king of ashes

Book One of the Firemane Trilogy

A new novel from internationally bestselling author Raymond E. Feist.

The world of Garn once boasted five great kingdoms, until the King of Ithrace was defeated and every member of his family executed by Lodavico, the ruthless King of Sandura, a man with ambitions to rule the world.

Ithrace's ruling family were the legendary Firemanes, and represented a great danger to the other kings. Now four great kingdoms remain, on the brink of war. But rumour has it that the newborn son of the last king of Ithrace survived, carried off during battle and sequestered by the Quelli Nacosti, a secret society whose members are trained to infiltrate and spy upon the rich and powerful throughout Garn. Terrified that this may be true, and that the child will grow to maturity with bloody revenge in his heart, the four kings have placed a huge bounty on the child's head.

In the small village of Oncon, Declan is apprenticed to a master blacksmith, learning the secrets of producing the mythical king's steel. Oncon is situated in the Covenant, a neutral region lying between two warring kingdoms. Since the Covenant was declared, the region has existed in peace, until violence explodes as slavers descend upon the village to capture young men to press as soldiers for Sandura.

Declan must escape, to take his priceless knowledge to Baron Daylon Dumarch, ruler of Marquensas, perhaps the only man who can defeat Lodavico of Sandura, who has now allied himself with the fanatical Church of the One, which is marching across the continent, imposing its extreme form of religion upon the population and burning unbelievers as they go.

Meanwhile, on the island of Coaltachin, the secret domain of the Quelli Nacosti, three friends are being schooled in the deadly arts of espionage and assassination: Donte, son of one of the most powerful masters of the order; Hava, a serious girl with fighting abilities that can set any opponent on their back; and Hatu, a strange, conflicted lad

Raymond E. Feist is one of the world's leading fantasy writers. His Riftwar and Serpentwar Sagas have been global bestsellers for years. Born and raised in Southern California, Raymond E. Feist was educated at the University of California, San Diego, where he graduated with honours in Communication Arts. He is the author of the bestselling and critically acclaimed Riftwar Saga.

king of ashes
Harper Voyager
Author: Raymond E. Feist
ISBN: 9780007264858
RRP: $39.99

King Of Ashes | Supanova | Australian Tour | June 2018

SYDNEY SUPANOVA: Friday 15 June, Saturday 16 June & Sunday 17 June
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Tickets

MELBOURNE: Tuesday 19 June
Raymond E. Feist in conversation with Chris Flynn
The Athenaeum, 188 Collins St, Melbourne VIC 3000
6:30pm for 7:00pm start
Tickets: $15

BRISBANE: Wednesday 20 June
Raymond E. Feist in conversation with Aimee Lindorff - held in conjunction with the Brisbane City Council Lord mayors Writers in Residency Program.
Brisbane City Hall, 64 Adelaide St, Brisbane City
6:00pm for 6:30pm start
Tickets: free, guests must register

SUPANOVA PERTH: Friday 22 June, Saturday 23 June & Sunday 24 June
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Interview with Raymond E. Feist

Question: What is the best thing about creating a character like Declan?

Raymond E. Feist: Characters in general serve a double function.  On one level they're simply a means to move the narrative along, but on a far more critical level they need to engage the reader at some level.  A main character like Declan needs to give the reader someone to care about, at least in the sense of caring about what happens to him.  The best thing about that process is coming up with something that the writer finds interesting, different perhaps from other characters that are also engaging the reader.  Do it right, and the writer has a complex, dimensional character.

Question: There are several topics raised in this book. Was this deliberate or did the story evolve this way?

Raymond E. Feist: Both, insofar as the story has a goal, an end point. You start with that. If you don't you wander aimlessly, but along the way, other things tend to manifest, many not part of the overall plan when you started.


Question: Why was it important to include a different type of magic in this series?

Raymond E. Feist: To create a different look and feel, a sense of a different place. What you do not want to do when undertaking a new ''franchise'' as it were, is to have the reader think, ''Same place, different names.'' Different politics, social conventions, religions, etc. all are part of that. In a fantasy, magic is a very specific element that needs to be clearly defined in the writer's mind before the project starts.


Question: What advice do you have for aspiring writers or artists?

Raymond E. Feist: Just work. Sit and write, or draw, or compose. If you want to play the piano, you practice. If you want to play the piano well, you practice a lot. If you want to play the piano and play in Carnegie Hall, you practice hard every day for years. Writing is re-writing, and they put erasers on pencils for a reason. There are no easy ways to practice.


Question: What can you tell us about the next book, do you have a title and when will it be released?

Raymond E. Feist: The next book is Queen of Storms, and if I get it done soon, it should be out next year (with Harper Collins Publishers Australia). I won't give away too much except to say the character of Hava takes centre stage.

Interview by Brooke Hunter

 

king of ashes

Harper Voyager
Author: Raymond E. Feist
ISBN: 9780007264858
RRP: $39.99