Author: Coco Ma
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982527439
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
In the kingdom of Axaria, a darkness rises. Some call it a monster, laying waste to the villagers and their homes.Some say it is an invulnerable demon summoned from the deepest abysses of the Immortal Realm.Many soldiers from the royal guard are sent out to hunt it down.Not one has ever returned. When Asterin Faelenhart, Princess of Axaria and heir to the throne, discovers that she may hold the key to defeating the mysterious demon terrorizing her kingdom, she vows not to rest until the beast is slain. With the help of her friends and the powers she wields—though has yet to fully understand—Asterin sets out to complete a single task. The task that countless trained soldiers have failed. To kill it. But as they hunt for the demon, they unearth a plot to assassinate the princess herself instead. Asterin and her companions begin to wonder how much of their lives have been lies, especially when they realize that the center of the web of deceit might very well be themselves. With no one else to turn to, they are forced to decide just how much they are willing to sacrifice to protect the only world they have ever known. That is ... if the demon doesn’t get to them first. From young author Coco Ma comes a dazzling new tale of adventure, power, and betrayal, weaving together a stunning world of magic with a killer cast in an explosive, unforgettable debut.
Shadow Frost
Author: Coco Ma
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982527439
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
In the kingdom of Axaria, a darkness rises. Some call it a monster, laying waste to the villagers and their homes.Some say it is an invulnerable demon summoned from the deepest abysses of the Immortal Realm.Many soldiers from the royal guard are sent out to hunt it down.Not one has ever returned. When Asterin Faelenhart, Princess of Axaria and heir to the throne, discovers that she may hold the key to defeating the mysterious demon terrorizing her kingdom, she vows not to rest until the beast is slain. With the help of her friends and the powers she wields—though has yet to fully understand—Asterin sets out to complete a single task. The task that countless trained soldiers have failed. To kill it. But as they hunt for the demon, they unearth a plot to assassinate the princess herself instead. Asterin and her companions begin to wonder how much of their lives have been lies, especially when they realize that the center of the web of deceit might very well be themselves. With no one else to turn to, they are forced to decide just how much they are willing to sacrifice to protect the only world they have ever known. That is ... if the demon doesn’t get to them first. From young author Coco Ma comes a dazzling new tale of adventure, power, and betrayal, weaving together a stunning world of magic with a killer cast in an explosive, unforgettable debut.
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982527439
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 370
Book Description
In the kingdom of Axaria, a darkness rises. Some call it a monster, laying waste to the villagers and their homes.Some say it is an invulnerable demon summoned from the deepest abysses of the Immortal Realm.Many soldiers from the royal guard are sent out to hunt it down.Not one has ever returned. When Asterin Faelenhart, Princess of Axaria and heir to the throne, discovers that she may hold the key to defeating the mysterious demon terrorizing her kingdom, she vows not to rest until the beast is slain. With the help of her friends and the powers she wields—though has yet to fully understand—Asterin sets out to complete a single task. The task that countless trained soldiers have failed. To kill it. But as they hunt for the demon, they unearth a plot to assassinate the princess herself instead. Asterin and her companions begin to wonder how much of their lives have been lies, especially when they realize that the center of the web of deceit might very well be themselves. With no one else to turn to, they are forced to decide just how much they are willing to sacrifice to protect the only world they have ever known. That is ... if the demon doesn’t get to them first. From young author Coco Ma comes a dazzling new tale of adventure, power, and betrayal, weaving together a stunning world of magic with a killer cast in an explosive, unforgettable debut.
Frost & Shadows
Author: Jessie Vallée
Publisher: FriesenPress
ISBN: 1039170609
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 268
Book Description
Seventeen-year-old Emma has been on the run her whole life. Born Gifted, with a powerful connection to Winter, she has dedicated her life to avoiding the Institute, the worldwide organization that oversees all who are born Blessed with powers. Separating the Gifted from their families, the Institute protects the world against Cursed creatures, those born with an insatiable hunger to devour the energy of all Gifted. When Emma is forced to join the Institute, she’s eager to test her warrior prowess but reluctant to use her power to defend an organization she’s been taught to hate. While patrolling the Institute borders, Emma encounters Dimitri, a young Cursed man unlike anyone she’s ever met. Dimitri’s full control of his hunger is not nearly as shocking as his unfathomable connection to her. But when the Institute is attacked by mysterious forces, every long-held conviction and belief will need to be called into question, and its members must turn to those they have labeled as traitors to save them all. Can Emma prevent a war, or will the world fall to chaos?
