Lirael
Lirael has never felt like a true daughter of the Clayr. Abandoned by her mother and ignorant of her father’s identity, Lirael resembles no one else in her large, extended family living in the Clayr’s Glacier. She doesn’t even have the Sight – the ability to See into the present and possible futures – that is the very birthright of the Clayr.
Nonetheless, it is Lirael in whose hands the fate of the Old Kingdom
lies. She must undertake a desperate mission under the growing shadow
of an ancient evil – one that opposes the Royal Family, blocks the
Sight of the Clayr, and threatens to break the very boundary between
Life and Death itself. With only her faithful companion, the
Disreputable Dog, to help her, Lirael must find the courage to seek her
own hidden destiny.
Garth
Nix draws readers deeper into the magical landscape of the Old Kingdom
and weaves a spellbinding tale of discovery, destiny and danger.
Garth Nix
Garth Nix was born in 1963 in Melbourne, Australia, to the sound of the Salvation Army band outside playing 'Hail the Conquering Hero Comes' or possibly 'Roll Out the Barrel'. Garth left Melbourne at an early age for Canberra (the federal capital) and stayed there till he was nineteen, when he left to drive around the UK in a beat-up Austin with a boot full of books and a Silver-Reed typewriter.
Despite a wheel literally falling off the Austin, Garth survived to return to Australia and study at the University of Canberra. After finishing his degree in 1986 he worked in a bookshop, then as a book publicist, a publisher's sales representative, and editor. Along the way he was also a part-time soldier in the Australian Army Reserve, serving in an Assault Pioneer platoon for four years. Garth left publishing to work as a public relations and marketing consultant from 1994-1997, till he became a full-time writer in 1998. He did that for a year before joining Curtis Brown Australia as a part-time literary agent in 1999. In January 2002 Garth went back to dedicated writer again, despite his belief that full-time writing explains the strange behaviour of many authors.
The Old Kingdom
Also known as the Abhorsen Trilogy (only in the USA).
The Old Kingdom consists of six primary books, and includes three additional books that complement the series but are not considered mandatory reads. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.