Michelle Sagara

Kaylin Neya is a Hawk, part of the elite force tasked with keeping the City of Elantra safe. Her past is dark, her magic uncontrolled and her allies unpredictable. And nothing has prepared her for what is coming, when the charlatans on Elani Street suddenly grow powerful, the Oracles are thrown into an uproar and the skies rain blood….

The powerful of Elantra believe that the mysterious markings on Kaylin's skin hold the answer, and they are not averse to using her–how ever they have to–in order to discover what it is.

Something is coming, breaking through the barriers between the worlds. But is it a threat that Kaylin needs to defend her city against–or has she been chosen for another reason entirely?

With friends like these, who needs enemies?

Private Kaylin Neya thought her home couldn't possibly get more crowded. But when one of her housemates, Annarion, decides to undertake the Barrani Test of Name, his friends refuse to let him face his task alone – and Kaylin's sentient home, Helen, is the only structure capable of shielding the rest of Elantra from the magnitude of their power.

Annarion and Mandoran almost caused the destruction of the High Halls once already. Add nine of their closest friends, and the danger is astronomically higher – especially since these guests are at the heart of a political firestorm. Imprisoned almost a millennium ago, their recent freedom threatens the rulership of several prominent Barrani families, and the machinations of those Lords make it almost impossible to tell friend from foe.

As political tensions ramp up, the shadows beneath the High Halls are seeking a freedom that has never been possible before. Kaylin must find a way to keep those shadows from escaping, or that freedom will destroy her city, the empire and everything she holds dear.

Any day that starts with dragon arguments is going to be bad.

Kaylin returned from the West March in one piece. Now that piece is fraying. She's not at home in the Imperial Palace––and she never intends to be. All she wants is normal garden–variety criminals and a place of her own. Of course, normal in her new life involves a dragon as a roommate, but she can handle that.

She can't as easily handle the new residents to the city she polices, because one of them is the outcast Barrani Nightshade's younger brother. On a night when she should be talking to landlords in perfectly normal buildings, she's called to the fief–by fellow Hawk and sometime partner Teela. A small family disagreement has become a large, complicated problem: Castle Nightshade's latent magic is waking.

And it's not the only thing.

 “First–rate fantasy. Sagara's complex characterizations and rich world–building lift her above the crowd.” –New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong

New York Times bestselling author Michelle Sagara returns to the city of Elantra with a thrilling tale rife with ancient magic, assassination attempts and political intrigue. 

Private Kaylin Neya already has Dragons and Barrani as roommates. Adding one injured, flightless Aerian to her household should be trivial. Sure, the Aerian is Sergeant Moran dar Carafel, but Kaylin's own sergeant is a Leontine, the definition of growly and fanged. She can handle one Aerian. 

But when a walk to the Halls of Law becomes a street–shattering magical assassination attempt on the sergeant, Kaylin discovers that it's not the guest who's going to be the problem: it's all of the people who suddenly want Moran dar Carafel dead. And though Moran refuses to tell her why she's being targeted, Kaylin is determined to discover her secret and protect her at all costs–even if keeping Moran safe means dealing with Aerian politics, angry dragons and something far more sinister.

In the aftermath of a vicious battle between darkness and light, the city of Elantra has emerged victorious. But Shadows continue to haunt every corner of its streets…

Elantra stands strong, but countless numbers of Hawks, the city's staunchest protectors, were lost in the brutal attack. Humans, Barrani, Aerians, Leontines – none of the races emerged unscathed from the defense of the city. Homes were lost, families were scattered…and the outcast Barrani Lord Nightshade is missing from his castle in the fiefs.

Yet as the chaos surrounding the battle begins to wane, Private Kaylin Neya's duties must resume, despite her grief. Called in to investigate a triple murder in a quiet part of town, Kaylin and her companions are soon embroiled in a case that is anything but routine. Evidence of the deadly Shadows that still threaten the city leads to hints of ancient, forgotten magics...and everything can be traced directly to Ravellon, the heart of the Shadows and the darkness they contain.

But it is there that Lord Nightshade will be found – if he still survives.

“Along with the exquisitely detailed world–building, Sagara's character development is mesmerizing... A true master of her craft!” – RT Book Reviews
 

Barely a teenager, Kaylin Neya is a thief, a fugitive and an attempted assassin. She also has a smart mouth, sharp wits and mysterious markings on her skin. All of which make her perfect bait for a child prostitution sting in the city of Elantra – if she survives her first meeting with the Hawks!

Before the unplanned "visit" to the West March, Kaylin invited the Consort to dinner. For obvious reasons, Kaylin wants to cancel dinner - forever. But the Consort is going to show up at the front door at the agreed-upon time. The fact that she tried to imprison Kaylin's guests doesn't matter at all...to her.

A private Barrani Hell, built of Shadow and malice, exists beneath the High Halls. It is the High Court's duty to jail the creature at its heart - even if it means that Barrani victims are locked in the cage with it. The Consort is willing to do almost anything to free the trapped and end their eternal torment. And she needs the help of Kaylin's houseguests - and Kaylin herself. Failure won't be death - it will be Hell. And that's where Kaylin is going.

Still avoiding magic whenever possible, Private Kaylin Neya relished investigating a run–of–the–mill theft. Until she found out the mysterious stolen box had been taken from Elani Street, where the mages and charlatans mingled, and it was sometimes hard to tell the difference between the two. And since the box was ancient, without a keyhole, and held tremendous darkness inside, Kaylin knew unknown forces were again playing with her destiny––and her life....From best-selling author Michelle Sagara, The Chronicles of Elantra series is a classic female-led fantasy for fans of The Dresden Files and An Academy of Assassins. The Chronicles of Elantra Series: Cast in Shadow Cast in Courtlight Cast in Secret Cast in Fury Cast in Silence Cast in Chaos Cast in Ruin Cast in Peril Cast in Sorrow Cast in Flame Cast in Honor Cast in Flight