Publisher's Synopsis
Love conquers all-or does it? Both King Traven and his brother Alarion are eagerly awaiting Traven's wedding, for Alarion's will soon follow. But neither have reckoned on the malice of the woman who was not chosen by either of them. Fixated and clever, she lays a trap for Alarion, not knowing that she herself is being used by someone else. And his plans for Alarion have nothing to do with petty vengeance. The Glassmaker, once Alarion's best friend, now leads the fanatical tribe in Nemistak that hopes to make Alarion their long-awaited messiah. Appalled by a creed that will not die no matter what he does, Alarion finds himself inadvertently fanning the flames when he is kidnapped and dragged to the Glassmaker's stronghold. Every word he says seems to feed into tribal myths, threatening daily to launch a bloody holy war against his own people. But if the Glassmaker's suspicious followers discover Alarion's secret plans for escape, he and three of his closest friends will die in a heathen bonfire. While Traven launches a desperate rescue, the gods of Ariel see an opportunity to upset Fate's bid to reshape the planet's future. Death redoubles his rebellion against her; earthquakes in the desert hint that Stoneshaker may be reviving; and the Thousandth God prowls the periphery, wanting to help both Fate and Alarion, but unable to combat his inborn yearning toward chaos. In a fearful hollow in the Covan Hills, gods and mortals collide in a confrontation that will change everything.
