Bec (novel)

Last updated

Bec
BecCover.jpg
Original cover of Bec. This picture is of Drust's evil brother, Brude.
Author Darren Shan
Cover artist Melvyn Grant
LanguageEnglish
Series The Demonata series
Genre Horror, Fantasy novel
Publisher HarperCollins, Little, Brown
Publication date
June 5, 2006
Publication placeIreland
Media typePrint (hardback)
Pages272 pp (first edition, hardback)
ISBN 0-00-723131-8 (first edition, hardback)
OCLC 70267025
Preceded by Slawter  
Followed by Blood Beast  

Bec is a book by Darren Shan in The Demonata series. It is the fourth book of the series released but it is the first chronologically. The protagonist of the book is the central character Bec. It is set in Ireland around 1600 years ago. The last line of the book, "Screams in the dark," is also the first line of the book, as well as the tagline for the novel. Bec is the end of the first part of the Demonata books, where the three protagonists are introduced.

Contents

Plot

When a "simple child" named Bran who can run incredibly fast comes to Bec's demon-besieged rath, she and a small consignment of warriors go with him, including the chief's son, Connla, who is "largely untested" in battle; Goll, an old warrior; Lorcan and Ronan, two teenage twins; Fiachna the blacksmith; and Orna, a female warrior. During the journey, the group is attacked by demons, but luckily manage to hide near some ancient lodestones which protect them with powerful Old Magic. Eventually, Bran leads them to a crannóg, where everyone is dead except a druid, Drust. The druid tells them about a tunnel to the demons' world, and how he aims to destroy it. They go with him.

The group finds some horses which help them reach their destination in time, but Fiachna is soon abandoned after his wound becomes life-threatening.

Bec manages to force Bran through the closing tunnel at the last moment with the last of her magic, but is trapped as a result. Soon after, Lord Loss appears and tells Bec that when she appeared to absorb power from him several days earlier, Lord Loss had actually intended for that to happen so that she could close the tunnel. This is because Lord Loss is unique among demons, in that instead of wishing to slaughter all the humans in the world, he actually prefers to prolong the suffering for as long as possible. If the tunnel had remained open, countless other demons would have passed through and destroyed all of mankind within a matter of weeks, which would have ruined Lord Loss' "sport". After telling Bec this, Lord Loss reminds her of the geis that he had placed on her, and that he is bound by his word to kill her. Lord Loss sets his familiars upon Bec, and without any magic to defend herself with, she is easily overwhelmed and killed.

Related Research Articles

Shannara is a series of high fantasy novels written by Terry Brooks, beginning with The Sword of Shannara in 1977 and concluding with The Last Druid which was released in October 2020; there is also a prequel, First King of Shannara. The series blends magic and primitive technology and is set in the Four Lands, which are identified as Earth long after civilization was destroyed in a chemical and nuclear holocaust called the Great Wars. By the time of the prequel First King of Shannara, the world had reverted to a pre-industrial state and magic had re-emerged to supplement science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gwydion</span> Character from Welsh mythology

Gwydion fab Dôn is a magician, hero and trickster of Welsh mythology, appearing most prominently in the Fourth Branch of the Mabinogi, which focuses largely on his relationship with his young nephew, Lleu Llaw Gyffes. He also appears prominently in the Welsh Triads, the Book of Taliesin and the Stanzas of the Graves.

<i>The Elfstones of Shannara</i> 1982 epic fantasy novel by Terry Brooks

The Elfstones of Shannara is a 1982 epic fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks. It is the first sequel to The Sword of Shannara and the second book in The Original Shannara Trilogy. It expands upon the history of the Elves, which was only hinted at in the preceding story, and follows Wil Ohmsford, grandson of Shea and inheritor of the Shannara Elfstones.

<i>The Wishsong of Shannara</i> 1985 novel by Terry Brooks

The Wishsong of Shannara is an epic fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks. It is the final novel in the Original Shannara Trilogy, with the other two being The Sword of Shannara and The Elfstones of Shannara. The story revolves around Jair and Brin Ohmsford, the children of the main characters from The Elfstones of Shannara: Wil Ohmsford and Eretria. The siblings, each possessing an inherited magic, must save the Four Lands from the evil magic within a tome called the Ildatch.

