Lindsay Buroker

After ten years at war, Jev Dharrow looks forward to hanging up his sword, relaxing with a cool mug of ale, and forgetting that the love of his life married another man while he was gone. But when his ship sails into port, a beautiful woman wearing the garb of an inquisitor from one of the religious orders waits to arrest him. His crime?He's accused of stealing an ancient artifact with the power to start another war. Jev would gladly hand over the artifact to stop more suffering, but he has no idea where it is or even what it looks like. The inquisitor woman definitely has the wrong person. Inquisitor Zenia Cham grew up with nothing, but she has distinguished herself as one of the most capable law enforcers in the city, and she's next in line to become archmage of the temple. All she has to do is find the Eye of Truth, and her superiors are certain that Jev has it. He tries to charm her with his twinkling eyes and easy smile, but she's not letting any man get between her and her dreams. Especially not a thief. If Jev can't convince Zenia they're on the same side, find the artifact, and clear his name, his homecoming will turn into a jail sentence. Or worse.

Tale 1: A Question of Honor With less than six months until his entrance exams for the famed Nurian warrior-mage academy, Yanko is sent to his uncle's salt mine for "hardening," as his father calls it. He expects endless days of physical labor; what he doesn't expect is to have to choose one of the mine's prisoners as a sparring partner. Not wanting his uncle to think him a coward, Yanko picks a big, scarred man from Turgonia, a land known for its ruthless warriors. Only after his selection does he learn that he'll be expected to kill his opponent... before his opponent kills him. Tale 2: Labyrinths of the Heart After months of working in his uncle's mine, Yanko longs to see his family and friends again, especially Arayevo, the woman he has adored from afar since he was a boy. When she travels two days and asks to see him, his mind dances at the possibilities. But the mines are busy: there's a political delegate to humor, a maiden in distress to help, and a wedding that must go perfectly--or else. Yanko will be lucky if he finds a chance to talk to Arayevo before she disappears from his life forever. Tale 3: Death from Below A visit from Yanko's older brother is interrupted when an alarm blasts through the mine. Mutilated workers have been found dead in a newly opened tunnel. Yanko has been studying to become a mage, and his brother is a soldier, so they believe they are prepared to deal with this unknown threat, but what awaits them in the subterranean depths is nothing the mine has seen in its hundreds of years of operation.

His mother was one of the most powerful wizards in the Nurian Empire until she abandoned her people to become a notorious pirate. That choice doomed the family she left behind to a life of disgrace. Yanko White Fox doesn't remember his mother, but as the only gifted child in the family, he is expected to erase the mark she left on them all. With an affinity for earth magic and communicating with animals, he's not the most natural candidate to become a warrior mage, but it's the only sure route back into the Great Chief's good graces. He has resigned himself to training for that destiny, whether it matches his passions or not. Long before he's ready for his first battle, insurrection comes to his distant corner of the empire. Rebels take over the salt mine his family manages and slay the only relative who ever supported Yanko. On the heels of the tragedy, a courier brings a message from the Great Chief's son. Whether he is prepared or not, Yanko must undertake a quest, one that could save millions of lives... or fail utterly, leaving him dead, his family forgotten, and his people the victims of starvation and endless war.

Tasked with an impossible mission, hunted by the very people he wants to protect, Yanko White Fox is the only one who can save his nation from famine and anarchy. Armed only with his fledgling skills as a wizard and accompanied by allies he's not sure he can trust, he must track down an ancient relic before his enemies find it first. But countless obstacles stand in the way, including his mother. The deadly and infamous pirate Snake Heart cares nothing for the family--or the son--she abandoned, and wants the artifact for herself.

Yanko and his friends must escape a Turgonian prison and find passage back home before their enemies claim an advantage that could change the world. And not for the good of the Nurian people.

But even more trouble awaits at home. Civil war has broken out, Yanko’s family is in danger, and the man who sent him on his mission has disappeared.

If Yanko can’t find Prince Zirabo, he’ll forever remain a criminal and be hunted down by his own people. Worse, his only chance to survive and redeem his honor may be to rely on the one person who’s been trying to kill him since his adventure began.

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Yanko White Fox is used to expectations.

Since he was a small boy, his father has expected him to become a powerful mage and redeem his family’s honor. Even if his heart was elsewhere, Yanko always accepted his responsibility. He’s learned all he can about magic, practiced to become powerful, and fought great evil to free thousands of imprisoned people.

But it’s not enough.

Prince Zirabo tasks him with claiming a new land for their nation and keeping it out of the hands of all those who covet it. Even though Yanko has a few good friends to help him, he’s daunted by the enormity of the task. But securing the continent and turning it into a lush farmland may be the only way to end the civil war at home and bring peace to people who are hungry, beleaguered, and divided.

Yanko will have to use all of his power and draw upon everything he’s learned to succeed and bring peace to his war-torn nation. If he can’t, he’ll lose his home, his family, and all that he loves.

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