Blood and Iron (Promethean Age Series #1) » (Reprint)

Originally from Vermont and Connecticut, Elizabeth Bear spent six years in the Mojave Desert and currently lives near Ann Arbor, Michigan. She attended the University of Connecticut, where she studied anthropology and English Literature. She received the 2005 Campbell Award for Best New Writer. Author website: elizabethbear.com

Award-winning fantasy

For centuries, the human mages of the Prometheus Club and the otherworldly creatures of Faerie have battled for control over Earth's destiny with neither side capable of achieving victory over the other. Their impasse has just come to an end…

Publishers Weekly

Ancient grudges and ruthless schemes are simply business as usual to the Faerie court in Bear's complex and involving contemporary fantasy. Seeker, formerly Elaine Andraste, is a changeling bound to the Mebd, the queen of the Daoine Sidhe, to find other changelings and bring them to the Faerie court. There, like legendary Tam Lin, and Seeker's own son, Ian, they entertain the queen until she tires of them. Now the queen needs Seeker to find and win the heart of the new Merlin, latest incarnation of a being who, in the hands of the Prometheans, could be used to destroy the Fae. Pragmatic college professor Carel Bierce, the first female Merlin, is not easily swayed by Fae or Promethean advances. Long-forgotten rivalries and unsuspected blood ties arise to tug at Seeker's loyalties, even as the queen promises to free Ian when she succeeds. Campbell-winner Bear (Worldwired) overturns the usual vision of Faerie, revealing the compelling beauty and darkness only glimpsed in old ballads and stories like "Tam Lin." (July) Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.