The Kingdom of Wendar is in turmoil. King Henry still holds the crown, but his reign has long been contested by his sister Sabella, and there are many eager to flock to her banner. Internal conflict weakens Wendar's defences, drawing raiders, human and inhuman, across its borders. Terrifying portents abound and dark spirits walk the land in broad daylight.
Suddenly two innocents are thrust into the midst of the conflict. Alain, a young man granted a vision by the Lady of Battles, and Liath, a young woman with the power to change the course of history. Both must discover the truth about themselves before they can accept their fates. For in a war where sorcery, not swords, may determine the final outcome, the price of failure may be more than their own lives.
Kate Elliott's KING'S DRAGON launched a magnificent new epic fantasy. Now, with PRINCE OF DOGS, one of the most exciting fantasy series of recent years continues . . .
Sanglant - the prince of dogs, King Henry's bastard son - is being held captive in the city of Gent by Bloodheart, The Eika warlord. Liath, now one of the King's Eagles - and still grieving over the loss of Sanglant - is desperately trying to unlock the secrets of her own past. Unless she masters her powers she may prove a grave danger to everyone, herself included. Alain, now proclaimed a Count's heir, is increasingly troubled by visions of the enemy he befriended and the Lady of Battles whom he's sworn to serve. And Fifth Brother, least favoured son of Bloodheart, has returned to the lands of his own people to unite the scattered tribes and build an army to do his father's bidding.
While King Henry continues this progress through his troubled realm, Sanglant, Liath, Alain and Fifth Brother fight their own individual battles. Only time will tell who will prove triumphant as all of them are caught up in the dangers and turmoil of a world at war . . .
KING'S DRAGON and PRINCE OF DOGS began Kate Elliott's enthralling tale of the war-torn kingdoms of Wendar and Varre and the story of Alain's and Liath's quests for truth. Now THE BURNING STONE continues the epic saga.
An uncertain and uneasy peace has fallen on the kingdom of Wendar. It seems that the king's favour has fallen upon Prince Sanglant, his bastard son, and that he is to be the chosen heir. But Sanglant is too troubled by the recent past to seek that crown. He needs Liath, the woman who saved him from his terrible captivity, even though such a liaison must incur the wrath of his father. For her part, Liath knows that her future lies with Sanglant. But she has also learned that her mother, presumed to be dead, is in fact still alive and searching for her, to school Liath in the powerful sorcerous arts. And Alain, their friend and ally, is in mortal danger from the curse of Bloodheart, who is reaching out from the grave...
Cat and her cousin are key players in a drama of dragons and politics. Everyone wants something from them - including the warlord who's conquering all Europa and the Cold Mages who dare defy him. But the Master of the Wild Hunt is most dangerous of all. He will command Cat's loyalty using what she holds most dear.
In a world where science and magic are at war, one girl must save those she loves, or lose everything.
Lost and alone in an unknown country, Alain struggles to survive as he is unwittingly drawn into an ancient conflict between humankind and their old enemy, the Cursed Ones. Separated from her husband and child, Liath must undergo her greatest test in a land of exile. Only here can she hope to discover the truth of her parentage and learn the extent of her remarkable powers.
Mourning the loss of his wife, the bastard prince Sanglant seeks his father,
King Henry, to warn him about the conspiracy of powerful sorcerers who wish to destroy the Aoi, the Lost Ones, once and for all - no matter how much destruction their magic will unleash. But King Henry's gaze is fixed on the throne of Aosta and the imperial crown left vacant for two generations. As a Quman army, sweeping in from the eastern steppes, ravages the Wendish countryside, Henry marches south, ignoring the pleas of his beleaguered subjects. The great cataclysm, foretold in the stars, is approaching. . . .
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The cataclysm long foretold has shaken the world. King Henry's obsession with uniting the warring kingdoms of Wendar and Varre has left his people destitute and vulnerable to attack. As earthly and supernatural forces gather to overthrow all Henry has fought for, Alain and Liath come to realise their twin destinies. Between them they hold the key to secrets which could yet save Henry's realm, but even they may be powerless should the Cursed Ones return.
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'Kate Elliott is writing some of the best fantasy around' - Trudi Canavan
WILL WAR SET THEM FREE?
Trouble, treachery and magic seem to follow Cat Barahal wherever she goes. The Master of the Wild Hunt has stolen away her husband. The ruler of the Taino kingdom blames her for his mother's murder. An enraged fire mage wants to kill her. And Cat, her cousin Bee and her half-brother Rory aren't even back in Europa yet, where revolution is burning up the streets.
Rebellions to plot. Enemies to crush. Handsome men to rescue. Cat and Bee have their work cut out for them.
