Here, There Be Dragons
Here, There Be Dragons is a fantasy novel by James A. Owen. It is the first book in "The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica" series. A sequel, followed by several more books, have since been released, including "The Search for the Red Dragon" (January 2008), "The Indigo King" (October 2008), "The Shadow Dragons" (October 2009), "The Dragon's Apprentice" (October 2010), "The Dragons of Winter" (August 2012), "The First Dragon" (November 2013), and a standalone sequel "The Dragon Knight (Owen Novel)" (November 2020). Plot synopsis. John, Charles, and Jack are three Oxford scholars united by the  death of Stellan Sigurdsson, John's mentor, who thereafter receive "The Imaginarium Geographica", which records mythical and fictional locations. When pursued by the anthropophagous, plural Wendigo, they are rescued by Bert, with whom they travel aboard the ship "Indigo Dragon" (captained by Bert's daughter Aven), to Avalon, and then to Paralon, the capital of the "Geographica"'s 'Archipelago of Dreams', where they discover this Archipelago in an interregnum and discover that its social order can be restored by a descendant of Arthur Pendragon. Desirous of obtaining the royal 'Ring of Power', and thus the kingship, is the 'Winter King ' (Mordred). Upon a visit to shipbuilder 'Ordo Maas' (Deucalion), the protagonists learn that the Winter King is using Pandora's Box to create the wraithlike 'Shadow-Born', his principal servants, from the citizens of lands conquered by himself. Fearing that the Winter King may gain an advantage by possession of the "Imaginarium Geographica", they visit its author, the Cartographer of Lost Places, in his refuge, the Keep of Time, where they discover that their servant 'Artus' is a descendant of Arthur. Knowing this, they challenge the Winter King to pitched battle, wherein the still-loyal Elves, Dwarves, and Centaurs etc . oppose Shadow-Born, Trolls, and Goblins while Charles and the badger 'Tummeler' close Pandora's Box in secret. On the battlefield, Jack accidentally causes the death of Captain Nemo, while John and Artus approach the 'Ring of Power' (a ring of standing stones resembling Stonehenge) to summon the Archipelago's dragons, who rout the enemy. Mordred is cast from the Edge of the World by the dragon Samaranth. Upon return to their own world, John, Jack, Charles, and Bert are identified as J.R.R Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Charles Williams, and H.G. Wells. Characters. A number of people referenced in the novel  were members of the Inklings, a literary discussion group at the University of Oxford, England, that produced some famous novelists.