Gollancz strana 23 z 25

Book Four of The Sword of Truth, the series first begun in Wizard's First Rule, returns listeners to the world of Richard Cypher, a simple woods guide who never dreamed he would be named the Seeker of Truth and become caught up in magic, war, and dangers so extraordinary that the fate of his entire world would hang on his actions and decisions. The dangerous, fanatical Imperial Order, under the leadership of the power-mad Emperor Jagang and his multitude of demonic underlings, unleashes a deadly plague. To find a cure Richard Cypher and his beloved Kahlan Amnell must seek out the legendary Temple of the Winds, a fortress of evil sealed away for three thousand years. But the path of the Seeker of Truth is never an easy one - even if he can reach the Temple at all, there is no guarantee he'll ever return.

Two 19th century stage illusionists, the aristocratic Rupert Angier and the working-class Alfred Borden, engage in a bitter and deadly feud; the effects are still being felt by their respective families a hundred years later. Working in the gaslight-and-velvet world of Victorian music halls, they prowl edgily in the background of each other's shadowy life, driven to the extremes by a deadly combination of obsessive secrecy and insatiable curiosity. At the heart of the row is an amazing illusion they both perform during their stage acts. The secret of the magic is simple, and the reader is in on it almost from the start, but to the antagonists the real mystery lies deeper. Both have something more to hide than the mere workings of a trick.

Scaldingly sarcastic yet enduringly empathetic, THE ZAP GUN is Dick's remarkable novel depicting the insanity of the arms race. Lars Powderdry and Lilo Topchev are counterpart weapons fashion designers for a world divided into two factions - Wes-bloc and Peep-East. Since the Plowshare Protocols of 2002, their job has been to invent elaborate weapons that only seem massively lethal. But when alien satellites hostile to both sides appear in the sky, the two are brought together in the dire hope that they can create a weapon to save the world, a task made all the more difficult by Lars falling in love with Lilo, even as he knows she's trying to kill him.

It began with a blinding light, a divine revelation from a mysterious intelligence that called itself VALIS. And with that, the fabric of reality was ripped open and laid bare so that anything seemed possible, but nothing seemed quite right. Part science fiction, part theological detective story in which God plays both the missing person and the perpetrator of the ultimate crime, VALIS is both disorienting and eerily funny, and a joy to read.

SOUL OF THE FIRE saw the political machinations that have dogged the midlands reach new heights as the Chimes ran free and threatened magic everywhere. As the novel ended Kahlan has narrowly avoided death and now she and Richard Rahl, the Seeker, must strive again to save the world from the resurgent armies of the Emperor Jagang. From the very first page FAITH OF THE FALLEN PITCHES Richard and Kahlan into their most desperate fight yet, a fight where worlds once again hang in the balance. Richard must embark on a course of action that will leave his people feeling betrayed and vulnerable and which will take both he and Kahlan away from the protection of the D'Haran armies. But he has no choice, Richard, who distrusts prophecy more than anyone, has had a vision. It is a vision he is compelled to follow.

Son Goku is a naive young monkey-tailed boy whose quiet life is completely over-turned when he is nearly run over by a precocious and spiky girl caled Bulma. She is on a quest to collect seven Dragon Balls and thereby be granted one wish. But the balls are scattered all over the world and Bulma gets much more than she bargained for when she tricks Son to hand over the dragon ball he owns and gets him to join her quest. Son Gokumay be tiny and naive but he's supernaturally strong, has a magic staff and owns a flying cloud. Also he's not as stupid as he appears. A wonderfully energetic and fast moving fantastic quest propelled by the witty and sharp interplay between Bulma and Goku.

One man, Richard Cypher, holds the key to the fate of three nations, of humanityBut until he learns the Wizard's First Rule his chances of succeeding in his task are slim. And his biggest problem is admitting that magic exists at all...A novel of incomparable scope and brimming with atmospheric detail: in a world where heart hounds stalk the boundaries for unwary human prey, blood-sucking flies hunt on behalf of their underworld masters, and where artists can draw more than your likeness, there is no place to hide, nowhere safe. Here magic makes love twice as sweet, betrayal and loss twice as bitter.

Geralt is a witcher, a man whose magic powers, enhanced by long training and a mysterious elixir, have made him a brilliant fighter and a merciless assassin. Yet he is no ordinary murderer: his targets are the multifarious monsters and vile fiends that ravage the land and attack the innocent. He roams the country seeking assignments, but gradually comes to realise that while some of his quarry are unremittingly vile, vicious grotesques, others are the victims of sin, evil or simple naivety. One reviewer said: 'This book is a sheer delight. It is beautifully written, full of vitality and endlessly inventive: its format, with half a dozen episodes and intervening rest periods for both the hero and the reader, allows for a huge range of characters, scenarios and action. It's thought-provoking without being in the least dogmatic, witty without descending to farce and packed with swordfights without being derivative. The dialogue sparkles; characters morph almost imperceptibly from semi-cliche to completely original; nothing is as it first seems. Sapkowski succeeds in seamlessly welding familiar ideas, unique settings and delicious twists of originality: his Beauty wants to rip the throat out of a sensitive Beast; his Snow White seeks vengeance on all and sundry, his elves are embittered and vindictive. It's easily one of the best things I've read in ages.'

Substance D -- otherwise known as Death -- is the most dangerous drug ever to find its way on to the black market. It destroys the links between the brain's two hemispheres, leading first to disorentation and then to complete and irreversible brain damage. Bob Arctor, undercover narcotics agent, is trying to find a lead to the source of supply, but to pass as an addict he must become a user, and soon, without knowing what is happening to him, he is as dependent as any of the addicts he is monitoring.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into interstellar space ...Alastair Reynolds burst onto the SF scene with the Arthur C. Clarke Award-shortlisted REVELATION SPACE, British Science Fiction Award-winning CHASM CITY, and REDEMPTION ARK. Now experience the phenomenal imagination and breathtaking vision of 'The most exciting space opera writer working today' (Locus) in these two tales of high adventure set in the same universe as his novels. The title story, 'Diamond Dogs', tells of a group of mercenaries trying to unravel the mystery of a particularly inhospitable alien tower on a distant world, 'Turquoise Days' is about Naqi, who has devoted her life to studying the alien Pattern Jugglers.

Gollancz edition paperback fine

Barry Trotter saved the Hogwash school for Wizards from the unwelcome attentions of Hollywood in BARRY TROTTER AND THE SHAMELESS PARODY. But things move on. Barry and Ermine Cringer have got married and have had two relatively delightful children. Their eldest is a skilled magician. But the youngest doesn't seem to possess any ability at all. Have Barry and Ermine given birth to a Muddle? Maybe magic isn't everything after all . . .

Barry Trotter is pretty disreputable and unpleasant. Imagine what he was like as a teenager. Here's the beginning of the whole sorry tale. Did Barry and Ermine do it? (Their homwork, that is.) How exactly did Lon end up with a hole in his head that whistles when the wind blows? Was Lord Valumart always that crass? And where did that ridiculous German accent come from? As funny and twisted as the first two books, BARRY TROTTER AND THE DEAD HORSE is also as affectionate towards JK Rowling's originals. This has lead to the books gaining a devoted following amongst fans of Harry Potter as well as being a welcome antidote for the over-egging (eeuwww) of the boy wizard. A process that we're not a part of at all. Oh no. Not even a tiny bit.

great book by the master