The novel is largely set in and near the town of Dillsborough, in the fictional Rufford County. The two principal subplots center on the courtship behavior of two young women. The heroine, Mary Masters, is the daughter of an attorney, and has been raised as a gentlewoman. Her stepmother is from a lower social order; believing it best for Mary, she pressures her strongly to accept a proposal from Lawrence Twentyman, a prosperous young yeoman farmer with aspirations to gentility. While Mary respects Twentyman for his excellent qualities, she feels that she cannot love him as a wife should a husband. She admires Reginald Morton, whose cousin is the squire of Bragton and thus one of the two major landowners of Rufford County. Reginald admires Mary as well; but for most of the novel, each is ignorant of the other''s feelings: Mary, as a gentlewoman, cannot take the initiative in such a matter; and Reginald, misinformed that Mary loves another, is unwilling to make an offer and have it rejected. The anti-heroine of the novel is Arabella Trefoil. Her father is cousin to the Duke of Mayfair; her mother was a banker''s daughter. Her parents are unofficially separated, and living in straitened circumstances. Arabella and her mother, Lady Augustus Trefoil, have no fixed abode; they wander from place to place, visiting people who cannot refuse them without creating social awkwardness. At Lady Augustus''s direction, Arabella has spent many years struggling to secure a rich husband who will give her and her mother high social standing, an assured income, and a house of their own. She has lately become provisionally engaged to John Morton, the squire of Bragton and a rising figure in the Foreign Office. He would be an adequate but not outstanding husband by her standards; and when the opportunity presents itself, she attempts to entrap the wealthy and titled young Lord Rufford, concealing these attempts from Morton so that she can accept his proposal should they fail. John Morton falls ill and dies. Arabella, who is not altogether wicked, visits him at his deathbed despite the fact that this will assist Lord Rufford in escaping her toils. After Morton''s death, she accepts an offer of marriage from Mounser Green, a Foreign Office clerk who is taking Morton''s place as ambassador-designate to Patagonia. Like Morton, Green is not a brilliant match for her, but an acceptable one. John Morton''s death makes Reginald Morton the squire of Bragton; at this point, when Mary Masters fears that he has moved too far above her in status, he confesses his love to her. A proposal ensues and is eagerly accepted. The American senator of the title is Elias Gotobed, who sits in the U.S. Senate for the fictional state of Mikewa. The guest of John Morton, Senator Gotobed is trying to learn about England and the English. Through his often-tactless remarks in conversation, through his letters to a friend in America, and through a lecture in London titled "The Irrationality of Englishmen", he comments on British justice and government, the Church of England, the custom of primogeniture, and other aspects of English life.

The American Senator

The novel starts with a short and mysterious prologue, Frontkjemperen (The eastern front volunteer), allegedly written in 1947. The narrator talks about "I", "he" who got eight years, "his father" who committed suicide, and "her" who "I" have not spoken with since 1945. Even though this is the fate of strangers, "I" will organise some personal notes. The first part of the book is written immediately after this, still in 1947. It talks about the time before 1943 when "I" wrote the second part of the book. He talks about the house that he has bought after lengthy negotiations with the master builder. He lost his family early during the occupation, and he was also imprisoned for a couple of weeks. By the resistance he was called "The spotless one", a nickname he quite appreciated. The leader of the resistance decided that his house was suitable for hiding people who needed to go into hiding. One day in 1943 a man named Indregaard came to the house. The spotless one knew of him already. Indregaard was depressed and needed to talk about his problems with The spotless one. The conversation soon got to a common acquaintance, Hans Berg, who was a Nazi. Indregaard thought that because of what happened in their youth he was responsible for Hans Berg''s Nazism. The spotless one now starts writing about Hans Berg in order to find out why some people turn to Nazism. This part, which is written in 1943, starts with an analysis of Hans Berg''s childhood and youth. The spotless one fails at his analysis. He then tries to analyse others of his fellow students who became Nazis, amongst them Carl Heidenreich, simply and superficially. Again he fails. It becomes evident that it is his own past he wants to analyse. He describes his childhood, his father, his time as a student in Kristiania, and his first erotic experiences. After a couple of brief relationships he meets "Kari". He stops mid-sentence as he reveals that "Kari" fell pregnant. The third part is written in Sweden in 1944. The spotless one had to flee after an assignment in the southern part of the country. He was assigned with tracing an informant in a small town. The informant turned out to be his own son by "Kari". She was married to Carl Heidenreich, and her real name was Maria. The spotless one let himself get captured by the Nazis, and was interrogated by Heidenreich. After the torture, or redemption, he experienced a ''vision'' where he saw it all. He was rescued by Kari/Maria. He realised during the escape that he was responsible for the downfall of his family. The final part of the novel is written in 1947. The spotless one visited Maria when he came back to Norway. He was told that Carl Heidenreich had committed suicide, and that his son, Karsten, had been arrested. Finally he describes fragments of his ''vision''. no:Møte ved milepelen

