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Synopsis

From the author of The Giant's Dance and Whitemantle also available from Book Bargains.

Legend Speaks of Arthur's Return...

Grey stones outcropped here and there along the trackway, and Will hung back as far as he dared, wondering if these old stones might not be the remains of giant's houses set beside the ancient road. Beyond the Vale there were said to be houses and castles built of stone, wondrous ruins that had lasted since the days of the First Men...

The Realm is poised for war. Its weak king - Hal, grandson of a usurper - is dominated by his beautiful wife and her lover. Against them stands Duke Richard of Ebor and his allies. The two sides are set on a bloody collision course...

Gwydion is watching over the Realm. He has walked the land since before the time of the druids, since before the Slavers came to subdue the people. Gwydion was here when Arthur rode to war: then they called him 'Merlyn'. But for his young apprentice, Willand, a fearsome lesson in the ways of men and power lies ahead.

The Realm is an England that is still magical. Legendary beasts still populate its by ways. It is a land criss-crossed by lines of power upon which standing stones have been set as a secret protection against invasion. But the power of the array was broken by Slavers who laid straight roads across the land, and built walled cities of shattered stone.

A thousand years havee passed since then and those roads and walls have fallen into decay. The dangerous stones are awakening, and their unruly influence is urging men to war. Unless Gwydion and Will can unearth them, the Realm will be plunged into chaos. But there are many enemies against them: men, monsters and a sorcerer as powerful as Gwydion himself.

JRR Tolkein spoke of making 'a mythology for England' in his creation of Middle-earth. In this magnificent story, Robert Carter draws upon England's mythic history and approaches the accomplishment of Tolkein's stated aim.

About the Author

Robert Carter was born exactly five hundred years after the first battle of the Wars of the Roses. He was brought up in the Midlands and later on the shores of the Irish Sea where his forebears hail from. He was variously educated in Britain, Australia and the United States, then worked for some years in the Middle East and remote parts of Africa. He travelled widely in the East, before joining the BBC in London in 1982. His interests have included astronomy, pole-arm fighting, canals, collecting armour, steam engines, composing music and enjoying the English countryside and he has always maintained a keen interest in history. Today he lives in a 'village' that only sounds rural - Shepherd's Bush.