A Hugo and Nebula Award finalist, New York Times bestselling author Robin Hobb is hailed by the Baltimore Sun as a "master fantasist." Shaman's Crossing begins her epic Soldier Son Trilogy. The second son of a recently titled nobleman, Nevare Burvelle survives the King's Cavalla Academy—where nepotism and corruption reign—to become a soldier in the Gernian king's army. As he and his fellow soldiers are thrust onto the front lines of the king's brutal territorial expansion campaign, they struggle against the Plainspeople—forest-dwellers who possess a powerful magic long dismissed by the Gernians. These rebels refuse to bow to the king's tyranny. And as the battles rage, dangerous thoughts invade Nevare's consciousness, forcing him to question his role in the army—and the life he's always known. Hobb doesn't disappoint with this intricate fantasy tale featuring larger-than-life characters and exotic landscapes. "Here is a master storyteller out to make a point and succeeding beautifully."—Publishers Weekly