Friday, September 16, 2011

Pg. 69: Leona Wisoker's "Guardians of the Desert"

The current feature at the Page 69 Test: Guardians of the Desert by Leona Wisoker.

About the novel, from the publisher:
Lord Alyea of Peysimun grows into her strength
Deiq of Stass confronts his greatest weakness
Lord Eredion of Sessin tries to live with his compromises
Meanwhile, someone plots a brutal retaliation...

Not long ago, Alyea Peysimun was a shallow young noblewoman maneuvering for personal power. Her first attempt at politics proved far more dangerous than she dreamed possible, and nearly ended her life. Now she is a desert lord, one of the powerful, little-understood southern elite. But power changes everything--including who to call friend and
enemy.

Deiq of Stass has long hidden his dual heritage by passing himself off as a mysterious quasi-noble. He has a facility for lying and a strange sense of ethics; but he'll honor his promise to guide Alyea into her new life. To uphold that commitment, he must navigate more obstacles than even he could imagine--not least those within himself.

Eredion Sessin is the only desert lord who stayed in Bright Bay during King Ninnic's reign. He endured the worst of the insane king's excesses and helped to remove Ninnic from the throne; his guilt over the people he couldn't save is almost as deep as his self-loathing. He has come to hate all the ha'reye represent. And yet something deeper than loyalty binds him to Deiq, who he knows better than to trust.

As the truth of the ancient, mysterious ha'reye begins to emerge and those who oppose their ways marshal new strategies, the repercussions of Scratha's desperate gambit threaten to destroy a precarious balance that has held since the Split. And this time, there's no turning back.
Learn more about the book and author at Leona Wisoker's website and blog.

Wisoker's short stories have appeared in Futures: Fire to Fly Magazine, Anotherealm.com, Alienskin.com, and more. She is a regular reviewer for Green Man Review and its spinoff, The Sleeping Hedgehog.

Her previous novel is Secrets of the Sands.

The Page 69 Test: Secrets of the Sands.

Read--Coffee with a Canine: Leona Wisoker & Leo and Shadow.

The Page 69 Test: Guardians of the Desert.

--Marshal Zeringue