Paladin’s Legacy Series

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY KIRKUS REVIEWS

Acclaimed author Elizabeth Moon spins gripping, richly imagined epic fantasy novels that have earned comparisons to the work of such authors as Robin Hobb and Lois McMaster Bujold. In this volume, Moon’s brilliant masterwork reaches its triumphant conclusion.
 
The mysterious reappearance of magery throughout the land has been met with suspicion, fear, and violence. In the kingdom of Lyonya, Kieri, the half-elven, half-human king, struggles to balance the competing demands of his heritage while fighting a deadly threat to his rule: evil elves linked in some way to the rebirth of magic.
 
Meanwhile, in the neighboring kingdom of Tsaia, a set of ancient artifacts recovered by the former mercenary Dorrin Verrakai may hold the answer to the riddle of magery’s return. Thus Dorrin embarks on a dangerous quest to return these relics of a bygone age to their all-but-mythical place of origin. What she encounters there will change her in unimaginable ways—and spell doom or salvation for the entire world.

Praise for Crown of Renewal
 
“Mesmerizing . . . [Elizabeth] Moon offers convincingly realized characters persuasively shaped by the extraordinary richness, depth and texture of the world they inhabit. . . . Such is the allure of an extremely talented writer at the the height of her powers.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
 
“Elves, demons, warped magicians, ancient artifacts, time travel, and an agrarian-based society make for an evocative story. . . . The depth of each character’s emotions . . . show the author’s writing power.”—Booklist
 
Praise for Elizabeth Moon
 
Limits of Power
 
“Thoughtful and deeply character driven, full of personal crises as heartbreaking and hopeful as any dramatic invasion . . . Fantasy fans will be delighted by this impressive foray.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
 
Echoes of Betrayal
 
“This is an excellent series, and Echoes of Betrayal is particularly well done. [Moon is a] consistently entertaining writer, and this book lives up to her standards.”—San Jose Mercury News
 
“Rousing action and intriguing plot twists.”—Kirkus Reviews
 
Kings of the North
 
“Moon’s characters navigate an intricate maze of alliances and rivalries. . . . Close attention to military detail gives the action convincing intensity.”—The Star-Ledger
 
“Her storytelling is as electrifying as ever, and her readers should be delighted with this new vista of a well-known world.”—Booklist

Elizabeth Moon is back with the fourth adventure in her bestselling fantasy epic. Moon brilliantly weaves a colorful tapestry of action, betrayal, love, and magic set in a richly imagined world that stands alongside those of such fantasy masters as George R. R. Martin and Robin Hobb.
 
The unthinkable has occurred in the kingdom of Lyonya. The queen of the Elves—known as the Lady—is dead, murdered by former elves twisted by dark powers. Now the Lady’s half-elven grandson must heal the mistrust between elf and human before their enemies strike again. Yet as he struggles to make ready for an attack, an even greater threat looms across the Eight Kingdoms.
 
Throughout the north, magic is reappearing after centuries of absence, emerging without warning in family after family—rich and poor alike. In some areas, the religious strictures against magery remain in place, and fanatical followers are stamping out magery by killing whoever displays the merest sign of it—even children. And as unrest spreads, one very determined traitor works to undo any effort at peace—no matter how many lives it costs. With the future hanging in the balance, it is only the dedication of a few resolute heroes who can turn the tides . . . if they can survive.

Praise for Limits of Power
 
“It’s easy to become fully immersed in, and absorbed by, the narrative: [Moon’s] great strength lies in the patient accumulation of telling detail, yielding an extraordinarily rich picture of the world’s politics, philosophy, military structure, history, magic and alien cultures, where men and women stand as equals even in force of arms.”—Kirkus Reviews
 
“Thoughtful and deeply character driven, full of personal crises as heartbreaking and hopeful as any dramatic invasion . . . Moon deftly avoids big literary explosions, preferring instead a slow boil that builds pressure without relief. There are plots within plots, but the complex story is never confusing. Fantasy fans will be delighted by this impressive foray.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Praise for Elizabeth Moon
 
“This is an excellent series, and Echoes of Betrayal is particularly well done. [Elizabeth Moon is a] consistently entertaining writer, and this book lives up to her standards.”—San Jose Mercury News
 
“Moon’s characters navigate an intricate maze of alliances and rivalries. . . . Close attention to military detail gives the action convincing intensity.”—The Star-Ledger, on Kings of the North
 
“A triumphant return to the fantasy world she created . . . No one writes fantasy quite like Moon.”—The Miami Herald, on Oath of Fealty

“This is an excellent series, and Echoes of Betrayal is particularly well done. [Elizabeth Moon] is a consistently entertaining writer, and this book lives up to her standards.”—San Jose Mercury News
 
All is not well in the Eight Kingdoms. In Lyonya, King Kieri is about to celebrate marriage to his beloved, the half-elf Arian. But uncanny whispers from the spirits of his ancestors continue to warn of treachery and murder, and a finger of suspicion points in a shocking direction. Meanwhile, in Tsaia, the young king Mikeli grapples with unrest among his own nobility after granting the title and estates of a traitorous magelord to a Verrakaien—who not only possesses the forbidden magic but is a woman. The controversial decision and its consequences put the king’s claim to the throne in peril. But even greater danger looms. A dragon’s wild offspring are sowing death and destruction, upsetting the ancient balance of power. A collision seems inevitable. Yet when it comes, it will be utterly unexpected—and all the more devastating for it.
 
“Fans of epic fantasy . . . should enjoy this series.”—Library Journal
 
“Rousing action and intriguing plot twists.”—Kirkus Reviews

Includes a preview of the next book in the Paladin’s Legacy series, Limits of Power

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
 
Peace and order have been restored to the kingdoms of Tsaia and Lyonya, thanks to the crowning of Mikeli of Tsaia and the half-elven mercenary Kieri Phelan as their respective kings. But trouble is brewing. Mikeli cannot rule safely as long as the few remaining Verrakaien magelords are at large. And a strange rift has developed between Kieri and his grandmother and co-ruler, the immortal elven queen known as the Lady. Meanwhile, both monarchs are targets of the ex-pirate Alured, who plots to seize their thrones for himself—and to the north, the aggressive kingdom of Pargun seems poised to invade. As threats of war, from without and within, divide the two kings, old alliances and the bonds of friendship will be tested as never before. And a shocking discovery will change everything.

For the first time in nearly twenty years, Elizabeth Moon returns to the thrilling realm of her superb Deed of Paksenarrion trilogy.
 
Thanks to Paks’s courage, the long-vanished heir to the half-elven kingdom of Lyonya has been revealed as Kieri Phelan, a formidable mercenary who earned a title—and enemies—in the neighboring kingdom of Tsaia, where Prince Mikeli suddenly faces the threat of a coup. Acting swiftly, Mikeli strikes at the powerful family behind the attack: the Verrakaien, magelords steeped in death and evil. Mikeli’s survival—and that of Tsaia—depend on the only Verrakai whose magery is not tainted with innocent blood. Two kings stand at a pivotal point in the history of their worlds. For dark forces are gathering against them, knit in a secret conspiracy more sinister and far more ancient than they can imagine.