Rion and Tair train to kill the Empress.

An electrifying mystery that will draw one woman into a global conspiracy—and into the sights of one of the most dangerous men in the world... Maddy Blume is a survivor. Years ago, while working as an art analyst in New York, she was changed forever by an encounter with Ilya Severin, the thief and former assassin once known as the Scythian. Now, in London, she is presented with an unusual proposition: to go undercover as an art consultant to a Russian oil billionaire suspected of channeling profits to military intelligence. As Maddy grows closer to her new boss, however, she discovers that his ambitions extend far beyond natural resources. He is out to shape the future of Russia on a massive scale, using the secret of the mythical empire of Shambhala in a quest that will lead Maddy on a violent odyssey across Europe and to the far edge of the Black Sea. Yet her involvement has not gone unnoticed. Not by the secret police. Not by her employer’s rivals. And least of all by the Scythian himself...

Ahren can hardly believe his luck. His normal life consists of being beaten up by his drunkard father or bullied by the village lads. But at the annual suitability tests for apprenticeships, the young boy finds himself selected by Falk, the guardian of the forest, to be his apprentice and his world is turned upside down.From his new master he learns the skills of archery and how to fight the Dark Ones. And then, on the day of the Spring Ceremony there is another unexpected turn of events. He touches the Stone of the Gods and it illuminates for the first time ever. It isn't long before a cantankerous wizard turns up and urges Falk and Ahren into action. There is no time to waste, for something evil is awakening.The unlikely trio begin their dangerous journey to Evergreen, the elfish kingdom to get the elves' help. But time is running out. HE, WHO FORCES has his eyes trained on Ahren and nothing will stop him from destroying the young man.Let yourself be swept into the fantastic world of Jorath by diving into AHREN, THE THIRTEENTH PALADIN (volume 1). For all fans of J.R.R. Tolkien's THE LORD OF THE RINGS and David Edding's BELGARIAD.

This ambitious book looks into the reasons for the exceptional durability of the Chinese empire, which lasted for more than two millennia (221 B.C.E.-1911 C.E.). Yuri Pines identifies the roots of the empire's longevity in the activities of thinkers of the Warring States period (453-221 B.C.E.), who, in their search for solutions to an ongoing political crisis, developed ideals, values, and perceptions that would become essential for the future imperial polity. In marked distinction to similar empires worldwide, the Chinese empire was envisioned and to a certain extent "preplanned" long before it came into being. As a result, it was not only a military and administrative construct, but also an intellectual one. Pines makes the argument that it was precisely its ideological appeal that allowed the survival and regeneration of the empire after repeated periods of turmoil. Envisioning Eternal Empire presents a panoptic survey of philosophical and social conflicts in Warring States political culture. By examining the extant corpus of preimperial literature, including transmitted texts and manuscripts uncovered at archaeological sites, Pines locates the common ideas of competing thinkers that underlie their ideological controversies. This bold approach allows him to transcend the once fashionable perspective of competing "schools of thought" and show that beneath the immense pluralism of Warring States thought one may identify common ideological choices that eventually shaped traditional Chinese political culture

An electrifying mystery that will draw one woman into a global conspiracy—and into the sights of one of the most dangerous men in the world... Maddy Blume is a survivor. Years ago, while working as an art analyst in New York, she was changed forever by an encounter with Ilya Severin, the thief and former assassin once known as the Scythian. Now, in London, she is presented with an unusual proposition: to go undercover as an art consultant to a Russian oil billionaire suspected of channeling profits to military intelligence. As Maddy grows closer to her new boss, however, she discovers that his ambitions extend far beyond natural resources. He is out to shape the future of Russia on a massive scale, using the secret of the mythical empire of Shambhala in a quest that will lead Maddy on a violent odyssey across Europe and to the far edge of the Black Sea. Yet her involvement has not gone unnoticed. Not by the secret police. Not by her employer’s rivals. And least of all by the Scythian himself...

Tair and Rion head toward Nifaal, the last free country in Saia. But in order to reach it, they must travel through Kadei, the Empire's latest conquest. There will be trouble.