The Darkness Before Them
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4.3 • 11 Ratings
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
The first in an exciting, action-packed new trilogy from epic fantasy author Matthew Ward, The Darkness Before Them introduces readers to a world ruled by a dangerous immortal king, where souls fuel magic, and a supernatural mist known as the Veil threatens to engulf the land.
These are dark times for the Kingdom of Khalad. As the magical mists of the Veil devour the land, the populace struggles beneath the rule of ruthless noble houses and their uncaring immortal king.
Kat doesn’t care about any of that. A talented thief, she’s pursuing one big score that will settle the debt that destroyed her family. No easy feat in a realm where indentured spirits hold vigil over every vault and treasure room. However, Kat has a unique gift: she can speak to those spirits, and even command them. She’ll need every advantage she can get.
Kat’s not a hero. She just wants to be free. To have her old life back. But as rebellion rekindles and the war for Khalad’s future begins, everyone – Kat included – will have to pick a side.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
After setting up the pieces for a familiar fantasy caper, Ward (the Legacy trilogy) neatly reassembles this story into a thoughtful examination of the limits of duty and loyalty. Katija Arvish, rescued from the gutter by the effortlessly elegant thief Azra, uses the unique, magical tattoos crafted by her artist father to quiet the ifrits (soul fragments) that guard treasures and power weapons in the kingdom of Khalad. Now she aims to rob "the highest of high temples," hoping the score will erase the debt the temple holds on her father's estate, freeing her too. When the heist goes wrong, she's sentenced to a public execution in the capital, Zariqaz, but is fortuitously rescued from a prison airship by rebels. This coincidence and others begin to unravel a larger political plot, exposing Khalad's noble families as even more dangerous than their mobster confederates. Caught up in schemes, even the more powerful nobles and their faithful aides find that they can be sacrificed to keep the real players in charge of the game. Ward's realistic street politics don't offer simple good-vs.-bad choices, but readers will enjoy watching Katija and her allies struggle to plant their feet firmly on trusty ground in the moral quagmire. It's a promising series launch.
