AustLit

Glimmer's mother Khatrene and her Guardian lover Talis struggle under the rule of Khatrene's White Twin brother King Mihale who has been compassionless and perverse since his revival from death on the Airworld of Atheyre. The only other remaining Guardian, Pagan, hopes to rekindle his betrothal to Lae, their new religious leader, but her grief at the loss of her son and her husband seems too great a barrier to cross.

On the Waterworld of Magoria (our earth) Vandal, the son Pagan left behind when duty called him back to Ennae, has turned into a young man, bitter at his father for abandoning him. When tragedy steals Vandal's future, his bitterness becomes deadly as he uses his own Guardian power to follow his father into Ennae to exact revenge, intent on destroying the one thing his father loves most.

Overshadowing all is the Maelstrom, inexorable, relentless, pouring elements from one world into another, causing destruction and death on an unprecedented scale. The cetaceans of Magoria and Cliffdwellers of Ennae have ascended to the Airworld of Atheyre, but those races who remain are in the deepest peril.

In the end, Glimmer must overcome her own selfish desires to follow her destiny, giving up everything she holds dear to fight the Serpent of Death and steal a future for the remnants of mankind'.

Source: author's website (www.louisecusack.com).

'The Fathomless Caves deals with the final confrontation with the Fairgean. Before his death, the blind prophet Jorge had foreseen the conjuring of a tidal wave by the sea-dwelling Fairgean, the people of Eileanan's bitterest enemies. Driven by ancient hatreds, the Fairgean have called upon dreadful powers to aid them in their quest to totally annihilate all those that dwell upon the land. As the time of the comet draws ever closer, Lachlan and Iseult try desperately to avert the terrible fate the seer had prophesied, testing their strength and love to the utmost. Meanwhile, Isabeau must travel a dark and dangerous road to fulfil her own destiny. On her journey she must prove herself worthy of both the scar of the Soul-Sage and the ring of the sorceress. Facing old enemies and new, the most difficult challenge of all will be conquering the ghosts of her past. For if Isabeau is to heal the land, she first must find the way to healing her own troubled spirit.'

Source: Author's website. www.kateforsyth.com.au (Sighted 15/4/10)

'This is the omnibus version of the Lay Lines Trilogy - The Knight by the Pool, The Lady of the Flowers, The Stone of Oakenfast. It follows the story of poet, the Lady Marie de France, and her strange, marvellous and terrifying adventures both in the human world and the Otherworld of enchantment. Marie must cope with political plots, werewolves, shapeshifters of all kinds, Otherworldly rulers of extraordinary powers, and most painful and ambiguous of all, the road to knowledge of her own heart, and passionate love. There is a mixture of real historical figures and fictional characters, magic and realism in the book which makes it a potent spell. Steeped in the atmosphere of the Middle Ages, rich and exciting, erotic and elegant, funny and scary, this is a book that readers seem to love very much, taking you on a journey long ago and far away.'

Source: Author's website users.nsw.chariot.net.au/~smasson/ (Sighted 21/4/10)

'Isabeau has remained in exile on the Spine of the World, for Lachlan has not forgiven her for saving Maya from death and giving the Ensorcellor back her daughter Bronwyn. Isabeau is unhappy that her actions should be so misunderstood, but gains some measure of peace getting to know her parents and spending each winter with the Khan'cohbans as the queen-dragon had commanded. The time comes when she must undertake her journey of initiation to the Skull of the World, where the cruel and enigmatic Gods of White will reveal her destiny to her. On this journey she will face many dangers but by overcoming them, will finally discover her true Talent. She is at last free to return to Lucescere and the Tower of Two Moons, where she plans to study to be a sorceress. Meanwhile, Iseult and Lachlan have been busy with the invasion of Tìrsoilleir. While they are away fighting the Bright Soldiers, Margrit the Thistle kidnaps their son Donncan, the heir to the throne, and her grandson, Iain's son Neil. There is no-one but Isabeau left in Lucescere to try and save them. Alone, she has to try and vanquish Margrit, the cruellest and most subtle sorceress in the land.'

Source: Author's website www.kateforsyth.com.au (Sighted 15/4/10)

'After her adventures with the League of the Healing Hand, Finn the Cat finds life at Castle Rurach boring. Snowbound for the winter and faced with the prospect of being molded into 'Lady Fionnghal' by her mother, she pines to be on the battlefront with her father against the sea demons...But Finn's talents are needed elsewhere. Summoned by the Righ, Lachlan the Winged, she must embark on a perilous journey to the Forbidden land to rescue a rebellious prophet whose words can free a land enshrouded in darkness.'

Source: back cover (Arrow).

'Lachlan the Winged now holds the Lodestar. He and Iseult have been crowned Righ and Banrigh of all Eileanan and the Far Islands, but dark times still lie ahead...As Iseult's twin, Isabeau, seeks her own destiny beneath the glittering eyes of the dragons, Lachlan is struck by a paralysing curse. And Iseult finds that she alone must lead the country through a terrible and bloody war.'

Source: back cover (Arrow).

'"Rumours in the countryside tell o' a prophecy - they say a winged man will come to save the land, bearing the lost lodestar in his hand. He shall come with the dragons at his shoulder and all the powers o' sorcery at his command."

Synopsis
As Eileanan nears its darkest hour, Meghan must gather rebel forces to move upon the city of Lucescere. There, the Rìgh lies near death and the Banrìgh, Maya the Ensorcellor and her babe stand to inherit his power. To end Maya's brutal reign and bring magic out of the shadows, what was broken must be brought together: Twin sisters who have never met ... three parts of an enchanted key ... and the winged man with the powers of the lost Lodestar.

"On the eclipse o' the two moons, all will be healed or broken, saved or surrendered ..."'

Source: Author's website. www.kateforsyth.com.au (Sighted 15/4/10)

'Isabeau the Foundling, discovered as a babe in the roots of a tree, is raised by an old wood witch in the shadow of Dragonclaw, mountain of the dragons. From Meghan of the Beasts, Isabeau learns herb-lore and the languages of animals, but dreams of the old days, when witches were the greatest power in the land. Before she was born, an evil sorceress cast a spell on the Rìgh, winning his love and turning him against the Coven. The great Witch Towers are now all abandoned ruins, magical creatures are hunted down and the Coven's ancient wisdom is lost. Only the Cripple, enigmatic leader of the rebels, fights to undermine the Banrìgh's power as her dark plans slowly come to fruition. Little does Isabeau know that she is to play a key role in the battle against the Ensorcellor, for she has a strange and mysterious destiny.

As Isabeau is initiated into the Coven on her sixteenth birthday, soldiers sent to hunt down dragons stumble across the clandestine ceremony, and her peaceful life is torn apart by blood and fire. Alone she must set out on a perilous quest that will bring her face to face with her own destiny. For Meghan must go and confront the dragons and, afraid she will never return, entrusts the sacred Key of the Coven to Isabeau, who must carry it to safety. Without the Key, the witches can never release the Lodestar, a sphere of great power that was locked away on the Day of Betrayal. Meanwhile, the sea-dwelling Fairgean stir, children vanish in the night, and the dragons - the most ancient and dangerous wisdom in the land - rise against the Ensorcellor.'

Source: Author's website kateforsyth.com.au (Sighted 14/04/2010)