Long descents, big verts, challenging pistes and stunning scenery, Powder is the definitive guide to the best and most feared ski runs on the planet.

Whether you’re a serious off-piste skier or a novice with alpine ambitions, this visually stunning guide will undoubtedly inspire the winter Olympian in all of us. Along with classic runs in Chamonix, Whistler and Jackson Hole, Powder will also take you to offbeat and exotic locations such as the Himalayas, the Atlas Mountains and the 2014 Olympic destination of Sochi in Russia – places notable not only for the fantastic skiing and snowboarding, but also for their extraordinary scenery.

Powder is the ultimate bucket list for any snowsports enthusiast, challenging beginners and experts alike to take on the most breathtaking runs the world has to offer.

Contents include: Mt St Elias, Alaska; Whitehorn 2, Lake Louise, Canada; Inferno, Mürren, Switzerland; Tortin, Verbier, Switzerland; Aiguille Rouge, Les Arcs, France; Klein Matterhorn Descent, Cervinia, Italy; Lyngen Peninsula, Norway; Sochi Olympic Downhill, Rosa Khutor, Russia; Mizuno no Sawa, Niseko, Japan; Everest, Mt Everest, Nepal; The Motatapu Chutes, Treble Cone, New Zealand; Fast One, Mt Buller, Australia; Mt Vinson, Antarctica.

It is 1628, Charles 1 is on the throne, and the British Crown is finally taking control of Ulster.

Returning to his rooms one night, Alexander Seaton is shocked to find a stranger standing there – a man who could be his double. His name is Sean O’Neill, and he carries a plea for help from Maeve O’Neill, forbidding matriarch of Alexander’s mother’s family in Ireland. All those who bear their blood have been placed under a poet’s curse: one by one they are going to die. Only Alexander is immune, his O’Neill heritage a secret from all but his closest family.

Alexander travels to Ulster, to find himself at the heart of a family divided by secrets and bitter resentments. As he seeks out the author of the curse, he becomes increasingly embroiled in the conflict until – confronted with murder within his own family – his liberty and, finally, his life, are at stake.