Richard Swan

WHO GIVES YOU LIFE?PATER AETERNUS. Katherine Fuller's husband is dead. As an esteemed member of Pater Aeternus - governing party of the fascist, galaxy-spanning Decurion Empire - he has left behind an estate of immeasurable wealth. And Katherine is going to inherit it. WHO GIVES YOU PURPOSE?PATER AETERNUS. Life under the Eternal Father is rigidly stratified, surveilled, and controlled - each new day to be endured, not lived. But with Katherine's newfound fortune, she is presented with a rare and dangerous opportunity: purchase a virgin world, and create a better, fairer society. WHO GIVES YOU JOY?PATER AETERNUS. But the Empire cannot allow its wayward daughter to succeed. And as Katherine works in secret, recruiting allies she's not even sure she can trust, she will discover exactly how far Pater Aeternus is willing to go to stop her. Because Katherine is going to create something nobody has seen for many years. A democracy. In this blistering science fiction epic, Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Swan presents a thrilling tale of survival and an eviscerating examination of totalitarianism.

INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION BECKONS. SPIRITUAL CATASTROPHE LOOMS.AND THE EMPIRE OF THE WOLF TEETERS ON THE BRINKThe true horror of the Great Silence has been revealed. As nation after nation succumbs to the mind-plague and Sova scrambles to enlist help from across the globe, Ambassador Renata Rainer has been given a simple task: save the world.While she travels to the Principality of Casimir to enlist the help of the Empire's oldest enemy, Lieutenant Peter Kleist returns to the haunted forests of the New East to search for ancient answers - and finally confront the terrible fate that awaits him. In their wake, a task force of engineers, soldiers, and arcane experts will try and unpick the final secrets of the Great Silence - on both sides of the mortal plane.But time is running out. Count Lamprecht von Oldenburg has returned to the capital, armed with a terrible vision and enough madness to see it through. Those who stand in his way face a simple choice: join the revolution, or die.As the world tips towards chaos, all paths converge on the Eye of the Sea, where the fabric of reality wears thin - and where the Empire of the Wolf must confront the most terrible enemy it has ever known.Steel Gods is the second novel in the Great Silence trilogy from Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Swan - a dark flintlock fantasy filled with epic adventure, arcane mysteries and creeping dreadPraise for the series'Dazzling and immersive epic fantasy' Publishers Weekly (starred review)'An absolute treat . . . crammed with imagination, horror, epic scale, and characters I simply could not put down' Grimdark Magazine'A truly remarkable page-turning, flintlock fantasy horror' Fantasy HiveThe Great Silence Grave EmpireSteel GodsThe Empire of the WolfThe Justice of KingsThe Tyranny of FaithThe Trials of Empire

Steel Gods is the second novel in the Great Silence trilogy, which began with Grave Empire, from Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Swan - a dark flintlock fantasy filled with epic adventure, arcane mysteries and creeping dread. INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION BECKONS. SPIRITUAL CATASTROPHE LOOMS. AND THE EMPIRE OF THE WOLF TEETERS ON THE BRINK The true horror of the Great Silence has been revealed. As nation after nation succumbs to the mind-plague and Sova scrambles to enlist help from across the globe, Ambassador Renata Rainer has been given a simple task: save the world. While she travels to the Principality of Casimir to enlist the help of the Empire's oldest enemy, Lieutenant Peter Kleist returns to the haunted forests of the New East to search for ancient answers--and finally confront the terrible fate that awaits him. In their wake, a task force of engineers, soldiers, and arcane experts will try and unpick the final secrets of the Great Silence--on both sides of the mortal plane. But time is running out. Count Lamprecht von Oldenburg has returned to the capital, armed with a terrible vision and enough madness to see it through. Those who stand in his way face a simple choice: join the revolution, or die. As the world tips towards chaos, all paths converge on the Eye of the Sea, where the fabric of reality wears thin - and where the Empire of the Wolf must confront the most terrible enemy it has ever known.

