Forever Night is an illustrated fantasy novel-in-verse for young readers – filled with dragons, adventures, and spooky magic! Get to know the cast before diving into this new middle grade adventure!

Heroes

Caramath – The Unlikely Hero

One-line vibe: A quiet spark who never asked to be a hero—until darkness gave him no choice.

Bio: Caramath grew up in the soot and clang of the castle forge, his days filled with hammer strikes and horseshoes. Invisible to the nobles, underestimated by his peers, he dreamed of little more than surviving another day. But when shadows steal across the kingdom, the boy who once thought himself ordinary must rise—armed not with a sword, but with a stubborn heart that refuses to break. He doesn’t roar like a warrior; he whispers like a prayer, and sometimes that’s enough to shake the dark.

Strengths: 

• Courage that grows fiercer when tested
• Selflessness that makes him risk everything for others
• Quick thinking under pressure
• Unshakable loyalty to friends and truth

Flaws: Doubts himself, avoids conflict, can be nervous.

 Fun fact: Caramath once thought shoeing a horse was the peak of his life’s excitement. He couldn’t have imagined that one day, he’d be forging his own destiny instead of horseshoes.

Princess Branwen — The Brave Princess

One-line vibe: Not waiting to be rescued, but plotting the rescue herself.

Bio: Branwen might wear the crown, but she’s no damsel perched in a tower. Born into privilege yet restless in its confines, she has a mind like a whetstone—sharp, quick, and unwilling to be dulled. She doesn’t crave the throne’s glitter; she craves truth. 

Strengths:

• Strategic thinker who always sees three moves ahead
• Compassionate heart that values people over power
• Fierce loyalty, even to those the world dismisses

Flaws:

Sometimes feels helpless, impatience,  

Fun Fact:
She was braver than an entire army of knights in shining armour!

Villians

The Forest Keeper — Master of the Midnight Woods

One-line vibe: “Ancient, merciless, and hungry for your fear.”

Bio: Cloaked in eternal night, with eyes burning devil-red, the Forest Keeper rules the poisoned pines of the Forest Black. It delights in despair, cackling as it turns knights and horses into twisted trees. Every whisper, every shadow in the wood belongs to it. Yet for all its power, the Keeper’s strength feeds on one thing alone: belief. Stop believing, and its darkness begins to crumble.

Strengths:

• Ancient, spell-casting force of the forest
• Can twist the fearful into trees and shadows
• Thrives on terror, cunning, and despair

Flaws:

• Bound to the belief of others
• Vulnerable to sunlight and magic
• Arrogant enough to overlook hidden threats

Fun Fact:
The Forest Keeper is only as scary as you think it to be – your courage makes it weaker!

The Ferryman — Dealer in Deadly Games

One-line vibe: “Cross his waters, and you’ll pay more than a fare.”

Bio: The Ferryman rules the raging sea where the ghosts of lost sailors drift. With a grin like broken glass, he lures travellers aboard his creaking boat, offering safe passage—if they’ll play his game of “Truth or Dare.” Few survive his wicked bargains, for he’s less ferryman and more trickster, forever chasing what he cannot have: the Siren’s heart.

Strengths:

• Cunning trickster, skilled at deception
• Uses charm to mask cruelty
• Feeds on fear and false hope

Flaws:

• Blinded by obsession with the Siren
• Arrogant in his games, believing he always wins
• Despised even by the sea he rules

Fun Fact:
For centuries he searched for the Siren, whispering that if he could only touch her beauty, his curse would break. He was wrong.

Creatures

Traveller — The Dragon Who Chose Friendship

One-line vibe: “Hatched in fire and frost, bound forever by loyalty.”

Bio: From the moment his shimmering egg cracked open in Caramath’s hands, Traveller was no ordinary hatchling. Bigger than a horse yet gentle as a lamb, he nuzzled his new friend with a spark that would blaze into unbreakable loyalty. He carried villagers on his back through storm and snow, his wings straining against impossible weight, his breath blazing light into the night. Even when fear and injury threatened to ground him, Traveller never wavered. 

Strengths:

• Fierce loyalty and deep compassion
• Enormous strength and flight, even under heavy burden
• Flame-breath that can light the darkest paths

Flaws:

• Still young, untested, and sometimes underestimated
• Suffers an injured wing that makes him vulnerable
• Torn between his bond with Caramath and his mother’s call

Fun Fact:
Although to young to speak, Traveller can understand ever word Caramath says, and more, he understands the boy’s heart.

The Shadow-Snatchers — Thieves of the Midnight Sky

One-line vibe: “They don’t come for your life. They come for your shadow.”

Bio: Born from the blackest midnight, the Shadow-Snatchers descend with a coarse, unearthly cry that rattles the bravest heart. They sweep through villages in a blur, ripping shadows from their victims before anyone can scream. To face them is to face terror itself—spirits of cruel spite, impossible to fight, impossible to flee. 

Strengths:

• Merciless predators of shadow and spirit
• Strike in an instant, leaving devastation behind
• Inspire overwhelming dread wherever they appear

Flaws:

• Fear the Forest Black’s deeper darkness
• Can be repelled with enchanted defences

Fun Fact:
Their coming is always heralded by a sky “as black as a raven’s wing” — a warning few survive to tell.