In this first of three volumes, wolves driven out of remote regions of Europe set out for the mountains of Czechoslovakia, the mythical heartland of wolfkind, summoned by the fallen gods. They seek to re-establish the position they held long ago, before Man set out to hunt them to extinction.

The Norse myths are second only to the Greek myths in their greatness and power, and and these stories of giants striding across the Nordic landscape, of stallions pulling the sun's chariot, of the trickster Loki's shapeshifting, of the slaying of monsters and the passions, squabbles and betrayals of gods and goddesses, are magnificent to read.

Legends told of how the evil God Torak had coveted the power of the Orb of Aldur, until defeated in a final battle. But prophecy spoke of a time when he would awake and again seek dominance over all the world. Now the Orb had been stolen by a priest of Torak, and that time was at hand. The master Sorcerer Belgarath and his daughter Polgara the arch-sorceress were on the trail of the Orb, seeking to regain it before the final disaster. And with them went Garion, a simple farm boy only months...

A Quest for Simbilis. Cugel the Clever, his mind bent on revenge against Iouconnou, throws in with Mumber Sull, a deposed ruler seeking the legendary wizard Simbilis for help against the minions of Slaye. Cugel and Mumber go up against cannibals, a crooked bridge keeper, and have a short stint as exorcists.