Feast of Souls: Book One of the Magister Trilogy

A new trilogy of epic adventure from one of the finest writers in modern fantasy C.S. Friedman, acclaimed author of The Coldfire Trilogy, returns to the epic style which has made her one of the most popular fantasy writers in the genre. In this first book of the trilogy, Friedman introduces readers to a world of high fantasy, replete with vampire-like magical powers, erotic interludes, treachery, war, sorcery, and a draconic creature of horrific power and evil that will have readers eagerly awaiting the next novel in the series. Publishers Weekly In this imaginative, deftly plotted fantasy from Friedman (The Wilding), the first of a new trilogy, a female witch's magic comes at a terrible cost: her own finite life force, which drains away with each spell. Nearly immortal male Magisters, on the other hand, tap a more murderous fuel for their power. No woman has ever found its source, until young Kamala, hardened by life as a child whore, insists on an apprenticeship and secretly becomes an unheard-of female Magister. Meanwhile, Prince Andovan, third son of the avaricious King Danton, is expiring from the baffling Wasting disease, which can only be caused by a Magister. When the enraged king banishes his right-hand Magister, the mysterious and sinister Kostas takes his place, much to the dismay of Andovan's benevolent mother, Queen Gwenofar. As the kingdom threatens to spiral toward a dark age, Kamala and Andovan find their fates entwined. Readers will eagerly await the next installment. (Jan.) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information. "At the end of her Coldfire trilogy, C.S. Friedman challenged readers to imagine what a world would be like if sorcery required the ultimate sacrifice ... that of life itself. Now, in Feast of Souls, she introduces us to a terrifying world in which the cost of magic is just that: in which the fuel for sorcery is the very fire of the human spirit, and those who hunger for magical power must pay for it with their lives. In this tale of nightmarish shadows and desperate hope, the greatest threat of all may not be that of ancient enemies returned, or ancient wars resumed, but of the darkness that lies within the hearts of men." "In the court of High King Danton Aurelius, young Prince Andovan lies dying of a mysterious malady known only as the Wasting. Determined to save his son from this incurable disease, the High King summons a council of Magisters to aid him. These solitary, seemingly immortal sorcerers rarely combine forces for any purpose, but in this one case they are willing to unite. For there is a fearsome secret the Magisters guard above all else - the nature of the transformation that sets them apart from all other sorcerers, allowing them to draw on the power of a human soul without dying for it - a secret that might be exposed if the High King learns too much about his son's illness. For the dread disease called the Wasting is in fact a sign that a Magister is stealing the young man's soulfire to fuel his sorcery, and that is a truth that must be hidden from the mortal world at any cost." "Now the Magisters must hunt down one of their own before the High King learns the truth, and find a way to sever the link between Andovan and his killer. But they have not counted on the young prince's determination to control his own fate, nor on the existence of a young woman, schooled in their own arts, who will soon shake their secretive society to its very roots." "Sold into prostitution by her peasant mother while she was still a child, Kamala has learned the hardest lessons life can teach. Her mane of wild red hair and her diamond-hard eyes reflect the wellspring of strength and defiance within her - a hunger to live by her own rules at any cost. Honed by cruelty and poverty, she has become a fierce creature, and with the help of one reclusive Magister may well become the first of her sex to master true sorcery. But at what cost to herself, and to her world?" "Against a backdrop of glittering kingdoms and dark prophecies these two young people will be forced to confront their destinies ... while in the shadows of their world an ancient Evil is stirring for the first time in centuries, seeking allies in a cause more terrible than any living man can imagine."--Jacket. From Publishers Weekly In this imaginative, deftly plotted fantasy from Friedman (_The Wilding_), the first of a new trilogy, a female witch's magic comes at a terrible cost: her own finite life force, which drains away with each spell. Nearly immortal male Magisters, on the other hand, tap a more murderous fuel for their power. No woman has ever found its source, until young Kamala, hardened by life as a child whore, insists on an apprenticeship and secretly becomes an unheard-of female Magister. Meanwhile, Prince Andovan, third son of the avaricious King Danton, is expiring from the baffling Wasting disease, which can only be caused by a Magister. When the enraged king banishes his right-hand Magister, the mysterious and sinister Kostas takes his place, much to the dismay of Andovan's benevolent mother, Queen Gwenofar. As the kingdom threatens to spiral toward a dark age, Kamala and Andovan find their fates entwined. Readers will eagerly await the next installment. (Jan.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From For the Magister Trilogy, Friedman conjures a world in which the price of using magic is the death of either the magician or a consort on whose life force he feeds. Ordinary witches usually die young. But magisters--all male, for it is believed that women cannot make the transition from witch to magister--are practically immortal, taking consort after consort and using them up. Prince Andovan, son of a powerful king, has fallen ill with a wasting disease. When his father consults the magisters, they realize that an unknown magister has taken the prince for a consort. They won't say so, however, for that would put their lives and power at risk. But Magister Colivar helps the prince fake a suicide to track down his unknown exploiter. King Danton, driven nearly mad by his son's "death," falls victim to a souleater, which is worse than a magister. Magisters are parasitic; souleaters can destroy the world. Powerful, intricate plotting and gripping characters distinguish a book in which ethical dilemmas are essential and engrossing. Frieda Murray Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved Magic,Princes,Fantasy fiction,General,Fiction,Fantasy,Wizards,Epic "Against a backdrop of glittering kingdoms and dark prophecies, a rogue magister and a dying prince fight for their lives. Magisters from across the known world are gathering for an unusual meeting. King Aurelius has summoned them to heal his dying son, who has fallen victim to an incurable wasting disease. The King has demanded an explanation and a cure, yet appearances are deceptive. It's clear to the initiated that a magister is responsible - so the order remains quiet and organizes a manhunt to silence the culprit. But while men are distracted, strangeness is stirring in the world. An ancient evil is rising in the north, but the old warnings are long forgotten. Only those carrying the Protector bloodline feel fear and their numbers are few. So the powerful will soon find themselves playing a new and more dangerous game"--Provided by publisher At the end of her bestselling Coldfire trilogy, Friedman had challenged readers to imagine a world where sorcery requires the ultimate sacrifice--that of life itself. Now, in "Feast of Souls," she introduces a terrifying world in which the cost of magic is just that In order to use their powers, witches draw upon their own souls, thus shortening their lives, but the immortal male Magisters have a different, unknown source, and when Kamala petitions to be taught their secret, the entire kingdom is thrown into chaos