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Table of Contents:

• 1 - Introduction (Merlin) - essay by John Helfers
• 3 - Old Merlin Dancing on the Sands of Time - poem by Jane Yolen
• 5 - Cauldron of Light - short story by Diana L. Paxson
• 21 - Forest of Stone - [Newford] - short story by Charles de Lint
• 38 - One Morning at the Stone - short story by Tim Waggoner
• 50 - Repro Man - short story by Esther M. Friesner and Anne Elizabeth Stutzman
• 70 - Root and Branch Shall Change - short story by Andre Norton
• 80 - Touched by Moonlight and Sunshine - short story by Kathleen M. Massie-Ferch
• 96 - The Final Battle - short story by John Helfers
• 105 - The Magic Roundabout - short story by Pauline E. Dungate
• 115 - Other Agendas - short story by Lyn McConchie
• 127 - The Wild Hunt - novelette by Lisanne Norman
• 150 - Mouse and the Magic Guy - short story by Brian M. Thomsen
• 166 - Merlin and Viviane - short story by Alan Rodgers
• 179 - Waiting for Tomorrow - short story by Marc Bilgrey
• 192 - Central Park - short story by Bradley H. Sinor
• 205 - Last Flight Over the Giant's Dance - short story by Jean Rabe
• 221 - The Well-Made Knight - short story by Brooks Peck
• 238 - The Ballad of the Side Street Wizard - novelette by Gary A. Braunbeck
• 259 - The End of Summer - novelette by Russell Davis
• 283 - Return of the King - novelette by Michelle West

Andre Norton brings to new life the legendary King Arthur and the wizard Merlin in the light of modern knowledge of a lost period of history and today's understanding of science and interplanetary communication. Yet, as in all Norton's wonder novels, this is a fabulous adventure in fantasy.

Here is Merlin, half star-born, gifted with the advice of an alien intelligence, given the task of renewing civilization and starting humanity again up the ladder to the stars. Here is Arthur, unaware of his stellar heritage, and here, too, is the Lady of the Lake, akin to Merlin in that she is also a listener to the music of the spheres and obedient to a celestial command post.

Here is Merlin as he has never been seen before. Spawn of Lucifer, begotten by a virgin, not wholly man or devil. From within the prison of a crystal cave, Merlin gazes back on his wild and wicked life and relives the bawdy intimacies of Camelot. His own conception, attended by his demonic uncles Astarot and Beelzebub. His part in the illicit coupling of Igrayne and Uther Pendragon. And his artifices in procuring for Arthur his half-sister Morgan Le Fay. But this is also the story of Merlin's struggle to escape his destiny (the Antichrist striking back at Heaven)---and to foil the works of the Prince of Darkness.

Prolific storyteller Yolen brings together ten of her own stories about Merlin, "Archmage" of Camelot. As befits a "shape-shifter," each story presents a different figure of Merlin, none being definitive. Yolen's "revisionist mythology" includes idiosyncratic versions of Merlin's birth and of the episode of the sword in the stone, as well as an original vision of a community of nuns on a fenland island who forge steel blades for Arthur's knights. In "Epitaph," an archaeological team and the Prince of Wales proclaim the finding of Merlin's body to a roomful of skeptical newspersons. Yolen's limpid prose gains an aura of otherness by her skillful use of archaisms. Arthurian and fantasy collections will welcome Merlin's Booke.

When the Merlin of Blest dies, everyone thinks it's a natural death. But Roddy and Grundo, two children traveling with the Royal Court, soon discover the truth. The Merlin's replacement and other courtiers are scheming to steal the magic of Blest for their own purposes.

Roddy enlists the help of Nick, a boy from another world, and the three turn to their own impressive powers. The dangers are great, and if Roddy, Grundo, and Nick cannot stop the conspirators, the results will be more dreadful than they could possibly imagine.

A TIMELESS EPIC, A NEW CLASSIC FOR ALL AGES -- MERLIN

"Once upon a time...no, no, that's not the way to start. You'll think this is a fairy tale. And it isn't".

In the terrible years of tyrants and invaders, England's surviving pagans cry out for help to their deity -- and Mab, Queen of the Faery realms, creates for them a champion.

Merlin. Half human, half Magic; raised in the love of his foster mother, Ambrosia, trained in sorcery by the gnome Frick, destined by Mab to lead England back to the Old Ways. But Mab, once beloved, has grown selfish and cruel, so Merlin turns against her.

And their war of magic will change the world.

