Will she risk herself-to save her kingdom? the Babylonian princess Tiamat has lived the opulent, and yet oppressive, life of the palace. the mad king Nebuchadnezzar, has lived as a beast, hidden away to prowl his luxurious Hanging Gardens. the powerful mage Shadir plots to expose the family's secret and set his own man on the throne. And a nobleman's macabre death suggests a dark force is at work in the palace. her late husband's brother, a man who denounces her notions of the gods, even as he challenges her heart.