, the sequel to , picks up after the departure of the great Queen of Asylia, tracing the fortunes of Manissa's family through the drama of the centuries. The sons of Manissa find themselves increasingly scorned from an entrenched nobility that wants nothing to do with their house-or the mysterious power that flows in their veins. Punctuated with episodes of glory, tragedy, romance, and even comedy, the thirty-six short stories of carry the reader through the dizzying and often violent tumults that bring the house of Manissa from disinheritance and despair to restoration, redemption, and glory.Recommended for ages 13 and up due to war sequences and thematic elements.