The Starthorn Tree

The Starthorn Tree

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

A thrilling fantasy adventure for younger readers. With the young King of Estelliana mysteriously ill, the kingdom is placed under the harsh rule of a starkin regent, Lord Zavion. One day a hearthkin boy, Durrik, has a vision telling him that the regent is planning to kill the new king and take over Estelliana, and that he must go on a quest to find a cure for the King and save the kingdom. He and his best friend Pedrin set out on their journey and are soon joined by a noble girl, Lisandre, and a servant girl called Briony. On their travels they meet with soldiers, wildkin, pirates and monsters before they reach their final destination - the magic Starthorn Tree - which may hold the miraculous cure...
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The Starkin Crown

The Starkin Crown

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Last, the smallest and the greatest... Though he must be lost before he can find, Though, before he sees, he must be blind, If he can find and if he can see, The true king of all he shall be. Prince Peregrine, rightful heir to the starkin and wildkin crowns, longs for adventure. But Vernisha the Vile, who seized the starkin throne, seeks to destroy Peregrine, his family, and all the wildkin of Ziva. With Stormlinn Castle under attack, Peregrine flees with his best friend, Jack, and Lady Grizelda – a starkin girl. Together they seek the Spear of the Storm King – the long-lost weapon which, it is prophesied, will destroy the starkin throne. But a hunter is on their tail and someone close doesn't want them to succeed...
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Dragonclaw

Dragonclaw

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

In the Celtic land of Eileanan, witches and magic have been outlawed, and those caught for practicing witchcraft are put to death! It is a land ruled by an evil Queen, where sea-dwelling Fairgean stir, and children vanish in the night. But in a valley deep in the mountains, young Isabeau grows to womanhood under the guidance of an elderly witch, and must set out on a quest, carrying the last hopes of the persecuted witches.
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Battle of the Heroes

Battle of the Heroes

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Do not lose faith. Remember the words of the story, remember the words of the spell... Quinn, Sebastian, Elanor and Tom have defeated the black witch Githa and found the last crucial piece of the prophecy — the sea serpent’s scale. Back now at Wolfhaven, they search desperately through the castle crypts for the sleeping heroes, who they hope will save them all ... before the dark moon rises and they lose everything.
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The Heart of Stars

The Heart of Stars

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

An evil necromancer has kidnapped the princess Olywynne and her twin brother, plotting to spill their blood-for revenge, and to restore his own family to life. Chaos reigns in the capital, and no one can stop the necromancer but Rhiannon and her winged mare. But can she bring herself to rescue the woman she hates more than anyone-Olywynne, her rival for the apprentice-witch Lewen's love-especially when she stands to lose everything she holds dear in the effort?
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The Skull of the World

The Skull of the World

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

In the land of Eileanan, the Pact of Peace has not meant the end of unrest. And, though Isabeau would like to return home to help her family in these uncertain times, she must first venture to the Skull of the World where she will discover her true talents as a witch. And when she does return home, she does so transformed with the power to overcome her family's enemies once and for all.
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The Herb of Grace

The Herb of Grace

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

The paperbacks of the exciting new six-book series by the bestselling author, Kate Forsyth Book 3 – 15th-19th August, 1658: Luka and Emilia must travel to the New Forest to find the Wood tribe, whose charm is a rue flower, the herb of grace. Its power is that of plants and herbs – which can both heal and poison. On the way, the two children tangle with an impoverished widow, the thief-taker Coldham, a highwayman and a witch, and find themselves caught up in a Royalist plot to restore King Charles II to his throne.
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Beauty in Thorns

Beauty in Thorns

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

A spellbinding reimagining of 'Sleeping Beauty' set amongst the wild bohemian circle of Pre-Raphaelite artists and poets.The Pre-Raphaelites were determined to liberate art and love from the shackles of convention. Ned Burne-Jones had never had a painting lesson and his family wanted him to be a parson. Only young Georgie Macdonald - the daughter of a Methodist minister - understood. She put aside her own dreams to support him, only to be confronted by many years of gossip and scandal. Dante Gabriel Rossetti was smitten with his favourite model, Lizzie Siddal. She wanted to be an artist herself, but was seduced by the irresistible lure of laudanum. William Morris fell head-over-heels for a 'stunner' from the slums, Janey Burden. Discovered by Ned, married to William, she embarked on a passionate affair with Gabriel that led inexorably to tragedy.Margot Burne-Jones had become her father's muse. He painted her as Briar Rose, the focus of his most renowned...
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The Wildkin's Curse

The Wildkin's Curse

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Three times a babe shall be born, between star-crowned and iron-bound. First, the sower of seeds, the soothsayer, though lame, he must travel far. Next shall be the king-breaker, the king-maker, Though broken himself he shall be. Last, the smallest and the greatest – in him, the blood of wise and wild, farseeing ones and starseeing ones. Though he must be lost before he can find, Though, before he sees, he must be blind, If he can find and if he can see, The true king of all he shall be. Merry, Zed and Liliana – three children born between those of hearthkin blood and starkin blood – are on a perilous quest to the Palace of Zarissa. Amid the splendour and treachery of court, they watch and wait: planning the rescue of Princess Rosalina, held captive in the dazzling Tower of Stars. And as their pasts and presents unfold, their destinies become clear. The engrossing companion to The Starthorn Tree by one of Australia's best fantasy storytellers, Kate Forsyth. Click here to see video clips of Kate discussing her writing for the Centre for Learning Innovation
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The Pool of Two Moons

