The Heart of the World is a land in strife. For fifty years the Holy Empire of Mann, an empire and religion born from a nihilistic urban cult, has been conquering nation after nation. Their leader, Holy Matriarch Sasheen, ruthlessly maintains control through her Diplomats, priests trained as subtle predators. The Mercian Free Ports are the only confederacy yet to fall. Their only land link to the southern continent, a long and narrow isthmus, is protected by the city of Bar-Khos. For ten years now, the great southern walls of Bar-Khos have been besieged by the Imperial Fourth Army. Ash is a member of an elite group of assassins, the Roshun - who offer protection through the threat of vendetta. Forced by his ailing health to take on an apprentice, he chooses Nico, a young man living in the besieged city of Bar-Khos. At the time, Nico is hungry, desperate, and alone in a city that finds itself teetering on the brink. When the Holy Matriarchs son deliberately murders a woman under the protection of the Roshun; he forces the sect to seek his life in retribution. As Ash and his young apprentice set out to fulfil the Roshun orders their journey takes them into the heart of the conflict between the Empire and the Free Ports . . . into bloodshed and death.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Colin Buchanan was born in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, in 1973. The one constant in his life has been his love of writing. It was writing that lead him to his adopted home of Lancaster, England, where he gained a First in Creative Writing & Religious Studies at the University of Cumbria. In recent years he has mostly settled down, and loves nothing more than a late-night gathering around a fire with good friends. Farlander is the first in his fantasy series.
With his debut novel, Buchanan fashions a fantasy-based realm called The Heart of the World, which relies less on the genre’s usual staple of sorcery and curious creatures than on the author’s impressive skill at fleshing out characters. Nico is a street urchin living hand to mouth in the tyrannical Empire of Mann’s capital city when he’s caught stealing red-handed and then given a hard-to-refuse opportunity to redress his crimes by becoming an apprentice. His alternately terrifying and exhilarating new trade, however, is that of a Roshun, or assassin, and his mentor is an aging warrior named Ash, who’s approaching the end of his life and career. When the Prince of Mann murders a woman who falls under the Roshun order’s protection, it falls to Nico and Ash to carry out a morally dubious and death-defying vendetta. While Buchanan’s inexperience is visible with a sagging midsection and inconsistent pacing, the tale ends with some rousing action and a startling plot twist that cleverly hooks the reader for the author’s planned sequel. --Carl Hays
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
US$ 6.39
From United Kingdom to U.S.A.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Seller: WorldofBooks, Goring-By-Sea, WS, United Kingdom
Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged. Seller Inventory # GOR006457248
Quantity: 5 available
Seller: Irish Booksellers, Portland, ME, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. SHIPS FROM USA. Used books have different signs of use and do not include supplemental materials such as CDs, Dvds, Access Codes, charts or any other extra material. All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. Dust Jackets are not guaranteed and when still present, they will have various degrees of tear and damage. All images are Stock Photos, not of the actual item. book. Seller Inventory # 38-1447261852-G
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books Ltd, Dunfermline, United Kingdom
Condition: Good. Ships from the UK. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 40055922-20
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: booksXpress, Bayonne, NJ, U.S.A.
Soft Cover. Condition: new. Seller Inventory # 9781447261858
Quantity: Over 20 available
Seller: PBShop.store US, Wood Dale, IL, U.S.A.
PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. THIS BOOK IS PRINTED ON DEMAND. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # L0-9781447261858
Quantity: Over 20 available
Seller: PBShop.store UK, Fairford, GLOS, United Kingdom
PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Delivered from our UK warehouse in 4 to 14 business days. THIS BOOK IS PRINTED ON DEMAND. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # L0-9781447261858
Quantity: Over 20 available
Seller: Ria Christie Collections, Uxbridge, United Kingdom
Condition: New. In. Seller Inventory # ria9781447261858_new
Quantity: Over 20 available
Seller: Ria Christie Collections, Uxbridge, United Kingdom
Condition: New. PRINT ON DEMAND Book; New; Fast Shipping from the UK. No. book. Seller Inventory # ria9781447261858_lsuk
Quantity: Over 20 available
Seller: Chiron Media, Wallingford, United Kingdom
Paperback. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 6666-IUK-9781447261858
Quantity: 10 available
Seller: THE SAINT BOOKSTORE, Southport, United Kingdom
Paperback / softback. Condition: New. This item is printed on demand. New copy - Usually dispatched within 5-9 working days. Seller Inventory # C9781447261858
Quantity: Over 20 available