The groundbreaking classic fantasy The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by the late Patricia A. McKillip (Ombria in Shadow) won the inaugural World Fantasy Award and has captivated generations of readers. This 50th anniversary special edition continues the legacy of McKillip's lyrical, enchanting fairy tale about a fearless young sorceress and her menagerie of magical animals, and it includes elegant new illustrations by Stephanie Law (The Essential Peter S. Beagle) and a passionate new introduction by Marjorie Liu (Wingbearer).
Sixteen-year-old sorceress Sybel lives on Eld Mountain, where she sits in a room with "a great dome of crystal, thin as glass, hard as stone," and calls magical animals to add to the menagerie built by her forefathers. Her charges include a bloodthirsty falcon, a boar who can answer riddles, and a treasure-hungry dragon. Then, nobleman Coren of Sirle comes knocking with an infant who is both Sybel's cousin and the son of the Sirle house's enemy, King Drede. Sybel raises the child in secret until he is 12, but she is caught between Coren and Drede when the boy's identity comes out. Both Coren and Drede desire Sybel's beauty and power, and a deep betrayal sets her at a crossroads between revenge and freedom.
McKillip's sterling gift for poetic prose lights each sentence and brings an ethereal quality to the reading experience. Sybel remains a fascinating heroine, secure in her power and fearsome, yet achingly vulnerable in her outrage. This mythic, intimate masterpiece stands ready for a new generation of readers, and its many fans will want to return to it as well. --Jaclyn Fulwood, blogger at Infinite Reads