Elandria is at war. The Lord Consort is missing. The Sage is at odds with the king. Scholars and Deyoni are dying in droves.
Imprisoned far away from his home, Quinn is weak and must rely on his unique magic and his connection to his lover, Amarice, to save himself. Their half-Scholar/half-Deyoni blood is put to the test. Amarice is frozen in grief over Quinn's disappearance. She refuses to call on her people to fight in a war they did not ask for. Plagued by guilt at her inability to protect her people, she fights the demons of her past.
Raymond, the reluctant king, leads Elandria in a losing civil war, with no escape from the loneliness of his position until he meets Elaine, Quinn's former lover. But despite his growing feelings for her, he must still combat a stubborn Sage, a shortage of troops, and someone in his circle who has betrayed him.
The future of Elandria and the safety of all magical peoples depends on the strength of Amarice, Raymond, and Quinn. But they find themselves asking:
How do you lead your people to war when you're fighting one in your soul?