A TIMELESS EPIC, A NEW CLASSIC FOR ALL AGES -- MERLIN

Mab is the powerful Queen of Magic, but her cruel evil has turned the wizard Merlin into her implacable enemy. And Mab's sister, the Lady of the Lake, comes to Merlin's aid, giving him Excalibur. The singing Sword of the Just, held in the stone grip of a sleeping giant, released only to the hand of the man Mab most fears . . .

A good and true Christian King, Merlin's student . . . King Arthur Pendragon.

But Mab has her own disciple -- or pawn. For, in a monstrous act of sorcery and sin, Arthur's half-sister, Morgan Le Fay, gives Mab the weapon she needs to ravage Arthur's kingdom and Merlin's dreams of peace . . .

A child. Mordred.

And the Magic that raised a kingdom may be the Magic that destroys it.

The war between Merlin and the pagan Mab, Queen of Magic, hurtles toward the final conflict.

At last, a good King sits on England's throne. But Arthur leaves Camelot on a quest of shadows, while his nemesis, Mab's disciple Mordred, grows into a monster cruel enough to laugh at his own mother's murder.

As Mab's growing evil drives away even her loyal servant, the gnome Frick, Merlin, too, is alone -- his true love, Nimue, lost to him forever. Arthur is betrayed, facing Mordred at the heart of an apocalyptic civil war.

For when Arthur battles Mordred, when Merlin battles Mab, all hope will turn to ashes, all dreams will pass into legend.

And not even Magic can survive.

When Sora's swallowship is taken out by a swarm during the war she is rescued by Merlin, a legendary man who has allegedly discovered a super-weapon built by the Way creators; a gun so powerful it I said to have stopped the previous war. Sora is sceptical, though, for Merlin has been missing for ten thousand years, yet he has not aged a day. As the current war between aliens and humans intensifies, the need to find this weapon becomes unquestionably urgent. They must find the gun before the enemy does and incinerates them. Can their quest to save humanity and end the war be achieved with Merlin's gun?

This novella originally appeared in Asimov's Science Fiction, May 2000. It can also be found in the anthology The Mammoth Book of Extreme Science Fiction (2006), edited by Mike Ashley. The story is included in the collection Zima Blue and Other Stories (2006).

This is a brand new stand-alone deep space adventure from Alastair Reynolds, featuring the author's long-running character Merlin, who has previously appeared in "Merlin's Gun" (2000), "Hideaway" (2000), and "Minla's Flowers" (2007).

When Merlin encounters the derelict hulk of an old swallowship drifting in the middle of nowhere, he can't resist investigating. He soon finds himself involved in a situation that proves far more complex than he ever anticipated.

Caught between her beloved father, the Merlin of Britain, and Arthur Pendragon, the old ways and the new, Wren must find a way to balance the forces of Chaos with peace. She nurtures the land and the people, creating a haven for anyone displaced by the turbulence. And for the safety of all she must guard her heart against the deep love she shares with Arthur, a married king who holds the future of all the Britains in his hands and his sword.

The quest for peace and protection in Britain has passed down from the Merlin and Arthur the Pendragon to the sole survivor, Resmiranda Griffin. Raised in the Christian tradition, she refuses to acknowledge her magical talents or the existence of helpful fairies, until dark forces force her into the complex politics, both mundane and magical, that divides England from their lawful king, John Plantagenet.

Inspired by a demon, her distant cousin Radburn Blakely whispers divisive advice into John's ear. Only Resmiranda can counter this darkness and lead England to what will create peace between a fearful king and his power-mad barons: The Magna Carta.

The glory of the Elizabethan Age is tarnished by the continuing religious conflict begun by Henry VIII. Griffin Kirkwood renounces his title, his lands, his love for the mysterious demon-ridden Roanna, and his magical heritage as a descendant of both King Arthur and the Merlin to become a Catholic priest in France. His twin, Donovan (his mirror image in face and form and rarely more than a thought away) shoulders the responsibilities willingly. He agrees to two arranged-marriages, one after the other, and takes on the outward appearance of whichever religion is dominant to protect all that he loves, but without magic, or the love of his life.

Together and separately the twins must fight to guide Queen Elizabeth through the intricate maze of politics and religion. Their spiritual and magical journeys cross each other, oppose, and re-align as they battle internal demons and external threats.

Deirdre Kirkwood, the bastard child of Griffin, a Catholic priest, and demon-infested Roanna Douglas, has been raised with her cousins Betsy and Hal, the children of Griffin's twin, Donovan. Each of them has inherited a powerful magical talent and a wolfhound familiar. Any of them could become the next Merlin of Britain.

