Prophecy: Child of Earth

Last updated

Prophecy: Child of Earth
Prophecy- Child of Earth.jpeg
Author Elizabeth Haydon
Genre Fantasy
Publisher Tor Books
Publication date
2000
ISBN 978-0-312-86751-5

Prophecy: Child of Earth is a fantasy novel by American writer Elizabeth Haydon, first published in 2000 by Tor Books. [1] It is the second book in The Symphony of Ages series. In it, Rhapsody, Grunthor and Achmed work to find a place in the new world.

Contents

Plot summary

Rhapsody travels with Ashe to deliver a dragon's claw, long ago hidden among the treasures of Ylorc, for fear of the dragon's wreaking vengeance upon those who would keep her claw from her. On the journey, Ashe and Rhapsody develop a degree of comfort with one another, punctuated by arguments. Upon their arrival, Rhapsody finds the dragon surprisingly friendly, and she stays for several days before departing. Meanwhile, in the halls of Ylorc, Grunthor and Achmed discover a hidden tunnel, leading to the Loritorium: the unfinished masterpiece of Ylorc's builder, centuries past. To their surprise, Gruthor and Achmed are confronted by a Dhracian as they investigate: one of the last of a near-legendary race, to which Achmed owes half his heritage. The Dhracian, who calls herself the Grandmother, instructs Achmed and Grunthor to return with Rhapsody.

Rhapsody, after leaving the dragon's cave, travels to Tyrian, the forest home to the Lirin, so that she can meet and train with the former bearer of her elemental blade, Daystar Clarion. While in training, she sees a horrific vision of the world engulfed in blood after the death of the Patriarch, leader of one of the two major human religions. Rhapsody journeys to Sepulvarta, home of the Patriarch, and successfully defends the Patriarch against an attack by a F'Dor demon and his minion, the Rakshas. She then travels back to Ylorc, where Grunthor and Achmed lead her to the Grandmother. The Grandmother tells them of the Dhracian colony that had lived in the mountains of Ylorc for centuries, destroyed by the same saboteur who murdered the inhabitants of the Loritorium. She also shows them the treasure the Dhracian colony was founded to protect: the sleeping Child of Earth, whose second rib can be used as a key to open the Vault of the Underworld imprisoning most of the F'Dor. The Child of Earth's sleep is restless, rocked with prophetic nightmares, but Rhapsody is unable to help.

After finally figuring out Ashe's secret, Rhapsody summons Ashe to her underground home in Ylorc with a carefully crafted song. Once he arrives, Rhapsody explains her realizations: Ashe is Gwydion, long believed dead after he failed in an attack on the F'Dor and had part of his soul torn out in the process. Gwydion was secretly resurrected by the power of the star which once adorned Daystar Clarion's hilt, however, awakening his dragon side in the process, and had wandered the land in secrecy for the decades following the attack. The lost piece of his soul was used to create the Rakshas, which wreaked havoc with Ashe's appearance. Ashe and Rhapsody become lovers, causing Jo (Rhapsody's adopted sister) no end of jealousy. The Rakshas uses this to trick Jo - pretending to be Ashe, he has sex with her, bringing her partially under the control of the F'Dor in the process. In an attempt to reclaim the stolen piece of Ashe's soul, Rhapsody sets out with Grunthor and Achmed to destroy the Rakshas. The demonically-influenced Jo nearly kills Achmed at the end of the battle, forcing Rhapsody to kill her to save Achmed, and subsequently battle to save her soul from the clutching vine of the F'Dor.

Some days later, Ashe and Rhapsody meet again for a night of revelations. Ashe locks the memory of the night in a pearl, expecting the only thing said to be of his father, Llauron, concocted to use Rhapsody in a bid for power. In the course of the discussion, Ashe and Rhapsody learn to their surprise that they are (respectively) Sam and Emily, who loved one another one and a half millennia ago (It's complicated.) They get married, but Rhapsody agrees that she will have to forget it all so that Llauron's selfish plot can succeed. Then a tree root that the Rakshas corrupted attacks the Child of Earth, attempting to seize it (and thereby gain the key to the Underworld), but Grunthor, forewarned by a dream, manages to get Rhapsody and Achmed into position soon enough to avert the threat. Then they realize that the Rakshas conceived children with demon-tainted blood, who Rhapsody resolves to rescue.

