• Age: 12 to 18
• Grade: 7 to 9
• Reading age: 11 to 13

A magical quest. A nerdy sidekick. The power of the Lady of the Lake. Ariane's life just got a lot more interesting.

On the first day of her suspension from school for fighting bullies, Ariane hears the lake singing to her, meets the Lady of the Lake from the days of King Arthur in an underwater chamber, and learns she's heir to the Lady's magical power over water.

Now she and Wally Knight, who unexpectedly followed her, have a quest: find the scattered shards of King Arthur's sword Excalibur before the ruthless wizard Merlin can, in his modern-day guise as the rich, powerful Rex Major.

Can Ariane learn to use her power in time-and keep herself and Wally alive-in the race to beat Merlin to the first shard?

Song of the Sword is an exciting modern-day young-adult fantasy by award-winning author Edward Willett, perfect for anyone who thrills to stories of modern-day magic and tales of King Arthur.

Plunge into adventure in this first book in the five-book Shards of Excalibur

EDWARD WILLETT is the author of more than sixty books of science fiction, fantasy, and nonfiction for readers of all ages. Marseguro (DAW Books) won the Aurora Award (honouring Canadian science fiction and fantasy) for Best Long-Form Work in English; his young adult fantasy Spirit Singer won a Saskatchewan Book Award. Several other of his books have been shortlisted for those and other awards.

Ed's most recent novel is the far-future humorous outer-space adventure The Tangled Stars (DAW Books). Other recent titles include Star Song, a finalist for both the Aurora Award and Saskatchewan Book Award for Young Adult Literature, published by Shadowpaw Press; Blue Fire (written as E.C. Blake), also from Shadowpaw Press; and the Worldshapers series (Worldshaper, Master of the World, and The Moonlit World) from DAW. His nonfiction runs the gamut from science books to biographies to history. He hosts Aurora Award-winning podcast The Worldshapers podcast (theworldshapers.com), in which he talks to other science fiction and fantasy authors about their creative process, and has Kickstarted several Shapers of Worlds anthologies featuring guests of the podcast.

In addition to being a writer, Ed is a professional actor and singer who has performed in numerous plays, musicals, and operas, and sung in several auditioned choirs, including the Canadian Chamber Choir. He lives in Regina, Saskatchewan, with his wife, Margaret Anne Hodges, P. Eng., a past president of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan. They have one daughter, Alice, and a black Siberian cat, Shadowpaw. You can find Ed online at www.edwardwillett.com.

Edward Willett's profile page

• Long-listed, Best Young Adult Novel, Sunburst Award for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic

"A fantasy of epic proportions, with the perfect blend of suspense; well-developed, likable characters; and a touch of sarcastic humor . . . just the beginning of the fantastical journey." -School Library Journal

". . . a taut, compelling narrative, well-drawn characters, and a keen sense of genuine peril and true wonder. It's a powerful, fun, engaging read, and it's the first of a series, so readers have much to look forward to." - Quill & Quire