Books in the Crown of Stars series

The world of Liath and Alain is breaking apart as King Henry's kingdom is savaged by earthly and supernatural forces, which they alone have the power to understand. The Eika warriors thirst for the King's land and power, their enmity sealed by generations of blood. Bitter in-fighting within King Henry's court and the ceaseless attrition of raiders also weaken his reign. Those who remain true must stay strong as the shadow of the Cursed Ones falls, and the spell holding the exiled from the planet fails. Liath must force her wild sorcery to maturity and Sanglant, her husband and King Henry's heir, must struggle to hold the realm together. The twin destinies of Liath and Alain may yet avert the destruction written in the stars.

The Kingdom of Wendar is in turmoil. King Henry still holds the crown, but his reign has long been contested by his sister Sabella, and there are many eager to flock to her banner. Internal conflict weakens Wendar's defences, drawing raiders, human and inhuman, across its borders. Terrifying portents abound and dark spirits walk the land in broad daylight.Suddenly two innocents are thrust into the midst of the conflict. Alain, a young man granted a vision by the Lady of Battles, and Liath, a young woman with the power to change the course of history. Both must discover the truth about themselves before they can accept their fates. For in a war where sorcery, not swords, may determine the final outcome, the price of failure may be more than their own lives.

KING'S DRAGON and PRINCE OF DOGS began Kate Elliott's enthralling tale of the war-torn kingdoms of Wendar and Varre and the story of Alain's and Liath's quests for truth. Now THE BURNING STONE continues the epic saga. An uncertain and uneasy peace has fallen on the kingdom of Wendar. It seems that the king's favour has fallen upon Prince Sanglant, his bastard son, and that he is to be the chosen heir. But Sanglant is too troubled by the recent past to seek that crown. He needs Liath, the woman who saved him from his terrible captivity, even though such a liaison must incur the wrath of his father. For her part, Liath knows that her future lies with Sanglant. But she has also learned that her mother, presumed to be dead, is in fact still alive and searching for her, to school Liath in the powerful sorcerous arts. And Alain, their friend and ally, is in mortal danger from the curse of Bloodheart, who is reaching out from the grave...