Deathstalker Return

Table of Contents

 

 

“Have fun with this one. Reading even one
Deathstalker
leaves one feeling jollier than before, for the series continues to avoid the lapses of tone so common in humorous space opera and fantasy.” —
Booklist

 

“An entertaining novel filled with action, political intrigue, and humor. In the guise of classic space opera, Green creates a complex universe with a rich history and sociological foundation. Much of the background is inspired and enriched by Green’s British heritage, featuring, among other things, echoes of Arthurian and Scottish clan traditions. . . . Green does weave them together seamlessly into a universe that makes sense, even with all its wonderfully strange, distinct worlds, aliens, robots, humans natural and otherwise, and even a few ghosts. . . . Genuinely witty . . . a lot of fun.”—
Scifi.com

 

“A fast-paced, lively read with plenty of humor thrown in to make it more fun. Lewis’s crew is reminiscent of the misfits that made up Roj Blake’s crew on the old TV show
Blake’s 7
. There’s plenty of intrigue and double-crossing back in the Empire to keep you interested too.”—
SFRevu

 

“Space opera at its finest, with rebels, traitors, gun and sword battles, and legendary prophecies. . . . Page-turning action. . . . The motley band of rebels plays off each other with the sharp wit and endearing affection found in the best buddy comedies, and Lewis, with his wry humor, is an engaging galactic Indiana Jones.”—
Romantic Times

“Swashbuckling.”—
Publishers Weekly

 

“Rip-roaring space opera with dastardly villains, exciting battles, nefarious plots, and strong willed heroes.”—
Chronicle

 

“A tangled tapestry of intrigue, hidden passion, and high adventure in a space opera filled with swashbuckling adventure.”

—
Library Journal

 

“An over-the-top masterpiece that veers between brutal comedy and touching riffs on love, loyalty, and betrayal . . . bloody funny and extremely bloody.”—
The Guardian
(UK)

 

“Good fun in Green’s best gory style.”—
Locus

 

“Space opera at its action best.”—
Allscifi.com

 

“[A] stout, exuberant piece of intelligent space opera. . . . Great fun.”—
Booklist

“Be prepared for an incredible romp through a wonderful universe of space opera, filled with outrageous and incredibly powerful heroes and villains, swords and disruptors and more lethal creatures than you can imagine.”—SF Site

 

 

“The action is fast and frenzied . . . manages to consistently entertain, with some wondrously quirky and warped characters.”

—
Locus

 

 

“Green blends derring-do, space battles, and wry banter aplenty to form an eminently satisfying space opera.”—
Booklist

 

 

“A huge novel of sweeping scope, told with a strong sense of legend.”—
Locus

Other Deathstalker Books

 

 

The Adventures of Hawk & Fisher

 

 

 

Also by Simon R. Green

 

ROC
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
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Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First Roc Trade Paperback Printing, February 2005

Copyright © Simon R. Green, 2004

Excerpt from
Deathstalker Coda
copyright © Simon R. Green, 2005
All rights reserved

REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA

 

 

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

 

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.

eISBN : 978-1-101-17736-5

LAST NIGHT I DREAMED OF HAZEL D’ARK.

Thief, clonelegger, confidence trickster, warrior . . . heroine. Official legend made her fearless and noble, a saint and a martyr, but she was none of those things. Her dreams were small and petty, and she never gave a damn for causes or politics, but still . . . she was magnificent. She took on everything the Empire could throw against her, and never once backed down. She had her inner demons, and fought those just as fiercely. When it mattered, she did the right thing. Again and again and again.

In my dream, I see her so clearly. Poor, lost Hazel; with her sharp pointed face, the go-to-hell defiance of her bright green eyes, her ratty mane of red hair. Her pout and her scowl and her brief flashing smiles. She moved like a fighter because life had never taught her how to be tender. She fought so hard to be able to call her life her own, and much good it did her. She won nothing she valued, and lost the only man she ever cared for.

Owen; you lied to me. You promised me we’d always be together, forever and ever. Oh Owen; I never told you I love you. . . .

She won every battle, and still lost the war. And in the end, there was nothing left but the darkness that had threatened to overwhelm her all her life; so she ran away into it, and was never seen again.

Last night I dreamed of Hazel d’Ark. She’d finally come home. She was smiling. And even in my dream, I wondered why I wasn’t glad to see her.

Lewis Deathstalker and his rebel companions had been traveling together in their hijacked yacht the
Hereward
for almost two days now. They hadn’t even reached the edge of the core planets yet, and already they were all mulling over detailed plans on how best to kill each other. Occasionally they’d take time out to consider less important problems, such as where the hell they were going, or how best to overthrow Finn Durandal, find the lost Owen Deathstalker and Hazel d’Ark, stop the Terror before it destroyed the whole of existence, and return the Empire to its Golden Age; but first things first.