Hero Born

by Andy Livingstone

  Lucky to have come across the people who could make it possible.

  My wife, Valerie, who always believes in me, even when I don’t. Especially when I don’t. And who inspires me in more ways than she knows, or ever will know.

  My family, Martyn, Johnny, Melissa, Nicky, Adam and Nathan, who delight me and keep my feet firmly on the ground in equal measure – the first being wonderful and the second essential (and inevitable, where offspring are concerned).

  My parents, Ian and Diane, who gave me the genes to achieve this and the encouragement to let the dream grow into reality, and my brother, Gordon, whose relentless irreverence and ready support never cease to make me smile from the other side of an ocean.

  My grandpa, Frank Hales, whose gift of The Lord of the Rings took a very small but voracious reader from Enid Blyton and Capt. W. E. Johns and introduced him to the concept of epic and heroic fantasy, something that never left its grip on that young boy’s imagination.

  All at HarperVoyager who have taken my story and turned it into a book. That one sentence covers a multitude of jobs and a more expertise than I even know exists, but in particular deep gratitude to: Natasha Bardon, who discovered this book and took it on with an enthusiasm that was as delightful as it was unexpected; to Rachel Winterbottom, who edited it with perception and an understanding of the characters and story that was reassuring to a first-time novelist and invaluable to the quality of the finished tale; to Eleanor Ashfield, for calming advice just when I needed calming and advising; and to Ben Gardiner and Cherie Chapman, for a cover design that, magically, just seemed perfect from the first moment I saw it.

  Margaret Shaw, who laboured with indefatigable cheer and willingness over a keyboard to type the very first draft of this story, and Anne-Janine Nugent, who somehow produced publicity photos of quality and warmth despite being lumbered with history’s most uncomfortable model.

  And Brann, who dragged me into a world of excitement and wonder on and off the page, on a journey that has had a magical and breathless beginning.

  Yes, “beginning”. There is indeed more for Brann to face, endure and try to survive. And you are cordially invited to come along for the ride.

  About the Author

  Andy Livingstone was born on New Year’s Day in 1968 and grew up with an enthusiastic passion for sport (particularly football) and reading. An asthmatic childhood meant that he spent more time participating in the latter than the former and an early childhood encounter with The Hobbit awakened a love of epic and heroic fantasy that has never let him go. He is a press officer and former journalist and lives in Lanarkshire, Scotland, with his wife, Valerie, and two teenage sons, Adam and Nathan. He also has four adult stepchildren, Martyn, Jonathon, Melissa and Nicolas, and four grand-bundles-of-energy: Joshua, Riah, Jayden and Ashton. He can be found on Twitter @markethaven and at his website, www.andylivingstone.com

  About the Publisher

  Australia

  HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.

  Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street

  Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia

  http://www.harpercollins.com.au

  Canada

  HarperCollins Canada

  2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor

  Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada

  http://www.harpercollins.ca

  New Zealand

  HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited

  P.O. Box 1

  Auckland, New Zealand

  http://www.harpercollins.co.nz

  United Kingdom

  HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.

  1 London Bridge Street

  London, SE1 9GF, UK

  http://www.harpercollins.co.uk

  United States

  HarperCollins Publishers Inc.

  195 Broadway

  New York, NY 10007

  http://www.harpercollins.com