Lisa Cassidy – författare

One kingdom bound by duty. Another ruled by fear. And a woman caught between them.Once the finest warrior of her generation, Talyn Dynan now measures every step against the fear of failing again. Still haunted by the partner she couldn't save, she takes an assignment far from home, hoping to find redemption. But Mithranar is no ordinary place. Its people have wings, its court is a viper's nest of politics, and something restless stirs in the shadows beneath the surface. Tasked with forging a royal guard from the human outcasts no one else will touch, she builds the one thing she swore she'd never risk again—a family.In the darkest streets of Mithranar, a masked rebel known as the Shadowhawk steals from the powerful and vanishes into the night. To the oppressed human folk, he represents something far more dangerous than crime. Hope.Crossing his path forces Talyn to confront who she could become—and as loyalties blur and unrest rises, she must decide who she truly serves, and whether she's willing to stand with the people who were never meant to be hers.A Tale of Stars and Shadow is the first book in a complete adult epic fantasy series for readers who love court intrigue, ierce found family, layered magic, and a slow-burn, closed-door romance.

In the shadows of two kingdoms, loyalty is a dangerous weapon.In Dock City, the Shadowhawk has become both hope and myth—until a string of brutal murders drags him into the citadel's line of fire. With the prince of night escalating his hunt and the Falcons closing in, the Shadowhawk must decide how far he will go to protect a people who don't even know his name.Talyn Dynan, newly returned to the Twin Thrones, wants only to reclaim the pieces of her life. Yet when the Callanan task her with a highly dangerous mission, Talyn is faced with a difficult choice—between duty to her family and country and trusting the shadowy criminal she met in Mithranar.As Vengeance resurfaces with a plan years in the making, Talyn and the Shadowhawk are drawn into a conspiracy that spans kingdoms.Because this time the enemy isn't just in the shadowsIt's already at their doors.A Prince of Song and Shade is for readers who love court intrigue, found family, a deepening slow-burn romance, and a fierce warrior heroine.

A storm is coming—and this time, there are no masks left to hide behind.The Shadowhawk has been unmasked to those he trusts most. Montagn, the most powerful empire in the world, prepares for invasion. And back in the tangled alleys and dark streets of Dock City, Vengeance lurks.Badly injured after the ambush that nearly claimed his life, Cuinn Acondor is determined to recover and grow strong so that he can go home and do more. Be more. Talyn Dynan, reeling from the news that Montagn has been using Vengeance as a tool to undermine Mithranar from within, has a single purpose  …  raze them to the ground.But Vengeance isn't their only enemy. The prince of night grows stronger, his grip on power in Mithranar tightening. And a deadly strike to the heart of the Dumnorix family reveals a greater threat than anyone realised. Together, Talyn, Cuinn and their Wolves must stand and fight, or risk losing everything they love.A King of Masks and Magic is for readers who love court intrigue, found family, epic battles, a slow-burn, closed-door romance, and a fierce warrior heroine.

The time of the Shadowhawk was gone. Now he needed to be more.In the space of a night Cuinn Acondor lost his crown and almost his life. Devastated by Talyn's disappearance, he's on the run, fleeing from Shadow hunters who want to destroy everything he stands for. But he won't give up. Together with the resurgent Wolves, he sets out to take back everything Azrilan stole.A world away, Talyn fights for her life in a Montagni labour camp, cut off from Cuinn and her Wolves with no way of knowing if any of them still live. Like Cuinn, she won't give up. She'll claw her way back to the family she found—and the future she finally let herself want—even if survival means allying with her greatest enemy.In the Twin Thrones, the Dumnorix are gathering their forces. Firthland has brought war to their shores, and the time for hiding is done.Everything they've fought for comes down to this—and this time, they fight in the openA Duet of Sword and Song is the final book in A Tale of Stars and Shadow—four books of court intrigue, a fierce found family, layered magic, and a slow-burn, closed-door romance.

