MCW Books

A Sky Full of Fire

By September 30, 2026No Comments

Sarah Ell’s latest book, A Sky Full of Fire, is set in Rotorua district, 1886. Englishman Cyprian Marsh has been despatched to the colonies in pursuit of his wayward halfbrother. The only clue is the beautiful but mysterious Alice Bright, who has led him from the whorehouses of Melbourne to Te Wairoa, a tourist village near the Pink and White Terraces, in the shadow of Mount Tarawera.

As the earth sends signs of impending doom, local Maori boy Mohi falls under the spell of the peculiar Reverend Lucius Steele. Torn between the beliefs of his people and Steele’s apocalyptic prophecies, Mohi chooses to pursue vengeance when his friend is terribly wronged.

A Sky Full of Fire

by Sarah Ell

Bateman Books

ISBN: 9781776891856

Published: October, 2026

Format: Paperback/Hardcover, 256 pages

Sarah Ell

Sarah Ell was born and raised on Auckland's North Shore in a conservation-minded family, and has always had a close relationship with nature and the outdoors. Sarah trained as a newspaper journalist before working in magazines and book publishing, and has a Bachelor of Arts in New Zealand history from Massey University and a Master of Creative Writing from the University of Auckland. She is the author of 10 books, several of them for young people, including Sirocco, the Rock Star Kakapo (2012). She still lives on the North Shore with her husband, yacht designer Rob Shaw, and their two children.