The House of Sacrifice
Anna Smith Spark
A powerhouse grimdark fantasy of bloodshed, ambition, and fate, The House of Sacrifice is the thunderous conclusion to Anna Smith Spark's Empires of Dust trilogy, which began with The Court of Broken Knives. Hail Him. Behold Him. Man-killer, life-stealer, death-bringer, life’s thief. All are bound to Him,His word is law. The night coming, the sudden light that makes the eyes blind,Golden one, shining, glorious. Life’s judgement, life’s pleasure, hope’s grave. Marith Altrersyr has won. He cut a path of blood and vengeance and needless violence around the world and now he rules. It is time for Marith to put down his sword, to send home his armies, to grow a beard and become fat. It is time to look to his own house, and to produce an heir. The King of Death must now learn to live. But some things cannot be learnt. The spoils of war turn to ash in the mouths of the Amrath Army and soon they are on the move again. But Marith, lord of lies, dragon-killer, father-killer, has begun to falter and his mind decays. How long can a warlord rotting from within continue to win? As the Army marches on to Sorlost, Thalia’s thoughts turn to home and to the future: a life grows inside her and it is a precious thing – but it grows weak. Why must the sins of the father curse the child? A glorious, ambitious and bloodily brilliant conclusion that threads together a masterful tapestry of language and story, and holding up a piercing reflection on epic fantasy – and those who love it.
THE HOUSE OF SACRIFICE
Book Three of The Empires of Dust
Anna Smith Spark
Copyright (#u05fa1f9a-23cc-50e1-bff9-ba89031e86dd)
HarperVoyager
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First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2019
Copyright © Anna Smith-Spark 2019
Cover design © HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd 2019
Anna Smith-Spark asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue copy of this book is available from the British Library.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
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Source ISBN: 9780008204129
Ebook Edition © August 2019 ISBN: 9780008204143
Version: 2019-06-04
Dedication (#u05fa1f9a-23cc-50e1-bff9-ba89031e86dd)
This book is dedicated to my mother.
Contents
Cover (#u1f37ece1-4183-5dac-b6f3-39146552f2d5)
Title Page (#ue8f381cc-fe7a-5c34-b6cf-730ad770e6b5)
Copyright
Dedication
Map
Part One: The Joy of the World
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Part Two: The Golden City
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