Meeting at the Milestone

Angels and mortals, who need one another but have a love-hate relation, inhabit the land of Samaria. The angels have wings and fly, and are taller and stronger than humans. Legends state that angels were made by Jovah to oversee Samaria under the guidance of the Archangel. The angels are supposed to protect humans, answer their petitions, solve their problems, and intercede to god for them by petitioning the god Jovah through song, especially for rain when the crops need it and the sun when it is stormy. In addition, the angels must sing to Jovah at the annual Gloria held on the Plain of Sharon, otherwise god would destroy the world. The Archangel and his consort, the Angelica, lead this mass in praise of Jovah. Archangels do not serve for life, but every twenty years Jovah selects a new Archangel. Samaria is divided into three regions, Gaza, Bethel and Jordana, separated by rivers. Each region has an angel hold or fortress that acts as the governing center for the region. However, god destroyed that of Jordana, at Windy Point. The citizens of Gaza, the Manadavvi, are highly cultured and wealthy. The Jansai, who are calculating and greedy merchants, and run the Edori slave trade inhabit Jordana. The Edori are the wanderers and frequently become enslaved by the Jansai. The Oracle has declared that the angel Gabriel is to be the next Archangel. However, Raphael, the current Archangel, who is corrupt and uses his position for himself, does not want to step down. Gabriel has an additional problem in that he procrastinated getting married. He tracks down the mortal that god has selected be his wife, but she has her own thoughts about the marriage and the expectations of her as the archangel’s consort, the Angelica. Rachel, an Edori slave, dislikes angels because of what they had done to her family when she was younger. Gabriel is faced with many trials having to contend with Raphael on the one hand, and his reluctant wife, who is a constant thorn-in-the-side. But the trials and tribulations confronting Gabriel and Rachel brings them close together and they finally realize that they love each other. The story ends with Gabriel and Rachael singing together at the Gloria, thus satisfying the wishes of god. * Archangel (Samaria book 1) (Ace Books, 1997) * Jovah''s Angel (Samaria book 2) (Ace Books, 1998) * The Alleluia Files (Samaria book 3) (Ace Books, 1999) * Angelica (Samaria book 4) (Ace Books, 2003) Set before the first book Archangel. * Angel-Seeker (Samaria book 5) (Ace Books, 2004)

