Tor Essentials presents new editions of science fiction and fantasy titles of proven merit and lasting value, each volume introduced by an appropriate literary figure.

The Wars of the Roses have put Edward IV on the throne of England, Lorenzo de’ Medici’s court shines brilliantly, and Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza plots in Milan. But this medieval world is dominated by the undiminished Byzantine Empire.

In a snowbound inn high in the Alps, four people meet who will alter fate: A noble Byzantine mercenary; a female Florentine physician; an ageless Welsh wizard; and Sforza, the uncanny Duke. Together they will wage an intrigue-filled campaign against the might of Byzantium, striving to secure the English throne for Richard, Duke of Gloucester-and make him Richard III.

Available for the first time in over two decades, The Dragon Waiting begins Tor’s program to reissue the work of the late John M. Ford, an award-winning science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet, whose work was held in high regard by peers ranging from Neil Gaiman to Robert Jordan to Jo Walton to Roger Zelazny, alongside innumerable others.

With a new introduction by Scott Lynch, New York Times-bestselling author of The Lies of Locke Lamora.