Showing results by author "D. K. Holmberg" in All Categories

The Disciples of the Draasin Lord have again been defeated, yet a traitor remains within Terndahl. The Inquisitors have come, and their presence has everyone on edge. With the help of the Keystone, Tolan has discovered the ability to shape each of the element bonds. Now that he’s passed testing to the second level at the Academy, he finally feels as if he belongs. Still, he can’t shake the feeling that his shaping is different than others - and tied to the elementals.

No longer alone, Sam and Alec struggle to find time to continue their studies together. Sam knows that she is more than the lowborn she'd long believed, now living and training in the palace, but still doesn't feel as if she quite fits in. Worse, it seems as if Alec has moved on without her, preferring his new life in the university. Alec has quickly risen in rank, but that only draws attention to him. Learning from master physickers has its benefits, but there are dangers and he's not certain whether he can trust the new friends he's made. 

Poverty-stricken Finn Jagger would give anything to heal his ailing mother. With his father imprisoned, Finn has joined a thieving crew to earn the money he needs to save her. When the latest heist turns to disaster and lands him on death row, Finn’s future seems to be tied up with a noose. Until the king’s executioner claims him as an apprentice.

After stopping two attacks on the kingdom, Ashan yearns to master his connection to the dragons and finally serve as a dragon mage. He has connected to a cycle of dragons, but he's still only a student and doesn't understand what it truly means to be a dragon mage.

As a new student in the Dragon Academy, Ashan wants nothing more than to understand his connection to the dragons and to harness their power, but he might have come to learn of his power too late for him to use it. Attempts to harness the magic that burns within him haven't succeeded, and he's consoled knowing that if nothing else, he can learn to be a dragon rider. 

The Great Serpent grants a gift of powerful essence to those who come before him. The experience, and the gift, is unpredictable but all have a vision of the Great Serpent so they can understand the purpose of their essence.

Carthenne Rel survived the Hjan attack on the A'ras and has left the north, the only place she ever really known. Now she travels to better understand what it means that she's shadow born. Stranded by storms in a dangerous port city, she's captured while helping rescue a young girl from slavers. Discovering her mysterious captor's agenda forces her to play his games in order to escape, only to realize she hasn't finished with the Hjan.

Kanar Reas, an ex-soldier known as the Blackheart, hides a dangerous secret. Exiled from the Realmsguard, he wants nothing to do with the kind of magic that destroyed his life. That is until his team of mercenaries is offered a job they can’t refuse.

After capturing the sorcerer called the Apostle, Gavin decided to remain in the city of Yoran where he’s become comfortable. Work that had been plentiful has dried up and comfort becomes complacency. While new friends help to find jobs, they’re not the kind of jobs an assassin trained to be the Chain Breaker should take. He’s trained to kill, not track down relics in a city that long ago banished magic.

The arrival of the mysterious Magi, along with their near invincible guardians, signals a change. For Jakob, apprentice historian, and son of a priest longing for adventure, it begins an opportunity. When his home is attacked, Jakob starts a journey that will take him far from home and everything he has ever known. Studying with a new swordmaster, he gains surprising skill, but also strange new abilities that make him fear the madness which has claimed so many has come to him.

Jasn, a warrior known as the Wrecker of Rens, seeks vengeance for the loss of his beloved to the deadly draasin during the Endless War, wanting nothing more than to sacrifice himself in the process. When an old friend offers a dangerous chance for him to finally succeed, the key to understanding what he finds requires him to abandon all that he believes. Ciara, a water seeker of Rens living on the edge of the arid waste, longs for the strength to help her people.

No longer traveling with the Wayward, Leo learns that finding his own way is its own adventure and one he could never have experienced as one of the Wayward. He joins a new caravan and befriends a young girl fascinated by the Twilight Gates, travels with one of the fae and learns of a danger to their realm, and makes an enemy of the Alley King. Surviving the journey is only the first step. The Academy is the goal. Even then, he must still gain entry to the Academy—which proves more difficult than Benjamin led him to believe.

Trained to destroy sorcery from a young age, Imogen Inaratha left that life behind, having come to see magic differently. When her brother asks for help, she embarks on a dangerous journey - and must face a part of her past she wanted to forget. An encounter with one of the mythical Porapeth changes the course of the journey. Protecting him forces her to face dark magical creatures and a powerful sorcerer determined to destroy the Porapeth in his quest for even more power. To succeed, she must learn the truth of the blade she’d long thought she’d mastered.

The dragons deserve to be free, but who will be strong enough to ensure their safety? A war long thought over has returned, and this time the empire is not equipped to survive. Still, the dragons are safe, living in the heart of the forest near an ancient Deshazl settlement. Though hidden from the Damhur who would control them, Fes feels they deserve more and longs to see them fly free again. When another attack leaves the empire weakened, Fes and a few friends search for allies. Finding those allies is key, but who can they trust?

The empire remains in chaos following the last attack. Fes searches to connect to the newly raised dragon, wanting to find him before the Damhur attack again, but when he finally returns to the capital, he’s too late. War has returned to the empire in full. With dragons controlled by the Damhur attacking along the coast, the fire mages and Dragon Guard outmanned, Fes urgently needs to find a way to save the dragons - and help the empire. The search brings him to a foreign land where he uncovers ancient secrets in his quest.

Zarinth is a dangerous city at the edge of the kingdom, illuminated by the constant fire of the nearby volcano Ishantil. For thief Ty, it’s more than a city filled with valuable ancient dragon relics. It’s the home he could never leave. When Ishantil threatens to erupt and put the city in chaos, Ty wants one last score before finally leaving it - and his past - behind. All while the notorious Dragon Thief chases the same prize. The Dragon Thief has a reputation for a reason, but Ty begins to think there’s more to the job than just the prize.

Torian Ranth is no longer the struggling student he once was. Now a skilled sahir to be reckoned with, Torian arrives at the devastated university. It still stands amid the remnants of the Rusav onslaught.

Finn has grown into the role of executioner, taking on more responsibility with each passing year. After thwarting another plot against the kingdom, he’s developed a reputation - and the attention that comes with it. When attacked investigating missing women throughout the city, Finn finds his list of enemies growing. After another high profile abduction, Finn’s newfound skills are tested trying to find answers before it’s too late, but an imprisoned man speaking the strange language of the Alainsith forces Finn and Meyer to divide their work.

After establishing an uneasy truce with the constables, Gavin has settled in Yoran to offer protection to his friends and the remaining magical element in the city. When a job reveals a dangerous new threat in the city, Gavin must take action. This time the target isn’t Gavin, but the city itself. Magic was banished a generation ago, but the Fates have returned. They bring a dark magic Gavin has never seen before - and might be helpless to control.

Having passed his first test at the Academy, most believe Tolan has proved he belongs. Only Tolan knows the truth: that his shaping required power from the borrowed bondar — and possibly from the elementals themselves. If he can’t find a way to shape without one, he’ll be expelled from the Academy. When he intervenes to stop another attack on the city, he once again finds himself in the middle of the battle between Terndahl and the Draasin Lord. Worse, because of his continued reliance on the bondars, he begins to fear he might be responsible for releasing elementals.