Archangel

The story starts before the birth of Alexander at Pella, when her mother Queen Olympias dreams of a snake slithering inside her bed and thrusting its seed inside her; when she recounts her dream to the priests of the Oracle of Dodona, they tell her that her child shall be the offspring of Zeus and a man, just like his hero Achilles. During his childhood, Alexander and his friends Hephaestion, Ptolemy, Seleucus, Leonnatus, Lysimachus, Craterus, Perdiccas and Philotas, are firstly educated by Leonidas. He teaches them the values of courage and pride, but also magnanimity; this would prove very important to Alexander during his campaigns. When Alexander is 13 years old, his father decides to send him (and his friends with him) to Mieza, a nearby town, for him to be tutored by Aristotle. The great philosopher teaches Alexander and his friends all the latest notions of science, philosophy and literature. Leptine, a girl that Alexander himself had saved from slavery, also joins the boys in Mieza; she will also stay very close to Alexander until his death. When back into his hometown Pella, Alexander manages to tame a wild war horse at his first attempt. He calls his horse Bucephalus and he grows very fond of him. So much so that the two share an almost human friendship. Finally, Alexander is old enough to go to war with his father''s army in Cheronea, where they are victorious. Alexander greatly admires his father and his military achievements. He is also very close to his sister, Cleopatra, and to his mother. However, when Philip marries Eurydice Alexander grows harsher towards his father but much closer to his mother, jealous and unhappy about the polygamy of Philip. Things go out of hand during the banquet of the wedding, when Alexander, after Attalus offends his mother Olympias, insults Attalus and his father and is obliged to leave the palace, taking refuge to his uncle''s palace. Thanks to the help of Eumenes, the court secretary, he becomes reconciled with his father and comes back to the Royal Palace just in time for Cleopatra''s marriage. However, Philip is murdered during the ceremony, which causes great sorrow to the young prince. The sorrow is then replaced by the anger towards the murderer and the desire to catch the responsible. He then decidedly steps up to the throne. Many people are not convinced by the new King Alexander, however, mostly due to its young age and lack of experience. Shortly after Alexander becomes king, Eurydice''s children and Attalus are killed and Eurydice herself takes her own life shortly after due to the unbearable sorrow. Alexander immediately decides to undertake a campaign in Greece and Asia to affirm Macedonia''s position amongst the Pan-Hellenic League and expand its frontiers, just like his father wished to do when alive. His expedition first leads them to Thessaly and his army, now featuring many of his boyhood friends but still a few veterans from Philip''s army, records the first of a long sequence of victories.

Child of a Dream

The story begins with a pretty young heiress and her uncle seated outside their summer home on Spanish Cape, escaping the guests at her parents'' house party. Suddenly a one-eyed giant bursts onto the scene and kidnaps them, misidentifying the uncle as John Marco, a house guest. The giant removes them both, ties the heiress to a chair in an empty neighbouring home, and disappears with the uncle. Ellery Queen and a friend arrive at the neighbouring home in the morning and release the heiress, but by the time they can return her to her home, Marco has been found on the terrace, strangled, and nude except for an enveloping opera cape. The house party and the household contain many people who had good reason to want the victim out of the way, some because he was blackmailing them. As Ellery is investigating the crime, another household member commits suicide out of sheer desperation at the potential revelation of a dread secret. By the time the uncle escapes his captor and swims to shore, Ellery is ready to reveal the identity of the murderer and the reason for the victim''s nudity in a dramatic final scene.

The Spanish Cape Mystery

Myra Breckinridge, the transsexual who terrorized Hollywood with dildo-rape and lesbianism, has transformed back into her former self, the literally and figuratively castrated Myron. One night, while watching the movie "Siren of Babylon" on the late show, he/she is transported to the set of the 1948 film through the television. It''s Myra''s dream come true, and Myron''s nightmare. As Myron tries to adapt to life inside an endlessly repeating B-movie, Myra slowly starts creeping her way back into Myron''s head, making a connection with a gay member of the community to obtain dresses and wigs. Her lapses back into Myron''s personality are strongly encouraged by a character slyly based on Norman Mailer (though at one point he drunkenly hits on Myra), while most of the others on the set seem to prefer Myra to Myron. She attempts to castrate a crew member, then tries to castrate herself and partially succeeds in acquiring silicone implants. While Myron desperately searches for a way off the set (running into Richard Nixon along the way, who is considering taking up residence in "Siren of Babylon" in order to escape the Watergate hearings), Myra wants to stay permanently. Eventually, Myra/Myron trades places with Maria Montez, the star of the film. Myra is ecstatic and Myron disappears entirely from the narrative for a time. But when Montez, inhabited by Myra, coincidentally meets the 1948 Myron (who at this point is a child, possessed by the soul of a perplexed Maria Montez) their respective personalities are restored to their original bodies, returning Myron at once to his living room in 1970''s California. However, the changes wrought by Myra''s running amok on the set of "Siren of Babylon" continue to influence the present, and the book ends with a former cowboy actor in the film, now a transsexual, being elected Republican governor of Arizona.

