Times are truly desperate within Averalaan's hundred holdings, and Jewel Marks and her den are finding it hard to survive. Then suddenly their mentor, Rath, orders them to avoid the ancient Undercity beneath Averlaan's streets, cutting them off from their main source of income. Yet Rath himself refuses to heed the warnings of Jewel's seer dreams. Instead, he allies with the mages of the Order of Knowledge in a secret war against demonic foes, knowing he'll be targeted for death—or worse. In a last attempt to protect Jewel and her den, he writes a note of introduction to the head of House Terafin—the sister he's sworn never to contact. For only within the Terafin manse would the den stand a chance of escaping the unnatural forces reaching out to claim them....

Michelle West is the author of three interconnected series: The Sacred Hunt duology, the six-volume Sun Sword series, and The House War novels. She has published numerous short stories, as well as fantasty novels, under her maiden name, Michelle Sagara. She was a two-time nominee for the Campbell Award. She works part-time at BAKKA Books, one of Toronto's larger bookstores, and writes a column for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. She can contacted via her website, michellesagara.com.

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