Special acknowledgment to the House of Manannan and the Leece Museum in Peel and to the Manx Museum in Douglas, Isle of Man.
Andrea Spalding has written many beloved books for children. She hails from England, where she was long steeped in ancient lore. The landscape of the Quartet is the landscape of Andrea’s childhood. She and her husband, David, returned to England four times to research the four books of the series. The White Horse Talisman was nominated for the Silver Birch, Hackmatack and Manitoba Readers’ Choice Awards. Dance of the Stones was also a Silver Birch nominee. Heart of the Hill left one of her four characters in grave danger. Andrea lives with David on Pender Island, British Columbia.
BOOK ONE
THE SUMMER OF MAGIC QUARTET
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THE WHITE HORSE TALISMAN
The battle between good and evil plays itself out through four children, a mythical horse and an imprisoned dragon.
It was seven minutes after midnight on the seventh day. Whoooooooosh! A flash of light streaked the sky. A shooting star touched a strange carving on the hillside, and a magical horse shook itself free of the chalk and rose to its feet. It was seven minutes after midnight on the seventh day of the seventh month. The only person watching was Chantel. No matter. It was enough. The summer of magic could begin.
Chantel, Adam, Holly and Owen must help Equus, the great white horse, find his mate and foal and regain his magical talisman. But as the horse rises, so does the dragon. The age-old battle between good and evil threatens the bond between Chantel and Adam and endangers the quest. This is fantasy at its best, a story that raises hairs on the back of the neck and sends satisfying chills up and down the spine, a story that, while clearly drawn from the rich world of make believe, feels truer than true.
BOOK TWO
THE SUMMER OF MAGIC QUARTET
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DANCE OF THE STONES
The four children from The White Horse Talisman seek Ava’s circlet, buried within the ancient stone circle of Avebury.
The third sunbeam shot its magical light into a valley. There towered a stone circle, great gray stones veiled in morning mist. The golden beam lit the dew-covered grass. The tide of light flooded and washed each sarcenstone. The Stones were ready. As gray became gold, the largest stone spun on its axis, then stood sentinel as before. The dawn magic happened quickly, without witness. That was to change. Four ordinary children were about to be called to The Circle.
Chantel, Adam, Holly and Owen are eager to begin the next stage of their adventure. “The Stones have stirred,” Ava, Hawkwoman and Wise One, tells Owen, “The time is near for the Circle Dance.” The stones are the ancient stone circle of Avebury in England. But the Dark Being approaches, and her servant, a wraith, blocks the children’s progress. When Ava is hurt, the children are thrown back on their own resources. They must discover the ritual that will release the circlet. Each child has a part to play in finding the circlet and holding back the Dark Being.
BOOK THREE
THE SUMMER OF MAGIC QUARTET
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HEART OF THE HILL
With the help of the other Magic Children, Adam seeks to retrieve Myrddin’s staff, hidden deep within Glastonbury Tor.
Moonbeam by moonbeam the Tor drank in the magic, until its crystal heart beat strong and the forgotten edges of the ancient Labyrinth that climbed its slopes glowed.
Still the moonlight poured down. The Tor drank till it could drink no more. Three large, white, oval stones on its flanks shone with an inner radiance. Two stones marked the entrance to the forgotten spiral path. The third gleamed like an eye, high on the Tor’s flank at the path’s goal.
In Book Three of The Summer of Magic Quartet, Adam’s turn to lead the adventure has arrived. The Wise One, Myrddin, needs Adam to retrieve his staff from the Crystal Cave deep inside Glastonbury Tor. The quest grows more dangerous, however, and fear rises. Equus and Ava are far away, the Lady will not wake and Myrrdin is in human guise, unable to use magic without alerting the Dark Being. The four children are on their own. And as the Dark Being approaches, the children discover that danger can find them even in their dreams.
Behind the Sorcerer's Cloak Page 18
