Abhorsen (Old Kingdom, 3) - Hardcover

Nix, Garth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0060278250 ISBN 13: 9780060278250

Publisher: HarperCollins, 2003

Synopsis

The third book and apocalyptic conclusion to the original bestselling Old Kingdom trilogy, perfect for fans of Game of Thrones.

The Abhorsen Sabriel and King Touchstone are missing, leaving only Lirael—newly come into her inheritance as the Abhorsen-in-Waiting—to stop the Destroyer. If Orannis's unspeakable powers are unleashed, it will mean the end of all Life. With only a vision from the Clayr to guide her, and the help of her companions, Sam, the Disreputable Dog, and Mogget, Lirael must search in both Life and Death for some means to defeat the evil destructor—before it is too late.

Don’t miss Garth Nix’s prequel to the Old Kingdom series, Clariel, and Goldenhand, the fifth book in the Old Kingdom series.

About this title

About the Author

Garth Nix is an award-winning and New York Times bestselling author whose beloved Old Kingdom fantasy series begins with Sabriel. His many other novels include Shade’s Children and A Confusion of Princes, and he has written such children’s series as The Seventh Tower and the Keys to the Kingdom, as well as co-writing TroubleTwisters and Have Sword, Will Travel with Sean Williams. His work has been translated into forty-two languages and has sold more than seven million copies. 

From the Back Cover

The Ninth was strong
and fought with might,
But lone Orannis
was put out of the light,
Broken in two
and buried under hill,
Forever to lie there,
wishing us ill.

So says the song. But Orannis, the Destroyer, is no longer buried under hill. It has been freed from its subterranean prison and now seeks to escape the silver hemispheres, the final barrier to the unleashing of its terrible powers.

Only Lirael, newly come into her inheritance as the Abhorsen-in-Waiting, has any chance of stopping the Destroyer. She and her companions -- Sam, the Disreputable Dog, and Mogget -- have to take that chance. For the Destroyer is the enemy of all Life, and it must be stopped, though Lirael does not know how.

To make matters worse, Sam's best friend, Nick, is helping the Destroyer, as are the necromancer Hedge and the Greater Dead Chlorr, and there has been no word from the Abhorsen Sabriel or King Touchstone.

Everything depends upon Lirael. A heavy, perhaps even impossible burden for a young woman who just days ago was merely a Second Assistant Librarian. With only a vision from the Clayr to guide her, and the rather mixed help of her companions, Lirael must search in both Life and Death for some means to defeat the Destroyer.

Before it is too late. . . .

Reviews

An explosive prologue sets the stage for Nix's riveting continuation of the story begun in Sabriel and Lirael. While newcomers might find the intricate plotting and the rituals of the Charter Magic off-putting at first, Nix rewards their efforts. Returning characters Lirael, former Second Assistant Librarian of the Clayr and now an Abhorsen-in-Waiting (the Abhorsen's "birthright and charge [is] to maintain the borders of Life and Death"), and her nephew, Prince Sameth, along with Disreputable Dog and the mysterious white cat, Mogget, are ensorcelled in the Abhorsen House by a Dead creature, Chlorr of the Mask, who is in league with the evil necromancer Hedge. They break out to try and rescue Sam's old friend, Nicholas Sayre, who has been tricked by Hedge into digging up Orannis, the Destroyer; if Hedge's plan succeeds, the evil now contained by two separate hemispheres will join and annihilate all life. The grotesque imagery of the Death realm provides a haunting note, which Nix offsets by the brightness of the main characters' quest to defeat the Destroyer. At once an allegory regarding war and peace and a testament to friendship, this thought-provoking fantasy also resolves the true identities of the popular Dog and Mogget characters-and suggests that Nix may still have more tricks up his sleeve. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 7-12. Although Lirael (2001) begins years after events in Sabriel (1996), Abhorsen picks up right where Lirael left off, as Lirael and Sameth, the son of the Abhorsen Sabriel, continue their battle to contain the long-imprisoned Destroyer. It's a hardscrabble battle against the forces of the dead, which have been assembled by the sinister necromancer Hedge, and once again Disreputable Dog and Mogget (the elemental in the form of a cat), play major roles, as does Sameth's good friend Nick, who is forced into the service of the Destroyer. Lirael, the Abhorsen-in-Waiting, must traverse the dangerous Gates of Death to discover how the Destroyer was defeated in the beginning, so that the process can be repeated in the present. The tension throughout the story is palatable, and despite a solid, satisfying conclusion, Nix leaves himself a bit of room to revisit his intricately designed universe--a course followed by many writers of book sets that are first envisioned as fantasy trilogies. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Edition details

• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Publication date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060278250
• ISBN 13: 9780060278250
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368