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The Stone in the Skull

The Lotus Kingdoms, Book One
By Elizabeth Bear
Series: The Lotus Kingdoms
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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
In The Stone in the Skull, the first volume of Elizabeth Bear's Eternal Sky trilogy, readers journey across perilous mountain passes and into the mysterious Lotus Kingdoms. The Gage, a brass automaton forged by a long-dead wizard and centred on a human core, works as a mercenary carrying a vital message from the supreme sorcerer of Messaline to the Rajni of the Lotus Kingdom. Accompanied by the Dead Man, a hardened survivor and protector, they navigate a dynastic war among the fragmented rulers of a fallen empire, blending elements of magic, loyalty, and survival.
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Format: Paperback / softback
$3499

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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

Ideal for readers who enjoy richly detailed fantasy worlds, complex characters, and epic tales of political intrigue and magic. Fans of well-crafted fantasy epics and sophisticated prose will find much to admire.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

Hugo Award-winning author Elizabeth Bear returns to the critically acclaimed, epic fantasy world of the Eternal Sky with a brand-new trilogy

Hugo Award-winning author Elizabeth Bear returns to the critically acclaimed, epic fantasy world of the Eternal Sky with a brand-new trilogy

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Best SFF Books 2017 - The Guardian

Kirkus Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2017

The Verge Recommended Fantasy for 2017

Locus 2017 Recommended Reading List

This first volume of a new Eternal Sky trilogy takes readers over the dangerous mountain passes of the Steles of the Sky and south, into the Lotus Kingdoms.

The Gage, a brass automaton created by a long-dead wizard of Messaline around the core of a human being, works as a mercenary. He carries a message from the most powerful sorcerer of Messaline to the Rajni of the Lotus Kingdom. With him is the Dead Man, a bitter survivor of the bodyguard of the deposed Uthman Caliphate, protecting the message and the Gage. They are friends, of a peculiar sort.

They are walking into a dynastic war between the rulers of the shattered bits of a once great Empire.

Series: The Lotus Kingdoms

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  • The Origin of Storms
    The Origin of Storms
    The Lotus Kingdoms are at war, with four claimants to the sorcerous throne of the Alchemical Emperor, fielding three armies between them. Alliances are made, and broken, many times over—but in the end, only one can sit on the throne. And that one must have not only the power, but the rightful claim. The Rajni Mrithuri stands as the chief...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Origin of Storms
    The Origin of Storms
    The Lotus Kingdoms are at war, with four claimants to the sorcerous throne of the Alchemical Emperor, fielding three armies between them. Alliances are made, and broken, many times over, but in the end, only one can sit on the throne. And that one must have not only the power but the rightful claim. The Origin of Storms by Elizabeth...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Red-Stained Wings
    The Red-Stained Wings
    The sequel to The Stone in the Skull takes the Gage into desert lands under a deadly sky to answer the riddle of the Stone in the Skull. The Gage and the Dead Man brought a message from the greatest wizard of Messaline to the ruling queen of Sarathai, one of the Lotus Kingdoms. But the message was a riddle,...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Stone in the Skull
    The Stone in the Skull
    Best SFF Books 2017 - The Guardian Kirkus Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2017 The Verge Recommended Fantasy for 2017 Locus 2017 Recommended Reading List This first volume of a new Eternal Sky trilogy takes readers over the dangerous mountain passes of the Steles of the Sky and south, into the Lotus Kingdoms. The Gage, a brass automaton created...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Praise for The Stone in the Skull: "Elizabeth Bear sweeps the reader into a world of ravishing detail." — Huffington Post
"Amazing worldbuilding, gloriously precise prose, and excellent pacing." — Tor.com
"The Eternal Sky trilogy is one of the great fantasy epics of the last decade." — Library Journal
"Glorious and dramatic." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"This is a promising beginning indeed for an epic and it will no doubt be a magnificent journey." — Booklist
"A panoramic drama that grabs and grips from Page 1... vivid, absorbing, and thrilling." — Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780765380142

Publisher: St Martin's Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 April 2019

Country: United States

Imprint: Tor Books

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 30.0mm

Width: 157.0mm

Height: 236.0mm

Weight: 417g

Pages: 384

Collections

Elizabeth Bear Fantasy Fiction General Fiction Sci-Fi & Fantasy Series: The Lotus Kingdoms

About the Author

Elizabeth Bear was the recipient of the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 2005. She has won two Hugo Awards for her short fiction, a Sturgeon Award, and the Locus Award for Best First Novel. Bear lives in Brookfield, Massachusetts.

Also by Elizabeth Bear

View all
  • The Origin of Storms
    The Origin of Storms
    The Lotus Kingdoms are at war, with four claimants to the sorcerous throne of the Alchemical Emperor, fielding three armies between them. Alliances are made, and broken, many times over—but in the end, only one can sit on the throne. And that one must have not only the power, but the rightful claim. The Rajni Mrithuri stands as the chief...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Origin of Storms
    The Origin of Storms
    The Lotus Kingdoms are at war, with four claimants to the sorcerous throne of the Alchemical Emperor, fielding three armies between them. Alliances are made, and broken, many times over, but in the end, only one can sit on the throne. And that one must have not only the power but the rightful claim. The Origin of Storms by Elizabeth...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3799
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Red-Stained Wings
    The Red-Stained Wings
    The sequel to The Stone in the Skull takes the Gage into desert lands under a deadly sky to answer the riddle of the Stone in the Skull. The Gage and the Dead Man brought a message from the greatest wizard of Messaline to the ruling queen of Sarathai, one of the Lotus Kingdoms. But the message was a riddle,...
    By Elizabeth Bear
    Paperback
    $3499
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks

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