Characters

Reviews

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>I Will Fear No Evil</i> 1970 science fiction novel by Robert A. Heinlein

I Will Fear No Evil is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, originally serialised in Galaxy and published in hardcover in 1970. The title is taken from Psalm 23:4.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne McCaffrey</span> Irish science fiction writer (1926–2011)

Anne Inez McCaffrey was an American writer known for the Dragonriders of Pern science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction and the first to win a Nebula Award. Her 1978 novel The White Dragon became one of the first science-fiction books to appear on the New York Times Best Seller list.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jo Walton</span> Canadian writer and poet (born 1964)

Jo Walton is a Welsh-Canadian fantasy and science fiction writer and poet. She is best known for the fantasy novel Among Others, which won the Hugo and Nebula Awards in 2012, and Tooth and Claw, a Victorian-era novel with dragons which won the World Fantasy Award in 2004. Other works by Walton include the Small Change series, in which she blends alternate history with the cozy mystery genre, comprising Farthing, Ha'penny and Half a Crown. Her fantasy novel Lifelode won the 2010 Mythopoeic Award, and her alternate history My Real Children received the 2015 Tiptree Award.

Elizabeth Haydon is an American fantasy author. She has written two fantasy series set within the same universe, the fantasy/romance/whodunit fusion called The Symphony of Ages and the young adult series The Lost Journals of Ven Polypheme.

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

Welsh mythology consists of both folk traditions developed in Wales, and traditions developed by the Celtic Britons elsewhere before the end of the first millennium. As in most of the predominantly oral societies Celtic mythology and history were recorded orally by specialists such as druids. This oral record has been lost or altered as a result of outside contact and invasion over the years. Much of this altered mythology and history is preserved in medieval Welsh manuscripts, which include the Red Book of Hergest, the White Book of Rhydderch, the Book of Aneirin and the Book of Taliesin. Other works connected to Welsh mythology include the ninth-century Latin historical compilation Historia Brittonum and Geoffrey of Monmouth's twelfth-century Latin chronicle Historia Regum Britanniae, as well as later folklore, such as the materials collected in The Welsh Fairy Book by William Jenkyn Thomas (1908).

Rhapsody: Child of Blood is a fantasy novel by American writer Elizabeth Haydon, the first book in The Symphony of Ages. It was first published in 1999 by Tor Books. The story is continued in Prophecy: Child of Earth.

<i>The Prophecy</i> 1995 American film

The Prophecy is a 1995 American fantasy thriller horror film starring Christopher Walken, Elias Koteas, Virginia Madsen, Eric Stoltz, and Viggo Mortensen. It was written and directed by Gregory Widen in his feature directorial debut, and is the first film of The Prophecy series. The film tells the story of the Archangel Gabriel (Walken) and his search for an evil soul on Earth, and a police detective (Koteas) who unknowingly becomes caught in the middle of an angelic civil war. It was followed by four sequels.

<i>Rhapsody in August</i> 1991 film by Akira Kurosawa

Rhapsody in August is a 1991 Japanese film by Akira Kurosawa based on the novel Nabe no naka by Kiyoko Murata. The story centers on an elderly hibakusha, who lost her husband in the 1945 atomic bombing of Nagasaki, caring for her four grandchildren over the summer. She learns of a long-lost brother, Suzujiro, living in Hawaii who wants her to visit him before he dies. American film star Richard Gere appears as Suzujiro's son Clark. The film was selected as the Japanese entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 64th Academy Awards, but was not accepted as a nominee.

