The Scrolls Of The Ancients

The concluding book in Robert Newcomb's epic fantasy trilogy 'The Chronicles of Blood and Stone'

Robert Newcomb travelled widely in his youth as a member of the American Institute for Foreign Study. He now lives in Florida. The Scrolls of the Ancients concludes his 'Chronicles of Blood and Stone' trilogy. The previous volumes, The Fifth Sorceress and The Gates of Dawn, are also available in Bantam paperback. 
 
If you would like to learn more about Robert Newcomb and his books, visit his website at www.thechroniclesofbloodandstone.com

The spellbinding fantasy that began with The Fifth Sorceress and The Gates of Dawn continues... 
 
Tristan and his twin sister, Shailiha, are the Chosen Ones, long prophesied to unite the opposing magics of the dark Vagaries and the benevolent Vigors. With the destruction of the Gates of Dawn, it would appear that the ravaged kingdom of Eutracia has been given the chance to cleanse itself, to heal - and the Chosen Ones the opportunity to fulfil their destiny under the tutelage of wizards Wigg and Faegan. 
 
But Fate would have it otherwise. For there is another who unknowingly possesses magic in his blood - a magic that, in the wrong hands, could unleash unspeakable evil. To find this unsuspecting soul and understand the threat that now faces them, the Chosen Ones and their allies begin a quest that takes them deep into the mysterious Chambers of Penitence and then across the Sea of Whispers to the sacred Isle of Sanctuary. 
 
They are not alone in searching. Krassus, devoted servant of the Vagaries, has dispatched ships of demonic slavers to scour the coast of Eutracia, taking captive men and women and bringing them to the island fortress of the Citadel, where evil dreams take the form of living nightmares. 
 
Aided by Tyranny, a pirate as fierce as she is beautiful, Tristan and his sister must destroy the demonslavers' fleet and rescue the ill-fated pawn of magic, now imprisoned in the Citadel. For Krassus seeks to awaken the magic in this one's blood and imbue him with dark enchantments from the mysterious Scrolls of the Ancients - transforming him into an instrument of evil the likes of which the world has never known... and will not long survive.

The Gates of Dawn

The thrilling, fast-paced fantasy novel that continues the magical adventure that began with THE FIFTH SORCERESS.

'He puts his heroes through hell...Newcomb has a talent for exploring the darker, more brutal aspects of human suffering'

Robert Newcomb travelled widely in his youth as a member of the American Institute for Foreign Study. He now lives in Florida. The Fifth Sorceress marked his début and is the first book in 'The Chronicles of Blood and Stone' trilogy. The second volume, The Gates of Dawn, is also published in Bantam paperback and the concluding novel, The Scrolls of the Ancients, in Bantam Press trade paperback.

'The wind howled, and the lightening cascaded across the sky in unimaginable streaks, a portent of what was to come . . . the firstborn son of the Chosen One lives, and now he is ours.' 
 
For three hundred years, Eutracia was a kingdom at peace. Then a horror from the past, long thought vanquished, returned to wreak dreadful revenge. The war against the Sorceresses of the Coven was won, but victory came at a terrible cost: the king and queen dead, the wizards' council decimated, and the land - ravaged by fear, scarred by battle - lawless. And Prince Tristan, forced by the Coven to turn his hand against his own and kill his father, is now a wanted man with a price on his head. 
 
In underground labyrinths that once bustled with life, the fugitive prince, together with his twin sister and her infant daughter, the wizard Wigg, sole surviving council member, and the crippled wizard Faegan, returned from exile in the forests of Shadowood, take refuge. To them falls the daunting task of rebuilding Eutracia, but it soon becomes apparent that evil has not yet had its fill of this ravaged land. 
 
An army of apprentice wizards, dispatched to hunt down the last remaining servants of the Coven, has fallen victim to foul beings that can only have been created out of hate. And, inexplicably, the sacred source of all magic begins to fail. Without its sustaining force the wizards will perish, and with them magic itself. With time and their powers fast dwindling, Wigg and Faegan must discover who - or what - has succeeded the Sorceresses, and now seeks to destroy Eutracia. As the awful truth is revealed, it is Tristan who must face this new enemy, an evil that transcends life itself, and fight the ultimate battle - for his life, his land and his destiny... 
 
Continuing the monumental adventure that began with The Fifth Sorceress, here is confirmation that, in Robert Newcomb, epic fantasy has found an exhilarating new voice.

Robert Newcomb

'Beautifully and vividly drawn ...impressive'

'A complex and sweepingly conceived adventure...Newcomb's impressive narrative skill is such that the pages turn very quickly indeed'

'A fantastic read. Fantasy novels can be hit or miss but this one is a definite hit ...Newcomb writes with a boldness and originality rarely seen in first novels'

'Only the four Mistresses remained from the hundreds she had loved, lost and left behind. "Soon, my dear Sisters," she thought. "So many shall pay. Pay for the sins of their ancestors . . ."' 
It is three centuries since the devastating war that all but destroyed the kingdom of Eutracia. Those who masterminded the bloodshed - four powerful, conquest-hungry sorceresses -- were banished and sent into exile beyond the feared Sea of Whispers, with return all but impossible, death all but inevitable. Since those dark days, Eutracia has flourished, protected and guided by its council of wizards. Now a land of peace and plenty, it is about to crown a new king and the spirit of celebration fills every heart. Except one. Prince Tristan is a reluctant monarch-to-be. Though born with the endowed blood that will enable him to master magic, and destined to succeed his father as ruler of this land and its people, he is a rebel soul. 
But more than tradition compels Tristan to ascend the throne. The very survival of Eutracia depends upon it. For after these long years of peace, dreadful omens have begun to appear, heralding something too unspeakable to ponder. It seems an ancient evil, nurtured over centuries of darkness, has returned and is thirsting for blood, for domination and, above all, for revenge. Tristan's fate is to fulfil a role chosen for him by an ages-old prophecy - to face an adversary whose hatred knows no bounds and whose greatest weapon is the person he loves most... 
 Not since Terry Goodkind unsheathed the Sword of Truth has such a tale of heroism and magic so captured the imagination. Brimming with excitement and wonder, dark intrigue and dread enchantments, THE FIFTH SORCERESS marks the beginning of a magnificent fantasy adventure by a remarkable new storyteller.

Robert Newcomb

Praise for The Fifth Sorceress

'Beautifully and vividly drawn ...impressive'

'A complex and sweepingly conceived adventure...Newcomb's impressive narrative skill is such that the pages turn very quickly indeed'

'A fantastic read. Fantasy novels can be hit or miss but this one is a definite hit ...Newcomb writes with a boldness and originality rarely seen in first novels'

'Beautifully and vividly drawn ...impressive'

'A complex and sweepingly conceived adventure...Newcomb's impressive narrative skill is such that the pages turn very quickly indeed'

'A fantastic read. Fantasy novels can be hit or miss but this one is a definite hit ...Newcomb writes with a boldness and originality rarely seen in first novels'

'Beautifully and vividly drawn ...impressive'

'A complex and sweepingly conceived adventure...Newcomb's impressive narrative skill is such that the pages turn very quickly indeed'

'A fantastic read. Fantasy novels can be hit or miss but this one is a definite hit ...Newcomb writes with a boldness and originality rarely seen in first novels'

Books by Robert Newcomb

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