Best of
High-Fantasy

2003

The Immortals


Tamora Pierce - 2003
    The Immortals: Wild Magic; Wolf Speaker; Emperor Mage; the Realms of the Gods

The Black Jewels Trilogy: Daughter of the Blood, Heir to the Shadows, Queen of the Darkness


Anne Bishop - 2003
    But she is still young, still open to influence--and corruption.Whoever controls the Queen controls the darkness. Three men--sworn enemies--know this. And they know the power that hides behind the blue eyes of an innocent young girl. And so begins a ruthless game of politics and intrigue, magic and betrayal, where the weapons are hate and love--and the prize could be terrible beyond imagining...--back cover

The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara Trilogy


Terry Brooks - 2003
    Now, for the first time in one marvelous collector’s edition hardcover, here’s the complete trilogy of the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Ilse Witch, Antrax, and Morgawr. In these enchanting novels, a colorful contingent of characters takes to the skies aboard a magnificent airship–the Jerle Shannara–on a quest fraught with wonder and danger. Ilse WitchA half-drowned elf carries a map covered with cryptic symbols–and Walker Boh, the last of the Druids, has the skill to decipher them. But someone else understands the map’s significance: the ruthless Ilse Witch, who will stop at nothing to possess it–and the powerful magic it leads to.AntraxWhile in search of the elusive magic, Walker Boh is lured into a trap–caught in a dark maze beneath a ruined city, stalked by a hungry, unseen enemy. It is Antrax: a spirit that feeds off enchantment and traps the souls of men. Now the fate of the Four Lands hangs in the balance.Morgawr The intrepid heroes aboard the Jerle Shannara have reached their breaking point. A centuries-old sorcerer, the Morgawr, vows to find and control the fabled ancient books of magic–and he is an adversary of awesome might with a fleet of airships and a crew of walking dead men at his command. In The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara, Terry Brooks weaves together high adventure, vividly wrought characters, and a spellbinding world into an irresistible story of heroism and sacrifice, love and honor.

Trickster's Choice


Tamora Pierce - 2003
    Young Aly follows in the quieter footsteps of her father, however, delighting in the art of spying. When she is captured and sold as a slave to an exiled royal family in the faraway Copper Islands, it is this skill that makes a difference in a world filled with political intrigue, murderous conspiracy, and warring gods. This is the first of two books featuring Alianne.

The Twig Trilogy (Edge Chronicles #4-6): Includes Beyond the Deepwoods, Stormchaser & Midnight Over Sanctaphrax


Paul Stewart - 2003
    Initially, Twig’s dreams of exploration seem fulfilled. But a much higher destiny awaits him.In Midnight Over Sanctaphrax, the third title in the trilogy, Twig, now a sky pirate captain, is the only one who can save the Edgelands from disaster. But the task is daunting: his crew lost and his memory shattered. Can he make the journey back into the Deepwoods to recover his memory and take action?

The Word and the Void


Terry Brooks - 2003
    This Terry Brooks omnibus brings together three novels which together make up a trilogy of tales of demons and dark destiny.

The Book of Athyra


Steven Brust - 2003
    Accompanying him on his journeys are two leathery-winged jhereg who share a telepathic link with Vlad—and triple his chances against even the most powerful of enemies… In Athyra, Vlad finds he’s ready to retire himself and his jhereg companions, but the biggest hitters of the House of the Jhereg have something else in mind. In Orca, Vlad must repay a debt to a boy who saved his life—even if it means breaking a financial scandal big enough to bring down the House of the Orca, and possibly the entire Empire…

The Treekeepers


Susan McGee Britton - 2003
    In this stirring fantasy, a murderous leader has taken over the land where Bird lives and destroyed the tree that gives life. He will do anything to find the Opener-one who is prophesied to save the people. A few other orphans and a sad, mysterious caretaker lead Bird to a special locket that, amazingly, opens easily in her hands. It reveals just a seed. When planted, it will grow into a new sacred tree that will produce a lifesaving elixir. Bird holds the power, but she lacks the knowledge to use it. Featuring a memorable character with grit, an indomitable will, and the cagey instincts of a survivor, Bird's saga will thrill readers as they welcome a new voice rich in imagination and storytelling skill.

