Matiu Douglas has promised to help the storyteller’s daughter, but there are a few problems … The daughter is dead - she’s been petrified in stone for centuries. And she’s no longer human … she’s a taniwha.
David Hair’s stunning first book established a new genre we have chosen to call Maori Gothic - weaving together elements of fantasy, horror and Maori and Celtic mythology for young readers who enjoy the imaginative leaps and thrills of speculative fiction. the mix works brilliantly; tHE BONE tIKI not only appealed to younger readers, but was enjoyed by an adult audience as well.tHE tANIWHA’S tEAR continues the story, which will be completed in a third novel - tHE LOSt tOHUNGA. When Puarata, a tohunga makutu or black magician, seeks to capture and manipulate the soul of Wiri, a young warrior, he fails to account for a threat that will come many years later, when a boy is born who combines the strengths of two ancient mythologies - Maori and Celtic. Matiu Douglas faces and defeats him in the first novel, but the forces unleashed by Puarata survive his destruction and once again Mat and Wiri must battle them across time and between the parallel worlds of modern New Zealand and timeless Aotearoa. Compelling, action-packed fantasy horror with a creepily familiar local setting that will challenge and captivate.