First Light by Michelle Frost

Description

“Forbidden things.” Idrith pointed out grimly, “Things that could be your death warrant.”

“All beauty has a price, Castellan, and with all knowledge comes responsibility. The people who deal with my contact know this well and they know the worse price of ignoring it.”

“What would that be?”

“Emptiness.” Idrith dropped his gaze at last. That one word described his whole existence. “Tell me more, please.”

On a world without hope, where life is fading and color is a crime; three people living very different lives are about to have their perception of reality shattered. As deceptions are torn away, and ancient secrets brought to light, they each must struggle to find the missing pieces of the puzzle… pieces that will reveal their true destiny.

Idrith, bitter and trapped in a life he never chose, is the first to discover his own fear-filled mystery. Obsessed with finding the truth behind the lies, he turns to the one person he has always tried to avoid – the mysterious pilgrim, Harmion.

Aztar’s military promotion comes with an unexpected burden that threatens the entire Northerner regime. It seems that their only hope may lie in the hands of someone he was raised to think of as his inferior. Each day they struggle together to find a solution, but at night Aztar struggles alone as the secret he’s hidden since childhood returns to torment him.

Daen was allowed to grow up unrestricted and far better educated than normal for a Northerner woman. Now her father’s health is failing and the running of their family estate lies in her hands. Knowing that desperate situations call for courageous action, she is about to take a step that will change her life forever.