Set a generation after THE TALISMANS OF SHANNARA, ILSE WITCH begins a new, five-book SHANNARA series. When the mutilated body of an elf is found floating in the sea, an old mystery resurfaces. Thirty years ago, an elven prince led an expedition in search of a legendary magic said to be more ancient, more powerful, than any in the world. None of the expedition's members ever returned... But the rescued elf carries a map which only one man has the skill to decipher: Walker Boh, last of the Druids. And one other understands the map's significance - the Ilse Witch, a beautiful but twisted young woman who wields a magic as potent as that of Walker. To stop her gaining the magic to which the map leads, Walker must find it first. On the airship JERLE SHANNARA, a group of companions sets off into the face of unknown terrors, while the Ilse Witch and her dark allies follow, waiting to strike...