• Reading age: 11 to 13

Brax, hero of several Dragon Assassin tales, finally gets to tell his own story . . .

On a diplomatic mission, Brax and his rider, Carmen, encounter a ghostly vision of The Nameless Goddess. She's a part leopard, part crocodile deity, who warns them she is coming to conquer their world. Brax, in his usual snarky way, makes fun of her hairy legs and, after she vanishes, dismisses this threat.

But things soon get a lot worse . . .

When the duo arrives at the capital of the Akkad empire, they discover the emperor has been horrifically murdered by what looks to be an astral servant of that goddess, and his young nephew ascends to the throne. Both Brax and Carmen swear to protect the wetling from the Nameless Goddess. But power-hungry enemies circle the throne. Those dangers, along with the creatures sent from the netherworlds, makes protecting the emperor almost impossible.

Their only choice it to battle this goddess face to face . . .

Once they discover the true name of The Nameless Goddess, the hunt is on. Will they be able to destroy her before she rises to take over their world?

The first volume in ARTHUR SLADE’s Hunchback Assignments series won the prestigious TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award, and the second volume, The Dark Deeps, was a finalist for the Canadian Library Association Book of the Year for Children Award and the CLA Young Adult Book Award. Slade is also the author of Dust, a national bestseller and the winner of the 2001 Governor General’s Award for Children’s Literature, the Mr. Christie’s Book Award and the Saskatchewan Book Award for Children’s Literature. His other books include Tribes, Megiddo’s Shadow, Jolted, Monsterology, Villainology and the Canadian Chills series. He lives in Saskatoon. Visit him online at arthurslade.com.

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"There is so much fun in this book, even with the big battles, fires, destruction, and evil creatures being unleashed throughout the story. . . . It is a great story from the masterful and ever-entertaining pen of Arthur Slade. A great read in the Dragon Assassin universe!" - Steven R. McEvoy, Book Reviews and More

Praise for Dragon Assassin: "Although there is a lot of action in Dragon Assassin, there is also surprising dimensionality to the characters of Carmen and Braxos. Braxos' dry wit adds a touch of humor to this action-heavy tale." - CM: Canadian Review of Materials