The Bridge to Magic (The Sundered Web)

2023 Reader Views Literary Award: Grand Prize Winner in Fiction, Gold Medal-YA Fiction, Silver Medal-Fantasy
2023 Eric Hoffer Book Award Winner: Grand-Prize First Runner-Up Sci-Fi/Fantasy

"This is dark fantasy at its best ... "—The Book Commentary

An award-winning debut for lovers of traditional fantasy and the readers who crave the dark, disturbing and original.

Men thought they had won the war against magic, when a demi-god had sundered their realm and banished magic and its keepers to the deadlands. But then another terror was born. Nothing can survive the approaching Blight. Terren, the last refuge of mankind, now stands alone in its path. Only the bridge across the great chasm offers any hope of escape... for some.

Elika has long feared the bridge to the Deadlands. It had taken her parents, and the lives of more poor fools than she could count. What's there for them anyway on the other side but more suffering and death? Though the gods had abandoned them, the king and his priests will stop the Blight. They just need to destroy every echo of magic, the source of the Blight. Then she discovers that the biggest echo of magic is hiding inside her, and through her it seeks to enact the will of its own.

Accused of being a mage, she is hunted and hated. Many doubt her loyalties. Her gang turns against her. The one man she thought she could trust and love, abandons her. Everything she knew about her past shatters, as long-buried secrets about her true birth emerge. Worse still, she may not even be human. She must race to find a way to purge herself from magic's hold. But as time runs out for the city and her magic only grows in power, can she sacrifice herself to save the last of humanity and all that she loves?

"A grim and despairing yet elegiac fantasy tale... Hard-bitten fantasists should approve."—Kirkus Reviews

Other Awards
2023 Reader Views Literary Award: Best Teen/YA Book of the Year, Australia Global Award Winner
2023 Book Excellence Award Winner (Honorary)
2022 Royal Dragonfly Award Winner for Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Praise for The Bridge to Magic
"A magnificent high fantasy debut...stunning page-turner...original, captivating, and readers may be surprised to find this is the author’s debut novel. The storyline is absolutely mesmerizing, and Thornbury has a knack for telling a dark story. And I do mean dark." Reader Views ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

"This was a really great introduction into the Sundered Web series. Alex is wonderfully skilled in world building... Her wonderful descriptions create beautiful and vivid imagery. It's almost like the reader becomes Elika." NetGalley Reviewer ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

"This is dark fantasy at its best... The more creative descriptions of the darkness that threatens humanity pull the narrative somewhere between horror and fantasy... A delightful read with a voice that works and prose that is bold and enticing. But it is the immersive world of this creation that will have most readers turning the pages." The Book Commentary ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

"A sensational work of fantasy fiction that will captivate YA readers and adult fantasy fans alike... An accomplished tale with a fascinating core concept, great character development, and gorgeous, spine-tingling dark fantasy styling. A series not to be missed." Readers' Favorite ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

"Shut your windows. Draw your curtains. Lit a candle and let the pages suck you in. This is a gritty chilling, and dark story set in a fascinating world. The plot has many pleasant twists and the characters can surprise with unexpected actions... Despite all of the desperation the end of the world brings, there is a sense of beauty and coziness. Occasionally even humor. And it all creates an engaging balance." BookSirens Reviewer ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