Dreams and Shadows

A must-read title for all fans of Patrick Rothfuss and Trudi Canavan, FIRE is an exceptional fantasy novel. From the deft characterisation to the gripping story, the fast-paced action to the evocative prose, this is one of the strongest fantasy novels of the year. Set in a world of stunningly beautiful, exceptionally dangerous monsters, Fire is one of the most dangerous monsters of all - a human one. Marked out by her vivid red hair, she's more than attractive. Fire is mesmerising.But with this extraordinary beauty comes influence and power. People who are susceptible to her appeal will do anything for her attention, and for her affection. They will turn away from their families, their work, and their duties for her. They will forget their responsibilities to please her . . . and worse, crush nations, neglect kingdoms and abuse their power.Aware of her power, and afraid of it, Fire lives in a corner of the world away from people, and away from temptation. Until the day comes when she is needed - a day when, for her king, she has to take a stand not only against his enemies, but also against herself . . .

Dun-Cadal has been drinking his life away for years. Betrayed by his friends - who turned their back on their ideals in favour of a new republic - and grief stricken at the loss of his apprentice, who saved his life on the battlefield and whom he trained as a knight in exchange, he's done with politics, with adventure, and with people. But people aren't finished with him - not yet. Viola is a young historian looking for the last Emperor's sword, and her search not only brings her to Dun-Cadal, it's also going to embroil them both in a series of assassinations. Because Dun-Cadal's turncoat friends are being murdered, one by one...by someone who kills in the unmistakable style of an Imperial assassin...

One day in September a virulent plague spread throughout the world, killing billions in one day. Even now the full horror of the plague is just beginning, for the dead are not just dead . . .One small group of survivors is imprisoned in an underground base, trapped between the door to the outside world and the sealed entrance to the airtight cocoon where hundreds of soldiers sit and wait for rescue.On the surface the crowd of bodies is growing in size every day, drawn there by the heat and the noise of the people hiding underground beneath their rotting feet. The sheer mass of decaying flesh above begins to cause problems for the military when vents become blocked, but a mission to clear the dead starts a vicious battle between the living and the dead. And there are far more of the dead . . .

Forty days have passed since the end of the world began. Billions of people were killed in less than half a day and now the entire world is rotting. Everything is disintegrating . . .Survivors are few and far between in this deadly environment, and those who are still alive are forced to deal with a nightmare situation: the scale of the devastation is unprecedented. The shadowy landscape is swarming with the dead, their decaying bodies deteriorating day by day. Limited by their appalling physical condition, the only emotions they are able to display are anger, rage and hate and yet, remarkably, they are becoming more controlled. They are becoming self-aware, and they will defend themselves at all costs.A group of eleven men and woman have managed to survive against the odds, protected by the geography of the land and sheltering in a derelict block of flats. They have been surrounded for weeks, but they have always been in control.Until now. For the bodies are advancing. The situation is changing.

The world has suffered a catastrophe of unknown cause, dividing humankind into two: the Haters and the Unchanged. Each group believes the other to be the enemy; each group is fighting for survival. Only by working together can the enemy - whoever that enemy is - be defeated. There are no other choices. Danny McCoyne has managed to break free, and after days of indiscriminate fighting and killing, he is determined to make his way home, to recalim the only thing of any value to him in this strange new world: his daughter Ellis. Unlike his wife and son, Ellis is like him, and he knows, in his heart of hearts, that she is not dead. His dearest wish is for Ellis to be fighting for the world at his side - but Danny soon discovers his daughter is worth far more than just another fighting body. Others like him have discovered that children are absolutely vital to the cause. They are strong, small, fast, and they have no inhibitions. They are pure Haters . . .

SONGS OF THE EARTH is the most compelling debut fantasy novel since Patrick Rothfuss first hit the shelves four years ago, with the stunning THE NAME OF THE WIND. Combining superb characterisation with an epic story, it is beautifully told and engaging from the very first word.Gair is under a death sentence. He can hear music - music with power - and in the Holy City that means only one thing: he's a witch, and he's going to be burnt at the stake. Even if he could escape, the Church Knights and their witchfinder would be hot on his heels while his burgeoning power threatesn to tear him apart from within.There is no hope . . . none, but a secretive order, themselves persecuted almost to destruction. If Gair can escape, if he can master his own growing, dangerous abilities, if he can find the Guardians of the Veil, then maybe he will be safe. Or maybe he'll discover that his fight has only just begun.