The magic and mayhem continue in this thrilling second instalment of Hobb's new series. Althea Vestrit has found a new home aboard the liveship Ophelia, but she lives only to reclaim the Vivacia as her rightful inheritance. However, the Vivacia has been captured by the pirate, 'King' Kennit, and is acquiring a keen bloodlust. Meanwhile in Bingtown, the fading fortunes of the Vestrit family lead Malta deeper into the magical secrets of the mysterious Rain Wilds Traders. And just outside Bingtown, Amber dreams of relaunching the Paragon, The Mad Ship! The second volume in this superb trilogy from the author of THE FARSEER TRILOGY continues the dramatic tale of piracy, serpents, love and magic.

This omnibus brings together two of Tom Holt's best-loved stories. In My Hero, Jane thinks writing novels is a piece of cake. Until hers starts writing back. At which point, she really should stop. The one thing she should not do is go into the book herself. After all, that’s what heroes are for. Unfortunately, the world of fiction is a far more complicated place than she ever imagined, and she’s about to land her hero right in it. In Who's Afraid of Beowulf?, Hrolf Earthstar, the last Norse King of Caithness, and his 12 champions are awakened from a centuries-long sleep when archaeologist Hildy Frederiksen finds their grave mound. Not only that, but Hrolf decides to carry on his ancient war against the powers of darkness. Starting with the Bakerloo Line.

J.W. Wells seemed to be a respectable establishment, but the company now paying Paul Carpenter’s salary is, in fact, a deeply sinister organization with a mighty peculiar management team. Paul thought he was getting the hang of it—particularly when he fell head over heels for his strangely alluring colleague, Sophie—but death is never far away when you work at J.W. Wells. Our love-struck hero is about to discover that custard is definitely in the eye of the beholder. And that it really stings.

Colin Hollinghead is a young man going nowhere fast. Working for his dad might have seemed like a good idea at the time, but starting at the bottom in the widget-making industry has, predictably, lost its appeal. And now the business is in trouble. At least his father has a plan to turn things around—a new work force that will improve profit margins and secure the company’s future for all eternity. The deal looks great on paper, but they do say that the devil is in the details—and the arch fiend definitely seems to be involved in some capacity. Colin needs help. Perhaps his new friend from J.W. Wells & Co. (Practical and Effective Magicians, Sorcerers and Supernatural Consultants) can help…Sparkling with wit and oozing charm, Tom Holt’s new comic caper proves once and for all that going to work can actually be hell.

The Wizards' University is short of money. Nothing comes in from tourists any more since Mr Chesney's offworld tours have stopped. High Chancellor Querida has left Wizard Derk and his family to run the world and handsome Wizard Corkoran to run the University. Corkoran is really only interested in being the first man to walk on the moon, but he does send begging letters to the students' parents. But Wizard Derk's daughter Elda turns out to be a large golden griffin, King Luther's son is penniless, the Emperor's sister has been disowned by the Senate and the dwarf, far from owning a hoard of treasure, turns out to be a runaway slave. And then the first reply from a student's family arrives - in the form of assassins ...The situation is definitely out of control.

At Castle Harvell, two fates collide. Melliandra refuses to marry the sinister Prince Kylock while an apprentice named Jack is terrified by his sudden ability to work miracles. Together they flee the castle, pursued by the sorcerer Baralis, while elsewhere a knight embarks on a perilous voyage of his own. Soon destiny will draw the travellers together, and that meeting will shatter the world ...For more information on this or any other Orbit book, visit the Orbit website at www.orbitbooks.co.uk

At Castle Harvell, demented Prince Kylock grabs the reins of power by murdering his father. Harvell's two young refugess are torn apart by the storms of war: headstrong young Melliandra is captured by brutal slavers and Jack, whose wild power works miracles, falls prey to a smuggler's lying charms and a woman's seductive schemes. Meanwhile, a knight's shattered destiny is about to lead from death-sport pits to the blood-strewn creation of an empire. For more information on this or any other Orbit title, visit the Orbit website at www.orbitbooks.co.uk

From dungeon to cathedral, from brothel to hermit's hut, the gambits of the mighty face the power of seers and stars. In the fortress of Bren, mad King Kylock and the wizard Baralis spread their sadistic terror across the shattered kingdoms. Meanwhile, the fallen knight Tawl and Jack, the baker's boy, meet in a quest to save widowed Melliandra and her unborn child. The conflict that follows will rewrite the meaning of Destiny and unknit the very fabric of Time ...MASTER AND FOOL is the conclusion to the Book of Words - an epic tale of grandeur and magic which has been acclaimed as one of the most brilliant fantasy debuts for many years. For more information on this or any other Orbit book, visit the Orbit website at www.orbitbooks.co.uk

A fantasy of heroic adventure, set in the kingdom of Delain. It involves a king who is poisoned, a young and beautiful queen, a prince locked in a high tower while his younger brother assumes the throne, and an evil magician who harbours terrible secrets and malevolent plans.

