The Magician's Apprentice (80 page)

pachi – crisp, sweet fruit

papea – pepper-like spice

piorres – small, bell-shaped fruit,

raka/suka – stimulating drink made from roasted beans, originally from Sachaka

shem – edible reed-like plant

sumi – bitter drink

sweetdrops – candies

telk – seed from which an oil is extracted

tenn – grain that can be cooked as is, broken into small pieces, or ground to make a flour

tiro – edible nuts

tugor – parsnip-like root

ukkas – carnivorous plants

vare – berries from which most wine is produced

whitewater – pure spirits made from tugors

yellowseed – crop grown in Sachaka

CLOTHING
AND
WEAPONRY

incal – square symbol, not unlike a family shield, sewn onto sleeve or cuff

quan – tiny disc-shaped beads made of shell

undershift – Kyralian women’s undergarment

vyer – stringed instrument from Elyne

COUNTRIES/
PEOPLES
IN
THE
REGION

Duna – tribes who live in volcanic desert north of Sachaka

Elyne – neighbour to Kyralia and Sachaka and once ruled by Sachaka

Kyralia – neighbour to Elyne and Sachaka and once ruled by Sachaka

Lan – a mountainous land peopled by warrior tribes

Lonmar – a desert land home to the strict Mahga religion

Sachaka – home of the once great Sachakan Empire, where all but the most powerful are slaves

Vin – an island nation known for their seamanship

TITLES/POSITIONS

Apprentice – Kyralian magician under training, and who has not been taught higher magic yet

Ashaki – Sachakan landowner

Ichani – Sachakan free man or woman who has been declared outcast

Lady – wife of a Kyralian landowner

Lord – Kyralian landowner, either of a ley or a city House, or their heir

Magician – Kyralian higher magician (“Lord” used instead if magician is a landowner)

Master – free Sachakan Village/Town Master – commoner in charge of a rural community (answers to the ley’s lord)

OTHER
TERMS

the approach – main corridor to the master’s room in Sachakan houses

blood gem – artificial gemstone that allows maker to hear the thoughts of wearer

earthblood – term the Duna tribes use for lava

kyrima – a game played by magicians to teach and practise strategic skills in battle

master’s room – main room in Sachakan houses for greeting guests

slavehouse – part of Sachakan homes where the slaves live and work

slavespot – sexually transmitted disease

storestone – gemstone that can store magic

The first half of this book was written during a very stressful and frustrating year, then the second half, rewrites and polishing in a tight six months. So I would like to thank Darren Nash and the team at Orbit for their understanding and patience, and Darren and Tim’s sympathetic ears when I poured out the whole house-extension saga on their visit to Melbourne.

I also want to thank Fran Bryson, my agent, and her assistant, Liz Kemp, for their support and great work, and the agents all over the world who bring my books to readers who speak languages other than my own. Another thank you also goes to Phillip Berrie, who I hired to do a professional consistency check on the manuscript, that was well worth the investment.

Thanks to my partner, Paul, who read the book, chapter by chapter, over the course of a year and a bit and kept encouraging me to write more, even though he was as demoralized over the house saga as I.

And to my friends and family, who provided valuable feedback on part or all of the book: Mum and Dad, Donna Hanson, Fiona McLennan and Kylie Seluka.

Lastly, but always most fondly, thank you to all the readers of my books who have sent lovely emails, left enthusiastic messages on my website’s guestbook, recommended or given my books to friends and family. You make my day.