The Lord of Castle Black


Steven Brust - 2003
    Its sequel, Five Hundred Years After, was hailed by Science Fiction Chronicle as the best fantasy novel of the year.Now, in the Viscount of Adrilankha series, Brust has returned to the Khaavren epic, first with The Paths of the Dead, and now with its direct continuation, The Lord of Castle Black...a novel that gives Vlad Taltos and Khaavren fans alike a new look at one of Brust's most popular characters, the Dragonlord Morrolan.Along the way, we'll also encounter swordplay, intrigues, quests, battles, romance, snappy dialogue, and the missing heir to the Imperial Throne. It's an old-fashioned adventure, moving at a twenty-first-century pace.

The Shamutanti Hills / Kharé – Cityport of Traps / The Seven Serpent / The Crown of Kings (Fighting Fantasy: Sorcery!, #1-4)


Steve Jackson - 2003
    Whatever your choice the journey ahead will be dangerous and you will be faced with tricks, traps, problems, clues – and a host of evil creatures who will do everything in their power to thwart you. Whether you confront your enemies or flee to fight another day, each journey will be unique and it will be YOURS!----------This boxed set contains the four Fighting Fantasy: Sorcery! gamebooks from the Fighting Fantasy Reissues (Series 1) by Wizard Books:The Shamutanti Hills, #1Kharé – Cityport of Traps, #2The Seven Serpent, #3The Crown of Kings, #4

Song of the Beast


Carol Berg - 2003
    Once the most famous musician of his generation, celebrated as a man beloved of the gods, his voice is now silent, his hands ruined, his music that offered beauty and hope to war-torn Elyria destroyed. Even the god who nurtured his talent since boyhood has abandoned him. But no one ever told him his crime. To discover the truth, he must risk his hard-bought freedom to unlock the mind of his god and the heart of his enemy.

Dark Reflections


Kai Meyer - 2003
    In this fast-paced series, feisty fourteen-year-old Merle and her friends Junipa and Serafin live in enchanted Venice, which has been under siege by Egypt for over 30 years. The Venetians' only protection is the Flowing Queen. But when the Queen's very existence is threatened, Merle soon finds herself at the center of a struggle for Venice's survival. But the final battle is one that she and her friends never could have imagined--and the cost will be high indeed. The author's imaginative use of history and mythology combine with fast-paced storytelling to create a page-turning series that is utterly compelling.

Gideon's Dawn


Michael D. Warden - 2003
    From here, Life flowed to the four corners of creation. Or so it once was, before High Lord Gideon used a Word of Desolation that Abaddon had taught him, unleashing a corrupting perversion. Two thousand years later, another Gideon has appeared. No one knows where he came from or how he arrived. But they know he has power. This is no ordinary sojourner, they whisper. This may be the answer to ancient prophesies of doom and deliverance. Or he may just be Gideon Dawning, a graduate student from Texas, in over his head in a world beyond time. . . .

Here There Be Dragonnes


Mary Brown - 2003
    Her companions included a crow, a toad, a goldfish, and a kitten. Never had a more unlikely band of unheroic heroes set off on a difficult and dangerous quest. But Thing had a ring with unusual powers.

Joust


Mercedes Lackey - 2003
    Young and slight, Vetch would have died of overwork, exposure, and starvation if not for the anger which was his only real sustenance--anger that he had lost his home and family in a war of conquest waged by the dragon-riding Jousters of Tia. Tia had usurped nearly halt of Alta's lands and enslaved or killed many of Vetch's countrymen. Sometimes it seemed that his entire cruel fate revolved around dragons and the Jousters who rode them.But his fate changed forever the day he first saw a dragon.From its narrow, golden, large-eyed head, to its pointed emerald ears, to the magnificent blue wings, the dragon was a thing of multicolored, jeweled beauty, slim and supple and quite as large as the shed it perched on. Vetch, almost failed to notice the Jouster who stood beside him. "I need a boy," the rider had said, and suddenly Vetch found himself lifted above the earth and transported by dragon-back to a different world.Vetch was to be trained as a dragon-boy, and he hardly believed his luck. The compound seemed like paradise: he could eat until he was full, and all he had to do was care for his Jouster's dragon, Kashet.It didn't take long for Vetch to realize that Kashet was special--for unlike other dragons, Kashet was gentle by nature and did not need the tranquilizing tala plant to make her tracttable. Vetch became determined to learn the secret of how Kashet had been tamed. For if Kashet could be tamed, perhaps Vetch could tame a dragon of his own. And if he could, then he might be able to escape and bring the secret of dragon-taming back to his homeland of Alta. And that secret, might prove to be the key to Alta's liberation....