Deirdre's quest to know something, anything, about her father leads to a confrontation with El Lobison the Master of all Werewolves. No one is safe from him, as the cousins learn to their terror

In and out of royal courts, the three cousins build a network of spies who are the only ones who can counter the weather, the werewolves, and the Spanish as England faces the relentless Spanish Armada.

1763: all of Europe is at war with each other and the Turks are storming toward Vienna. The magical protection of Britain requires that Georgina Kirkwood, a potential Merlin, leave the secret Pendragon Society and disguise herself as man to fight for England.

Wounded and no longer able to carry a sword, Georgina is recruited by the King as a spy in the American Colonies. Transplanted to a land and people vibrant with life and ideas, she begins to question her loyalties. Only her love for Major Roderick Wythe gives her the love and partnership she needs to work with Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Sam Adams and many other notable leaders to discover what being the Merlin truly means and to determine who she is protecting from whom.

Omnibus version of King of the World's Edge and The Ship from Atlantis.

This is the story of ancient Roman soldiers; one in particular named Ventidius Varro, also called Haro by the native people. A ruler he wants to be and in the new world at the edge of the world he becomes one. A warrior is he, and this is a tale of his battles and conquests, along with his self-discovery.

They were a lonely, half-starved band of adventurers who had been cast out of their homeland by hordes of invading marauders -- and they came to an unknown world as strange, as fantastic, as wonder-packed as the legendary Atlantis. Here they encountered the dread fish-monsters of Piasa, and were captured by the savage legions of Miapan's barbaric empire. But they escaped -- and vowed to build a new civilization in the wilderness that would crush the tyrants of Miapan forever!

Fighting their way across an uncharted continent peopled by strange civilizations and fierce beast-monsters, the sorcerer Myrdhinn and his small band of followers had only their swords and the discipline of their military training to sustain them -- for Myrdhinn, master of Druid magic, had foresworn the black arts when he had become a Christian convert.

Yet at last, upon a barbarous pagan altar in the heart of Miapan, Myrdhinn faced an evil so great that he knew he must throw all the powers at his command against it. And when Myrdhinn called up the forces of the earth and elements against his foes, this entire new world was shaken to its foundations!

This story follows the further adventures of Gwalchmai, who sets out for Rome but becomes lost in the Sargasso Sea and encounters a survivor from Atlantis.

Merlin's Ring tells the story of Gwalchmai, godson to Merlin, and of Corenice, an immortal woman of Atlantis, and of a love that spanned centuries of high adventure.

Gwalchmai is an active participant in much of Earth's development, living in worlds both magical and real. Throughout he carries the ring of Merlin, which gives him certain arcane powers. Throughout runs the thread of the very moving love story of Corenice and Gwalchmai-Iovers separated poignantly time and again by the adventures that take Gwalchmai from Atlantis to the Norseland, from the elf-world to pre-history, from Arthur's Court to the Far East, from Cathay to Irish mythology, from medeival Rome to the burning of the Maid of Orleans. Seldom has such a huge canvas so successfully combined major historic events with the worlds of magic and wonder.

While King Arthur campaigns to conquer all of Europe, his unhappy bastard son, Mordred, foresees the king's downfall and plots with Queen Guinevere to overthrow Arthur, sparking a civil war and the return of the exiled Merlin.

This short story originally appeared in Pulphouse: The Hardback Magazine Issue 7: Spring 1990. The story can also be found in Spiritwalk (1992), Waifs and Strays (2002) and The Very Best of Charles de Lint (2010).

He was born to greatness, the son of a druid bard and a princess of lost Atlantis. A trained warrior, blessed with the gifts of prophecy and song, he grew to manhood in a land ravaged by the brutal greed of petty chieftains and barbarian invaders.

Merlin: Respected, feared and hated by many, he was to have a higher destiny. for It was he who prepared the way for the momentous event that would unite the Island of the Mighty—the coming of Arthur Pendragon, Lord of the Kingdom of Summer.

King Henry is dead; Richard the Lionheart now rules England. The new king does not believe in magic, and is interested only in a crusade to recapture Jerusalem.

But his crusade soon stalls, and while he is away, his brother, John, and his supposed ally, Philip of France, are conspiring to steal his kingdom. Richard's mother, Queen Eleanor, sends Sir Durwin, Enchanter General of England, out to Palestine, where he must convince the skeptical king that a loyal magician can be a valuable aide.

Meanwhile, King Philip has turned all of Europe into a trap for Richard. The moment the Lionheart sets foot there, he will be arrested and imprisoned for life. It is up to Durwin, aided by his old friend William Legier, to see Richard safely home again and to save the kingdom from falling into the hands of the sadistic and treacherous Prince John...

