Zentek Ascendant, Book I: Return

About the Book

Zentek Ascendant, Book I: Return is an exciting swords-and-sorcery fantasy adventure epic from new author Mark A. Richter.

"So captivating, I had to force myself to put it down, just to get anything else done." - Alex H.

Return´s challenging adventures take place in a harsh, medieval world, a primitive throwback from a highly advanced civilization that totally collapsed millennia ago. Nature has regained control, and lack of technology has forced mankind and its non-human allies to depend on cooperation rather than coercion. People develop their abilities depending on their guild membership and its support. Some become great knights, clever thieves, or powerful sorcerers, while others struggle just to survive their lives of impoverished peasantry or miserable serfdom.

Christophane Lord, a zentek "mystical-parapsychic-monk", is the duke of a small province in the chilly northeast corner of Idlewild. Darnak Sparre, a huge knight in the famous Kalsharia Cavalry, and Chris´s best friend, serves their prince as Chris´s bodyguard. Minx, an exquisite but ragged novice thief, plays a small part at first, but this insouciant, ferocious beauty makes her clandestine, provocative way into the heart of the tale.

Return begins in the vast southwestern Idlewild desert, where Chris and Darnak narrowly escape the first in a mysterious series of relentless assassination attempts. On their way home from a long diplomatic assignment, they chance upon some hardy friends who join them along their journey, in spite, or maybe because of the hazards they face. Beset by numerous obstacles in different terrains, rural inns and urban intrigue, they make their precarious course across the treacherous wilds over the many miles, while they encounter diverse, potentially lethal challenges to their lives and skills along the way.

Complete with a full color map of the entire western land mass of Wilderness, Return also includes a sneak preview of Minx: Zentek Ascendant, Book II. Join Chris, Darnak and Minx in the first installment of the greatest adventure of their lifetimes....

About the Author

Mark A. Richter entered the world in 1955 in Washington, D.C. He received his B.S. degree in Information and Computer Science, Magna Cum Laude, from the University of California, Irvine. A professional software engineer with over 29 years experience, Mark's fi rst love has always been fantasy and science fi ction. Mark has written several stories and books in both the fantasy and science fi ction genres. While still in high school, he ghost wrote for a work that was destined to become a defi nitive reference for The Lord of the Rings, until the author declined to publish when the Encyclopedia Hobitannica came out. Mark is currently a member of the Online Writers Workshop for fantasy and science fi ction.