A realm at war. A family torn apart.

In a world where magic exists in constant opposition to nature, a corrupt king plots the dawn of a new empire and the destruction of magic itself. Darion Ulther has been stripped of his titles and branded a traitor. In his self-imposed exile to the snowy wastes of Korengad, he aids an army of fierce northmen as they attempt to recapture their homeland from the clutches of the very kingdom he once served.

Meanwhile, Lady Alynor Mirrowell has not heard from her husband in years - four years, to be exact. Impoverished and hiding in the wake of Sir Darion's fall from grace, she awaits his return while raising their son, posing as a commoner in the tiny village of Briarcrest on the southern border of the Wildwood.

But eyes are watching her.

Eyes both protective and pernicious - and some are not what they seem.