<p><b>''A piece of invention as original as any of Tolkien''s or C.S. Lewis''s'' <i>New Statesman</i><br></b><br><i>''I have gone to look for a lion.''</i> In a world where lions have become extinct, the map-maker Jachin-Boaz nevertheless abandons his wife and son to find one, leaving just this note. But his decision has unexpected consequences. He will be pursued by his son, Boaz-Jachin, and by something else: a tawny-skinned, amber-eyed beast from another place and time, a bringer of life and death.<br><br>''Magic at work ... Funny as well as beautiful'' <i>Irish Times</i><br><br>''Hoban is unclassifiable, thank goodness. His narrative is so minutely and compellingly realistic that after a time you cease to notice that he has stood reality on its head'' <i>Sunday Times</i></p>