Elias Thornblade is a thirty-four-year-old shelf-stocker who still lives with his mother in small-town Wisconsin. His greatest challenges are his judgmental goat Gerald and avoiding his mom's lectures—until he discovers an ancient sword beneath his house inscribed with a family prophecy. When the sword summons a seven-foot-tall iron giant (whom Elias promptly names Greg), he unwittingly awakens a century-old war with shadow creatures called the Hollow. With help from a mysterious historian and a fierce young warrior, this unlikely hero must overcome his lifelong habit of faltering and discover that stubbornness might be the greatest power of all.
