The War of the Flowers
Encyclopedia
The War of the Flowers is a fantasy novel by Tad Williams
about a rocker
who is drawn into a magical world while reading a book.
. He watches his mother wither away and die from the cancer and slips further into depression. After his mother's death, he discovers a book written by his great-uncle, Eamonn Albert Dowd, among his inheritance. Theo assumes the book is a work of fiction as it describes a character who travels the world and eventually discovers an ancient passage into another world full of fairies
and other mythical creatures. He quickly discovers the true nature of his uncle's book as he is rescued from the clutches of an ancient disease-spirit known as an irrha by a small fairy named Applecore.
, Violet
, Lily, Daffodil, Hollyhock
and Primrose
, but the Violets are now extinct, having been wiped out by an alliance of the other six great houses in the last War of the Flowers. Other prominent families include Daisy
and Foxglove. The families are divided into three factions, those who believe that the fairies should coexist with humans, called Creepers, those who believe that humans should be eradicated, called Chokeweeds, and those who are uncertain what to do, called Coextensives. Passage between the worlds is restricted by the Clover
Effect. Each person, human or fairy, has one exemption from the effect; in other words they can only travel once to the other world and then back to their own.
Applecore brings Theo to Count Tansy
, a Daisy relative, the fairy who had arranged for Theo's rescue, where he learns that he is to be sent to one of the Flower families in the City but quickly discovers that his escort has been murdered. Tansy sends Theo with an incompetent cousin of his instead. When this cousin is murdered in the train station, Applecore takes it on herself to get Theo to the City safely. She goes against Tansy's orders and rather than escorting Theo to the Foxgloves, she takes him to the Daffodils. Theo learns that political tension is high among the families and discovers that he himself is not actually human but also a fairy, a changeling
left on Earth, though none of his new friends and acquaintances know who his real parents were. In a meeting of the families, the Chokeweeds declare war on the Creepers and make a preemptive strike, attacking and killing the leaders of the Creeper Flower houses (Hollyhock, Daffodil and Lily) with a dragon. Fortunately, Theo did not go to the Foxgloves, as they have joined the Chokeweed faction. Count Tansy is a traitor.
, but believes Applecore to have died in the attack. They make their way to a refugee camp where they meet a highly educated goblin named Mud Bug Button who is attempting to start a revolution with the unhappy common fairy populace against the unfair rule of the Flower families. At the camp, Theo meets Caradenus Primrose, now head of Primrose House after his father's death in the attack, and learns of the wrongs that his "great-uncle" Dowd (actually the great-uncle of the child Theo was switched with) inflicted on Caradenus' sister Erephine during Dowd's visit to their world. He also again meets with Poppaea "Poppy
" Thornapple, the daughter of a Chokeweed but also one who is responsible for previously saving his life, and is no longer able to deny his feelings for her. Theo and Cumber agree to help Button with a task but refuse to outright join his revolution. While completing the task, Theo learns that Applecore is alive and is being held prisoner by Lord Nidrus Hellebore, the leader of the Chokeweeds and the mastermind of the attack on the Creepers. Theo realized that he has no choice but to try to rescue Applecore, or die in the attempt. On Button's advice, he decides to go ask the Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles, an ancient and powerful but highly selfish fairy, for help. Unbeknownst to Theo, the Remover has been employed by the Creepers to help capture Theo and is responsible for the summoning the irrha, which is now pursuing him.
Theo is transported to Hellebore house, where he is reunited with Applecore. He is then transported to Midnight, the heart of the Fairy world, while Button's revolution bears down in full force outside, accomplished by destroying the artifact bearing the physical contract made between fairies and goblins. Theo learns that the Terrible Child is to be used to unleash the horror of Old Night on the mortal realm, ruining it and giving Lord Hellebore untold power. Theo is to be used as the key to open the portal to accomplish this, using the special authority he inherited as the lord of Violet House. Per an old agreement, the key to Old Night can only be used by Violet and Hellebore together. Theo attempts to resist the Terrible Child draining him of his power but fails. In the midst of his failure the irrha appears again, only interested in destroying Theo. Theo sacrifices himself to the water nymphs, causing the irrha to attack the Terrible Child—now the closest living thing resembling Theo's essence. The Terrible Child is destroyed and Hellebore is killed in the resulting calamity, saving the mortal realm and ending the war.
Tad Williams
Robert Paul "Tad" Williams, born in San Jose, California, is the author of several fantasy and science fiction novels, including Tailchaser's Song, the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series, the Otherland series, and The War of the Flowers....
about a rocker
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
who is drawn into a magical world while reading a book.
