On the day the Fourth Crusade departs for Leftland, things are happening in the city of Bransport. Things that will shake the foundations of the Brannic Empire.

In the House of Draeids, a girl named Vera comes of age and is sent to make her final sacrifice—to be burned alive, so that the Church of Alchemy can use her magical ashes to fuel their war machines, and all their so-called “progress.” But just before she meets her fate, she discovers that she’s different than all the other draeids.

Elsewhere in the city of Bransport, the Mad Queen, Annistis Fyrngelt, rots in a tower. Usurped by her cousin, her entire life is contained within the iron bars of her prison. That is until a band of outlaws blows a hole in the tower and frees her. Pursued by the might of the Empire she once ruled, Annistis flees into the swamps of Fenland, determined to reclaim her throne, or die trying. But she’s caught in a swirling mix of competing ideologies and political machinations, and the only way she can hope to raise an army is to make promises she can’t possibly keep.

In Leftland, Rony Hirdman becomes the sergeant over a squad of scouts that want nothing to do with her. And sergeants that aren’t liked by their men have a habit of dying quickly. If she wants to avoid an axe in the back of her head, she’ll need to earn their respect by running faster, working harder, and fighting meaner than everyone else. But if she keeps slaughtering the innocent natives of Leftland, she might get the respect of her men, but will she lose her soul in the process?

And on the far side of that mysterious continent, Lochled Thatcher awakes to find his mortal wounds healed by the very people he’d been sent to kill. The Tickers have shown him mercy. But it will come at a cost. Because these Tickers want him to teach them how to wage war as brutally as the soldiers of the Fourth Crusade. And that is a cost that Lochled is unsure he’s willing to pay.

Lines will be crossed. But that’s war. And this war is only getting started.

Ashes of Eormun:

Season 1

Book 1: A Harvest of Ash and Blood

Book 2: The Orphan and the Queen

Book 3: The Breath That Breaks the Stone (Fall 2024)