The Ghost Rider

ALSO AVAILABLE FROM CANONGATE The Siege

The following pages contain an extract from The Siege, one of Ismail Kadare’s masterpieces, an unforgettable account of the clash of two civilisations and a timeless depiction of individual pain, uncertainty and fear that resonates today.

It is the early fifteenth century and as winter falls away, the people of Albania know that their fate is sealed. They have refused to negotiate with the Ottoman Empire, and war is now inevitable.

The Siege tells the enthralling story of the weeks and months that follow — of the exhilaration and despair of the battlefield, the constantly shifting strategies of war, and those whose lives are held in the balance. For those trapped inside the citadel, and for the Pasha, technicians, artillerymen, astrologer, blind poet and his harem of women outside, the siege is inescapable and increasingly oppressive. From this dramatic setting Kadare has created a profound novel that is as moving as it is compelling.

“A brilliant historical novel by one of the world’s greatest living writers.”

Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of Young Stalin

“Brilliant … A candidly prophetic novel of our age.”

Irish Times

“Great books, books that last, are shape-shifting books. The Siege is about what it is about — a siege in the fifteenth century. It is also a universal evocation of human violence.”

Sunday Times

£7.99

ISBN 978 1 84767 122 6