Geoff Taylor is an English fantasy artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Bear</span> American author (born 1971)

Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky is an American author who works primarily in speculative fiction genres, writing under the name Elizabeth Bear. She won the 2005 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, the 2008 Hugo Award for Best Short Story for "Tideline", and the 2009 Hugo Award for Best Novelette for "Shoggoths in Bloom". She is one of a small number of writers who have gone on to win multiple Hugo Awards for fiction after winning the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer.

<i>The Collected Short Fiction of C. J. Cherryh</i> 2004 collection of short fiction by C. J. Cherryh

The Collected Short Fiction of C. J. Cherryh is a collection of science fiction and fantasy short stories, novelettes and novella written by American author C. J. Cherryh between 1977 and 2004. It was first published by DAW Books in 2004. This collection includes the contents of two previous Cherryh collections, Sunfall (1981) and Visible Light (1986), all of the stories from Glass and Amber (1987), stories originally published in other collections and magazines, and one story written specifically for this collection ("MasKs"). Cherryh's 1978 Hugo Award winning story, "Cassandra" is also included.

Talking to Dragons is a young adult fantasy novel, the fourth and final book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede, although it was published first, in 1985. It is told in first person from the point of view of sixteen-year-old Daystar, son of Cimorene, a woman who lives at the edge of the Enchanted Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woman of the Apocalypse</span> Figure described in Chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation

The Woman of the Apocalypse is a figure–often considered to be a reference to the Virgin Mary in Catholic theology–described in Chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation.

Night World is a series of nine young adult fantasy novels by American author L. J. Smith. In the series, vampires, witches, werewolves, and shape-shifters live among humans without their knowledge, making up a secret society known as the Night World. The society enforces two fundamental laws to prevent discovery: never allow humans to gain knowledge of the Night World's existence, and never fall in love with a human.

The Crow is a superhero and the protagonist of The Crow comic book series, originally created by American artist James O'Barr in 1989. The titular character is an undead vigilante brought back to life by a supernatural crow to avenge his murder and death of his fiancée.

<i>Child of the Prophecy</i> 2001 novel by Juliet Marillier

Child of the Prophecy is an historical fantasy novel by Juliet Marillier and the third book in the Sevenwaters Trilogy first published in 2001. Book Three steps slightly out of the tradition of Sevenwaters, with the young heroine Fainne being raised far from the homestead, in Kerry. Fainne is the daughter of Niamh and Ciaran, and is a dangerous combination of four races.

<i>2312</i> (novel) Novel by Kim Stanley Robinson

2312 is a hard science fiction novel by American writer Kim Stanley Robinson, published in 2012. It is set in the year 2312 when society has spread out across the Solar System. The novel won the 2013 Nebula Award for Best Novel.

<i>Dreams of Gods and Monsters</i> 2014 novel written by Laini Taylor

Dreams of Gods and Monsters is a young adult fantasy novel written by Laini Taylor. It was published on April 1, 2014 by Hachette Book Group, an imprint of Little, Brown and Company. The book is the third in the Daughter of Smoke and Bone trilogy, following Days of Blood and Starlight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Raksha Country and the Sea Market</span> Short story by Pu Songling

"The Raksha Country and the Sea Market" is a short story by Pu Songling first published in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio. Told in two parts, the story follows the adventures of scholar-merchant Ma Ji, and is one of the first Strange Tales entries to be translated into English. Some critics have argued that "The Raksha Country" serves as social commentary on topics including hypocrisy, conventional standards of beauty, and nationalism. The story was likely inspired by both ancient Hindu mythology and early Chinese literature; it has been adapted for the stage.

<i>Dota: Dragons Blood</i> 2021 television series

Dota: Dragon's Blood is an adult animated epic fantasy television series. It is based on Dota 2, a 2013 video game by Valve. The show is produced by Studio Mir in association with Ashley Edward Miller's company Kaiju Boulevard. The series premiered on Netflix on March 25, 2021. and concluded on August 11, 2022.

References

  1. "Prophecy by Elizabeth Haydon". Publishers Weekly . July 3, 2000. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
  2. "Title: Prophecy: Child of Earth". ISFDB . Retrieved October 12, 2024.