ONE RISK, ONE CHANCE. Peace in the seven realms of Shangril: shattered. Nobility of the magiel race: broken. Lands of the High King’s opponents: usurped. And Heaven may no longer be attainable . Meg and Janat Falkyn, fugitive daughters of an imperial magiel, escape to the edge of the world to take refuge with their youngest sister, Rennika. And, perhaps, to fulfill their mother’s wish and restore their people’s access to their Gods—by recapturing a fabled prayer stone. But to accomplish the theft, whom can they trust ? The ambitious High King’s sister thirsts for power. A calculating regent enriches himself with a steam-driven textile monopoly. A charming swindler sets up an elaborate...

The Falkyn sisters bear a burden and a legacy. Their mother, the imperial magiel of the kingdom of Orumon, protects her people from the horrors of the afterlife by calling upon the gods with a precious prayer stone. But war among the kingdoms has brought fire and destruction to their sheltered world. When a mad king's desire to destroy the prayer stones shatters their family, the three girls are scattered to the wilderness, relying on their wits and powers they don't yet master. Assassin. Battle tactician. Magic wielder. Driven by different ambitions, Meg, Janat, and Rennika are destined to become all these and more. To reclaim their birth right, they must overcome doubtful loyalties...