The Witch Hunter Chronicles 3 Read online

  Repeating crossbows: The crossbow used by Francesca is inspired by bows used in China at the time. These had far greater power, speed and accuracy than smoothbore European firearms.

  Duels: I have taken some liberties here. The Witch Hunter Chronicles depicts Europe, in particular the French capital, as besieged by duellists who draw their swords at the slightest provocation; every street corner hosts some matter of honour that could only be satisfied through drawn steel. Whilst this had certainly been the case in the early seventeenth century, edicts passed by the French monarchs had outlawed duels in France long before the 1660s. It was more than likely that duels still occurred in the French capital, but not to the extent that I present in these stories.

  Witchcraft: The seventeenth century was a period in which people believed in the Devil and witchcraft. Tens of thousands of heretics (people who did not follow, or criticised, the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church) were condemned to death as witches. These victims of the Inquisition came from all sectors of society. In The Witch Hunter Chronicles a distinction is drawn between those who have been wrongly accused of witchcraft, and the ‘real’ witches and demons who the Hexenjäger battle.

  The Sons of Cain: Four fictitious demonic soldiers from the English Civil War.

  Malleus Maleficarum: Arguably the most infamous book written in history, the Malleus Maleficarum – the Hammer of the Witches – existed. Created by the Inquisitors James Sprenger and Heinrich Kramer, this text was used throughout the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries as the Inquisitor’s handbook on how to detect witches. In The Witch Hunter Chronicles, the text is riddled with cryptic passages that, when deciphered, unlock powerful spells.

  The Codex Gigas: This thirteenth-century text actually exists. It is more commonly known as the Devil’s Bible: a name it receives from an illustration of the Devil that appears inside the manuscript. Legend has it that the monk who wrote the book sold his soul to the Devil in order to scribe the text in one single night. It is currently stored in the National Library of Sweden.

  The English Civil War: Lasting from 1642 to 1651, this conflict divided the English nation, forcing people to side with either Parliament or the King.

  The Anglo–Dutch Wars: A series of naval engagements between England and the Dutch.

  The Great Fire of London: This fire raged out of control for four days, destroying the medieval heart of London. It started in a baker’s shop in Pudding Lane.

  Ackroyd, Peter, Thames: Sacred River, Chatto and Windus, London, 2007

  Hanson, Neil, The Dreadful Judgement: The True Story of the Great Fire of London, Corgi, London, 2002

  Tinniswood, Adrian, By Permission of Heaven: The Story of the Great Fire of London, Pimlico, London, 2004

  Withers, Harvey J.S., The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Swords and Sabres, Alto Books, London, 2008

  I would like to thank the following people for all their support and patience: the truly wonderful team at Random House Australia, particularly Zoe Walton, Cristina Briones, Sarana Behan, Dorothy Tonkin, Nerrilee Weir and Justin Ractliffe; my family and friends; the students and staff at International Grammar; and a special thanks to Ben Rekic, who planted the seed for this adventure.

  Stuart is a History teacher in a private high school in Sydney. Inspired by the works of Dumas, Pérez-Reverte and Matthew Reilly, and drawing upon his knowledge of the English Civil War and the Thirty Years’ War, he has long considered writing an action-packed adventure series set in the seventeenth century. His biggest fan – and critic – is his six-year-old daughter, who can often be found sitting on his lap in his study as he types away on the next title in The Witch Hunter Chronicles.

  No reprieve. No surrender.

  This is the Hexenjäger.

  It’s 1666, and the forces of darkness are spreading across Europe. Dreaming of wielding a blade in epic battles like the father he never knew, Jakob von Drachenfels falsifies a letter of introduction to join the Hexenjäger – an elite military order of witch hunters. He soon learns a lesson in the dangers of ambition when he finds himself selected for a team sent to recover a biblical relic from a witch-infested castle. But when the team is betrayed from within, what was already a difficult mission turns into a desperate struggle for survival.

  (Also available in ebook format)

  Darkness spreads. Evil rises.

  The Hexenjäger prepare for battle.

  The Watchers have roamed the earth for millennia, searching for the Tablet of Breaking. If they find it, they will destroy the world. Jakob and his witch hunter companions are sent on a mission to locate the relic before it falls into the hands of the four fallen angels.

  From the cliff-top monasteries of Meteora to a trap-riddled mausoleum lying at the bottom of the Dead Sea, the Hexjenjäger must stay one step ahead of the fallen angles and their army of undead – for the cost of failure is Armageddon.

  (Also available in ebook format)

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted by any person or entity, including internet search engines or retailers, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, photocopying (except under the statutory exceptions provisions of the Australian Copyright Act 1968), recording, scanning or by any information storage and retrieval system without the prior written permission of Random House Australia. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

  Version 1.0

  The Witch Hunter Chronicles 3: The Devil’s Fire

  Published by Random House Australia 2012

  Copyright © Stuart Daly 2012

  The moral right of the author has been asserted.

  A Random House Australia book

  Published by Random House Australia Pty Ltd

  Level 3, 100 Pacific Highway, North Sydney NSW, 2060

  www.randomhouse.com.au

  Addresses for companies within the Random House Group can be found at www.randomhouse.com.au/offices

  First published by Random House Australia in 2012

  National Library of Australia

  Cataloguing-in-Publication Entry

  Author: Daly, Stuart

  Title: The devil’s fire [electronic resource] / Stuart Daly

  ISBN: 978 1 74275 481 9 [ebook]

  Series: Daly, Stuart. Witch hunter chronicles; 3.

  Target Audience: For secondary school age.

  Subjects: Witch hunting – Juvenile fiction

  Dewey Number: A823.4

  Cover illustration and design by Sammy Yuen

  Maps by Stuart Daly and Anna Warren

  Internal design by Midland Typesetters

  Ebook Production by Midland Typesetters Australia

  There’s so much more at

  randomhouse.com.au