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Legends

Robert Silverberg Stephen King, Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, Orson Scott Card, Anne McCaffrey, ...and more ( 1 ), Raymond Feist

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Acclaimed writer and editor Robert Silverberg gathered eleven of the finest writers in Fantasy to contribute to this collection of short novels. Each of the writers was asked to write a new story based on one of his or her most famous series: from Stephen King's opening piece set in his popular Gunslinger universe to Robert Jordan's early look at his famed Wheel of Time saga, these stories are exceptionally well written and universally well told.

Features short stories set in the worlds of...

...Stephen King's The Dark Tower

...Terry Pratchett's Discworld

...Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth

...Orson Scott Card's Tales of Alvin Maker

...Robert Silverberg's Majipoor

...Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea

...Tad Williams's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn

...George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire

...Anne McCaffrey's Pern

...Raymond E. Feist's Riftwar Saga

...Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time

Reviews

“There’s enough color, vitality and bravura displays of mythmaking in this rich sampler to sate faithful fans and nurture new readers on the stuff of legends still being created.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“An enjoyable sampler of the best high fantasy available today.” —San Francisco Chronicle

“Best Anthology of the Year.” —Rocky Mountain News

“A dream team . . . Legends is the rarest of the rare–an entire collection of original short novels by top fantasy writers . . . Here is a dab of each writer at the top, a worthy sampler that could yield a reader someone new to enjoy.” —USA Today

“Orson Scott Card, Ursula Le Guin, George R. R. Martin, Anne McCaffrey, Robert Jordan, et al. It reads like a who’s who of modern sf/fantasy writers. This anthology is a stellar compilation of new stories by 11 masters of the genre, with each tale set in a well-established and well-loved universe. Stephen King leads off with a grisly but compelling episode in the Dark Tower saga. Terry Pratchett’s offering is an amusing incident in his Discworld series; editor Silverberg revisits the Majipoor of Lord Valentine; Tad Williams tells a haunting story that stems from his Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy; and Raymond Feist spins a poignant tale of revenge within his Riftwar setting. Fans of Jordan’s massive Wheel of Time saga will be especially interested to learn just how Lan and Moiraine first met and how their search for the baby who would become the Dragon Reborn began. Silverberg sets the scene with a fine introduction to fantasy in general and the contributors in particular; each of the novellas is preceded not only by an introductory note on the saga involved but also by a listing of all the books in the series to date. What is so noteworthy about this collection is the fact that all the selections are first rate and are well integrated into their universes, making the book a bonanza not only for avid fans who are familiar with the various series and want more but also for less well read fantasy readers, who will find each story herein a great introduction to a writer’s world.” —Sally Estes, Booklist

“A superb Baedeker to the fantasy worlds of 11 of the field’s finest writers.” —Dallas Morning News

“Perhaps Legends, an anthology of brand-new novellas by nearly a dozen of the more-famous modern writers in the field, will help secure long-overdue respect. All the writing is of the highest caliber; and each of the tales is compelling. To top it off, artists such as Michael Whelan, Keith Parkinson and Erik Wilson have contributed illustrations that become icing on the cake. Legends makes for a fine road map to the worlds of 11 masters of the genre and serves as a perfect milestone for future fantasy anthologists. Silverberg has put together an anthology of which he and his fellow writers can be justly proud.” —Des Moines Daily Register

About the Author

ROBERT JORDAN (1948-2007) is best known for his internationally bestselling epic fantasy series The Wheel of Time®, which has sold over 100 million copies worldwide and is currently being adapted for the screen. A native of Charleston, Jordan graduated from The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina, with a degree in physics. He served two tours in Vietnam with the U.S. Army and received multiple decorations for his service.

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Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series has sold over 26 million copies in 20 languages. Before becoming a full-time writer Terry worked as a wildlife artist, a cabinetmaker and a violin maker. terrygoodkind.com @terrygoodkind facebook.com/terrygoodkind

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Orson Scott Card is best known for his science fiction novel Ender's Game and its many sequels that expand the Ender Universe into the far future and the near past. Those books are organized into the Ender Saga, which chronicles the life of Ender Wiggin; the Shadow Series, which follows on the novel Ender's Shadow and is set on Earth; and the Formic Wars series, written with co-author Aaron Johnston, which tells of the terrible first contact between humans and the alien "Buggers." Card has been a working writer since the 1970s. Beginning with dozens of plays and musical comedies produced in the 1960s and 70s, Card's first published fiction appeared in 1977--the short story "Gert Fram" in the July issue of The Ensign, and the novelette version of "Ender's Game" in the August issue of Analog. The novel-length version of Ender's Game, published in 1984 and continuously in print since then, became the basis of the 2013 film, starring Asa Butterfield, Harrison Ford, Ben Kingsley, Hailee Steinfeld, Viola Davis, and Abigail Breslin.

Card was born in Washington state, and grew up in California, Arizona, and Utah. He served a mission for the LDS Church in Brazil in the early 1970s. Besides his writing, he runs occasional writers' workshops and directs plays. He frequently teaches writing and literature courses at Southern Virginia University.

He is the author many science fiction and fantasy novels, including the American frontier fantasy series "The Tales of Alvin Maker" (beginning with Seventh Son), and stand-alone novels like Pastwatch and Hart's Hope. He has collaborated with his daughter Emily Card on a manga series, Laddertop. He has also written contemporary thrillers like Empire and historical novels like the monumental Saints and the religious novels Sarah and Rachel and Leah. Card's work also includes the Mithermages books (Lost Gate, Gate Thief), contemporary magical fantasy for readers both young and old.

Card lives in Greensboro, North Carolina, with his wife, Kristine Allen Card. He and Kristine are the parents of five children and several grandchildren.

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Anne McCaffrey was born in 1926 in Cambridge, Massachusetts and published her first novel in 1967. The author of the celebrated Dragonriders of Pern series, McCaffrey was known for her groundbreaking portrayal of women as heroic protagonists, and for her unique combination of science fiction and fantasy. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award, and in 2005 was named a grand master of science fiction. She lived in County Wicklow, Ireland, in a house of her own design, Dragonhold-Underhill, until her death in 2011.

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