Myron

Eva''s narration takes the form of letters written after the massacre to her presumably estranged husband, Franklin Plaskett. In these letters, she details her relationship with her husband well before and leading up to their son''s conception, followed by the events of Kevin''s life up to the school massacre, and her thoughts concerning their relationship. She also admits to a number of events that she tried to keep secret, such as when she lashed out and broke Kevin''s arm in a sudden fit of rage. The novel also shows Eva visiting Kevin in prison. These scenes portray their cold, adversarial relationship. Kevin''s behavior throughout the book closely resembles that of a sociopath, although reference to this condition is sparse and left mostly up to the reader''s imagination. He displays little to no affection or moral responsibility towards his family or community; indeed, Kevin seems to regard everyone with contempt and hatred, and reserves special loathing for his mother, whom he has antagonized for as long as he can remember. He engages in many acts of petty sabotage from an early age, from seemingly innocent actions like spraying ink with a squirt gun on a room his mother has painstakingly wallpapered in rare maps, to possibly encouraging a girl to gouge her eczema-affected skin. The one activity he takes any pleasure in is archery, which his father introduces him to. As Kevin''s behavior worsens, Franklin becomes evermore defensive of him, convinced that his son is a healthy, normal boy and that there is a reasonable explanation for everything he does. Kevin plays the part of a loving, respectful son whenever Franklin is around, an act that Eva sees through. This creates a rift between Eva and Franklin that never really heals; shortly before the massacre, Franklin asks for a divorce. Kevin''s sister Celia is conceived largely because of Eva''s need to bond with another member of her family. When Celia is six years old, she is involved in a household "accident" in which drain cleaner causes her to lose an eye. This is closely linked to an earlier incident involving Celia''s pet elephant shrew, during which Eva uses Liquid Plumr, a caustic drain cleaner, to clear a blockage in the children''s sink. Two explanations are possible: that Eva left the cleaner sitting within Celia''s reach, or that Kevin somehow attacked Celia with it, destroying her eye and scarring her face. Though never proven, Eva strongly believes that Kevin, who was babysitting at the time, poured the Liquid Plumr onto his sister''s face, telling her he was cleaning her eye after she got something in it. When relating the story of the massacre, Eva finally reveals that Franklin and Celia are in fact dead—Kevin killed them both with his bow and arrow set before using these weapons to attack his school. Eva speculates that he did this because he overheard her and Franklin discussing a divorce; he believed Franklin would get custody of him, thus denying him final victory over his mother. The novel ends on the second "anniversary" of the massacre, three days before Kevin will turn 18 and be transferred to Sing Sing. Subdued and frightened, he makes a peace offering of sorts to Eva by giving her Celia''s prosthetic eye to bury, and telling her that he''s sorry. Eva asks Kevin for the first time why he committed the murders, and Kevin replies that he is no longer sure. They embrace, and Eva resolves that she still loves her son.