Publisher: FriesenPress
ISBN: 1039170609
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 268
Book Description
Seventeen-year-old Emma has been on the run her whole life. Born Gifted, with a powerful connection to Winter, she has dedicated her life to avoiding the Institute, the worldwide organization that oversees all who are born Blessed with powers. Separating the Gifted from their families, the Institute protects the world against Cursed creatures, those born with an insatiable hunger to devour the energy of all Gifted. When Emma is forced to join the Institute, she’s eager to test her warrior prowess but reluctant to use her power to defend an organization she’s been taught to hate. While patrolling the Institute borders, Emma encounters Dimitri, a young Cursed man unlike anyone she’s ever met. Dimitri’s full control of his hunger is not nearly as shocking as his unfathomable connection to her. But when the Institute is attacked by mysterious forces, every long-held conviction and belief will need to be called into question, and its members must turn to those they have labeled as traitors to save them all. Can Emma prevent a war, or will the world fall to chaos?
Shadows of Pecan Hollow
Author: Caroline Frost
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063065363
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 457
Book Description
Winner of the Crook's Corner Book Prize, finalist for the Golden Poppy Award, and longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize "This immersive, full-bodied novel will keep its hooks in you long after the last page is read, and marks the arrival of a tremendously wise and talented writer."—Ben Fountain Set in 1970-90s Texas, a mesmerizing story about a fierce woman and the partner-in-crime she can’t escape, perfect for readers of Where the Crawdads Sing and Valentine. It was 1970 when thirteen-year-old runaway Kit Walker was abducted by Manny Romero, a smooth-talking, low-level criminal, who first coddled her and then groomed her into his partner-in-crime. Before long, Kit and Manny were infamous for their string of gas station robberies throughout Texas, making a name for themselves as the Texaco Twosome. Twenty years after they meet, Kit has scraped together a life for herself and her daughter amongst the pecan trees and muddy creeks of the town of Pecan Hollow, far from Manny. But when he shows up at her doorstep a new man, fresh out of prison, Kit is forced to reckon with the shadows of her past. A gritty, penetrating, and unexpectedly tender novel, Shadows of Pecan Hollow is a hauntingly intimate and distinctly original debut about the complexity of love—both romantic and familial—and the bonds that define us. “Paper Moon meets Badlands in this mesmerizing Texas backroads thriller, a twisty story of a runaway girl who finds a home and a desperate love on the road with an opportunistic criminal.”—Janet Fitch
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 0063065363
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 457
Book Description
Winner of the Crook's Corner Book Prize, finalist for the Golden Poppy Award, and longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize "This immersive, full-bodied novel will keep its hooks in you long after the last page is read, and marks the arrival of a tremendously wise and talented writer."—Ben Fountain Set in 1970-90s Texas, a mesmerizing story about a fierce woman and the partner-in-crime she can’t escape, perfect for readers of Where the Crawdads Sing and Valentine. It was 1970 when thirteen-year-old runaway Kit Walker was abducted by Manny Romero, a smooth-talking, low-level criminal, who first coddled her and then groomed her into his partner-in-crime. Before long, Kit and Manny were infamous for their string of gas station robberies throughout Texas, making a name for themselves as the Texaco Twosome. Twenty years after they meet, Kit has scraped together a life for herself and her daughter amongst the pecan trees and muddy creeks of the town of Pecan Hollow, far from Manny. But when he shows up at her doorstep a new man, fresh out of prison, Kit is forced to reckon with the shadows of her past. A gritty, penetrating, and unexpectedly tender novel, Shadows of Pecan Hollow is a hauntingly intimate and distinctly original debut about the complexity of love—both romantic and familial—and the bonds that define us. “Paper Moon meets Badlands in this mesmerizing Texas backroads thriller, a twisty story of a runaway girl who finds a home and a desperate love on the road with an opportunistic criminal.”—Janet Fitch
God Storm
