Prisoner Of The Iron Tower

A writer of rare imagination, Sarah Ash lends her unique vision to epic fantasy. In this captivating continuation of her saga, the author of Lord of Snow and Shadows revisits a realm filled with spirits and singers, daemons and kings. . . . Gavril Nagarian has finally cast out the dragon-daemon from within himself. The Drakhaoul is gone—and with it all of Gavril’s fearsome powers. No longer possessed, he is instead being driven mad by the Drakhaoul’s absence. Worse, he has betrayed his blood, his people, and put the ice-bound princedom of Azhkendir at risk—and lost.At the mercy of the victorious Eugene of Tielen, Gavril is sentenced to life in an insane asylum. For the power-hungry Eugene longs to possess a Drakhaoul of his own, and his prisoner seems the best way to achieve that goal. Meanwhile, a shattered empire reunites. But peace is as fragile as a rebel’s whisper—and a captive’s wish to be free. . . . Praise for Prisoner of the Iron Tower “A new fantasy series [that] will leave readers drooling to get their hands on the sequel.”—Publishers Weekly “Solid, wonderful fantasy, sparkling and imaginative!”—Booklist “Ash takes her large and colorful cast of characters from horror to pathos, from triumph to betrayal, smoothly and convincingly. a roller-coaster ride of events and emotions in the best modern fantasy manner.”—Kirkus Reviews

RIDMARK ARBAN is the Gray Knight, questing to stop the return of the terrible Frostborn to the High King's realm. Yet the soulstone, the instrument of the return of the Frostborn, has been stolen by a ruthless cult and secured within the grim fortress of the Iron Tower. And Ridmark must risk everything to retrieve it. MARA wishes only to live peacefully. Yet her father was a dark elven wizard of power, and his shadow-tainted blood flows through her veins, threatening to transform her into a monster. Yet that is not the greatest danger she faces. For the Iron Tower was once home to an ancient evil, an evil that desires to claim the power in her blood...

'The emperor's tears will unlock the gate...' Eugene of Tielen has won the five Tears of Artamon, the legendary rubies which entitle him to be crowned ruler of the ancient empire of Rossiya. But on the eve of his coronation, as the rubies are brought together for the first time in the imperial crown, a strange phenomenon occurs: a beacon of crimson light shoots up from the crown into the night sky. Is it a good portent - or an evil omen? While sinister forces infiltrate Eugene's new empire, stirring the defeated peoples to revolt, Eugene is obsessed with enslaving a Drakhaoul, the daemon spirit that made his arch enemy, Gavril Nagarian, such a formidable opponent. Craving the arcane knowledge that will lead him to his goal, Eugene seeks out Kiukirilya, the Spirit Singer, forcing her to undertake a perilous journey into the world of the dead. And what of Gavril, imprisoned and tortured in the dread Ironsea Tower? His dreams are of escape. But the opportunity, when it comes, faces him with an impossible choice. He longs to return to his earlier, simpler life but he knows that only one man can stop Eugene in his quest for daemonic powers. And that man is Gavril Nagarian...

Three kingdoms. One man. A destiny written in blood. An epic new fantasy series begins . . . Seemingly always the outsider, Gavril Andar - an impoverished young painter - yearns to join the privileged circles of Muscobar polite society. However, unbeknownst to him, he does have royal blood in his veins: the dark and powerful blood of a father he never knew - the Drakhaon, ruler of the isolated northern kingdom of Azhkendir. And when the Drakhaon is brutally murdered, an unwilling Gavril is forced to take up the mantle of both his father's rule - and his power. For blood will out. And the Drakhaon's carries within it a taint that gives its bearer access to awesome, unimagined magics - but at a soul-shattering price. Now trapped in this bleak, mist-shrouded land full of superstition and racked by bitter rivalries, Gavril faces an awesome task. He must find his father's killer and unite his fractured kingdom against those who see it as weak, defenceless and ripe for invasion before he pays the price of kinship and succumbs to the dread curse that uncoils within him . . . Richly imagined, full of intrigue, magic and dark romance and boasting a cast of superbly-drawn players, LORD OF SNOW AND SHADOWS is the first book in a thrilling new trilogy and marks the triumphant return of one of fantasy's most original and exciting voices.

The True History of the State Prisoner is a biography about a French prisoner dubbed The Man in the Iron Mask. The Man in the Iron Mask was an unidentified prisoner of state, arrested in July 1669 under the pseudonym of "Eustache Dauger" and incarcerated for 34 years during the reign of King Louis XIV of France. Known for remaining unidentified throughout his time in prison, he was held in the custody of the same jailer, Bénigne Dauvergne de Saint-Mars, in four successive French prisons, including the Bastille.

In this third novel in her acclaimed Tears of Artamon saga, Sarah Ash once again transports readers to a realm where sorcery collides with political intrigue . . . and where one man haunted by a dark legacy is locked in a fierce struggle between the forces of good and evil battling for supremacy within him. . . . Gavril Nagarian is believed dead—perished in the heat of battle. But the Lord Drakhaon of Azhkendir lives on. Now he is entrusted with a sacred mission: to rescue the aged Magus, who has been kidnapped and in whose possession are the five priceless rubies that compose the fabled Tears of Artamon. Ancient law decrees that whoever possesses the coveted stones has the power to impose his rule over the five princedoms in the Empire of New Rossiya. But the task exacts a cost. The Drakhaoul that destroyed his forebears has penetrated Gavril’s psyche and is gaining power over his soul. With the dark forces inside him seeking immortality, Gavril must feed on the blood of innocents—or die. Toppled by the loss of the Tears of Artamon, Emperor Eugene of Tielen is tormented by his own daemon. Now he must defend his lands against King Enguerrand of Francia, who claims ownership of the Tears. But both men share a common goal: to destroy Gavril Nagarian and the Drakhaoul that lives within him once and for all. Ingenious and unforgettable, Children of the Serpent Gate delivers a thrilling conclusion to the epic trials of a man of honor in a world run amok—a calamity that can be laid to rest only by an Emperor’s Tears.

A vivid, dramatic, and eye-opening historical narrative, The Man in the Iron Mask reveals the story behind the most enduring mystery of Louis XIV’s reign. The Man in the Iron Mask has all the hallmarks of a thrilling adventure story: a glamorous and all-powerful king, ambitious ministers, a cruel and despotic jailor, dark and sinister dungeons— and a secret prisoner. It is easy for forget that this story, made famous by Alexandre Dumas, is that of a real person, Eustache Danger, who spent more than thirty years in the prison system of Louis XIV’s France—never to be freed. This narrative brings to life the true story of this mysterious man and follows his journey through four prisons and across decades of time. It introduces the reader to those with whom he shared his imprisonment, those who had charge of him, and those who decided his tragic fate. The Man in the Iron Mask reveals one of the most enduring mysteries of Louis XIV’s reign; but it is, above all, a human story. Using contemporary documents, this book shows what life was really like for state prisoners in seventeenth-century France—and offers tantalising insight into why this mysterious man was arrested and why, several years later, his story would become one of France’s most intriguing legends that still sparks debate and controversy today.