Our Price: AUD$26.95 (USD$)* ISBN: 978-1-920764-75-3 Subject: Fantasy Publication Date: March 2006

Synopsis
The simple life of the cat-like erfin people is turned upside down when one curious erfin, Mirrortac, finds an old warrior’s sword in the woods. The sword leads to a meeting with an otherworldly stranger and a mission to save all the worlds from an encroaching evil.

Unlike any other fantasy ever written, The Wizard’s Sword introduces you to peoples and worlds never encountered before. Gone are the trolls, elves and other familiar beings of fantasy. Instead, meet the erfins, the tree-dwelling and winged faugs; the frustrating chattering petros; the gentle nature-loving Meretees of the islands, and the grotesque sorcerer and sorceress of the weird world of Hopocus. It is a journey of body, mind and spirit filled with magic and wonder.

About The Author
Paul M. Vander Loos was born in Brisbane in 1956. Following his love of writing into a profession as a journalist, he moved to Mackay on the coast of Central Queensland after completing his degree. He started a writers’ group, helped get an arts festival off the ground, and later settled down to married life with his wife, Brigida.

Paul’s love of fantasy grew out of the inspiration of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, and after a few test runs on smaller works, he spent a year writing the first draft of what is now The Wizard’s Sword. His seven-year-old daughter Jemimah now motivates his playful nature and sense of fantasy.

Paul has had numerous articles published, and continues to write poetry while larger works wait to be penned. The Wizard’s Sword is his first major publication.

From The Book
Mirrortac stumbled and cursed the ground. He bent down to massage his sore toe and saw the faint sheen of metal winking up at him from amongst the litter of fir needles. Coming down into a squat he sifted away the litter with his fingers, exposing more of the metal. His eyes widened and he sighed with awe. Beneath his hands was a short sword of exquisite design; its hilt adorned with three stones of precious amber and its blade gleaming as though it had only been fashioned yesterday. Glancing into the dark of the wood, he picked it up and handled it with reverence.

The sword was weighty yet balanced easily in his grip. He stood up and swung the blade through the air, feeling at once the clean gliding motion and a sense of strength and power. He tested it against the grey fur on his legs. Its cut was precise, deadly. Where had such a weapon come from, he thought

No erfin owned a sword though there were tarnished examples on the walls of the Halls-of-Eol and the High Halls of Mateote. The high priest was keeper of a ceremonial sword that was rarely used and was unlike this one, though it had been kept sharp and in good order.

No, this was a warrior’s sword and countless seasons had passed since erfins had been feared warriors.

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