Click here to see the original cover art by Michael Whelan.
World Fantasy Award nominee 2005
More than twenty years ago, Stephen R. Donaldson wrote the six volumes
of The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. These critically acclaimed novels went on to sell more than 10 million copies and helped create the modern fantasy genre. Now, at long last, Donaldson
returns, with the first in a four-book conclusion to the bestselling
saga: The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant.
The original series
introduced an unforgettable main character, a man who has fallen ill and in quick succession lost his family, his work, and everything else that made his life worth living. Abandoned by his wife and child, he lives
alone, trying to maintain his fragile equilibrium. As he begins to
experience spells of unconsciousness, however, he finds himself
transported to the Land, a magical, dreamlike world.
Convinced that
the Land is a figment of his own imagination, Covenant is christened The Unbeliever by its inhabitants. But after a long and dire struggle,
Covenant sacrifices his own life to save a world he now regards as
precious.
The Runes of the Earth opens ten years after Covenant's
companion, Linden Avery, witnessed his death. When she returns home from work one evening to find her adopted son constructing images of the
Land with his toys, she realizes that the Land, and her beloved Thomas
Covenant, are more than just a memory. Soon she will come to understand
that evil is unmaking the very laws of nature - as well as the laws of
life and death.
The Runes of the Earth marks the thrilling return of a magnificent storyteller at the height of his craft.