Author: Coco Ma
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982527463
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 356
Book Description
Everything has a price. In the kingdom of Axaria, a darkness has fallen. After defeating the evil mother who summoned an immortal demon to kill her, newly coronated Queen Asterin Faelenhart should have every reason to celebrate. Her kingdom is safe, forbidden magic eradicated, and her friends are alive. Except Asterin’s triumph has come at a devastating cost—forced to choose between a lifelong friend and true love, she’s lost both. But the shadows in Axaria have begun to stir once again, and no one is more starved for vengeance than Asterin ... Yet it soon becomes clear that the shadows plaguing her kingdom are just the beginning. Another realm coexists with the mortal world—the beautiful, nightmarish Immortal Realm ruled by the wicked God of Shadow, King Eoin. When their paths entwine, Asterin realizes that Eoin possesses exactly what—and who—she seeks most. And the fates of all those that she holds dear—Orion, her missing Guardian; Luna, the friend she could not save; Harry, the demon who saved them all; and Quinlan, her beloved broken prince—ultimately rest in the god’s hands. But in a world of magic, not everyone is always as they seem. When shocking discoveries threaten everything and everyone that Asterin has sworn her life to protect, she won’t be the only person forced to make a choice ... a choice that will change the mortal world forever. And maybe even destroy it.
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982527463
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 356
Book Description
Everything has a price. In the kingdom of Axaria, a darkness has fallen. After defeating the evil mother who summoned an immortal demon to kill her, newly coronated Queen Asterin Faelenhart should have every reason to celebrate. Her kingdom is safe, forbidden magic eradicated, and her friends are alive. Except Asterin’s triumph has come at a devastating cost—forced to choose between a lifelong friend and true love, she’s lost both. But the shadows in Axaria have begun to stir once again, and no one is more starved for vengeance than Asterin ... Yet it soon becomes clear that the shadows plaguing her kingdom are just the beginning. Another realm coexists with the mortal world—the beautiful, nightmarish Immortal Realm ruled by the wicked God of Shadow, King Eoin. When their paths entwine, Asterin realizes that Eoin possesses exactly what—and who—she seeks most. And the fates of all those that she holds dear—Orion, her missing Guardian; Luna, the friend she could not save; Harry, the demon who saved them all; and Quinlan, her beloved broken prince—ultimately rest in the god’s hands. But in a world of magic, not everyone is always as they seem. When shocking discoveries threaten everything and everyone that Asterin has sworn her life to protect, she won’t be the only person forced to make a choice ... a choice that will change the mortal world forever. And maybe even destroy it.
A Lick of Frost
Author: Laurell K. Hamilton
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 034550223X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 289
Book Description
I am Meredith Gentry, princess and heir apparent to the throne in the realm of faerie, onetime private investigator in the mortal world. To be crowned queen, I must first continue the royal bloodline and give birth to an heir of my own. If I fail, my aunt, Queen Andais, will be free to do what she most desires: install her twisted son, Cel, as monarch . . . and kill me. My royal guards surround me, and my best loved–my Darkness and my Killing Frost–are always beside me, sworn to protect and make love to me. But still the threat grows greater. For despite all my carnal efforts, I remain childless, while the machinations of my sinister, sadistic Queen and her confederates remain tireless. So my bodyguards and I have slipped back into Los Angeles, hoping to outrun the gathering shadows of court intrigue. But even exile isn’t enough to escape the grasp of those with dark designs. Now King Taranis, powerful and vainglorious ruler of faerie’s Seelie Court, has leveled accusations against my noble guards of a heinous crime–and has gone so far as to ask the mortal authorities to prosecute. If he succeeds, my men face extradition to faerie and the hideous penalties that await them there. But I know that Taranis’s charges are baseless, and I sense that his true target is me. He tried to kill me when I was a child. Now I fear his intentions are far more terrifying.
