Epic fantasy in the Tolkien tradition, with a strong girl hero who is entirely believable in her struggles. . . . I couldn't put it down! -- Tamora Pierce, author of the Protector of the Small and the Circle Opens quartets Maerad is a slave in a desperate and unforgiving settlement, taken there as a child when her home was destroyed. She doesn't yet know she is a member of the noble School of Pellinor and has inherited a powerful gift, one that enables her to see the world as few others can. It is only when she is discovered by Cadvan, one of the great Bards of Lirigon, that her true identity and extraordinary destiny unfold.