SOME CHOICES CAN NEVER BE UNDONE.
The Hundred, once ruled by a tainted religion and demon court, is now a place of peace and prosperity. The Black Wolves, once the king's most trusted guard, are disbanded and shamed with treason. Their captain, Kellas, finds himself standing at a crossroads where he must decide whom to serve and whom to betray. Faithful to the king's memory but shut out from his legacy, Lady Dannarah fights for the rank she was denied, while three young outcasts leave their homes to find their own destiny.
As broken alliances are guardedly rekindled and old friendships put to the test, the Hundred's past is called into question - and its very future is put at stake.
The world of Liath and Alain is breaking apart as King Henry's kingdom is savaged by earthly and supernatural forces, which they alone have the power to understand.
The Eika warriors thirst for the King's land and power, their enmity sealed by generations of blood. Bitter in-fighting within King Henry's court and the ceaseless attrition of raiders also weaken his reign.
Those who remain true must stay strong as the shadow of the Cursed Ones falls, and the spell holding the exiled from the planet fails. Liath must force her wild sorcery to maturity and Sanglant, her husband and King Henry's heir, must struggle to hold the realm together.
The twin destinies of Liath and Alain may yet avert the destruction written in the stars.
King Henry's kingdom has been ravaged by internecine warfare, in a conflict that has been both long and bloody. Furthermore, the spell holding the exiled Ashioi from the world has failed, and the land, ravaged by the fury of their return, is only now showing signs of recovery.
Sanglant is struggling to legitimise his leadership as the returned Ashioi are planning war, and Stronghand has begun a march of conquest into the heart of Sanglant's realm. Adelheid and Antonia have made an unholy alliance, and Sabella and Duke Conrad are moving to seize Sanglant's crown.
Cultures, religions, and races are clashing in what will be the ultimate struggle for control of this strange new world.
Marit was pretty sure she had been murdered. She vividly recalled the assassin's dagger, and her dying vision had shown her the next world - but her spirit had not made the journey. She woke alone, sprawled on a Guardian's altar, with more questions than answers.
The Guardians once ruled the Hundred, but disappeared in ages past, leaving reeves to manage the peace in their stead. But Marit finds this peace has been shattered as a desperate army ravages the land, and its leaders walk in shadow, wearing the cloaks of lost Guardians. As she searches for meanings in a changed world, Marit finds her old love Joss and the Outlander Anji struggling to maintain order amidst chaos. But her own enemies are drawing close. Marit tries to untangle the web of betrayals that connect her murder with the razing of the countryside, but she can't run forever. She will be found and there will be choices: complicity or death.
For hundreds of years the Guardians ruled the Hundred, but these unearthly beings have faded from human sight and no longer exert their will on the world. Only the reeves, patrolling from the skies, still represent the Guardians' power. But there is a corruption in the land that not even they can control, and fanatics are devastating villages, towns, and cities, slaughtering all who oppose them.
Outlanders Anji and Mai are fleeing their homeland with a company of dedicated warriors. On reaching the Hundred, they form an alliance with Reeve Joss, and determine to stand against the devouring horde. But, as region after region slips into chaos, a young woman sworn to the Goddess may be all that keeps them from annihilation . . .
A haunting tale of individuals swept up by the chaos of war, this is fantasy adventure at its best - rich in texture, filled with colour and excitement.
Reeve Joss is struggling to defend a country ravaged by the assaults of twin armies. His men now patrol a land of burning villages and homeless refugees as Joss tries to separate traitor from friend.
The Reeve's thoughts are also plagued by the intriguing Zubaidit, pleasure-giver, spy and temple-trained assassin. But Zubaidit is focused on a dangerous mission, her target being warped Guardian Lord Radas. His death would leave the invading militia in chaos, but the old tales tell truly of the Guardians' immortality - and of the powers they now wield to twist the hearts of men.
Joss's nights are also troubled, disturbed by dreams of Marit. His lost love has returned from death to become a feared Guardian herself, but Marit rejected the corrupt temptations they offered. She now seeks others of her kind, praying some are yet uncontaminated by the blight on the land - and have the will to fight it.
The Wild Hunt is stirring and the dragons are finally waking from their long sleep ...
Cat Barahal was the only survivor of the flood that took her parents. Raised by her extended family, she and her cousin, Bee, are unaware of the dangers that threaten them both. And although they are poised on the brink of an Industrial Age - magic - and the power of the Cold Mages, still holds sway.
Now, betrayed by her family and forced to marry a powerful Cold Mage, Cat will be drawn into a labyrinth of politics. There she will learn the full ruthlessness of the Cold Mage rule. What do they want from her? And who will help Cat in her struggle against their powerful magic?
