Pellinor is a fantasy series by Australian author Alison Croggon, spanning four books and a prequel.
The series is the retelling of the "Naraudh Lar-Chanë", the Riddle of the Treesong, set in the fictional world of Edil-Amarandh. The series mainly revolves about the character of an adolescent girl named Maerad, who was forced into slavery as a child along with her mother, after the sacking of the Bard school of Pellinor.
Books So far the books which make up the series have been published by Penguin Books in Australia, Walker Books in the UK, Candlewick Press in the US (except The Bone Queen published by Walker Books), and Bastei-Lübbe in Germany, with the translation done by Michael Krug.
The Bone Queen A prequel, published in 2016. The promising young Bard Cadvan summons a revenant, the Bone Queen, which causes him to be exiled. Cadvan and his friend Dernhil the poet must then track down and vanquish the Bone Queen.
The Friendship (short story) A prequel story of how Cadvan and the healer Bard Saliman became friends.
The Gift (also: The Naming)
First published in Australia in 2003, the United Kingdom in 2004, and as "The Naming", in the United States during 2005.
The Gift begins with Maerad, in "Gilman's Cot" as a slave, where she has been for most of her life, with few memories of her former life, her mother having died several years before. She is discovered by Cadvan, one of the great mystics known as Bards, who reveals to her that she too has "the Gift" shared by all of these, by which she is able to command nature to do her will. Cadvan soon discovers that her mother was Milana of Pellinor, the leader of the First Circle of the sacked School of Pellinor, of whom it was previously assumed that there were no survivors. Knowing this, Cadvan decides to help her escape, believing that it might not be a random chance that he came upon the only known survivor from Pellinor.
Cadvan finds that Maerad's Gift is unusually powerful for one never formally taught; he begins to suspect of her more significance than he had before. Cadvan takes her to the School of Innail, to make the presence of a survivor from Pellinor known and to establish Maerad as a Minor Bard of Pellinor. During their time there, Maerad obtains a long-forgotten prophecy concerning the Foretold One who will defeat the Nameless One. This Nameless One is a corrupt political leader, formerly called Sharma, who discarded his own truename in order to become immortal. Twice has he attempted to conquer the land of Edil-Amarandh, and he has twice been vanquished. His last bid for power is the one in which the Foretold One, Elednor, Edil – Amarandh na or Fire Lily of Edil - Amarandh, will defeat him, leaving him dead or helpless forever. Maerad's own history, being coincident with that of the Foretold One, implies that she is Elednor, although Maerad does not immediately embrace the idea.
After their brief but enjoyed stay at Innail, Cadvan takes Maerad across the country of Annar to the city of Norloch, intending to have her instated as a full Bard and given her Name, and also to see his old teacher Nelac. En route, they discover that the Nameless One's corrupt Bards, the Hulls, are roaming freely, so that non-users of magic are terrified and terrorized; that Maerad is descended on her mother Milana's side from Lady Ardina, a faerie creature, an Elidhu, who still lives in the forest as monarch of a Lothlórien-like settlement, Rachida; and that Maerad has a younger brother, called Hem or Cai, who, like her, is an inheritor of the Gift. Ardina happens to be known by many names: The Elidhu, Queen of Rachida, The Moonchild, Daughter of the Moon.
When Maerad and Cadvan, who has become her tutor, reach Norloch, they discover that corruption has penetrated even here, in that the First Bard of all Annar, Enkir, has fallen under Sharma's influence. He is revealed as the one who had Pellinor destroyed and who sold Maerad into slavery. Largely as a result of this, though also because of his own misogyny, this Bard refuses to admit that Maerad is the Foretold One, or even to let her be instated as a Bard. Therefore, Cadvan and Nelac invoke an archaic ritual called the Way of the White Flame, by which Maerad is initiated as a full Bard. Her Name, at this point, is revealed to be that of the Foretold One; Elednor, which means "Fire Lily".
Driven out by their enemy's hostility, Cadvan and Maerad flee. Maerad's brother is sent to another place for safety.
The Riddle
The Riddle begins where The Gift left off, with the main characters fleeing Norloch. It was first published in Australia in 2004, in the United Kingdom in 2005, and in the US in August 2006.
The Riddle sees Maerad and Cadvan continue the search for Maerad's destiny, which takes them to the lively island School of Busk, which is a Hellenistic community; north to the realms of the Pilanel, who are Maerad's kin through her father Dorn; and finally to the very heart of the realm of the Winterking, Arkan, another Elidhu, who is a glacial spirit allied with the Nameless One. Hem/Cai (Maerad's brother) has fled south along with Saliman.
