This graceful tale of magic, court intrigue and high drama follows Averil, duchess of Quitaine (introduced in 2007’s The Serpent and the Rose
), as she keeps her promise to visit her uncle, the evil King Clodovec of Lys, and let him marry her to a noble so she can breed the kingdom’s heir. Far from her home and her commoner lover, Gereint, Averil soon discovers hidden allies and a faction that opposes the king but supports the Serpent he serves. They tempt Averil with talk of chaotic magic and anarchy, suggesting she could escape the laws governing noble marriages and wed Gereint at last. As plots and counterplots thicken, Averil finds herself besieged in a foreign land, guarding a powerful relic and torn between love and duty. Bryan achieves real suspense about which path her heroine will choose; the painful pleasure of Averil and Gereint’s longing will bring readers back as much as the cliffhanger ending. (Mar.)
