift around her melted, she screamed as she tried to escape swirling steaming water, grabbing a tree branch, hauling herself up above the churning flood under her. She briefly thought of Silver, there was no way he’d survive this if he was buried underground. She began to scream with pain, her legs were scalded, her hands too, but she had to cling on stay above the water. She looked up and suddenly realized whole rows of trees were on fire and falling. Hot rain began to cascade down upon her as snow melted on the tree branches above. She didn’t know how much longer she could hang there; the steam was making her choke. She glimpsed a small deer struggling to swim, making horrible desperate sounds of distress in its doomed attempt to survive.

The tree suddenly lurched sideways as its roots lost their hold. Her legs dipped into the steaming water. She screamed.

A white Ford Bronco 4WD SUV barrelled through the snowstorm on a narrowing highway littered with abandoned vehicles. It was dazzlingly bright with two lanes squeezed to just one, banked on one side by drifting snow. Mika Sanderson couldn’t see much more than a few feet in front of him. The radio was full of static. He had no signal on his phone, and it would be nightfall by five. He abruptly had to swerve, narrowly missing an abandoned truck then turning the wheel again to avoid yet another vehicle. He skidded to a stop; his heart having skipped several beats.  He had to calm himself a moment as he assessed the situation, taking a couple of deep breaths to regain his composure.

The road was beginning to freeze; the blizzard was relentless. It wasn’t his choice to be on the road in this weather.  Getting to Bryce by air was impossible and he’d been the nearest available company claims adjuster with experience of natural disasters. And this was a big one. Never had to investigate a meteor fall before, certainly not one that had caused so much damage. The company would be looking to him to minimize their liabilities. He wasn’t going to be popular that was for sure.

Mika got out of his vehicle into the biting cold, the falling snow immediately plastering his face and sliding down his neck. There was a whole group of vehicles here, some with hazards on, but all of them were empty. He tried to peer into the distance to see if people were standing at the side of the road for safety; but couldn’t see anything or anyone.

Everyone knew the rules, if you wanted to survive the cold you stayed with the vehicle, too big a risk to walk out into the snow. Why would a trucker abandon his warm cab? He stared ahead and figured out a way to get around the vehicles. No one seemed to have thought to park up on one side of the road. He was confused, if he could drive in these conditions, how come they all gave up?  Made no sense.

He got back into his vehicle and set off again, squeezing between a couple of SUV’s. His tires were losing grip despite engaging 4WD, spinning on the ice until he lurched forward again. He saw a flash of red to one side and thought he saw someone wave, but he couldn’t take his eyes off the road. A few moments later he passed an empty school bus, it’s hazards still flashing. Where the hell had everyone gone?

He lost count of how many abandoned vehicles there were, but it gradually thinned out. It was a mystery to him as to why they had been abandoned at one particular place on the highway and wondered if there was a truck stop near there that the locals knew about. That had to be it. They’d all gone there to be safe. The tow trucks would make a killing when the storm passed.

Forty minutes later, an exhausted Mika finally arrived at the small former mining town called Bryce. A Welcome sign read - pop 575 (with 9,507 crudely crossed out). ‘Do Not Feed the Bears’. He hoped the bears were hibernating as he began to look for his hotel, not too hard given that there seemed to be only two main streets...

Finally, he pulled up in front of a much-neglected brick-built early 20th Century Hotel Coppertown and wearily headed inside carrying his small overnight bag.

The hotel lobby was a relief from the cold, warmed by a log fire in desperate need of attention. Mika noted a long copper-topped bar to his left filled with gloomy old miners perched precariously on the bar stools. The reception desk was unmanned but eventually a flustered young woman sauntered over from behind the bar to the desk, she seemed surprised he had arrived.
“Sanderson, I left a message on your answer machine.”
The woman shrugged. “No message, phones are down, power’s out, we only just got the generator on. Didn’t think anyone could get through. No one else has. But no problem. We’ve got a lot of empty rooms right now.”

Mika ran his hands through his hair and rubbed his sore neck, he was still in driving mode. The young woman looked to be around 20 or so, slim, attractive but with messy brown hair. She wore no make-up and looked harassed.
“Took me longer than I thought. Lots of abandoned vehicles out there. Just before I left the radio was warning of six inches of snow, but it was way more, I think. You got a place to eat here?”
“Diners through the door at the end of the bar. Open till 10 but sometimes closes early. No guests right now, just locals. My tip; don’t eat the special. Oh, it’s cash only at the moment as nothing’s working. You can run up a tab as you’re a guest.”
“You were expecting many guests?”
“Sure. I guess. Meteor hunters, TV crews, you name it. Like I said, you’re the first.”
“Well, that’s the weird thing. All those abandoned vehicles back there are empty and facing south like they were fleeing Bryce.”
The young woman shrugged. “Most people are just hunkered down after that thing exploded. Didn’t hear anything about people fleeing. Can’t be locals, everyone here knows that highway is lethal in a blizzard.”
“Hmm, I suppose there’s a simple explanation. I’m looking for a Gavin Rudd? He was supposed to meet me here.”
The girl rolled her eyes. “Good luck with that, he’s been drinking in the bar since about ten this morning.”
Mika frowned. “Make him some strong coffee. I’ll just go up to my room and I’ll be down in fifteen, ok? Erm, what’s your name?”
“Lola.”
Mika smiled. “Lola, make him two coffees. I need him sober. And thanks, I guess you do everything around here.”
She handed him a key. “Yep. Luckily, I can’t cook for shit, or they’d have me do that too. Room’s cold. Furnace is broke. Like everything else in this town.”
Mika groaned. “I was looking forward to a hot shower.”
“Sorry. Might get fixed today, probably not. Next floor. Room 30. Don’t use the elevator.”
Mika took the key and headed to the stairs with a resigned expression. Upstairs Mika looked at his room in despair. Faded curling wallpaper, a cramped bathroom and two single beds with a view of a rusty fire escape on the crumbling brick building opposite.

© Sam Hawksmoor July 2026 - Find Saving Shannon in print or kindle here now