The Pool of Two Moons

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

It has been sixteen years since the Day of Reckoning, when magic and witchcraft were outlawed throughout all of Eileanan. And though rumors say that she is dead, the Arch-Sorceress Meghan o' the Beasts still lives. Traveling with her are the true heir to the throne, and the red-haired warrior Iseult. Their fates are woven together in a quest to bring magic back to the land
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The Gypsy Crown

The Gypsy Crown

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Note: This edition includes five of the six books that were originally published as The Chain of Charms series in Australia. The missing book is The Cat's Eye Shell (The Chain of Charms #4) Emilia Finch and her cousin Luka are gypsies. For them, that means they live a strongly traditional life, rich with story, music, dance, and magic, governed by the laws of the clan and the ways of the road. To the repressive Puritanical government of 17th century England, however, the gypsies are thieving, fortune-telling vagrants who are most likely allies of the devil. While the Finches have managed to steer clear of trouble, it finds them when they decide to raise dowry money for one of their daughters, by performing in Kingston square one ill-fated market day. A series of terrible events lands the family in jail, charged with murder. Only Emilia and Luka manage to escape, promising to bring back help and free them. The only problem is -- how? Emilia believes in the legend of the charms: it is said that the luck of the Rom has turned sour ever since a long-ago gypsy matriarch broke her chain of charms, giving one charm to each of her five children. Since then, the gypsies have been persecuted and the families have dispersed. If they can gather the charms from the families, Emilia thinks, the strong magic of the Rom will somehow bring her family freedom. Luka, on the other hand, is more practical � he wants to enlist the help of the other clans to help the Finches escape. Emilia and Luka must race through the countryside, navigating a hornets' nest of Rom-hating Puritans, Royalist spies, and traitors, if they are to complete their quest before the magistrate delivers a death sentence�
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The Blue Rose

The Blue Rose

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Viviane de Faitaud has grown up alone at the Chateau de Belisama-sur-le-Lac in Brittany, for her father, the Marquis de Ravoisier, lives at the court of Louis XVI in Versailles. After a hailstorm destroys the chateau's orchards, gardens and fields an ambitious young Welshman, David Stronach, accepts the commission to plan the chateau's new gardens in the hope of making his name as a landscape designer.David and Viviane fall in love, but it is an impossible romance. Her father has betrothed her to a rich duke who she is forced to marry and David is hunted from the property. Viviane goes to court and becomes a maid-in-waiting to Marie-Antoinette and a member of the extended royal family. Angry and embittered, David sails away from England with Lord Macartney, the British ambassador, who hopes to open up trade with Imperial China. In Canton, the British embassy at last receives news from home, including their first reports of the French Revolution. David hears the story of...
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The Crimson Thread

The Crimson Thread

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

In Crete during World War II, Alenka, a young woman who fights with the resistance against the brutal Nazi occupation, finds herself caught between her traitor of a brother and the man she loves, an undercover agent working for the Allies.May 1941. German paratroopers launch a blitzkrieg from the air against Crete. They are met with fierce defiance, the Greeks fighting back with daggers, pitchforks, and kitchen knives. During the bloody eleven-day battle, Alenka, a young Greek woman, saves the lives of two Australian soldiers.Jack and Teddy are childhood friends who joined up together to see the world. Both men fall in love with Alenka. They are forced to retreat with the tattered remains of the Allied forces over the towering White Mountains. Both are among the seven thousand Allied soldiers left behind in the desperate evacuation from Crete's storm-lashed southern coast. Alenka hides Jack and Teddy at great risk to herself. Her brother Axel is a Nazi sympathiser and...
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Sea Magic

Sea Magic

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Ben and Tim and their cousins Thomas and Meg don't expect unusual adventures when they begin their summer holidays at the beach. But they couldn't be more wrong! When they stumble across a mer-boy called Sechiel stranded on the sand, they hear about a sinister diver in a submarine, who together with his razor-toothed shark is terrorising the mer-people and destroying the wildlife. Worse still, he has abducted Sechiel's sister! All of a sudden Ben and Tim find themselves in the middle of their most exciting and magical adventure yet.
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The Tower of Ravens

The Tower of Ravens

Kate Forsyth

Historical Fiction / Children's Books / Fantasy

Bestselling author Kate Forsyth's mesmerizing return to the magical land of Eileanan. Condemned for lacking the horns so prized by her people, One-Horn's daughter must escape by riding one of the legendary flying horses to freedom-if she can stay on its back long enough. But to save a land where the dead walk and ghosts haunt the living, this strange, feral girl-renamed Rhiannon, the rider no one can catch-must convince the human apprentice witches she meets to trust the word of a wild, half-human girl.
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