The Great Tree of Avalon 1: Child of the Dark Prophecy (The Great Tree of Avalon)

long Ago The Great Wizard Merlin Planted The Seed That Would Become The Peaceful World Of Avalon. now, The Enchanted Land Is In Peril, And Its Fate Lies In The Hands Of Three People-but Only One Of Them Is Merlin's Heir Who Can Save Avalon, While The Others Are Destined To Destroy It. booklist barron Builds On His Popular Lost Years Of Merlin Saga, Creating An Elaborate, Richly Detailed World Spread Out On The Seven Roots Of The Great Tree Of Avalon, Which Grew From A Seed Won By Merlin On His Journey Through A Magical Mirror. The Story Begins In Avalon's Year 1002, When It Appears That The Lady Of The Lake's Dark Prophecy Is Coming True And The Only Hope Of Saving Avalon Lies In Finding Merlin's True Heir. The Fates Of Two Boys Born 17 Years Earlier And Raised As Brothers Are Intrinsically Bound To The Prophecy; Scree The Orphaned Eagleboy Charged With Guarding Merlin's Staff, And Tamwyn, Who Fears He Is The Dark Child Destined To Destroy Avalon. Liberally Laced With Humor And Wit, The First In the Great Tree Of Avalon Series Effectively Introduces And Fleshes Out Remarkable Characters, Both Human And Non-human. It Also Vividly Sets The Scene Through The Adventures Of Various Beings Who Eventually Come Together In A Desperate Quest To Stop The Evil That Threatens Avalon And Its Denizens. Even Readers Unfamiliar With the Lost Years Of Merlin Will Relish This Fine Debut Of A Promising New Fantasy Series. (starred Review) A Word from the Author......Page 4 Contents......Page 7 Map of Avalon......Page 10 Born of a Seed That Beats Like a Heart......Page 12 The Dark Prophecy......Page 13 Prologue • One Dark Night......Page 14 Part I......Page 28 1 • Land of Bells......Page 30 2 • Banished......Page 37 3 • A Pale Hand Beckons......Page 45 4 • Hot Wax......Page 51 5 • Green with Envy......Page 65 6 • A Dead Torch and a Heap of Dung......Page 77 7 • The Ballad of Avalon's Birth......Page 86 8 • Out of the Shadows......Page 94 9 • A Dangerous Journey......Page 105 10 • The Staff of Merlin......Page 114 11 • Tracks......Page 123 12 • Song of the Voyager......Page 130 13 • Hands of Blood......Page 139 Part II......Page 144 14 • Baby Brother......Page 146 15 • Skunkweed......Page 155 16 • Emissaries of the Gods......Page 162 17 • Hoofprints......Page 174 18 • Absolutely......Page 181 19 • The Smell of Resins......Page 190 20 • Something Marvelous......Page 193 21 • The Child of Krystallus......Page 196 22 • Death Trap......Page 208 23 • The Rugged Path......Page 212 24 • Just Listen......Page 221 25 • Shrunkelled and Stingded......Page 226 26 • Master of the Skies......Page 232 27 • Prosperity......Page 235 28 • Illusion......Page 245 Part III......Page 250 29 • The Hand of Greeting......Page 252 30 • A Pure Crystal......Page 256 31 • The Lady Revealed......Page 266 32 • Scree's Plunge......Page 278 33 • A Hornet's Nest......Page 282 34 • The Mudmakers......Page 287 35 • The Secret Spring......Page 295 36 • Something Stupid......Page 301 37 • Musical Mead......Page 307 38 • Death on Wings......Page 315 39 • Strange Meetings......Page 323 40 • Just the Faintest Hear tbeat......Page 331 41 • A Gaping Hole......Page 336 42 • Water and Fire......Page 343 43 • Dark Flame......Page 348 Epilogue • The Encircling Shadow......Page 357 A Brief History of Avalon......Page 360 Long ago, Merlin planted a magical seed that grew into the Great Tree of Avalon. And for centuries, Avalon flourished. But now Avalon reels from brutal attacks, mysterious droughts, and strange evils. And then one night, all the stars in the sky suddenly go dark. Now the fate of Avalon rests with three young people: Tamwyn, a homeless wilderness guide; Elli, an escaped slave turned priestess; and Scree, an eagleman with a secret. One is the true heir of Merlin—the only person who can save Avalon—and one is fated to destroy it. The fate of Avalon rests in the hands of three people: Tamwyn, Elli, and Scree; however one of them is the true heir of Merlin and the only one who can save Avalon and one of them is the child of Dark Prophecy, the person chosen to destroy it. In accordance with prophecy, Avalon's existence is threatened in the year that stars stop shining and at the time when both the dark child and Merlin's heir are to be revealed. A FLAME VENT ERUPTED ON THE CLIFFS, blasting the darkness like an angry dragon.