Hadvarian Heist

Book excerpt: The lives of your friends are bound to your own — can you do what it takes to free them and ensure the survival of your world? A dark shadow looms over Caldara as Iellieth Amastacia and her companions travel north. Hidden within the elegant marble halls of the Hadvarian Court, an ancient artifact waits to be discovered, but haunting spectres of the past guard the prize. Deep in the Shadowlands, Lucien plots to capture Iellieth and extinguish any resistance to Alessandra before the flame spreads. Across Azuria, foul forces await his bidding, ready to deliver the druid into his hands. Unfortunately for Lucien’s pack of werewolves, Briseras Ravisthinia delights in making them her prey. With the help of an over-eager folklorist and a driven, if mysterious, witch, Briseras intends to destroy not only the werewolves, but also the more sinister creature who lurks just beyond her grasp. On the opposite side of the world, Genevieve Vendanges stalks after the man who bears her conclave’s sacred dagger. Aboard the Amber Queen, she has a chance to uncover what he knows about the destruction of her conclave and all she held dear. But the passenger holds secrets for other crew members as well, namely the ship’s captain, Teodric Adhemar. What guarded information from Teodric’s past might emerge to interrupt his return to the powerful Admiral Syleste? Even further west, foreboding visions drive Persephonie Arelle to the ancient walls of Andel-ce Hevra. To protect her mother, she must confront hostile guards hunting practitioners of natural magic and subvert the dangerous machinations of Aylin, her mother’s partner. But Persephonie does not fight alone. A mischievous fox and handsome captain of the guard stand ready to help her combat the clashing urban forces. Will it be enough? In book two of the Age of Azuria high fantasy series, Iellieth, Briseras, Teodric, Genevieve, and Persephonie must summon the strength to withstand the pull of the darkness surrounding them, a tide whose time, whose destruction, has finally come.