'Dazzling and immersive epic fantasy' Publishers Weekly (starred review)'An absolute treat . . . crammed with imagination, horror, epic scale, and characters I simply could not put down' Grimdark MagazineBlood once turned the wheels of empire. Now it is money.A new age of exploration and innovation has dawned, and the Empire of the Wolf stands to take its place as the foremost power in the known world. Glory and riches await.But dark days are coming. A mysterious plague has broken out in the pagan kingdoms to the north, while in the south, the Empire's proxy war in the lands of the wolfmen is weeks away from total collapse. Worse still is the message brought to the Empress by two heretic monks, who claim to have lost contact with the spirits of the afterlife. The monks believe this is the start of an ancient prophecy heralding the end of days-the Great Silence. It falls to Renata Rainer, a low-ranking ambassador to an enigmatic and vicious race of mermen, to seek answers from those who still practice the arcane arts. But with the road south beset by war and the Empire on the brink of supernatural catastrophe, soon there may not be a world left to save . . .Grave Empire is the first novel in an unmissable new series from Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Swan - a dark flintlock fantasy filled with epic adventure, arcane powers and creeping dreadPraise for Richard Swan'A stunning piece of modern fantasy writing' RJ Barker'Utterly compelling, thoroughly engrossing and written with skilful assurance' Nicholas Eames'Richard Swan's sophisticated take on the fantasy genre will leave readers hungry for more' Sebastien de Castell'Great characters, compelling and wonderfully written. A brilliant debut and fantastic start to the series' James IslingtonBooks by Richard SwanEmpire of the Wolf The Justice of KingsThe Tyranny of FaithThe Trials of Empire The Great SilenceGrave Empire

***THE INSTANT SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER***'Dazzling and immersive epic fantasy' Publishers Weekly (starred review)'An absolute treat . . . crammed with imagination, horror, epic scale, and characters I simply could not put down' Grimdark Magazine'A truly remarkable page-turning, flintlock fantasy horror' Fantasy Hive---Blood once turned the wheels of empire. Now it is money.A new age of exploration and innovation has dawned, and the Empire of the Wolf stands to take its place as the foremost power in the known world. Glory and riches await.But dark days are coming. A mysterious plague has broken out in the pagan kingdoms to the north, while in the south, the Empire's proxy war in the lands of the wolfmen is weeks away from total collapse. Worse still is the message brought to the Empress by two heretic monks, who claim to have lost contact with the spirits of the afterlife. The monks believe this is the start of an ancient prophecy heralding the end of days-the Great Silence. It falls to Renata Rainer, a low-ranking ambassador to an enigmatic and vicious race of mermen, to seek answers from those who still practice the arcane arts. But with the road south beset by war and the Empire on the brink of supernatural catastrophe, soon there may not be a world left to save . . .Grave Empire is the first novel in an unmissable new series from Sunday Times bestselling author Richard Swan - a dark flintlock fantasy filled with epic adventure, arcane powers and creeping dreadPraise for Richard Swan'A stunning piece of modern fantasy writing' RJ Barker'Utterly compelling, thoroughly engrossing and written with skilful assurance' Nicholas Eames'Richard Swan's sophisticated take on the fantasy genre will leave readers hungry for more' Sebastien de Castell'Great characters, compelling and wonderfully written. A brilliant debut and fantastic start to the series' James IslingtonBooks by Richard SwanEmpire of the Wolf The Justice of KingsThe Tyranny of FaithThe Trials of Empire The Great SilenceGrave Empire

From critically acclaimed author Richard Swan, Grave Empire begins the epic tale of an empire on the verge of industrial revolution, where sorcery and arcane practices are outlawed - and where an ancient prophecy threatens the coming end of days. Blood once turned the wheels of empire. Now it is money. A new age of exploration and innovation has dawned, and the Empire of the Wolf stands to take its place as the foremost power in the known world. Glory and riches await. But dark days are coming. A mysterious plague has broken out in the pagan kingdoms to the north, while in the south, the Empire's proxy war in the lands of the wolfmen is weeks away from total collapse. Worse still is the message brought to the Empress by two heretic monks, who claim to have lost contact with the spirits of the afterlife. The monks believe this is the start of an ancient prophecy heralding the end of days--the Great Silence. It falls to Renata Rainer, a low-ranking ambassador to an enigmatic and vicious race of mermen, to seek answers from those who still practice the arcane arts. But with the road south beset by war and the Empire on the brink of supernatural catastrophe, soon there may not be a world left to save...

