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Product Description Jack was eleven when the berserkers loomed out of the fog and nabbed him. "It seems that things are stirring across the water," the Bard had warned. "Ships are being built, swords are being forged." "Is that bad?" Jack had asked, for his Saxon village had never before seen berserkers. "Of course. People don't make ships and swords unless they intend to use them." The year is A.D. 793. In the next months, Jack and his little sister, Lucy, are enslaved by Olaf One-Brow and his fierce young shipmate, Thorgil. With a crow named Bold Heart for mysterious company, they are swept up into an adventure-quest in the spirit of The Lord of the Rings. Award-winner Nancy Farmer has never told a richer, funnier tale, nor offered more timeless encouragement to young seekers than "Just say no to pillaging." Review "Nancy Farmer goes a-viking and returns with magic." -- Associated Press"A hugely entertaining story sure to appeal to fans of The Lord of the Rings." -- Kirkus, starred review"Readers will want to sail through these nearly 500 pages to find out what happens to young Jack and his sister, Lucy...." -- Publishers Weekly, starred review"This exciting and original fantasy will capture the hearts and imaginations of readers." -- School Library Journal, starred review"Heroic." -- USA Today About the Author Nancy Farmer has written three Newbery Honor books: The Ear, the Eye and the Arm; A Girl Named Disaster; and The House of the Scorpion, which also won the National Book Award and the Printz Honor. Other books include The Lord of Opium, The Sea of Trolls, The Land of the Silver Apples, The Islands of the Blessed, Do You Know Me, The Warm Place, and three picture books for young children. She grew up on the Arizona-Mexico border and now lives with her family in the Chiricahua Mountains of Arizona. Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. The Sea of TrollsBy Nancy FarmerSimon PulseCopyright © 2006Nancy FarmerAll right reserved.ISBN: 9780689867460Chapter Three: The Shadow Across The Water"No...no..."Jack sat up abruptly. The wind was howling outside. The house held the deep chill that seeped into it before dawn."No...I won't do it...it's evil..."Jack threw back the covers and stumbled to the other end of the house. The Bard's bed was shaking. He saw the old man thrust up his hand as though warding something off. "Sir! Sir! Wake up! Everything's all right." He caught the Bard's hand."You won't bend me to your will! I defy you, foul troll!"Something -- some terrible force -- flung the boy back. His head banged against the stone, and his ears rang as though a blacksmith were pounding on an anvil. He tasted blood."Oh, my stars, child! I didn't know it was you."Jack tried to speak, choked on blood, and coughed instead."You're alive, thank Freya! Stay here. I'll build up the fire and make you a healing drink."The ringing in Jack's ears died down, but he felt violently sick to his stomach. He heard the Bard move around, and presently, the hearth burst into light. In a very short time he was handed a cup of hot liquid. It hurt his mouth and he recoiled."You bit through your lip, child. It isn't as bad as it looks. The drink will make it better."Jack managed to swallow, and the sickness went away. He found himself trembling. Perhaps he'd been trembling all along. He couldn't remember. "Is that -- is that how -- you destroy your enemies?" he stammered.The Bard sat back. "One of the ways," he said."So that was...magic.""Some call it so," said the Bard."Will you teach me how to do it?""By Thor's bushy beard! I almost killed you, and the first thing you want to know is how to do it.""W-Well, sir, I am your a-apprentice.""And a right cheeky one too. Most boys would have run home to their mothers after what you just experienced. Still, curiosity is a great thing. We two might just get along."Jack felt a kind of warm sleepiness pass over him. The pain was still there, b