Before Camelot. Before knights and crowns. There was Merlin-and the forest that chose its heroes.
Ten-year-old Raoul of Valois doesn't feel like a hero. He's small, unsure, and secretly hates hunting. But when a royal hunt leads him and his friends, Walter and William, into the ancient Brittany Forest, they stumble into a realm older than kings where magic whispers through the trees and destiny is waiting.
This is Merlin's forest. Guided by the legendary wizard himself, Raoul, Walter, and William face trials worthy of myth: enchanted animals, trickster korrigans, shape-shifting sirens, and a powerful white hart who rules the forest like a king. When Ankou, a dark force threatens the King of France, Merlin calls upon the boys for a quest no knight could complete alone.
To succeed, they must prove they are worthy-not with swords or strength, but with bravery, loyalty, and heart.
Brimming with ancient magic, daring adventures, and echoes of Arthurian legend, Conqueror and the Hart is a spellbinding middle-grade fantasy where Merlin's wisdom guides the brave, friendship forges heroes, and the smallest choice can change the fate of a kingdom.