Cirrus@Austlit

'Chosen is an urban fantasy novel and is book one in The Elm Stone Saga. The White Elm council has governed the magical societies of the world for centuries, keeping the peace, leading the way of the light, but when popular and powerful Lisandro announces his intention to leave the council, a line is drawn in the sand. The Elm Stone, a ring holding the build-up of power from years of the council’s members, gets taken by its keeper, Peter, to Lisandro’s new group of malicious magic users. Its fate lies in his hands. Sometimes we choose our way. Other times it is chosen for us. Young Irish sorceress Aristea Byrne jumps at the opportunity to compete for a coveted position as an apprentice to the White Elm and quickly finds her powers blossoming. Under the tutelage of the council at their Academy she awakens skills she never knew she had. As she finds herself drawn more into the council’s unfamiliar world, and in particular into the web of mystery surrounding council rebel Renatus, she starts to wonder how much is still within her control and how much has been chosen for her...' (Publication summary)

'Sometimes we survive unscathed. Other times we are left scarred. Following an unforeseen attack, the White Elm council is depleted but even more determined to find and prosecute their former member, Lisandro, and his followers. Suggestions of a spy within the council ranks, however, cast doubt and suspicion every which way, and trust is suddenly a commodity no one wants to afford. Events that can only be considered fateful have thrown Aristea and her new ally Renatus into the middle of this political turmoil, bringing into question their loyalties, her faith in him and in her own impulsive choices. Despite a shared past it is quickly apparent that some scars run deeper than others and Aristea is running out of time to decide where to place her trust. Perhaps being chosen was just the beginning…Chosen is an urban fantasy novel and is book two in The Elm Stone Saga.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Sometimes we evade the darkness. Other times it comes to us unbidden.

'In the wake of a direct political strike, the battered White Elm is left virtually powerless to act against their former brother Lisandro, the man now armed with their most formidable weapon, the Elm Stone. Matters are complicated by a history of resentment surrounding the council’s elitist stance on ‘wild’ forms of magic, and compromises must be made in order to move forward.

'Conflicted by the truth of their pasts but bound together by recent events, Aristea and Renatus commit themselves to understanding their unruly connection and its roots in a time long before theirs. But when Aristea is burdened with a secret too heavy to share with her ally and mentor, an unexpected darkness begins to shadow her, and in her new role as Renatus’s apprentice she is a reluctant player in a game started half a century before…'

Source: Publisher's blurb.