We Need to Talk About Kevin

The story involves a new ice age hitting Europe, British refugees fleeing to Nigeria, and what a later group find when they return. As the story opens, Andrew Leedon, a London-based television documentary producer, is given a new story to research: an Italian scientist, Fratellini, has proposed an imminent fall in solar radiation for the forthcoming few years which may lead to harsher winters. Leedon meets with David Cartwell, a Home Office civil servant and useful source, to see if he can find out more. Cartwell quickly becomes a close friend of Leedon, but also begins an affair with Leedon''s wife, Carol. The winter of that year is, as predicted, long and harsh, but by January is it becoming clear to insiders that the solar downturn is worse than Fratellini had calculated and no upturn is in sight. By March, food stocks are becoming dangerously low, rationing has been imposed and the Government imposes martial law. Those in the know, including Andrew''s estranged wife, sell up and move south to the tropics and countries such as Nigeria. Leedon stays behind, as inner London is finally cordoned off from the rest of the UK to protect the seat of power – an area called the London Pale – as the rest of the country is abandoned to starvation and barbarism. Finally Leedon is persuaded both by Carol and by David Cartwell to exit the country while safe passage is still possible. Taking with him Cartwell''s wife Madeleine, he moves to Lagos in Nigeria, finding that the tables have now turned – white refugees fleeing from the ice-bound northern countries are living in slums, unemployed or with only menial jobs, and penniless, as African governments have withdrawn recognition of currencies such as Sterling and no longer recognize the British Government, with reason, as it no longer exercises sovereignty over its own land. A ray of hope arrives for Leedon as Abonitu, a young Nigerian whom Leedon had treated with kindness and generosity one evening in London, finds him and in turn helps him and Madeleine out of the slum. Abonitu plans a reconnaissance expedition back to Britain.

The World in Winter

Geophysicist Gordon Graham is a participant in the Gamanovia Project, whose mission is to increase the land area of the overpopulated twenty-second century Earth by creating new continents through the manipulation of geological forces. The project''s initial goal is to raise a new land mass to be called Gamanovia around the existing Ascension Island in the South Atlantic. The name of the proposed new continent was chosen to honor fifteenth century Portuguese navigator Vasco da Gama, the first European to navigate the region''s waters, and for João da Nova, who discovered Ascension Island a few years later. A sinister group concealing itself under the mask of the bogus Churchillian Society, supposedly dedicated to proving that the works of twentieth-century dramatist George Bernard Shaw were actually written by Winston Churchill, is attempting to discover the secrets of the project. The Churchillian Society''s "cover" purpose is a spoof on the present-day body of thought similarly dismissing William Shakespeare''s authorship of the Shakespeare plays on the grounds that he, as a commoner, could not possibly have written great literature. When Graham becomes involved with Jeru-Bhetiru, an alien woman from the country of Katai-Jhogorai on the planet Krishna, the society attempts to blackmail him into serving them by kidnapping and threatening to kill her. Instead, Graham allies himself with World Federation constable Reinhold Sklar and Jeru''s fiance Varnipaz bad-Savarun, a diplomat from the Krishnan kingdom of Sotaspe, to thwart the plotters. The enemy is gradually revealed as a rogue band of Thothians from the Procyonic star system, hoping to seize the new continent by claiming Ascension, which currently lacks any sovereign government. Graham and his cohorts find themselves in a tight race against time, in which the labyrinthine bureaucracies of the future Earth prove almost as much an impediment as the enemy, and the hypnotic powers of the reptilian alien Osirians bring about treachery within their own ranks. An added problem for Graham is that the rescue of Jeru will gain nothing for him personally, but rather benefit only his rival Varnipaz; though Graham and Jeru love each other, people in her country wed on the basis of interest and advantage, considering love to have nothing to do with marriage.