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 034550223X
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 289
Book Description
I am Meredith Gentry, princess and heir apparent to the throne in the realm of faerie, onetime private investigator in the mortal world. To be crowned queen, I must first continue the royal bloodline and give birth to an heir of my own. If I fail, my aunt, Queen Andais, will be free to do what she most desires: install her twisted son, Cel, as monarch . . . and kill me. My royal guards surround me, and my best loved–my Darkness and my Killing Frost–are always beside me, sworn to protect and make love to me. But still the threat grows greater. For despite all my carnal efforts, I remain childless, while the machinations of my sinister, sadistic Queen and her confederates remain tireless. So my bodyguards and I have slipped back into Los Angeles, hoping to outrun the gathering shadows of court intrigue. But even exile isn’t enough to escape the grasp of those with dark designs. Now King Taranis, powerful and vainglorious ruler of faerie’s Seelie Court, has leveled accusations against my noble guards of a heinous crime–and has gone so far as to ask the mortal authorities to prosecute. If he succeeds, my men face extradition to faerie and the hideous penalties that await them there. But I know that Taranis’s charges are baseless, and I sense that his true target is me. He tried to kill me when I was a child. Now I fear his intentions are far more terrifying.
Frost
Author: M. P. Kozlowsky
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 0545833264
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 337
Book Description
Cinder meets The Walking Dead in a chilling futuristic fairy tale that will reboot everything you thought about family, love... and what it means to be human. Before he died, Frost's father uploaded his consciousness into their robot servant. But the technology malfunctioned, and now her father fades in and out. So when Frost learns that there might be medicine on the other side of the ravaged city, she embarks on a dangerous journey to save the only living creature she loves.With only a robot as a companion, Frost must face terrors of all sorts, from outrunning the vicious Eaters. . .to talking to the first boy she's ever set eyes on. But can a girl who's only seen the world through books and dusty windows survive on her own?
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
ISBN: 0545833264
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 337
Book Description
Cinder meets The Walking Dead in a chilling futuristic fairy tale that will reboot everything you thought about family, love... and what it means to be human. Before he died, Frost's father uploaded his consciousness into their robot servant. But the technology malfunctioned, and now her father fades in and out. So when Frost learns that there might be medicine on the other side of the ravaged city, she embarks on a dangerous journey to save the only living creature she loves.With only a robot as a companion, Frost must face terrors of all sorts, from outrunning the vicious Eaters. . .to talking to the first boy she's ever set eyes on. But can a girl who's only seen the world through books and dusty windows survive on her own?
Ashes of a Black Frost
Author: Chris Evans
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439180687
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 450
Book Description
Bones jutted from the sand at angles—not odd angles, though, for that would suggest that there were ways bones could protrude that made sense—and the eyes of those still living stared and saw nothing. Amidst a scene of carnage on a desert battlefield blanketed in metallic snow, Major Konowa Swift Dragon sees his future, and it is one drenched in shadow and blood. Never mind that he has won a grand victory for the Calahrian Empire. He came here in search of his lost regiment of elves, while the Imperial Prince came looking for the treasures of a mystical library, and both ventures have failed. But Konowa knows, as do the Iron Elves—both living and dead—that another, far more important battle now looms before them. The campaign in the desert was only the latest obstacle on the twisted, darkening path leading inexorably to the Hyntaland, and the final confrontation with the dreaded Shadow Monarch. In this third novel of musket and magic in Chris Evans’s Iron Elves saga, Konowa’s ultimate journey is fraught with escalating danger. A vast, black forest finds a new source of dark power, spawning creatures even more monstrous than the blood trees from which they evolve. The maniacally unstable former emissary of the Shadow Monarch hungers for revenge, leading an army of ravenous beasts bent on utterly destroying the Iron Elves. A reluctant hero, Private Alwyn Renwar, struggles to maintain his connection to this world and that of the loyalty of the shades of the dead. And in a maze of underground tunnels, Visyna Tekoy, whom Konowa counts among those he has loved and lost, fights for her life against the very elves he so desperately wants to find. And so Konowa sets off from this Canyon of Bones, pursuing his freedom from a curse that has cast his life in darkness. For though his long, violent trek may indeed lead him to his destiny, he is ill prepared for the discovery he will make . . . with the fate of the Iron Elves, and the world, hinging on the courage of one wrathful elf.
