by Tad Williams

A thirty-year old lead singer in a not-terribly-successful rock band, Theo once had enormous charisma both onstage and off - but now, life has taken its toll on him. He finds himself alone, heartbroken, and plagued by a recurring nightmare - and Theo can’t shake the feeling that bad things are happening to him for a reason. Seeking solace and escape in a cabin the woods, he begins to read an old hand-written memoir by his great-uncle, a man named Eamonn Dowd, and quickly becomes mesmerized. Dowd writes of another world - the world of Faerie - but it is nothing like the familiar fairyland of childhood stories.

But before Theo can disregard the account as the writings of a madman, a horrifying thing tries to break through his front door - a terribly hunting-spirit in the body of a dead man. Terrified and trapped, Theo is saved only by the intervention of a tiny, foul-mouthed winged sprite named Applecore, who transports him into the realm of Faerie. But this fairyland is even darker and more bizzarely modern than Eamonn Dowd had described, similar to the mortal world and yet dangerously different, and although he can’t imagine why, there are creatures in it that intend Theo Vilmos serious harm. With only the reluctant sprite Applecore for a guide, Theo must search for the true meaning of his life - before those who seek him can cut it mercilessly short.