Gerin the Fox

The second son of the Baron of Fox Keep, Gerin never wanted title or responsibility, but both were thrust on him when his father and brother were ambushed and slain by enemy Trokmê raiders. Leaving behind the urban bustle of Cassat and his studies in philosophy and magic, Gerin the Fox returned home to accept his place among the other barons of the Northern marches—a region secluded from the rest of the Empire of Elabon.

Peace in the North has been fragile and tentative in the five years since the terrible Werenight, when the light of four full moons transformed men into beasts. Now cut off completely from the Elabon Empire, the land is in violent dispute, squabbled over by minor barons hungry for greater power. Gerin the Fox is one of the few who stand firm against the encroaching chaos, but his own life has been violently shaken, first by a heartless betrayal and then by the kidnapping of his young son. Having angered a vengeful deity, he cannot look to the gods for support.

Though he has taken the reins of power in the North, Gerin the Fox has no time to enjoy his victory. The gods reveal to him that a grave danger is approaching. Now he must face a new enemy, the Gradi, a people who follow ruthless gods. The Gradi not only conquer lands, but destroy them so completely as to render them uninhabitable. To stop this menace and truly be King of the Northlands, Gerin will have to make uncomfortable alliances . . . and survive a war of gods.

After the devastating Werenight that brought the Elabonian Empire to a bloody end, Gerin the Fox has come to be known as the King of the North. Aragis the Archer has no desire to make an enemy of such a man, but his ambition gets the better of him. Now he's about to learn that any threat to Gerin, no matter how small, will be answered in kind. And soon their rivalry will escalate beyond what either could have imagined.