The Desert Talon
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- $4.99
Publisher Description
Sephihalé ele Janan sits in a prison cell in the southern island of Mazemoor, dreaming of escape. After months in a provisional prison for fighting for the imperial Kattakans, Janan is sponsored by another refugee who was once a part of his scattered family. Yearning to build a life on his sister’s land with the dragons their people revere, the peace Janan seeks is threatened by a ruthless dragon baron who covets both Janan’s connection to the earth and the battle dragon to which he is covenanted.
The conflict may drive Janan to acts of violence he hoped to leave behind in the war, and bring more death to the land Janan now calls home.
The Desert Talon is a story of two groups of people who, despite a common ancestry, have diverged so far in their beliefs that there appears to be little mutual ground—and the conflict may well start to unravel the burgeoning hopes of a country, and a man, still recovering from the ravages of war.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A veteran copes with the aftermath of war in Lowachee's fascinating if somewhat slow-moving second Crowns of Ishia fantasy (after The Mountain Crown). After being forced to fight for the tyrant Kattakans in a war against Mazemoor, dragon rider Sephihalé ele Janan is imprisoned by the Mazemoor government. His adopted sister, Prita, volunteers to sponsor his probationary release. He and his dragon, Tourmaline, find a home and companionship in Mazemoor with Prita and her son, Omala, whom Janan regards as his younger brother. Trouble arises in the form of Eben Wisterel, an enastramyth, or someone who can perform mind control magic, who takes a bit too much interest in Tourmaline. As Eben's true motives become clear, Janan is forced to either violate his probation or succumb to Eben's magic forever. The limited page count leaves many fascinating worldbuilding elements underexplored, and it takes too long for the story's stakes to be fully made clear. Once the action picks up in the final third, however, it's good fun and there's enough depth to this world to justify future installments. Series fans won't want to miss this.
