Brief Is My Flame

An ancient foe threatens the realms of the west. Irina Ivanovna gave up her throne to search for that threat, and now finds herself pursued by a skilled runelord. Etain Muirghein must discover the truth before the other captains of the Western Isles rise against her. Ivan Yevgenich has spent his life defending his people but now faces the greatest Kreisic leader ever to hold a sword. And Geirr Stronghair wishes only to keep Svellheim at peace, but uncovers something more terrifying than war. Fear and anger have seeped into the very stone of the Kreisens. No one knows the source of the poison, but all can see the flashing steel and searing flame that come in its wake. Will rivals overcome centuries of hate to become allies? Will a riddle nearly two thousand years old reveal the means of saving Shijuren? Or will the swords of good men taste the blood of those they should protect?The rulers of the western realms are right to worry¿