Plot introduction
Theo Vilmos is a thirty-year-old lead singer in a marginally successful rock band. Hitting an all-time low, he seeks refuge in an isolated cabin in the woods and reads an odd memoir written by a dead relative who believed he had visited the magical world of Faerie. Before Theo can disregard the account as nonsense, he too is drawn into a place beyond his wildest dreams.Part One: Goodnight Nobody
Theo Vilmos is a thirty-year old musician who plays in a band consisting mostly of much younger players, who fears that he may have wasted his youth with nothing to show for it. The incredible charisma he once possessed has faded. After Theo's girlfriend Catherine ("Cat") has a miscarriage and dumps him while recovering in the hospital, his life goes from bad to worse and he learns that his mother is dying of pancreatic cancerPancreatic cancer
Pancreatic cancer refers to a malignant neoplasm of the pancreas. The most common type of pancreatic cancer, accounting for 95% of these tumors is adenocarcinoma, which arises within the exocrine component of the pancreas. A minority arises from the islet cells and is classified as a...
. He watches his mother wither away and die from the cancer and slips further into depression. After his mother's death, he discovers a book written by his great-uncle, Eamonn Albert Dowd, among his inheritance. Theo assumes the book is a work of fiction as it describes a character who travels the world and eventually discovers an ancient passage into another world full of fairies
Fairy
A fairy is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, a form of spirit, often described as metaphysical, supernatural or preternatural.Fairies resemble various beings of other mythologies, though even folklore that uses the term...
and other mythical creatures. He quickly discovers the true nature of his uncle's book as he is rescued from the clutches of an ancient disease-spirit known as an irrha by a small fairy named Applecore.
Part Two: Last Exit to Fairyland
Theo finds himself in the magical world described in his uncle's book. He quickly discovers the world to be unfamiliar and dangerous. Fairies come in a range of humanoid and nonhumanoid forms. The more powerful fairies (who look like extremely beautiful humans with elvish features and, unlike fairy commoners, lack wings) are known as Flowers and are divided into several influential families, each named after a different type of flower. Seven great family houses rule over the rest of the houses: Thornapple, HelleboreHellebore
Commonly known as hellebores, members of the genus Helleborus comprise approximately 20 species of herbaceous perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, within which it gave its name to the tribe of Helleboreae...
, Violet
Violet (plant)
Viola is a genus of flowering plants in the violet family Violaceae, with around 400–500 species distributed around the world. Most species are found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere; however, viola species are also found in widely divergent areas such as Hawaii, Australasia, and the Andes in...
, Lily, Daffodil, Hollyhock
Hollyhock
Alcea , commonly known as hollyhocks, is a genus of about 60 species of flowering plants in the mallow family Malvaceae. Most species are native to southwest and central Asia, although a few are native to southeast Europe or Egypt...
and Primrose
Primula vulgaris
Primula vulgaris is a species of Primula native to western and southern Europe , northwest Africa , and southwest Asia...
, but the Violets are now extinct, having been wiped out by an alliance of the other six great houses in the last War of the Flowers. Other prominent families include Daisy
Bellis perennis
Bellis perennis is a common European species of Daisy, often considered the archetypal species of that name. Many related plants also share the name "Daisy", so to distinguish this species from other daisies it is sometimes qualified as Common Daisy, Lawn Daisy or occasionally English daisy. It is...
and Foxglove. The families are divided into three factions, those who believe that the fairies should coexist with humans, called Creepers, those who believe that humans should be eradicated, called Chokeweeds, and those who are uncertain what to do, called Coextensives. Passage between the worlds is restricted by the Clover
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
Effect. Each person, human or fairy, has one exemption from the effect; in other words they can only travel once to the other world and then back to their own.
Applecore brings Theo to Count Tansy
Tansy
Tansy is a perennial, herbaceous flowering plant of the aster family, native to temperate Europe and Asia. It has been introduced to other parts of the world and in some areas has become invasive...