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1439180687
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 450
Book Description
Bones jutted from the sand at angles—not odd angles, though, for that would suggest that there were ways bones could protrude that made sense—and the eyes of those still living stared and saw nothing. Amidst a scene of carnage on a desert battlefield blanketed in metallic snow, Major Konowa Swift Dragon sees his future, and it is one drenched in shadow and blood. Never mind that he has won a grand victory for the Calahrian Empire. He came here in search of his lost regiment of elves, while the Imperial Prince came looking for the treasures of a mystical library, and both ventures have failed. But Konowa knows, as do the Iron Elves—both living and dead—that another, far more important battle now looms before them. The campaign in the desert was only the latest obstacle on the twisted, darkening path leading inexorably to the Hyntaland, and the final confrontation with the dreaded Shadow Monarch. In this third novel of musket and magic in Chris Evans’s Iron Elves saga, Konowa’s ultimate journey is fraught with escalating danger. A vast, black forest finds a new source of dark power, spawning creatures even more monstrous than the blood trees from which they evolve. The maniacally unstable former emissary of the Shadow Monarch hungers for revenge, leading an army of ravenous beasts bent on utterly destroying the Iron Elves. A reluctant hero, Private Alwyn Renwar, struggles to maintain his connection to this world and that of the loyalty of the shades of the dead. And in a maze of underground tunnels, Visyna Tekoy, whom Konowa counts among those he has loved and lost, fights for her life against the very elves he so desperately wants to find. And so Konowa sets off from this Canyon of Bones, pursuing his freedom from a curse that has cast his life in darkness. For though his long, violent trek may indeed lead him to his destiny, he is ill prepared for the discovery he will make . . . with the fate of the Iron Elves, and the world, hinging on the courage of one wrathful elf.
Everyday Earth and Space Science Mysteries
Author: Richard Konicek-Moran
Publisher: NSTA Press
ISBN: 1936959283
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
"What are the odds that a meteor will hit your house? do you actually get more sunlight from Daylight Savings Time? Where do puddles go? By presenting everyday mysteries like these, this book will motivate your students to carry out hands-on science investigations and actually care about the results. These 19 open-ended mysteries focus exclusively on Earth and space science, including astronomy, energy, climate, and geology. The stories come with lists of science concepts to explore, grade-appropriate strategies for using them, and explanations of how the lessons align with national standards. They also relieve you of the tiring work of designing inquiry lesson from scratch." cover verso
Publisher: NSTA Press
ISBN: 1936959283
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 254
Book Description
"What are the odds that a meteor will hit your house? do you actually get more sunlight from Daylight Savings Time? Where do puddles go? By presenting everyday mysteries like these, this book will motivate your students to carry out hands-on science investigations and actually care about the results. These 19 open-ended mysteries focus exclusively on Earth and space science, including astronomy, energy, climate, and geology. The stories come with lists of science concepts to explore, grade-appropriate strategies for using them, and explanations of how the lessons align with national standards. They also relieve you of the tiring work of designing inquiry lesson from scratch." cover verso
The Visual World of Shadows
Author: Roberto Casati
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262550849
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 407
Book Description
How the perception of shadows, studied by vision scientists and visual artists, reveals the inner workings of the visual system. In The Visual World of Shadows, Roberto Casati and Patrick Cavanagh examine how the perception of shadows, as studied by vision scientists and visual artists, reveals the inner workings of the visual system. Shadows are at once a massive problem for vision—which must distinguish them from objects or material features of objects—and a resource, signaling the presence, location, shape, and size of objects. Casati and Cavanagh draw up an inventory of information retrievable from shadows, showing their amazing variety. They present an overview of the visual system, distinguishing between measurement and inference. They discuss the shadow mission, the work done by the visual brain to parse, and perhaps discard, the information from shadows; shadow ownership, the association of a shadow with the object that casts it; shadow labeling, the visual system's ability to tell shadows from nonshadows; and the shadow concept, our knowledge about shadows as a category. Casati and Cavanagh then apply the theoretical apparatus they have developed for shadows to other phenomena: illumination, reflection, and transparency. Finally, they examine the art of the shadow, paying tribute to artists' exploration of shadow, analyzing a series of artworks (reproduced in color) from a rich and fascinating art historical corpus.