Centuries before he meets Arthur, Merlin wanders the earth, eternally young, a traveler on the path of magic and learning. During his journeys he encounters Jason and joins his search for the Golden Fleece. It is a decision that will cost him dear...

Hundreds of years later, Merlin hears of a screaming ship in a northern lake and divines that it is the Argo...that Jason still screams out for his sons, stolen by the enchantress Medea and thought dead. But death is not the end, and Merlin's trek to the north leads to the revival of both man and ship, and a new quest, with new companions-to find Jason's sons.

Roving from the frozen north to the blighted island that will become Arthur's realm, from the deep forests of ancient Britain to the sun-washed shores of ancient Greece, Merlin's journey is an epic tale of mystery and enchantment. Celtika begins a retelling of the Arthurian legend unlike any other.

"The first is a man who needs you and will use you. He will weaken you dangerously. The second is a man you betrayed, though you believe otherwise. He wishes to kill you and can do so easily. The third is a ship that is more than a ship. She grieves and broods. She will carry you to your grave."

These three warnings greet Merlin on his return to Alba, the future England, to the deserted fortress of Taurovinda---the Hill of the White Bull. He is not the only one making the journey: Urtha, High King of the Cornovidi, is coming home to reclaim his stronghold, and Jason is sailing in on the Argo to seek his younger son, hiding somewhere in the kingdom.

But Urtha's fortress has been taken by warriors from Ghostland; they claim it as their own. There will be war against the Otherworld.

In this sequel to Celtika, Robert Holdstock weaves myth and history into a fabulous tale of honor, death, and magic. At its center, moving along his never-ending path, is Merlin himself, an enchanter in the prime of his life, reckless, curious, powerful, yet a stranger to his own past---a past that is catching up with him.

Argo, the ancient ship, has returned and hides beneath Urtha's fortress in Alba. Jason and the Argonauts are aboard her, enchanted into sleep. Niiv is still Merlin's lover, still seeking magic and mysteries, still a delight and torment to him.

Something is wrong in Alba. An unknown force is affecting the land. The omens are frightening. The feckless Sons of Llew arrive, having stolen their uncle's chariot and horses once again. They bring news of hostels, gateways between the worlds of the living and the dead. An enormous gathering of the Shades, of the dead and the unborn, are being drawn to them.

Meanwhile, Kymon and Munda, Urtha's son and daughter, are coming of age. Kymon is angry, boastful, ready to fight the Shades of Heroes, and violently annoyed by his father's diplomacy. Munda, on the other hand, is possessed of the Sight and welcomes the new, strange force in the land. She breaks taboo to visit one of the hostels. She comes back speaking of the Killer of Kings, the son of Jason.

And as Merlin walks in and out of time, clinging to his magic and the remains of his youth, the forces set in motion will determine the fate of kings and kingdoms alike.

In the depths of Broceliande - an ancient French woodland - Merlin and the enchantress Vivien play out their deadly feud. Meanwhile, a child is born deaf, dumb and blind. His senses return at the expense of his mother's, who must discover the wood's mystery and set the combatants free.

The 1994 edition contains:

• Merlin's Wood - short novel
• Earth and Stone - short story
• The Silvering - short story

The 2009 edition contains, in addition:

• The Bone Forest - novella
• Scarrowfell - short story
• Thorn - short story

and omits The Silvering

This is the legendary story of Merlin--from his abandonment by his parents at the age of eight to the discovery of his powers at twelve. Together, these three novels reimagine the origins of the greatest wizard of all time, giving readers a Merlin at once more human and more magical than any that has appeared before.

A boy is abandoned in the woods of medieval England. A year passes--a year of terror and hunger, of sleeping in trees and foraging for food, of outrunning packs of wild dogs--until one day a falconer captures and tames the boy as he would any passager, a young bird caught in the wild and trained. The falconer adopts the boy and teaches him all of the things he's forgotten, including the boy's true name--and the legacy of magic that will be his when he comes of age.

When young Merlin falls into the company of traveling performers, they rename him Hobby, after a small falcon. Nightmarish trouble lies ahead on the path that will lead him to greatness.

In flight from the magic visions that plague him, Merlin falls into the hands of the wodewose--wild folk who, according to legend, live in the company of wolves and devour children. But far from being wild, the wodewose are an enormous family of the unwanted, the abandoned, and the homeless. For once Merlin has found a place where an orphan like himself belongs. The triumphant conclusion to the Young Merlin Trilogy.