Five towers. Five colors. One way out. Darkness lurks beneath the Yellow Tower's golden fields. The leaders are missing. A boy-king rules like a tyrant. And Cipher has been banished to work the land as the lowest of servants. But Cipher's memories remain, as do his scars. The stories from his past, and of those around him, weave together and reveal a path forward. Cipher must face his fears before he can rise again to confront the colorless threat against the Five Towers.
Set in France after the Great Terror which followed the French Revolution, this is the story of the Duc de Trelan and his last ditch attempt to defy Napoleon's forces and lead a rebellion of aristocrats and peasants from North West France. The novel also centres on his wife, whom he presumes met her death during the Terror while he was in England. Both the duc and the duchesse are strong minded and principled characters but have not as yet come to appreciate each other's courage in the face of danger and their faithfulness to the ideals of their class. The duc, in disguise and under a cloud of infamy for having, supposedly, abandoned his wife, returns to France to lead an uprising against Napoleon. Meanwhile his wife, who has escaped the guillotine, is also living under a false name, ironically as the regime's concierge of their own chateau. How the two find each other again, then lose each other forever through their conviction that personal happiness must be sacrificed to honour and how the uprising fails forms the plot of this fast paced novel.
Sickly fifteen year old Prince Psal, the son of the nature-blessed warrior-king Nahas, should have been named Crown Prince of all Wheel Clan lands. A priest-physician like his friend Ephan, Psal lacks a warrior's heart, yet he desires to earn Nahas's respect and become a clan chief. If he cannot do this, he must escape his clan altogether. But his love for Cassia, the daughter of his father's enemy, and his own weaknesses work against him. When war comes, Psal defends Ktwala and her daughter Mahari, wronged by Nahas, and speaks out against the atrocities his clan commits, further jeopardizing his future. And now the mysterious towers that keep humans safe from the Creator's ancient curse are rebelling. A prophecy exists-not that Psal believes such matters-of three great ones who will find the Constant Tower and break the power of the third moon. Could Psal, Ephan, and Mahari be those great ones? Psal must risk losing his father's respect to find his destiny, and with his friends face the dangers of the unmaking night to find the Constant Tower and save all of humanity. "Carole McDonnell is a first-class world-builder. A unique, powerhouse epic, The Constant Towers is a treasure trove of great characters, compelling cultural details and political machinations, all lovingly detailed in evocative prose. Yay!" - Stefan Petrucha, author Dead Mann Walking
George MacDonald (1824-1905) was a Scottish author, poet, and Christian minister. He was a pioneering figure in the field of fantasy literature and the mentor of fellow writer Lewis Carroll. This edition includes: George MacDonald by Annie Matheson Fantasy Fiction: The Princess and the Goblin The Princess and Curdie Phantastes At the Back of the North Wind The Lost Princess: A Double Story The Day Boy and the Night Girl The Flight of the Shadow Lilith: A Romance Adela Cathcart The Portent and Other Stories Dealings with the Fairies Stephen Archer and Other Tales Realistic Fiction: David Elginbrod (The Tutor's First Love) Alec-Forbes of Howglen (The Maiden's Bequest) Robert Falconer (The Musician's Quest) Ranald Bannerman's Boyhood Wilfrid Cumbermede Gutta Percha Willie St. George and St. Michael Mary Marston (A Daughter's Devotion) Warlock o' Glenwarlock (The Laird's Inheritance) Weighed and Wanting (A Gentlewoman's Choice) What's Mine's Mine (The Highlander's Last Song) Home Again (The Poet's Homecoming) The Elect Lady (The Landlady's Master) A Rough Shaking Heather and Snow (The Peasant Girl's Dream) Salted with Fire (The Minister's Restoration) Far Above Rubies Malcolm The Marquis of Lossie (The Marquis' Secret) Sir Gibbie (The Baronet's Song) Donal Grant (The Shepherd's Castle) Annals of a Quiet Neighbourhood The Seaboard Parish The Vicar's Daughter Thomas Wingfold, Curate (The Curate's Awakening) Paul Faber, Surgeon (The Lady's Confession) There and Back (The Baron's Apprenticeship) The Poetical Works of George MacDonald A Hidden Life and Other Poems A Book of Strife, in the Form of the Diary of an Old Soul Rampolli: Growths from a Long-planted Root Theological Writings: Unspoken Sermons The Miracles of Our Lord The Hope of the Gospel ...