As in Innail, Maerad settles in Busk and feels very much at home – more so than previously, perhaps because she is no longer accustomed to expect bullying – while Cadvan continues the search for the mysterious "Treesong", with the help of Nerili, First Bard of the School of Busk, the key to Maerad's destiny. Maerad also begins to explore her powers and their full potential, producing some humorous outcomes. Their peace is shattered by dark events at the annual "Rite of Renewal" and the news that they have been named traitors to the White Flame after the shocking revelations of The Gift, which causes them once again to flee.
Their journey is constantly blighted by setbacks, and by the constant threat from both Arkan and other Bards. Maerad also begins to fear the "darkness" within her own heart, as she begins to wonder about herself, her powers, and her place in Edil-Amarandh's destiny. This fear resolves itself into a constant tension between herself and her mentor, Cadvan, and leads Maerad into an almost unforgivable act that may threaten their relationship and Maerad's wellbeing forever.
The Crow
Published in Australia May 2006, in the UK July 2006, and in the US in 2007.
The Crow follows the journey of Maerad's brother, Hem, as he begins his training as a Bard in the southern School of Turbansk, where he was taken by the Bard Saliman. The events in this book occur during the same time as the events of The Riddle. Hem has difficulties fitting in this strange land; he does not know the local language and finds it hard to make friends after being a loner for many years. All the while the Nameless One is building his armies to the east; thus, the threat of war is growing. In this climate, Hem makes his first friend in the form of a girl, Zelika from the eastern school of Baladh, and begins to discover his own unique talents and his place in the "Treesong". He travels through places which most haven't been through, like the underground city of Nal-Ak-Burat and the Nameless One's stronghold, Dagra in the constant companionship of a white crow, Irc, whom he rescues in the beginning of the book. He meets the Elidhu, Nyanar from whom Hem will learn one half of the Treesong, to be combined with the half Maerad learns from the Winterking.
The Singing
Published in Australia in June 2008, in the UK on 1 September, and in the US on 10 March 2009.
In a desperate race against the dark, Maerad must try to solve the final riddle of the treesong. Only then will the Nameless One be defeated and peace restored to the Seven Kingdoms. But Maerad only holds the key to half the riddle - her long-lost brother, Hem, has the other. Before embarking on a perilous journey to find Hem, Maerad must first wage an epic war against the Landrost. And Hem, fleeing the advances of the Black Army, must endure betrayal and mortal illness in his search for Maerad. But the Dark grows ever more powerful - will brother and sister reach one another in time or will all be lost in a final, apocalyptic battle?
Characters Bard - a human who is born having the ability known as the 'Gift' in Annar and the Seven Kingdoms or the 'Voice' among the Pilani of the Howes of Murask and Tlon, by which one is able to command nature. Command of nature is wielded by use of the magical language known as the Speech, which all life-forms understand and which any human may learn as a means of communication (as in the region of the Suderain, where it is used by politicians in discussion), though only those born with the Gift can use its words as a means of supermundane power. Although use of the Voice is inherent and usually appears at some point in a child's life, one born with it must learn and develop it as if it were a skill. Individual Bards have differing strengths of power, which determine the limits of their command. All Bards live according to a code of honor known as the Balance and belong to a faction known as the Light, which is sometimes mythologized as a deity. Because Bards are thoroughly schooled to the ideas of the Balance, they are often perplexed by greed and selfishness. All Bards are given an education in the three disciplines of Reading, Tending, and Making, which make up the Bardic way of life. Different Bards adhere to different aspects of these three arts, which overlap and are therefore versatile. Each Bard has a particular speciality within the arts that is central to its life; specialities including both mundane activity and psi phenomena. The word "Bard" refers to a talent and liking for music which all Bards share. Frequently, they are poets, whose poetry reflects beauty and mortality. Most esteemed among the Bardic paradigms is the 'Way of the Heart', which consists of compassion, strong interpersonal bonds, and love. In the diverse societies of Edil-Amarandh, Bards perform roles variously resembling those of musicians, artists, scholars, priestkings, healers, caretakers, protectors, political advisors (in which role they have great influence), mystics, and shamans. All human mystics who appear in the story are Gifted, though not all are considered Bards, given that some of them may not have received training in the Three Arts or schooling in the ethics of the Balance. Both training and potency of inherent Gift determine the extent of a Bard's ability. Bards age slower than regular people do, starting when they turn 20 years of age, and have three times the lifespan of other people.