Sword Catcher

One thing unites the wealthiest aristocrats and the most depraved criminals in the dynamic city-state of Castellane: a never-ending quest for power, riches, and the next hedonistic sensation.

Being taken from his familiar existence to become the Sword Catcher—the physical replica of Prince Conor Aurelian, the heir apparent to the throne—Kel is an orphan. Raised beside the prince, he has had extensive training in both military and statecraft. Although Kel and Conor are as close as brothers, Kel is aware that his fate is to die in Conor's service. There's no other future.

Lin Caster is a member of the Ashkar, a tiny group of people who are still capable of magic. They are required by law to reside inside the city's walls, but Lin, a doctor, goes outside to care for Castellane's ill and dying. Without access to forbidden knowledge, she is unable to heal her best buddy despite her skills.

Following the abortive effort that unites Lin and Kel, they become entangled in the web of the enigmatic Ragpicker King, the criminal lord of Castellane's underworld. He grants them all their deepest desires, but when they venture inside his mysterious and shadowy realm, they uncover a corrupt scheme that extends from Castellane's lowest alleys to its tallest royal tower.

They have to ask themselves, as long-kept truths start to come to light, is knowledge worth the cost of betrayal? Can a kingdom fall because of forbidden love? And will what they find send the globe into chaos and their country into war?