, a Daisy relative, the fairy who had arranged for Theo's rescue, where he learns that he is to be sent to one of the Flower families in the City but quickly discovers that his escort has been murdered. Tansy sends Theo with an incompetent cousin of his instead. When this cousin is murdered in the train station, Applecore takes it on herself to get Theo to the City safely. She goes against Tansy's orders and rather than escorting Theo to the Foxgloves, she takes him to the Daffodils. Theo learns that political tension is high among the families and discovers that he himself is not actually human but also a fairy, a changeling
Changeling
A changeling is a creature found in Western European folklore and folk religion. It is typically described as being the offspring of a fairy, troll, elf or other legendary creature that has been secretly left in the place of a human child. Sometimes the term is also used to refer to the child who...
left on Earth, though none of his new friends and acquaintances know who his real parents were. In a meeting of the families, the Chokeweeds declare war on the Creepers and make a preemptive strike, attacking and killing the leaders of the Creeper Flower houses (Hollyhock, Daffodil and Lily) with a dragon. Fortunately, Theo did not go to the Foxgloves, as they have joined the Chokeweed faction. Count Tansy is a traitor.
Part Three: Flower War
Theo escapes both the burning wreckage from the dragon attack and the irrha, which is still pursuing him, with a fairy servant from Daffodil House, Cumber SedgeSedge
- Plants :* Acorus calamus, sweet flag, a plant in the Acoraceae family* Any of the plants in the family Cyperaceae- Animals :* A collective noun for several species of birds, including bitterns, cranes and herons* Sedge-fly, caddisfly- Other uses :...
, but believes Applecore to have died in the attack. They make their way to a refugee camp where they meet a highly educated goblin named Mud Bug Button who is attempting to start a revolution with the unhappy common fairy populace against the unfair rule of the Flower families. At the camp, Theo meets Caradenus Primrose, now head of Primrose House after his father's death in the attack, and learns of the wrongs that his "great-uncle" Dowd (actually the great-uncle of the child Theo was switched with) inflicted on Caradenus' sister Erephine during Dowd's visit to their world. He also again meets with Poppaea "Poppy
Poppy
A poppy is one of a group of a flowering plants in the poppy family, many of which are grown in gardens for their colorful flowers. Poppies are sometimes used for symbolic reasons, such as in remembrance of soldiers who have died during wartime....
" Thornapple, the daughter of a Chokeweed but also one who is responsible for previously saving his life, and is no longer able to deny his feelings for her. Theo and Cumber agree to help Button with a task but refuse to outright join his revolution. While completing the task, Theo learns that Applecore is alive and is being held prisoner by Lord Nidrus Hellebore, the leader of the Chokeweeds and the mastermind of the attack on the Creepers. Theo realized that he has no choice but to try to rescue Applecore, or die in the attempt. On Button's advice, he decides to go ask the Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles, an ancient and powerful but highly selfish fairy, for help. Unbeknownst to Theo, the Remover has been employed by the Creepers to help capture Theo and is responsible for the summoning the irrha, which is now pursuing him.
Part Four: The Lost Child
Theo and Cumber travel to the Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles but are quickly captured and restrained by him. The Remover reveals that he is actually Eamonn Dowd, Theo's "great-uncle". Dowd had made a deal with the previous Remover to replace a human baby with a fairy baby in the mortal realm, giving the human baby to the Remover in exchange for the ability to return to the Fairy world. Dowd stole his own niece's child and replaced him with Theo, who is actually Septimus Violet, the sole survivor of the Violet Flower family. The human baby was given to Lord Hellebore and turned into a Terrible Child. Dowd was betrayed resulting in his soul being separated from his body. Dowd fought with the previous Remover, stealing his body and becoming the new Remover of Inconvenient Obstacles. Dowd wants to use Theo for his own ambitions of power but is interrupted by Hellebore's minions. Having infiltrated and bugged the Remover's lair, Hellebore launches a surprise attack, kidnapping Theo while killing the Remover and burning the lair down.Theo is transported to Hellebore house, where he is reunited with Applecore. He is then transported to Midnight, the heart of the Fairy world, while Button's revolution bears down in full force outside, accomplished by destroying the artifact bearing the physical contract made between fairies and goblins. Theo learns that the Terrible Child is to be used to unleash the horror of Old Night on the mortal realm, ruining it and giving Lord Hellebore untold power. Theo is to be used as the key to open the portal to accomplish this, using the special authority he inherited as the lord of Violet House. Per an old agreement, the key to Old Night can only be used by Violet and Hellebore together. Theo attempts to resist the Terrible Child draining him of his power but fails. In the midst of his failure the irrha appears again, only interested in destroying Theo. Theo sacrifices himself to the water nymphs, causing the irrha to attack the Terrible Child—now the closest living thing resembling Theo's essence. The Terrible Child is destroyed and Hellebore is killed in the resulting calamity, saving the mortal realm and ending the war.