Lauren Scharhag – författare

Part 3A bad winter has struck the capital. Thia is sneaking around, trying to find members of the underground organization known as the Red Garters so she can join them, which puts a strain on her relationship with Henri. James and Alyssa come to an uneasy truce that they both know can't last.

Part 6Reunited with her foster father at last, Alyssa must choose the life she ultimately wants.

Part 4Alyssa's birthday celebration is filled with bittersweet moments. Four nobles hatch a plot to strike at the King, which brings James and Alyssa's sort-of friendship to an end.

Alyssa Calderon, powerful psychic, and highly trained field operative for the Order of the Four Sons, gets separated from her team when a mission goes south. Injured and alone, she finds a door that leads her to a strange and magical world called Corbenic. And the door doesn't lead her just anywhere—it delivers her right to the royal palace, where she now finds herself at the mercy of its tyrannical King, James Sarpedonne. Days turn into weeks. Weeks turn into months. As Alyssa remains a prisoner, she finds her hope of ever returning home waning. Can Corbenic be her new home? Does she want it to be? She finds there are no easy answers, especially as she comes to make new friends, a new family, maybe even a new life.Part 1Almost immediately, Alyssa finds that she feels oddly drawn to her royal captors, a feeling that appears to be mutual. King James recognizes Alyssa's value as a seer and decides to keep her at the palace to serve him, which includes getting engaged to a prince. As Alyssa struggles to find her footing in this alien world -- a world filled with geomancers and alchemists, nobles and courtesans, fairies and mermaids – she must also find a way to hang on to her self.

Part 2Summer turns to fall. With Leo and Christophe back at school, Alyssa has to figure out ways to fill her time when she's not dealing with James. (Or worse, Endymion.) Every morning, James demands predictions, and nearly every night, he comes to her room for chess and conversation. He also starts having Alyssa accompany him at court functions, which gets people talking—who is this foreign girl, and why does the King spend so much time with her? The uncomfortable intimacy that develops teaches Alyssa just how cruel James can be—and if it weren't for Corbenic's excellent healers, she would have the scars to prove it. It also stokes the attraction that has been simmering away between the two of them.

Part 5Leo and Christophe are growing up and experiencing the initial pangs of adolescence, which leads to Christophe getting into some serious trouble. His punishment sends shockwaves through the royal household that impacts the rest of the summer, if not the rest of their lives. The family's annual holiday to Auroch is more eventful than usual when James decides to come along.In the fall, the arranged marriage takes place. James' scheme is revealed, and it's more diabolical than anyone could have imagined.