Murtagh: The World of Eragon Christopher Paolini 9780241651315

Master storyteller and internationally bestselling author Christopher Paolini returns to the World of Eragon in this stunning epic fantasy set a year after the events of the Inheritance Cycle.

The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror.

Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society. Throughout the land, hushed voices whisper of brittle ground and a faint scent of brimstone in the air - and Murtagh senses that something wicked lurks in the shadows of Alagaesia. So begins an epic journey into lands both familiar and untravelled, where Murtagh and Thorn must use every weapon in their arsenal, from brains to brawn, to find and outwit a mysterious witch. A witch who is much more than she seems.

In this gripping novel starring one of the most popular characters from Christopher Paolini's blockbuster Inheritance Cycle, a Dragon Rider must discover what he stands for in a world that has abandoned him. Murtagh is the perfect book to enter the World of Eragon for the first time . . . or to joyfully return.

Christopher Paolini was born in Southern California and lived most of his life in Paradise Valley, Montana. The tall, jagged Beartooth Mountains that rise on one side of Paradise Valley inspired the fantastic scenery in Eragon, the first novel in his Inheritance Cycle.

Christopher's journey to becoming a globally beloved publishing phenomenon is as magical as the fantasy novels he writes. Christopher was homeschooled by his parents and often wrote short stories and poems, made frequent trips to the library, and read widely. He was fifteen when he wrote the first draft of Eragon and his family self-published the book in 2001.

In August 2003, Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers published Eragon and it was an instant success, reaching a worldwide audience. Christopher's second novel Eldest was published in 2005, followed by Brisingr in 2008. Inheritance, the fourth and final book in the cycle released in November 2011. Additional titles in The World of Eragon include Eragon's Guide to Alagaesia and The Fork, The Witch, and the Worm.

Today, the Inheritance Cycle is available in more than 50 countries, and together the four books in the series (Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, Inheritance) have sold more than 40 million copies worldwide.