by Garth Nix (Author)
The master of children's fantasy returns with a thrilling science fiction adventure. The clock is ticking for the children of the world, and the key to survival rests in the hands of Shade's Children...In a futuristic urban wasteland, evil Overlords have decreed that no child shall live a day past his fourteenth birthday. On that Sad Birthday, the child is the object of an obscene harvest resulting in the construction of a machine like creature whose sole purpose is to kill. The mysterious Shade - once a man, but now more like the machines he fights - recruits the few children fortunate enough to escape. With luck, cunning, and skill, four of Shade's children come closer than any to discovering the source of the Overlords' power - and the key to their downfall. But the closer the children get, the more ruthless Shade seems to become!
Format: Paperback
Pages: 352
Publisher: HarperCollinsChildren'sBooks
Published: 07 Aug 2006
ISBN 10: 000724312X
ISBN 13: 9780007243129
Children’s book age: 12+ Years
[Garth Nix is] the coolest read in the playground. Amanda Craig
Garth Nix blends suspense, action, and high emotion in this excellent, fast-moving science-fiction story. Amazon.com
The twists and turns of the action-filled plot are compelling. Publishers Weekly
A dynamic page-turner. Fast-paced action and the intensity of the entire situation make for exciting reading. ALA Booklist
Combines plenty of comic-book action in a sci-fi setting to produce an exciting read... An action-adventure with uncommon appeal outside the genre. Kirkus
Garth Nix was born in 1963 and grew up in Canberra, Australia. After taking his degree in professional writing from the University of Canberra, he worked in a bookshop and then moved to Sydney. There he sank lower into the morass of the publishing industry, steadily devolving from sales rep through publicist until in 1991 he became a senior editor with a major multinational publisher. After a period travelling in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia in 1993, he left publishing to work as a marketing communications consultant . In 1999 he was lured back to the publishing world to become a part-time literary agent. He now lives in Sydney with his wife and two children.