New Releases by Catherine Fisher

In an absorbing mystery thriller, a teenage girl with a past arrives in a city: new name, new identity, new foster family. She has chosen the city herself, and is fascinated by its harmony and beauty, but is clearly in fear of discovery. She is nursing a secret from her early childhood, a secret that produces new terrors for her the moment she fears her identity has been spotted. A parallel narrative tells of a young architect''s apprentice, Zak, in 1750 - working with Jonathan Forrest, a man obsessed with past Druidic mysteries and a new architectural vision for the city. He plans to create the world''s first circular terraced street, the King''s Circus - a plan greeted with scorn and derision. Zac soon realises there''s more than just obsession with an architectural vision; there is some secret associated with building a hidden chamber in the centre of the Circus. But Zac himself has his own confused and highly destructive agenda ... These narratives are framed by the voice of Bladud - mythical first builder of the city, destined to die in trying to fly. And ultimately his narrative brings all together in a clever and brilliantly intriguing climax.

From the swirling mists and icy depths beyond the edge of the world came the snow-walker Gudrun, to rule the Jarl''s people with fear and sorcery. But a small band of outlaws are prepared to risk their lives to defeat Gudrun and restore the land to its rightful leader. This trilogy follows them in their quest, from the first terrifying journey to meet the mysterious snow-walker''s son, to the final battle in the lands beyond the rainbow bridge. The Snow-walker''s Son follows Jessa and Thorkil who, are sent to Thrasirshall in the empty wastelands to live with the mysterious Kari, Gudrun''s son. Led to believe Kari is some kind of monster they are shocked to discover he is a snow-walker, just like Gudrun, except with the desire to do good rather than evil. Together they journey back to the Jarshold to defeat Gudrun. In The Empty Hand Gudrun seeks revenge on those who banished her and sends a terrifying, faceless creature to the Jarlshold, and in The Soul Thieves, Kari and his companions must travel to the land of the snow-walkers to claim back the precious souls Gudrun has stolen. Here, Kari and Gudrun, mother and son and ultimate opponents, must fight their final battle.

Fantasy/quest. An intoxicating world reminiscent of the Arabian nights. As she works to return peace to Two Lands, Mirany travels through the Gates of the Underworld.

In this modern day version of Perceval and the Holy Grail, a guilt-ridden British teenager leaves his mentally ill mother to live with his wealthy uncle and begins a journey of self-knowledge and redemption after being briefly transported to the Waste Land of Arthurian times.

In this rich, psychological fantasy for teens, Fisher escorts readers into a labyrinth called Unworld--a fairy-tale kingdom gone horribly wrong that is both the manifestation of an injured girl''s comatose state and the ultimate proving ground for her older brother.

Alexos, de nieuwe Archon, onderneemt een gevaarlijke tocht door de woestijn naar de Bron der Liederen. Ondertussen blijft Mirany achter in de stad. Zij krijgt daar te maken met Generaal Argelin die de macht wil grijpen. Vanaf ca. 12 jaar.

Conor ontdekt dat een watergodin de nieuwe violist in de herberg van zijn moeder in haar macht heeft.

Breathtaking sequel to The Oracle, the Archon must face a journey of treachery and adventure across the pitiless desert in a bid to save his people ... The Archon vows to lead a pilgrimage to the Well of Songs to seek peace with the Rain Queen and save the land from the terrible drought. The Well is hidden in the mountains across the desert. But he is not the only one with his sight set on the mountains: Argelin, the tyrannical and power-hungry General, follows behind, an ever-present threat, with his heart set on the riches to be found. With only Oblek, Seth and two tomb-thieves known as the Jackal and the Fox for company, the Archon''s journey is treacherous and dangerous. They must face the Great Desolation and the monstrous animals outlined on the desert floor, animals with mythical powers, and they must survive without Mirany, bearer-of-the-god and true friend of the Archon, who has had to remain behind to face a threat much closer to home ...

Fantasy/quest. An intoxicating world reminiscent of the Arabian nights.

The fate of an Italian icon damaged by floods, a Victorian skeleton, and a Vampire Ballet are amongst the many unusual subjects of the poems in this new collection by Catherine Fisher. Lyrical grace combined with a sharp eye for imagery and a precise use of language are her hallmarks. Her themes are history, religion, and distinctively for this book, memory, highlighted in her sequence about an amnesiac and in the final section of sonnets, an imaginative chronicle of immigrant forebears. "... an enviable clarity of intent, purpose and execution" Ian MacMillan, Poetry Review Catherine Fisher is the author of three volumes of poetry for Seren: Immrama, The Unexplored Ocean and Altered States. She is also a novelist for children; her books include The Conjurer''s Game which was shortlisted for the Smarties prize in 1992 and has been serialised on Radio 5. She works as a teacher in Newport, Gwent.

Gudrun the wicked witch plans a final battle against her biggest enemy, her own son.

The plight of imprisoned African American women is detailed in this study. It is apparent that the nation''s prison systems are ill-equipped to meet the basic needs of the ever-growing female population, and that government has done very little to address the underlying causes of crime. Child care, medical conditions, the historical plight of incarcerated African American women, alternatives to prisons and future trends are also covered. The primary research is supported by the author''s survey of prison populations.

In this striking collection Catherine Fisher mixes vivid and particular poems about the Welsh landscape such as ''The Four Seasons'' and ''Field-walking'', with historical monologues such as ''Incident at Conwy'' and scenes from myth like ''Merlin on Ynys Enlli''. With an archeologist''s care, she sifts her imagery from the past and examines it in minute, careful detail. The title sequence, based on the journals of James Hartshill, a traveller on the voyages of Captain James Cook in the south Pacific in the eighteenth century, is a triumph of her technique. The famous explorer''s stubborn and heroic character and his adventures in the perilous frozen wastes of the Antarctic and among the natives ''sudden and dangerous as children'' of the lush Pacific islands are marvellously portrayed. "She writes imaginatively, bringing dead things to life, boldly placing them in the present world" Planet "I am conscious here of the quality of passion implicit in her work, and the exciting prospect of the future for a writer who clearly has so much more to say" New Welsh Review Catherine Fisher is the author of three volumes of poetry for Seren: Immrama, The Unexplored Ocean and Altered States. She is also a novelist for children; her books include The Conjurer''s Game which was shortlisted for the Smarties prize in 1992 and has been serialised on Radio 5. She works as a teacher in Newport, Gwent.

The theft of a bell from the newly discovered tomb of Meredith Rhys, scholar and possibly sorcerer awakens a kelpie, the powerful, beautiful, deadly and malicious legendary creature bound against its own will to serve the possessor of the bell for good or evil.