Herbie Brennan - Faerie Wars

Praise for

FAERIE WARS

The #1 YALSA Teens' Top Ten Pick

A Book Sense Children's Pick

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults

"A fantasy with all the trimmings.... Brennan excels at maintaining suspense in general. Juxtaposing different characters' adventures, he can present a puzzle in one chapter, the missing piece in the next and nonetheless surprise readers when he fits in the piece later on." The New York Times Book Review

"A clever, sly fantasy with immediate intrigue and plenty of science.... Twists and turns provide real surprises along the way." Kirkus Reviews

"Creative, engaging, and clever.... This intelligent book is just the thing for mature young adults who enjoy their fantasy a little on the dark and humorous side." VOYA

"Brennan takes obvious delight in fashioning a cast of villains so melodramatic and dastardly... that readers are likely to plow straight ahead just to keep the bad guys within sight." BCCB

"Brennan is a terrific writer, with a grasp of his intricate plot that ensures that readers are swept along. His central characters are feisty and vulnerable and utterly convincing."

The Guardian (UK)

"A crossover title from which few readers of any age would wish to cross back.... Inventive as Harry Potter, dark as Gormenghast and as intelligently probing as Philip Pullman, here is a title to brighten the dreariest of winter days.... Read it, and enjoy."

The Independent (UK)

THE FAERIE WARS CHRONICLES

BY HERBIE BRENNAN

Faerie Wars

The Purple Emperor

Ruler of the Realm

Faerie Lord

THE FAERIE WARS CHRONICLES

BOOK ONE

FAERIE

WARS

HERBIE BRENNAN

Copyright 2003 by Herbie Brennan

First published in the UK. in 2003 by Bloomsbury Publishing Pic

Published in the U.S.A. in 2003 by Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books Paperback edition published in 2004

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

Published by Bloomsbury U.S.A. Children's Books

175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010

Distributedto the trade by Holtzbrinck Publishers

The Library of Congress has cataloged the hardcover edition as follows:

Brennan, Herbie.

Faerie wars / by Herbie Brennan.

p. cm.

Summary: Troubled by family problems, Henry finds his life taking a whole new dimension when he and his friend, old Mr. Fogarty, become involved with Prince Pyrgus Malvae who has been sent from the faerie world in order to escape the treacherous Faeries of the Night.

eISBN: 978-1-58234-943-5

[1. FairiesFiction. 2. Family problemsFiction. 3. SupernaturalFiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.B75153Fae2003 [Fie]dc21 2002027821

Typeset by Dorchester Typesetting Group Ltd

Printed in the U.S.A. by R.R . Donnelley and Sons

10 9

All papers used by Bloomsbury U.S.A. are natural, recyclable products made from wood grown in well-managed forests. The manufacturing processes conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin.

For Jacks

always

Contents

Henry got up early on the day that changed his life. He was making a cardboard sculpture and he'd left it the night before for the glue to dry out. All he had to do now was add a toothpick shaft and some decorations and the flying pig was finished. Three weeks' work, but today he'd turn the handle and the pig would take off, flapping cardboard wings. Pigs might fly. That's what it said on the base.

He was out of bed at seven, dressed by three minutes past and testing the set of the glue just one minute after that. It was solid. What else would it be when you left it overnight? That was the secret of cardboard models never hurry. Take your time with the cutting out. Proceed stage by stage - which was what it said in the instructions: proceed stage by stage. Leave lots of time for the glue to set. Just do those three things and you ended up with cardboard sculptures that were as solid as the Taj Mahal. He had seven in his room already, including one that really was the Taj Mahal. But the flying pig was his best yet. It had a mechanism inside, made up from cardboard cogs and shafts. The mechanism raised the pig from its base and caused the wings to flap.

At least that's what it said in the instructions. Henry was about to find out.

Using a small nail, he bored a tight hole and inserted the toothpick. It was the last thing he had to do, if you didn't count the decorations. But it was tricky getting the toothpick seated just right. Trouble was, you couldn't tell until you tried it. And if you tried it and it wasn't right, it could wreck the mechanism. There was a red warning about that in the instructions. Get it wrong and you were back to square one. But get it right and you were king.

He thought he had it right.

Henry looked at his handiwork. The base was a black cube with nothing on it except the handle and the wording Pigs might fly. The pig itself crouched on the top, all pink and porky. Its wings were so cleverly folded you couldn't see them. The model was finished except for the last few stupid decorations. But he might even forget about those. The decorations didn't have anything to do with the mechanism. This was the real moment of truth.

Henry held his breath, reached out and turned the handle.

The pig took off smoothly on its pillar, onwards and upwards, unfolding cardboard wings. As it reached the end of the pillar, a hidden cog fell into place so that it stayed aloft, flapping. It would stay there until you turned the handle backwards. But Henry didn't turn the handle backwards. He kept the old pig up there, flapping, flapping.

Pigs might fly.

'Yes!' Henry exclaimed, punching the air.

His mum was in the kitchen, sitting at the table staring into a cup of coffee. She looked wretched.

'Morning, Mum,' Henry said cheerfully. He headed for the cornflakes cupboard. 'Got it working,' he said as he shook cornflakes into his yellow bowl. He carried it back to the table and reached for the milk jug.

His mother dragged her eyes out of the coffee cup and let them settle on him, large, liquid and entirely vacant. 'What?' she asked.

'Got it working,' Henry said again. 'Flying pig. Got it working. Never thought the machinery would hold up - cardboard machinery, give me a break - but it's cool. I'll show it to you later, if you like.'

'Oh, yes,' his mum said, but in that dreamy, distant tone that made him wonder if she still didn't know what he was talking about. She forced a smile and said, 'That would be nice.'

Martha Atherton was a good-looking woman. Even Henry could see it. Her hair was starting to go grey, but the FBI and the Spanish Inquisition would never get her to admit it. To the world she was brunette with auburn highlights. Her build was curvy - not exactly plump, but enough to stop her looking starved. Henry liked that, even when she looked like death. Who didn't look like death first thing in the morning?

Henry spooned cornflakes into his face. 'Where's Dad?' he asked. 'Did he come home last night?' Sometimes Dad stayed over when he was working late. He wasn't back last night when Henry crashed. But then Henry crashed early last night. He'd been so tired out by Mr Fogarty that he'd hardly managed to glue the last bit of the flying pig together.

For a second he thought he saw something in Mum's eyes. Then it was gone and so was the vacant look and she was saying casually, 'Oh yes. I expect he'll be down in a minute.'

Henry expected so as well. His father had his train to catch and hated to rush. 'What you got planned for today, Mum?' She was headmistress of the local girls' school, but it was closed for summer holidays.