Tad Williams to return to Osten Ard (Graeme very happy to hear this!)

It's been a pretty crappy week, what with one thing and another, but this bit of news has put a smile on my face (as far as books go anyway). Tad Williams is a favourite author of mine, he can't write a bad book as far as I'm concerned, so the news that he is returning to Osten Ard (home of my favourite fantasy series) is just amazing. Check out the press release (which I came across on Suvudu)...

DAW BOOKS TO PUBLISH THE LAST KING OF OSTEN ARD,
SEQUEL TRILOGY TO TAD WILLIAMS’ NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING MEMORY, SORROW, AND THORN SERIES

NEW YORK, NY, April 2, 2014—Betsy Wollheim and Sheila Gilbert, Publishers of DAW Books, have acquired The Last King of Osten Ard, a sequel trilogy to Tad Williams’ New York Times bestselling Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy. The series will begin with The Witchwood Crown, continue with Empire of Grass, and conclude with The Navigator’s Children.

Tad Williams has been one of the most respected names in speculative fiction since the release of his debut novel, Tailchaser’s Song, in 1985. He took the fantasy community by storm in 1988 with the first novel in the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy, The Dragonbone Chair (DAW). This first installment and the subsequent books—Stone of Farewell and To Green Angel Tower—sold millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into twenty-five languages. Since the release of this classic trilogy, Williams has authored many critically acclaimed novels, short stories, and comic books, including the Otherland, Shadowmarch, and Bobby Dollar series.

Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn was an inspiration for many of the fantasy genre’s great talents, including George R. R. Martin, author of the phenomenally popular Song of Ice and Fire series, and Christopher Paolini, New York Times bestselling author of the Inheritance Cycle, who called Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn “one of the great fantasy epics of all time.”

In this new trilogy, Williams journeys back to the magical land of Osten Ard and continues the story of beloved characters King Simon and Queen Miriamele, married now for thirty years, and introduces newcomer Prince Morgan, their heir apparent. Also expanded is the story of the twin babies born to Prince Josua and Lady Vorzheva—a birth heralded by prophecy, which has been the subject of feverish fan speculation since the release of To Green Angel Tower in 1993.

In The Last King of Osten Ard, Williams returns with the ingenious worldbuilding, jaw dropping twists and turns, and unparalleled storytelling that have made him one of fantasy’s brightest stars for more than thirty years.

Thirty years eh...? It's unlikely but I'm hoping that this gap leaves a little room for Duke Isgrimmnur to make a little appearance at least. This is great news though and I'm already in a state of eager anticipation even though there is no publication date for the books as yet. Happy Days etc etc... :o)