The days of peace are over. Empire in Black and Gold is the first instalment in the critically-acclaimed epic fantasy series Shadows of the Apt by Adrian Tchaikovsky.It is a world populated by kinden – species of human that have taken on the characteristics of animals, from spiders and ants to scorpions . . . ‘Brimming with imagination’ – SciFiNowIn the Lowlands, the city states have lived in peace for decades – hailed as bastions of civilization.Yet that peace is about to end. A distant empire has been conquering neighbours with highly trained soldiers and sophisticated combat techniques. And the city states are its desirable new prize. As the empire's armies march ever closer, only the ageing Stenwold Maker – spymaster, artificer and statesman – foresees the threat. And so it falls upon his shoulders to open the eyes of the cities’ leaders.He sees that war will sweep through their lands, destroying everything in its path. But to warn his people, he must stay alive. Empire in Black and Gold is followed by the second book in the Shadows of the Apt series, Dragonfly Falling. Readers love Empire in Black and Gold:‘An amazing start to a finished series’‘Some of the most unique worldbuilding I've read in fantasy’‘Epic in every sense of the word’