Dearest Ollie, Jerry, Tabby and Susie,
I love you all so much, which I hope you realise if you listen to this tetralogy's Cinematic Audiobook, where each of you stars in one of its books. Every argument, every stupidity, every hug and hard-fought victory was written with you in mind.
You all grew up liking Lord of the Rings, and this absurdist epic has the same word count as that entire trilogy. Although now published globally in print, ebook and audiobook, it was only ever written for you. And although you don't want to talk to me, I’ve been talking to you the entire time. Many already know of your adventure, which is odd when you don't. It’s been quite the saga, so thank you, my darlings, for being with me and Oscar through it all.
Love,
Dad.
In a universe where the greatest threat is typically a lumpy mug of hot fin, an unprecedented darkness is brewing. Oscar Teabag-Dooven, reluctant agent of the Velvet Paws of Asquith, returns in this tetralogy of the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh titles in the Velvet Paw of Asquith Novels. Having saved the world three times across preceding books, he wants only to retire from the Velvet Paws and become a celebrated bard. But his dreams are shattered by a nemesis whose verses literally unravel the very fabric of reality.
Joined by Tabby-Miss-Cakes, a beautiful librarian with a propensity for punching animals in the face, Oscar must navigate a labyrinth of worlds where the logic of dreams and waking life are dangerously entwined. They are hunted by the Ar’dath-Irr, a sinister poet-god who wields the power of life and death.
From the Great Library of Liebe to the rain-slicked, vertical heights of the Sheer Magnatherial, this saga follows a band of misfits across deserts, acropolises, volcanic wastelands and cities of terracotta and shimmering salt, as Oscar and Tabby are joined by Jeffemeries, a baker who makes buns with petrol, Miss Bearthzy-Bells, a savant genius, and Panoli Rueben, a celebrated philosopher who realises that the universe is intentionally absurd.
Across four books, a cast of thousands grows, including royal families, echelons, armies and navies, all to culminate in a task conceptually impossible: they must teach an aggressively peaceful populace the concepts of violence, revenge and extreme prejudice to save not only their world, but countless others.
This is a satirical fantasy epic where poetry is the ultimate weapon and the end of the world is merely a warm up for something much worse. Experience a saga that proves a well-aimed punch in the face can do wonders for everyone and anyone.
"Through the Morigan Tetralogy, Thomas brings his Velvet Paw books to new levels of cinematic world-building and charm that on occasion makes it hard to read through tears. His cat and dog characters are complex, neurotically flawed and beautifully irritating, and culminate in this highly original, dramatic and philosophical absurdist epic that cements him as the unequivocal father of New Fable genre fiction."