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262550849
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 407
Book Description
How the perception of shadows, studied by vision scientists and visual artists, reveals the inner workings of the visual system. In The Visual World of Shadows, Roberto Casati and Patrick Cavanagh examine how the perception of shadows, as studied by vision scientists and visual artists, reveals the inner workings of the visual system. Shadows are at once a massive problem for vision—which must distinguish them from objects or material features of objects—and a resource, signaling the presence, location, shape, and size of objects. Casati and Cavanagh draw up an inventory of information retrievable from shadows, showing their amazing variety. They present an overview of the visual system, distinguishing between measurement and inference. They discuss the shadow mission, the work done by the visual brain to parse, and perhaps discard, the information from shadows; shadow ownership, the association of a shadow with the object that casts it; shadow labeling, the visual system's ability to tell shadows from nonshadows; and the shadow concept, our knowledge about shadows as a category. Casati and Cavanagh then apply the theoretical apparatus they have developed for shadows to other phenomena: illumination, reflection, and transparency. Finally, they examine the art of the shadow, paying tribute to artists' exploration of shadow, analyzing a series of artworks (reproduced in color) from a rich and fascinating art historical corpus.
A Fortress of Grey Ice
Author: J. V. Jones
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1429975989
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 672
Book Description
"Wonderful . . . J. V. Jones is a striking writer." So says Robert Jordan, the author of The Wheel of Time epic fantasy series. And Jones lives up to that praise in the highly charged epic adventure of Ash March and Raif Sevrance, two outcasts whose fate are entwined by ancient prophecies and need, in the cold, dark world that threatens to be torn asunder by a war to end all wars. Isolated by their birthrights, they are but two who fight the dreaded Endlords, and their strength and courage will be needed if the world is to be saved from darkness." Raif, wrongly accused and cut off from his clan by the treachery of their new headsman, has a talent for killing that is part of his curse and his burden. But he bears another burden of greater weight. Ash is a sacred warrior to the Sull, an ancient race whose numbers have declined. Raised as a foundling, never knowing her true history, she must learn to accept the terrible gifts of her heritage. But as Ash learns more of her greater fate, Raif's task looms dark and desperate, for he must journey through the nightmare realm of the Want, a place where even the Sull now fear to tread. For deep within the Want is the Fortress of Grey Ice, and there he must heal the breach in the Blindwall that already threatens the world. Should he fail, not even Ash's powers can save them. . . . At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Publisher: Macmillan
ISBN: 1429975989
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 672
Book Description
"Wonderful . . . J. V. Jones is a striking writer." So says Robert Jordan, the author of The Wheel of Time epic fantasy series. And Jones lives up to that praise in the highly charged epic adventure of Ash March and Raif Sevrance, two outcasts whose fate are entwined by ancient prophecies and need, in the cold, dark world that threatens to be torn asunder by a war to end all wars. Isolated by their birthrights, they are but two who fight the dreaded Endlords, and their strength and courage will be needed if the world is to be saved from darkness." Raif, wrongly accused and cut off from his clan by the treachery of their new headsman, has a talent for killing that is part of his curse and his burden. But he bears another burden of greater weight. Ash is a sacred warrior to the Sull, an ancient race whose numbers have declined. Raised as a foundling, never knowing her true history, she must learn to accept the terrible gifts of her heritage. But as Ash learns more of her greater fate, Raif's task looms dark and desperate, for he must journey through the nightmare realm of the Want, a place where even the Sull now fear to tread. For deep within the Want is the Fortress of Grey Ice, and there he must heal the breach in the Blindwall that already threatens the world. Should he fail, not even Ash's powers can save them. . . . At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.