Dance of Shadows

As the Sun sets on the age of virtue, the shadows gather for a final dance.<BR><BR>The Mathuran Republic and Magadhan Empire are locked in mortal struggle, but they are not the only pieces on the board. Over the Eastern horizon, storm clouds gather.<BR><BR>The Rakshasan Tree Cities have opened their borders for the first time in centuries, gathering kings, clerics, matriarchs and merchant lords to a Conclave of Peace... all the better to carve up the future without having to worry about either Empire or Republic.<BR><BR>After all, a season of peace is the time to plant anew the seeds of war.<BR><BR>But in this world drenched in oil, three women emerge, each the spark that might light the fire.<BR><BR>A Pirate Queen discovers the only gold around is in the bars of her cage.<BR><BR>A Temple Courtesan's heart dances for the lowborn archer she was tasked to destroy.<BR><BR>A Librarian Princess steals from deathless witches and legendary thieves to save the world from an ancient plague.<BR><BR>As smouldering conflicts reignite, intimate betrayals unwind and ancient evils awake, our cast of spoilt heroes and lovesick princes, immortal assassins and their apprentices, deaf swordswomen and exiled snakelings will find no sun to light their path.<BR><BR>For the Son of Darkness rises, boiling over with a wrath that all the oracles in the world cannot appease. Seeing the future is one thing, changing it is quite another.<BR><BR>Unless it is through a heist.

**'LIKE GAME OF THRONES IN AN INDIAN UNIVERSE' DAN JONES**<BR><BR>THE HOUSE OF THE DRAGON MEETS SUCCESSION IN AN EPIC REIMAGINING OF THE MAHABHARATA <BR><BR>'An unforgettable wild journey set in re-imagined Vedic India' SF Book Review<BR>'Like Game of Thrones in an Indian alternative universe... exhilarating... heralds the arrival of a special new talent' Dan Jones<BR>'Mahabharata imbued with A Song of Ice and Fire, The First Law, & Malazan Book of the Fallen' Novel Notions<BR><BR>SOME BALLADS ARE INKED IN BLOOD<BR><BR>Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Senator Krishna and his third wife Satyabhama have put their plans in motion, both within and beyond the Republic's blood-soaked borders, to protect it from total annihilation.<BR><BR>But they are soon to discover that neither gold nor alliances last forever - and that they are not the only players on the board.<BR><BR>Mati, Pirate-Princess of Kalinga, has decided to mend her ways and become a good wife. But old habits die hard, especially when one habitually uses murder to settle old scores.<BR><BR>Brooding and beautiful Karna hopes to bury his brutal past, but finds that destiny is a miser when it comes to granting second chances.<BR><BR>Hero-turned-torturer Shakuni limps through a path of daggers. Meanwhile, his foes and woes multiply, leaving little time for vengeance. <BR><BR>Their lives are about to become yet more difficult, as a cast of sinister queens, naive kings, pious assassins and ravenous priests are converging where the Son of Darkness is prophesied to rise... even as forgotten Gods prepare to play their hand.

THE HOUSE OF THE DRAGON MEETS SUCCESSION IN AN EPIC REIMAGINING OF THE MAHABHARATA 'An unforgettable wild journey set in re-imagined Vedic India' SF Book Review 'Like Game of Thrones in an Indian alternative universe... exhilarating... heralds the arrival of a special new talent' Dan Jones 'Mahabharata imbued with A Song of Ice and Fire, The First Law, & Malazan Book of the Fallen' Novel Notions SOME BALLADS ARE INKED IN BLOOD Bled dry by violent confrontations with the Magadhan Empire, the Mathuran Republic simmers on the brink of oblivion. Senator Krishna and his third wife Satyabhama have put their plans in motion, both within and beyond the Republic's blood-soaked borders, to protect it from total annihilation. But they are soon to discover that neither gold nor alliances last forever - and that they are not the only players on the board. Mati, Pirate-Princess of Kalinga, has decided to mend her ways and become a good wife. But old habits die hard, especially when one habitually uses murder to settle old scores. Brooding and beautiful Karna hopes to bury his brutal past, but finds that destiny is a miser when it comes to granting second chances. Hero-turned-torturer Shakuni limps through a path of daggers. Meanwhile, his foes and woes multiply, leaving little time for vengeance. Their lives are about to become yet more difficult, as a cast of sinister queens, naive kings, pious assassins and ravenous priests are converging where the Son of Darkness is prophesied to rise... even as forgotten Gods prepare to play their hand.