The Continent Makers

Richard Collier is a 36-year-old screenwriter who has been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor and has decided, after a coin flip, to spend his last days hanging around the Hotel del Coronado. Most of the novel represents a private journal he is continually updating throughout the story. He becomes obsessed with the photograph of a famous stage actress, Elise McKenna, who performed at the hotel in the 1890s. Through research, he learns that she never married, that she had an overprotective manager named William Fawcett Robinson, and that she seemed to have had a brief affair with a mysterious man while staying at this hotel in 1896. The more Richard learns, the more he becomes convinced that it is his destiny to travel back in time and become that mysterious man. Through research (see below), he develops a method of time travel that involves using his mind to transport himself into the past. After much struggle, he succeeds. At first, he experiences feelings of disorientation and constantly worries that he''ll be drawn back to the present, but soon the feelings dissipate. He is unsure what to say to Elise when he finally does meet her, but to his surprise she immediately asks, "Is it you?" (She later explains that two psychics told her she would meet a mysterious man at that exact time and place.) Without telling her where (or, rather, when) he comes from, he pursues a relationship with her, while struggling to adapt himself to the conventions of the time. Inexplicably, his daily headaches are gone, and he believes that his memory of having come from the future will ultimately disappear. But Robinson, who assumes that Richard is simply after Elise''s wealth, hires two men to abduct Richard and leave him in a shed while Elise departs on a train. Richard manages to escape and make his way back to the hotel, where he finds that Elise never left. They go to a hotel room and passionately make love. In the middle of the night, Richard leaves the room and bumps into Robinson. After a brief physical struggle, Richard quickly runs back into the room, and he casually picks a coin out of his pocket. Realizing too late that it is a 1970s coin, the sight of it pushes him back to the present. At the end of the book, we find out that Richard died soon after. A doctor claims that the time-traveling experience occurred only in Richard''s mind, the desperate fantasy of a dying man, but Richard''s brother, who has chosen to publish the journal, is not completely convinced.

Somewhere in Time

The plot revolves around two major drug dealing gangs in the turf war surrounding the collapse of KMG (Keith Moore''s Gang) (See CHERUB: Class A). Gabrielle O''Brien and Michael Hendry are sent to infiltrate the infamous ''Slasher Boys'', led by a man who calls himself Major Dee. Later on Gabrielle is stabbed badly in the stomach and back and is sent back to campus. Michael Hendry still stays. In the first part of the book it describes how James Adams15 years old, and his new girlfriend Dana 16 years old, are helping on the last few days of Basic Training as instructors. While there Mr Kazkov is accidentally knocked out when a kid Kevin throws a smoke canister at him. The seven trainees, realising it will be ages before Mr Pike and Dana get to the tents, attack James, his arms and legs are tied together, and the Kids get food and drink. Dana finds James tied up and gagged with a rag crammed into his mouth much later. Although Mr Pike says he would get in trouble if all the trainees were failed, he agrees they should be punished. James says the two ringleaders were Kevin and Ronan, they are dragged out of their tents and forced to stand to attention holding rifles until dawn, which will be in hours. James feels upset about punishing them, but Kazkov says ''A soldier is only as tough as the person who trains them.'' After Gabrielle O''Brien''s serious injury the Ethics Committee was thinking of calling off the mission but they decided that they would wait and see. Norman Large tries to blackmail Lauren so he can be a teacher at CHERUB again. Kyle, James, Kerry, Lauren and Bruce play a trick on Mr Large''s adopted daughter, Hayley Large-Brooks, by getting James to go on a date with her. During the date, Hayley and James play footsie and Hayley get up and signals James to go with her. They cut through a play area and go out the emergancy exit, where Hayley throws herself at him, and they start to kiss, with James'' hand on her breasts and Hayley''s hands down his trousers. They counter-blackmail Mr. Large with these but they get caught and punished, especially Lauren. Before James leaves for his next mission they have a leaving party for Kyle who is going on a gap year and later going to study Law at Cambridge. James Adams and his friend Bruce Norris are sent to infiltrate the group known as the Mad Dogs. James uses his past relationship with Junior Moore to make infiltrating the gang easier. He is soon accepted into the gang and given a major role. An older gang member, Wheels, takes him on a hotel robbery, where they bind and gag the two room occupants, take several grand out of their bank account, and steal their car. However, James being given a high role annoys Junior, who Sasha Thompson, the Mad Dogs leader, is trying to protect. Junior then gets busted for an armed robbery and is sentenced for 6 years. He contemplated suicide when he was caught, but a policeman calmed him. Meanwhile, Sasha plans a great drug robbery on Major Dee. They get into an apartment where some gangmembers are by pretending the people need to fill in a form. They then taser the Woman who opens the door, before capturing nearly all the people inside with the use of handcuffs and rubber gags. James decides to help a young boy found inside who is not treated well, and one of the cocaine dealers is freed so he can continue dealing and avoid suspicion. However the gang have to leave not long after. James, though reluctant, loses his virginity to Sasha''s daughter Lois, who suddenly meets him when he is having a bath. James tells his girlfriend Dana and Dana, although hurt, forgives him. Afterwards, James, Bruce and Michael successfully complete their mission and Bruce earns a black shirt. Mid- way in the book all the fellow members of CHERUB visit a memorial place for all the cherubs that lost their lives, there were only 4 members so far.

