Cirrus@Austlit

'The jundom of Mamlakah is on the brink of economic collapse. Poverty is rampant and a slavery-based economy threatens the jundom’s peace and its peoples’ freedom. Only the twenty-one noble Jun families are safe.

'When Teya’s six-year-old brother, Perrin, is captured to be sold as a slave, Teya is determined to free him.

'To do so she must become what she hates most—a xintou-telepath—and co-operate with those she swore never to trust—a noble family. Working with Dallan Johnston, she must learn to harness her unique psychic gifts and help prevent slavery from gaining a foothold in Mamlakah. Only then will her brother be safe.

'But Dallan and the jun families are just out to use Teya for their own ends. And secrets from Teya’s past threaten to destroy Mamalakah’s future.

'Can she and Dallan overcome their mutual mistrust and work together? If they fail, Perrin, Teya, and the entire jundom will be enslaved; the future of Mamlakah forged into darkness and pain.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When Pellar graduates from Weishi House, his first contract is to assassinate a high-level noble in the Jadid princedom.

'Easy. Good money. And a chance to get out of Jadid's freezing miserable country.

'But all is not as it seems.

'Jadid's senior prince has more problems than he can handle. His son doesn't want to be heir. A northern visiting spy is poking his nose into every place he shouldn't. The prince's telepathic female advisor can't find the prince's son, either.

'But does she even want to find the boy?

'Maybe an assassination contract is exactly what Jadid's prince needs?

'Or not.

'Maybe Pellar has something else planned.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Imagine a world without iron, or coal, or oil, without industry or high-tech, without war since it's foundation five hundred years ago. Now imagine the effect of discovering mineable iron ore....

'Kalima, an Earth-colony world with little mineable iron and no fossil fuels, is entrenched in a feudal society by the lack of this vital resources. But things are about to change. When Alere Connor, failed xintou (telepath) but skilled swordswoman, is sent to act as mistress to Jun First Alan Yang-Black, she becomes the unwilling focus of a revolution. On his deathbed, Alan reveals the existence of a hidden iron ore deposit. With several factions vying for political domination of the Jundom, control of the iron would tip the balance of power. Alere, accused of the Jun First's murder and fleeing for her life, must reach and warn the Jun Second, Rafi Chan-Sala, on whose lands the iron ore lies. If she fails, all out war is inevitable - the first ever war in the seven hundred year history of the Earth-colony.

'On the way, Alere will uncover the old and bloody secret of her own existence, the reason for her failure as a xintou, and unlock and even darker future for herself and her companions.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Even steel can be broken.

'Mamlakah is once again on the brink of war, this time over who sits on the throne. Alere, Jarran, and Mina race toward Madina to claim Jarran’s inheritance as Jun First. And with a Weishi House kill-contract on her head, Alere must unlock new yanstone powers – which lead her further down a destructive path Mina cannot condone.

'But Nasra Connor and Jun Fourth Hassan Wen-Gates reach Madina first, and they pave the city’s streets with blood to secure the throne. Xintou House’s students and Bonded Xintou are murdered. Mistress Li, the two Jun Seconds, and Jarran’s daughters are imprisoned and slated for execution.

'Even if Alere can reach Madina in time to prevent the executions, her fighting skills are no use against Nasra and Rohne – the two most powerful Xintou in existence. Her only chance is if she and a reluctant Mina can master the yanstones. But Mina is unwilling to use the yanstones’ brutal powers against her old friends.

'So Alere will gamble her mind, her life, and the sanity of everyone she loves on one, dubious, chance of victory. If she can’t prevail, Kalima will be subjugated beneath the steel will of the strongest xintou in history.

'All chance of freedom… lost.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.