The Trials of Empire is the blockbuster third and final novel in Richard Swan's bestselling Empire of the Wolf series, where action, intrigue and magic collide in unforgettable fashion

The Trials of Empire is the blockbuster third and final novel in Richard Swan's bestselling Empire of the Wolf series, where action, intrigue and magic collide in unforgettable fashion

The third novel in Richard Swan's acclaimed epic fantasy trilogy triumphantly concludes the tale of Sir Konrad Vonvalt, an Emperor's Justice - a detective, judge and executioner all in one. THE TIME OF JUDGEMENT IS AT HAND The Empire of the Wolf is on its knees, but there's life in the great beast yet. To save it, Sir Konrad Vonvalt and Helena must look beyond its borders for allies - to the wolfmen of the southern plains, and the pagan clans in the north. But old grievances run deep, and both factions would benefit from the fall of Sova. Even these allies might not be enough. Their enemy, the zealot Bartholomew Claver, wields infernal powers bestowed on him by a mysterious demonic patron. If Vonvalt and Helena are to stand against him, they will need friends on both sides of the mortal plane--but such allegiances carry a heavy price. As the battlelines are drawn in both Sova and the afterlife, the final reckoning draws close. Here, at the beating heart of the Empire, the two-headed wolf will be reborn in a blaze of justice . . . or crushed beneath the shadow of tyranny. Also by Richard Swan: The Empire of the Wolf The Justice of Kings The Tyranny of Faith The Trials of Empire

Are you a terrible singer?Have you been told that you're tone-deaf? Were you asked to mime in the school choir?Do you avoid singing carols at Christmas because you don't want to be laughed at? Would you love to join a choir, but you don't think you could ever be good enough to do so? If you've answered yes to any of those questions, this book is aimed specifically at you.Here is a fact; if you can recognise melodies, you're highly unlikely to be tone-deaf, and therefore you have the potential to learn to sing. It doesn't matter how many people have told you that you can't sing, the truth is that you probably can be taught how to do so. This is a massively misunderstood area, even in musical circles. In reality, only a very small percentage of people are truly "tone-deaf" - they have a condition called amusia, akin to colour-blindness but for music. Richard Swan, director of the large UK-based choir London City Voices, explains the reasons why people needlessly opt-out of singing from an early age, and shows you how to go about gaining control over your voice. With over 40 supporting videos on the accompanying website, this book is entirely unique and completely groundbreaking in its approach. Richard's gentle method will rewire your understanding of your own voice. You will listen to music in a different way, and you will start to appreciate how singing in tune in the near future is a very real possibility for you. PRAISE FOR THE BOOK'Singing is one of the most deeply rewarding and uplifting life experiences anyone can have. Anyone who feels that this has been denied to them should read this book.' ANNIE LENNOX 'Richard's insightful explanations and targeted exercises are sure to help you discover your voice 'I wish I'd read this years ago What a difference it would have made.' 'This book is uncanny. It feels like it's talking directly to me. It focuses in on all my insecurities about my voice which stop mefrom trying to sing, and it's made me believe I really can overcome them' 'This is a wonderful book for anyone who has ever been put off singing' 'The "can't sing" myth banished for good' 'An encouraging, no-nonsense and achievable approach to the art of singing' 'Joyous and kind, a singing handbook like no other' 'This is like a conversation with your favourite teacher - insightful, challenging and encouraging' 'This is a must-read for anyone wanting to find their voice, gain confidence and, most importantly, enjoy singing' 'Give this book a go if you are even a little curious about your voice' 'This book is like a chat with a friend. Lots of friendly encouragement to help you find your singing voice'