Four millennia have passed since the gods came to Myrillia, creating the nine lands of peace as a haven from the nightmarish, accursed Hinterlands. In all this time nothing has disturbed the harmony of the nine lands.But now the goddess of the Summering Isles has been murdered. The only witness is Tylar de Noche, a crippled and disgraced former Shadowknight. As he holds the dying goddess, her last breath bestows a powerful blessing on him-a mark that heals his broken body. A mark that many see as proof that he killed a god. A mark that unleashes a powerful force of darkness within him. Chased across Myrillia by enemies both human and ethereal, Tylar must uncover and face down a being powerful enough to kill an immortal-the true godslayer. For if he fails, all of Myrillia will fall into shadow. The Nine Lands were created by, and still have, 100 gods. So one would think that the death of a single god wouldn't be all that momentous. But the death of Meeryn, goddess of the Sundering Isles, implies that a dark force that can destroy anything and everything is on the loose. Tylar de Noche, a crippled former Shadowknight, can identify the killer and also has received superhuman powers from the dying goddess. That makes him a marked man in the eyes of humans and dark entities, both certain that he is their enemy. This is one of those fantasy novels that could not have been written without the adjective dark, but Clemens, a seasoned fantasist, has broken darkness down into its various aspects and developed at great, possibly excessive, length how those aspects affect the world and the characters he creates. If hardly original in conception, the first volume of the Godslayer Chronicles is well above average in execution. Roland Green Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved "With every new book in the Wit'ch War saga, Jim Clemens' storytelling expertise becomes more compelling." — Terry Brooks, author of The Sword of Shannara "A dazzling new entry in the world of epic fantasy... Shadowfall is likely to become a favorite of fantasy lovers worldwide." — SF Revu From James Clemens, whose Wit'ch novels have been compared to the fantasies of Guy Gavriel Kay and George R.R. Martin, comes the first novel in a new series—about a world where mysterious gods hold powerful secrets, knights walk in the shadows, and daemons claw up from the darkness.... Four millennia have passed since the hundred immortal gods came to Myrillia. Out of chaos they created the Nine Lands, blessed with their Graces and protected from the nightmarish Hinterlands, where rogue gods stalked across a barbarous wilderness. In all this time nothing has disturbed the peace of the Nine Lands. Until now. For the impossible...the unthinkable...has happened. Meeryn, goddess of the Summering Isles, has been murdered. The only witness was Tylar de Noche, a crippled and disgraced former Shadowknight who lives in agonizing shame of his past. He saw the dark entity that killed Meeryn. And as he held the dying goddess, her last breath bestowed a powerful blessing on him—a mark that healed his broken body. A mark that many see as proof that he killed a god. A mark that unleashed a powerful force of darkness within him. Chased across Myrillia by enemies both human and ethereal, aided only by outcasts like himself, Tylar must uncover and face down a being powerful enought to kill an immortal—the true godslayer. If he fails, all of Myrillia will fall into shadow.... Praise for the Enthralling Fantasy of JAMES CLEMENS "Grabs at your heart and tears a little hole, then tears another, and another—a brutal and beautiful ride." — R. A. Salvatore "I loved every page. Clemens has constructed a world of magic that's never been seen before, with a cast of beings who are so engaging and entrancing that you never want the story to end" — John Saul "Clemens demonstrates considerable skill at combining swift pacing with character development." — Library Journal "Fresh, sparky details and enough plot convolutions to keep fans coming back for more." — Kirkus Reviews James Clemens [Aka James Rollins] was born in Chicago, Illinois in 1961. With his three brothers and three sisters, he was raised in the Midwest and rural Canada. He attended the University of Missouri and graduated with a doctorate in veterinary medicine in 1985. The lure of ocean, sun, and new horizons eventually drew him to the West Coast, where he established his veterinary practice in Sacramento, California, eventually settling for good in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. He is the author of The Banned and the Banished series (The Wit'ch War Saga) and The Godslayer Chronicles.