CHERUB: Mad Dogs

The Gift (also published as The Naming) begins with Maerad, in "Gilman''s Cot" as a slave, where she has been for many years, with few memories of her former life, her mother having died several years before. She is discovered by Cadvan, one of the great mystics known as ''Bards'', who reveals to her that she, like him, possesses "the Gift" shared by all of these, by which she is able to command nature to do her will. Cadvan soon discovers that her mother was the leader of the First Circle of the destroyed School of Pellinor, of whom it was previously assumed that there were no survivors. Knowing this, Cadvan decides to help her escape, believing that it might not be by means of random chance that he came upon the only known survivor of Pellinor. When Cadvan finds that Maerad''s Gift is unusually powerful for one never formally taught, he begins to suspect of her more significance than he had before. He takes her to the School of Innail, to make the presence of a survivor from Pellinor known and to make Maerad a Minor Bard of Pellinor. During their time there, Maerad obtains knowledge of a long-forgotten prophecy concerning the ''Foretold One'' who will defeat the Nameless One. This Nameless One is a corrupt political leader, formerly called Sharma, who discarded his own true name in order to become immortal. Twice has he attempted to conquer the land of Edil-Amarandh, and he has twice been vanquished. His last bid for power is the one in which the Foretold One, Elednor, will defeat him, leaving him dead or helpless forever. Maerad''s own history, being coincident with that of the Foretold One, implies that she is Elednor, although Maerad does not immediately embrace the idea. After their brief but enjoyed stay at Innail, Cadvan takes Maerad across the country of Annar to the school] of Norloch, intending to have her instated as a full Bard and given her Name, and also to see his old teacher Nelac. En route, they discover that the Nameless One''s corrupt Bards, the Hulls, are roaming freely, so that non-users of magic are terrified and terrorized; that Maerad is descended on her mother Milana''s side from Lady Ardina, a faerie creature, in the book called an Elidhu, who still lives in the forest as monarch of a Lothlórien-like settlement; and that Maerad has a younger brother, called Hem or Cai, who like her is an inheritor of the Gift. When Maerad and Cadvan, who has become her tutor, reach Norloch, they discover that corruption has penetrated even here, in that the First Bard Enkir has fallen under Sharma''s influence. He is revealed as the one who had Pellinor destroyed and who sold Maerad into slavery. Largely as a result of this, and partly on account of his own misogyny, Enkir refuses to admit that Maerad is the Foretold One, or even to let her be instated as a Bard. Therefore, Cadvan and Nelac invoke an archaic ritual called the Way of the White Flame, by which Maerad is anointed a full Bard. Her Name, at this point, is revealed to be that of the Foretold One; Elednor, which means "Fire Lily". Driven out by their enemy''s hostility, Cadvan and Maerad flee to the island of Thorold, while Hem is sent southward for safety with Saliman, one of Cadvan''s childhood friend who was also taught by Nelac.

Over 8000 Takeaways For Your Brain!

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The American Senator

By Anthony Trollope

Meeting at the Milestone

By Sigurd Hoel

Archangel

By Sharon Shinn

Child of a Dream

By Valerio Massimo Manfredi

The Spanish Cape Mystery

By Frederic Dannay

Myron

By Gore Vidal

We Need to Talk About Kevin

By Lionel Shriver

The World in Winter

By Samuel Youd

The Continent Makers

By L. Sprague de Camp

Somewhere in Time

By Richard Matheson

CHERUB: Mad Dogs

By Robert Muchamore

The Gift

By Alison Croggon