Cirrus@Austlit

'The first ever novel set in the blockbuster universe of League of Legends, one of the most popular video games of all time, Ruination is an epic tale of magic, revenge, and an empire on the verge of ruin.

'Camavor is a brutal land with a bloody legacy. Where the empire’s knights go, slaughter follows.

'Kalista seeks to change that. When her young and narcissistic uncle, Viego, becomes king, she vows to temper his destructive instincts, as his loyal confidant, advisor, and military general. But her plans are thwarted when an assassin’s poisoned blade strikes Viego’s wife, Isolde, afflicting her with a malady for which there is no cure.

'As Isolde’s condition worsens, Viego descends into madness and grief, threatening to drag Camavor down with him. Kalista makes a desperate gambit to save the kingdom: she searches for the long lost Blessed Isles, rumored to hold the queen’s salvation, if only Kalista can find them.

'But corruption grows in the Blessed Isles’ capital, where a vengeful warden seeks to ensnare Kalista in his cruel machinations. She will be forced to choose between her loyalty to Viego and doing what she knows is right–for even in the face of utter darkness, one noble act can shine a light that saves the world.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Saker appears to be a simple priest, but in truth he's a spy for the head of his faith. Wounded in the line of duty by a Lascar sailor's blade, the weapon seems to follow him home. Unable to discard it, nor the sense of responsibility it brings, Saker can only follow its lead. The dagger puts Saker on a journey to distant shores, on a path that will reveal terrible secrets about the empire, about the people he serves, and destroy the life he knows. The Lascar's dagger demands a price, and that price will be paid in blood.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Life is tough at the top when work is a matter of life or death.

It's one thing to run Mortmax International as head of a team, but it's quite another to rule alone. Staff fatalities have left Steven by himself on the Throne of Death, and there's no time to get comfortable. The Stirrer god's arrival is imminent, threatening life as we know it. Plus Steven has managed to mortally offend the only ally strong enough to help out.

'And how can he ask someone to marry him when the End of Days seems inevitable. As if they are going to think he's committed. The portents don't look good as a comet burns vast and looming in the sky and Steven can almost hear a dark clock ticking. He will have to play nice if he wants his ally back, and must address the madness of the Hungry Death within himself if he even has a chance at defeating the Stirrer god.

'If he fails, Hell and Earth are doomed and wedding bells will be quite out of the question.' (From the publisher's website.)

'Saker the enchanter will stop at nothing to destroy the Eleven Domains, but has he unleashed a worse evil? As he builds his terrifying army of ghosts, screams from the nether world torment him, foretelling a greater disaster than he can imagine. When Ash is forced to acknowledge his true self in the caverns of the Deep, he realises that all power is duty-bound. He helps Bramble raise Acton's ghost, although plagued by doubts: Who is this ancient warrior - murderer or saviour? And will he help strangers protect a world he has never known? 

'Grieving an impossible love, Bramble learns the painful truth behind the demon's prophecy. She is a leader born but will she reach Turvite in time to face Saker and save the Domains?' (Sourced from publisher's website.)

'His last assignment blew up in his face! Is New Ottosland ready for their new Grade Three Wizard?

'For the life of him, Gerald Dunwoody can't seem to keep a job or a roof over his head. When career disaster strikes again it looks like his days of being a wizard are over for good ... until his friend Monk, genius of the government's secret research department, helps him to get appointed as Royal Court Wizard to the King of New Ottosland. His offsider, Reg, an ensorcelled bird with a mysterious past, isn't so sure this is a good idea. But Gerald's choices are limited ...

'It's New Ottosland, or starve.

'But once he arrives it quickly becomes clear that King Lional isn't the vain, indolent young man he first appeared to be. And with the passing of time, it becomes even clearer that Lional's plans may not, in fact, be in Gerald's best interests ...' (Source: Publisher's blurb)

'The Eleven Domains were forged in blood a thousand years ago. The blood is about to flow again. Bramble is as wild as the animals she follows deep into the forest near her village. Her dark eyes betray her heritage - she's a Traveller, one of the despised original people of the Domains. And for as long as she can remember, she has wanted to take to the Road like her grandfather. But the gods who dwell near the alders always say no ... In Turvite, where the ghosts drift along dark cobbled streets, Ash must leave his parents, and the Road, to begin an apprenticeship with the only person who will accept a Traveller - the scheming, yet irrestible, Doronit. But the gods who linger in the gloomy square have other plans for him ... From different ends of the Eleven Domains, death casts Bramble and Ash on journeys across valleys and mountains, deep into themselves and the dark history of their ancestors.'

Source: Australian 'blurb' from The Castings Trilogy website (Sighted 11/01/10)