King’s Wrath (51 page)

Fan-tailed farla hen: A bright coloured bird with a fan-tail.

ferago: A mountain herb.

flaxwood: A type of wood used for cooking.

Freeze: Late winter.

golasses vines.

Harvest: Late autumn.

Ingress: Secret passages within the Brighthelm castle.

Kellet: A spicy fragrant herb that can be chewed.

Kern: The local and notorious fiery liquor of Penraven’s North.

Lackmarin: Place where the Stone of truth lies.

Leaf-fall: Early autumn.

Leaf of the Cherrel: Chewed as a breath freshener.

leem: A mountain herb

Lo: Set god.

Lo’s Fury: An alcoholic beverage

Oil of Miramel: Exotic essence.

osh: Slabs of roasted meat cooked a particular way.

peregum: A mountain herb.

Roeberries: Wild berries growing in forests. They are blood red.

Rough: A very strong alcoholic beverage. saramac fungus.

shakken: A wild Steppes animal.

Shaman: Spiritual healer.

Sheeca Shell: Found on the local beaches.

Shubo: In Steppes language it means second.

starren: A six-legged chameleon-like reptile.

Stone of Truth: This truth stone is at Lackmarin. All Valisar

Kings must take the oath at this stone.

Strenic: A poisonous herb growing wild on the Steppes.

Summertide: Summer.

Tatua: Tattoos on the face, shoulders and arms.

Thaw: Spring.

The Masked: Magic users of the barbarian horde.

The Vested: Magics users of the Set.

Thaumaturges: Miracle weavers.

Thaumaturgy: The study of the craft of miracle weaving.

toka: A mountain herb.

Weaven Timber: From Skardlag. It is scarce.

Wikken: A tribal seer.

Wych Elder Tree: Used for woodworking

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

 

Many of you have come to know my curious style of writing to no plan and I must admit to setting out on each new novel’s journey with no story in mind, a lot of optimism but also a feeling of terror. This novel rounds off a dozen adult fantasy novels, so while I assure myself not to panic — because I’ve done it before and my strange writing approach seems to work for me — there is always anxiety that it may not work this time! And this fear has never been greater than it was for Wrath because I had absolutely no idea where this tale was headed and as it unfolded I was regularly surprised by events, and especially at who ultimately became the villain. It was great fun to write, discovering all the twists and turns of the story, and I do hope you enjoy it.

Much of the energy for this final volume came from readers around the world — urging me to hurry and give them book three. Thank you all for your loyalty and your incredible interest in the series.

My thanks to the HarperCollins Voyager team, especially the often unheralded sales force, who work so hard at the coalface, but special thanks to my editor on this series, Kate Nintzel in the US; to her colleague Emma Coode in London who, together with her team, gave us the fabulous artwork for the covers; and, of course, to Stephanie Smith in Australia for her wonderful support, supervisory commitment to this and all my series, and her constant nurturing.

I cannot end my thanks without a nod to the fantasy booksellers of the world. I am getting to meet so many of you nowthrough my travels and you are so similar, no matter which country you hail from. You are generous, committed to the genre, great readers and your brilliant handselling is often not factored into the success of fantasy globally.

As always, I’m grateful to my loving family and friends for their encouragement and to Pip Klimentou, Marianne D’Arrigo, Sonya Caddy, Margo Burns, Michelle King, Willa Michelmore and Angela Bonnin for the Friday Fix, as well as to Mandy Macky, Judy Downs, Steve Hubbard, Phil Reed and Tony Berry.

Thanks Will and Jack, for understanding why I need quiet time … oh, and by the way, the recycling has to go out, the dishwasher needs emptying and your rooms need tidying! xx Ian — always last but never least. Love and thanks. Fx

BOOKS BY FIONA McINTOSH

 

TRINITY
Betrayal (1)
Revenge (2)
Destiny (3)

THE QUICKENING
Myrren’s Gift (1)
Blood and Memory (2)
Bridge of Souls (3)

PERCHERON
Odalisque
(1)
Emissary
(2)
Goddess
(3)

VALISAR
Royal Exile (1)
Tyrant’s Blood (2)
King’s Wrath (3)

Copyright

 

HarperCollinsPublishers
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Hammersmith, London W6 8JB

www.voyagerbooks.com

Published by HarperVoyager
An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers 2010

1

Copyright © Fiona McIntosh 2010

Fiona McIntosh asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-0-00-727605-9

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

EPub Edition   SEPTEMBER 2010 ISBN: 978-0-007-30192-8

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