Stolen away from the Master of Sanctuary, the Goddess of Elda, known as the Rose of the World, is now free, and happily married to King Ravn of the Northern Isles. Her memories and powers are slowly returning to her; increasingly she is torn between her love for Ravn Asharson and knowledge of her true nature. But the ships of the Southern Empire, under the fanatical leadership of Lord Tycho Issian, are bringing holy war to the North; and she may soon become a prize of combat.
Meanwhile, Katla Aransen is fighting battles of her own. Abducted by Istrian raiders from her home, alongside her mother and several of Rockfall's women, she finds herself in the harem of Rui Finco, Lord of Forent, a notorious rake and womanizer. There she will learn for herself the oppression and hardship suffered by the women of the South; but she will also learn their strengths. Saro Vingo finds himself in even more dire straits: imprisoned in the dungeons beneath the Eternal City, listening to the cries of the men and women tortured by his mad brother, Tanto, Tycho Issian's henchman, in the fevered drive to decimate the nomadic peoples of Elda. Can he escape and put an end to his brother's atrocities?
Forces are gathering for a terrible war. North will fight South and all those caught in the vice of their passage will be crushed - unless sanity prevails against all the odds and the guardianship of Elda is taken from the bloody hands of the warmongers and returned to those who truly care for it.
