Hapax

Brother Gaelin of the Ecclesiat is stunned when his failed Candlemass ceremony heralds the coming of the Apocalypse and horrific signs soon manifest. Meanwhile, student mage Davi learns that River of Knowledge, a magically created being (MCB) he has a crush on, will likely be destroyed because she is growing “emotion-capable.” Davi and River seek refuge within the Ecclesiat amid priests who hate MCBs, believing them soulless. The world’s only hope is to rediscover the Hapax, the Word that created the world. Brother Gaelin must join with Davi and River, along with the Ecclesiat’s young ward Praeton and a mysterious outsider named Serafine, to find it. Initially all seems headed in predictable directions, but the characters deepen and their stories take turns for the dire. Tension and emotion run high in a world where its end is the only certainty, and readers will hang on to every shred of hope. (Oct.)