Green Rider (Daw Book Collectors, 112) - Hardcover

Britain, Kristin

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0886778247 ISBN 13: 9780886778248

Publisher: Penguin, 1998

Synopsis

On her days-long journey home, Karigan Gladheon trudges through the immense forest called Green Cloak. She is leaving school, or, more accurately, she has been asked to leave. "Suspended indefinitely," the dean said. And for what? Challenging and thrashing Timas Mirwell in the practice ring. Karigan felt no remorse when she stood over the heir of the lord-governor of Mirwell province, her wooden practice sword at his throat. He had humiliated her, the daughter of a "mere" merchant, since the first day of school. But now, as she faces the long road home, hoping to arrive in Corsa before the dean's letter does, she wonders if she should just hire herself out on a merchant barge as her father did and stay away for good. She has too much pride, too hot a temper, and a penchant for danger - a life of travel, adventure and commerce will undoubtedly suit her just as it has her father.
But before Karigan's ponderings can become a definite plan, her thoughts are interrupted by the clattering of hooves, as a galloping horse bursts from the woods in an explosion of branches, the rider slumped over his mount's neck, impaled by two black-shafted arrows. As the young rider lies dying on the road, he tells Karigan that he is a Green Rider, one of the legendary messengers of the king, and that he bears a "life and death" message for King Zachary in his horse's satchel. He begs Karigan to carry his message, warning her not to read it, and when she reluctantly agrees, he makes her swear on his sword to deliver the message "for love of her country." As he bestows upon her the golden winged-horse brooch which is the symbol of his office, she seems to hear the ghostly sound of great wings beating the air, of silver-shod hooves galloping...and of invisible lips murmuring, "Welcome rider..." But beside her on the road, the messenger only whispers, "Beware the shadow man!" with his dying breath.
This promise given to a dying man changes Karigan's life forever. Pursued by unknown assassins, following a path only her horse seems to know, and accompanied by the silent specter of the original messenger, she herself becomes a legendary Green Rider - the magic of this office transferred to her with the original rider's brooch. But what is happening in her land that requires a life or death message for the king? What does the message contain that is so vital someone is willing to kill for it? And who is "the shadow man?"

About this title

About the Author

Kristen Britain grew up in the Finger Lake region of New York State, where she started her first novel -- an undersea fantasy featuring herself and her friends -- at the age of nine. She published her first book, a cartoon collection called, Horses and Horsepeople, at the age of thirteen. In 1987 she completed a degree in film production, with a minor in writing, at Ithaca College. After graduation, travel beckoned and she began a career as a ranger with the National Park Service, enabling her to work in a variety of natural and historical settings, from 300 feet below the surface of the Earth to 13,000 feet above sea level on the Continental Divide; and from the textile mills of the American Industrial Revolution to the homes of Americans who changed the course of history. Her first published epic fantasy novel, Green Rider, the story of a runaway school girl who finds herself in deep peril when she agrees to bear a message for a dying Green Rider (king's messenger), was released in 1998. She can be found at kristenbritain.com.

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin
• Publication date: 1998
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0886778247
• ISBN 13: 9780886778248
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 504