His mother is not his mother. His father is not his father. And if Jack he hadn’t broken the high school rushing record that night, nothing would have changed. He’d just be going out for pizza, playing football, trying yet again to score with his girlfriend, P.J.
     But he did break the record. He appeared on the news. And now they have found him.
     Ripped from the only world he has ever known, Jack plunges into a space-time–bending game of survival with no way out. The rules are shrouded in secrets they say he can’t handle. But some things he learns fast: Trust no one. Never forget that your friends could reveal themselves as your enemies at any second. Every turn leads to betrayal. And if you don’t go along with it, you die.
     After centuries of abuse, the earth is dying, and it’s up to Jack to reverse the decline before the Turning Point, when nothing will ever be the same again. Beaten into shape by a ninja babe and a huge telepathic man’s best friend, Jack hurtles across the ocean to save the future from the present and to solve the mystery of his purpose. Exactly who, or what, is Firestorm, and what does it have to do with Jack? And what comes next when everything you have ever known turns out to be wrong?

Jill and Eustace must rescue the Prince from the evil Witch.

At long last, the New York Times bestselling series that launched the Star Wars saga into the next generation and into thrilling new territory reaches its spectacular finale. Side by side, Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Leia Organa Solo, their children, and their comrades in the Galactic Alliance rally for their last stand against the enemy that threatens not only the galaxy, but the Force itself.

The Galactic Alliance’s hard-won success in countering the Yuuzhan Vong onslaught has proven all too brief—and the tide has turned once more to the invaders’ advantage. Having overcome the sabotage strategies of the Jedi and their allies, the marauding aliens have pushed deeper into the galaxy and subjugated more worlds in their ruthless quest for domination. Coruscant has been remade into a Yuuzhan Vong stronghold. The remnants of the resistance are struggling to form a united front. Luke, Mara, and Jacen are missing in action. Clearly the stage is set for endgame.

Now, as Han and Leia receive the chilling news that hundreds of high-ranking Galactic Alliance prisoners face slaughter in a sacrifice to the enemy’s bloodthirsty gods, Luke and his team try desperately to convince the living world of Zonama Sekot to join the Jedi’s final campaign against the Yuuzhan Vong. Yet even as they speak, a lone space station is all that stands between Alliance headquarters on Mon Calamari . . . and wave after wave of ferocious enemy forces waging their most decisive assault.

At the same time, the Jedi’s alliances throughout the galaxy are being tested—and the chances of victory jeopardized—by rogue factions determined to deploy the lethal weapon that will exterminate the Yuuzhan Vong . . . and perhaps countless other species. And among the Yuuzhan Vong themselves, the threat of revolt has reached a boiling point—as the oppressed underclass and powerful officials alike fear their Supreme Overlord’s mad actions will provoke the wrath of the gods.

Ultimately, for both the forces of invasion and resistance, too much has been sacrificed —and too much is at stake—to ever turn back. And now, nothing can stand in the way of seizing victory . . . or facing annihilation.

The opening volume in a huge epic fantasy in the tradition of Frank Herbert's DUNE series. Struggling to survive an existence of enforced slavery on their home planet, the people of Kundala are slowly dying. Their oppressors, the V'ornn, a technologically advanced, alien race, have reigned over the Kundalans with unyielding power for more than one hundred years. Only through the power of the lost, god-given Pearl can the Kundalans be saved from extinction, for within it lies a secret so potent it could tear the entire planet apart. However, only one man is destined to find and wield the awesome power of the Pearl. His name is Annon, high prince of the alien V'ornn, preordained to become his enemies' saviour — the fabled and long awaited Dar Sala-at. To fulfil his destiny he first must die and be reborn, his spirit fused into the body of a young Kundalan girl, Riane. As coexisting spirits in a single body, the two young identities of different gender, culture and race, will not only have to hide the quest for the Pearl from those who would seek to try to snatch such power for themselves, but also resolve deeply ingrained prejudices. For without doing so, the Pearl will never be found, and the Kundalans, and Annon, are doomed.