Salute the Dark is the fourth book in the critically acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award. A s spymaster Stenworld makes a stand in his home city, others must chose where their loyalties lie. All must face the end of days . . . The mighty Wasp armies are on the march. And with war imminent, spymaster Stenwold must finally separate allies from false friends. He knows the Empire won’t stop until its flag hangs over Collegium, Stenwold's home city. Tisamon the Weaponsmaster favours a more direct strategy – facing the Wasp Emperor himself, with a blade in his hand. He’d be abandoning both friends and family to do so. Yet is he driven by honour, or being manipulated by something far more sinister? With the Shadow Box in his possession at last, Uctebri can begin his dark ritual. The Wasp-kinden’s Emperor believes this will grant him immortality. However, Uctebri has his own plans – for the Emperor and the Empire. Salute the Dark is followed by the fifth book in the Shadows of the Apt series, The Scarab Path. “Brimming with imagination” ―SciFiNow “The Shadows of the Apt series is simply one of the best epic fantasy series out there ” ― LEC Book Reviews “Super worldbuilding, great characters and extreme inventiveness ” ― Fantasy Book Critic “ Epic fantasy at its best . Gripping, original and multi-layered storytelling from a writer bursting with lots of fascinating ideas” ― Walker of Worlds “Full of sparking, speculative innovation” ―Stephen Baxter on The Doors of Eden “Breathtaking scope and vision. Adrian Tchaikovsky is one of our finest writers ” ―Gareth Powell on Children of Ruin “A joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human ” ―Patrick Ness on Children of Time Adrian Tchaikovsky was born in Woodhall Spa, Lincolnshire, has practised law and now writes full time. He's also studied stage-fighting, perpetrated amateur dramatics and has a keen interest in entomology and table-top games. Adrian is the author of the critically acclaimed Shadows of the Apt series, the Echoes of the Fall series and other novels, novellas and short stories. Children of Time won the prestigious Arthur C. Clarke Award, and Children of Ruin and Shards of Earth both won the British Science Fiction Award for Best Novel. The Tiger and the Wolf won the British Fantasy Award for Best Fantasy Novel, while And Put Away Childish Things won the BSFA Award for Best Shorter Fiction.