<i>The Saga of Darren Shan</i> Series of books by Darren Shan

The Saga of Darren Shan is a young adult 12-part book series written by Darren O'Shaughnessy about the struggle of Darren Shan, a boy who has become involved in the world of vampires. As of October 2008, the book has been published in 33 countries around the world, in 30 different languages. A film based on the first three books in the series was released in theatres on 23 October 2009. Blackstone Audio has also released CD recordings of all 12 books in the series, read by Ralph Lïster.

<i>Tanequil</i> 2004 novel by Terry Brooks

Tanequil is a fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks, part of the High Druid of Shannara trilogy of the Shannara series. First published in 2004, the book takes place immediately after the events of Jarka Ruus and is followed by the novel Straken.

<i>Straken</i> 2005 novel by Terry Brooks

Straken is a fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks, the third book in his High Druid of Shannara trilogy. First published in 2005, it takes place immediately after the events of Tanequil.

<i>Lord Loss</i>

Lord Loss is the first novel in the Demonata series written by best-selling teenage horror author Darren Shan. It was originally published in the UK on 6 June 2005. Soon after, it appeared in Japan and America, where Shan's previous series, The Saga of Darren Shan, had sold millions. The novel is set in Ireland and is told in present tense first person through Grubbs Grady, a child whose family are all chess players.

<i>The Demonata</i> Series of books which deals with the world of demons

The Demonata is a young adult horror/fantasy series by author Darren Shan.

<i>Blood Beast</i> 2007 book by Darren Shan

Blood Beast is the fifth book in Darren Shan's The Demonata series and was released 4 June 2007. It is narrated by Grubbs Grady, the narrator of Lord Loss and Slawter. The plot is part of a two-part story, which continues in book six. Though the previous four books have not been in chronological order, this book is the furthest book into the future. It mainly deals with whether or not Grubbs Grady will be struck with lycanthropy and how he will deal with it. This book has been nominated for several prizes.

<i>Demon Apocalypse</i> Book by Darren Shan

Demon Apocalypse is the sixth book in Darren Shan's The Demonata series. Darren Shan released the title of the book September 29, 2007 at the Baeth Festival of Children's Literature.

<i>Aveyond</i> Video game series

Aveyond is a role-playing video game series by Aveyond Studios. It is set in a fantasy medieval world in which players attempt to save the world from evil beings, with a number of side quests available. There are eight games thus far in the series: the first two full games, the four "chapter" releases of the third game, the full fourth game, and the free prequel, Ahriman's Prophecy. All the games in the series were made with RPG Maker XP; Amaranth Games was the first developer to popularize RPG Maker as a commercial tool in 2006. Several of the games were subsequently released for Linux and Mac, along with Windows.

<i>Deaths Shadow</i> (novel) 2008 novel by Darren Shan

Death's Shadow is the seventh book in Darren Shan's The Demonata series, released 1 May 2008.

<i>Son of the Shadows</i> Historical fantasy novel by Juliet Marillier

Son of the Shadows is a historical fantasy novel by Juliet Marillier and the second book in the Sevenwaters Trilogy first published in 2000. It follows the path of Sorcha and Red's third child, Liadan, a girl who lives outside the pattern of the 'Fair Folk', also known as Túatha Dé Danann. Son of the Shadows won the 2001 Aurealis Awards for Fantasy Novel.

<i>Wolf Island</i> (novel) 2008 novel by Darren Shan

Wolf Island is the eighth installment in Darren Shan's The Demonata series. It was released in Ireland and the UK on September 22, 2008, and in the US in May 2009. The book is narrated by Grubbs parallel to the events of Death's Shadow.

<i>Hells Heroes</i> (novel) 2009 book by Darren Shan

Hell's Heroes is the tenth and final book in Darren Shan's The Demonata series.

<i>Irish Fairy Tales</i> 1920 book by James Stephens

Irish Fairy Tales is a retelling of ten Irish folktales by the Irish author James Stephens. The English illustrator Arthur Rackham provided interior artwork, including numerous black and white illustrations and sixteen color plates. The stories are set in a wooded, Medieval Ireland filled with larger-than-life hunters, warriors, kings, and fairies. Many stories concern the Fianna and their captain, Fionn mac Uail, from the Fenian Cycle of Irish mythology.

<i>The Last Druid</i> 2020 novel by Terry Brooks

The Last Druid is a fantasy novel by Terry Brooks in his Shannara series. It is the New York Times Bestselling "fourth book in the Fall of Shannara series," first published in 2020, and the final book overall in his Shannara series that first began in 1977.

References