The Wizard of Kalar

On the distant planet of Kalár the two hundred year old life cycle of the Schánda once again menace the idyllic lives of the Boláni, a small tribal village of forest dwellers living in their hollowed Lándo trees. The schánda have a two hundred year life-cycle and normally live up on the northern edges of the tundra of the planet of Kálar. They are an insect, something like a cross between a spider and a scorpion. The mating urge mutates the schánda into a massive swarm of ferocious carnivores. It doubles in size, grows the stinger and large claws in its fourth and final moult, then begins its long march from its home-ground in the North of Kálar, south to its mating grounds on the shores of the Golden Sea. In its path live the small peaceful Bólani tribe who make their homes in living Lándo trees in the forest. Around the same time as the schánda begin their journey, the Bólani's collective unconscious, triggers nightmares. They dream of an unstoppable carnivorous procession intent on eating their way to their mating grounds, heading their way. The Bólani must gather their possessions and flee ahead of the encroaching swarm. Their long march to the shores of the Golden Sea takes them through a series of adventures with small blood sucking insects, vicious storms, predatory birds, unfriendly villages, lakes of volcanic lava, and desert worms. Only the skill of their apprentice wizard, Morác, saves them from disaster-transforming his powers in the process. Even when they reach the Golden Sea their problems are not over. Imprisoned by a coastal tribe and then buffeted by storms on flimsy rafts, the dynamics of the tribe are changed forever as they strive to return to their small forest village in the far North. This is an eco-fantasy tale stretching the imagination beyond the solar system.
About the Author: Sasha Garrydeb worked in the computer industry in Eastern Europe for a number of years as a consultant. Then he went back to University and graduated in Psychology, specialising in Relapse Prevention in Alcoholism and Obsessive Compulsive Disorders, (OCD). Interests include most Slavic languages and their etymology. There's a current fascination with prehistory taking in the birth of the earth onwards. He reads extensively, throws pots, and is a bit of a motor biking nut. He's just finished working on the second novel in the Hittite Trilogy, to be published in February 2011. That is work in progress. He's had a fascination for the lost Hittite civilization for a number of years and thought it high time someone made a stab at including them in the thriller fiction genre. His first novel, Worlds Beyond Ours, has been bouncing around in his head for some years and this is the result. The second book came out of the blue and was The Wizard of Kalar, an ecology-fantasy novel; and then there was a change of direction, which ended up with the writing of the current Hittite Trilogy. He lives with a cat called Psyche, who is the surrogate Editor of all his books; at least he claims she is, so any typos are down to her editing.