A splintering peace. A forgotten past. A girl who might be the key to it all.In the small kingdom of Rionn, sixteen-year-old Alyx Egalion's noble birth has always protected her. But when the king sends her to the mage training academy of DarkSkull Hall, everything changes.At DarkSkull, power is everything and survival is never guaranteed. Alyx is forced to confront a world she was never prepared for. She can't access her magic. She doesn't know who to trust. And the only thing standing between her and failure is a growing bond with a misfit group of fellow students—each hiding their own scars and secrets.As Alyx uncovers the truth about her past and the shadows gathering beyond DarkSkull's walls, she's faced with an impossible choice: cling to the life she was meant to have—or embrace the one that could save them all. The Mage Chronicles is a complete young adult epic fantasy series for readers who love coming-of-age, found family, a slow-burn clean romance, and a heroine who grows into her power.

An apprentice mage. A powerful order. Secrets that could destroy them all.Driven to find the truth behind her mother's death, Alyx Egalion returns to DarkSkull Hall to reunite with her friends. The lies that bound her past have broken open, and she's determined to embrace the magic that burns inside her.Despite her resolve, Alyx is haunted by terrible nightmares and the loss of her friend Brynn. Her nemesis, Galien, strains at the leash of the masters' control—his hatred for her means Alyx can never be truly safe. And as they dig deeper into her mother's life, Alyx and her friends uncover a terrible truth that strikes to the heart of her family and threatens the powerful bond of friendship between them.With the world outside under threat from the increasingly restive Shivasa, can they find a way to come together and fight the growing darkness, or will the ruthless world of mages tear them apart?The Mage Chronicles is a complete young adult epic fantasy series for readers who love coming-of-age, found family, a slow-burn clean romance, and a heroine who grows into her power.

A fracturing order. An impossible choice. And an old enemy on the hunt…Almost two years have passed since Alyx Egalion was sent to DarkSkull Hall to become a mage. Now a half-trained mage apprentice, Alyx wields a depth of magic that scares even the corrupt Mage Council.Summoned abruptly home, Alyx and her friends find themselves unprepared for the changes that have occurred during their absence. Worse, the Shiven threat is growing, their armies building up along the Rionnan border. Invasion is inevitable.When a Taliath is revealed, Alyx and Finn find themselves on opposing sides of a larger battle. Neither of them is willing to yield. The stakes are higher than ever before as they must navigate the treacherous political landscape of Alistriem and try to investigate the true source of the darkness invading their home.Can Alyx use her powerful magic to save Rionn and the people she loves? The Mage Chronicles is a complete young adult epic fantasy series for readers who love coming-of-age, found family, a slow-burn clean romance, and a heroine who grows into her power.

A fallen order. An impossible love. A risen Darkmage.In the epic conclusion to the Mage Chronicles series, Alyx Egalion and her friends must find a way to defeat the most powerful mage alive before he destroys everything they hold dear.Shakar's influence is spreading, his darkness descending on Rionn and Tregaya like a shroud. The Mage Council cowers behind the walls of Carhall. Mages everywhere are divided, some cleaving to the council, others to Alyx and the faint hope that she is powerful enough to defeat Shakar. Yet Alyx is on the run, pursued relentlessly by Shakar's Hunters and hiding a terrible secret from everyone—even those she trusts most.When tragedy strikes, Alyx is left with a heartbreaking choice. Is she willing to sacrifice those she loves to become the leader the mages need her to be? The Mage Chronicles is a complete young adult epic fantasy series for readers who love coming-of-age, found family, a slow-burn clean romance, and a heroine who grows into her power.

A splintering peace. A forgotten past. A girl who might be the key to it all.In the small kingdom of Rionn, sixteen-year-old Alyx Egalion's noble birth has always protected her. But when the king sends her to the mage training academy of DarkSkull Hall, everything changes.At DarkSkull, power is everything and survival is never guaranteed. Alyx is forced to confront a world she was never prepared for. She can't access her magic. She doesn't know who to trust. And the only thing standing between her and failure is a growing bond with a misfit group of fellow students—each hiding their own scars and secrets.As Alyx uncovers the truth about her past and the shadows gathering beyond DarkSkull's walls, she's faced with an impossible choice: cling to the life she was meant to have—or embrace the one that could save them all.The Mage Chronicles is a complete young adult epic fantasy series for readers who love coming-of-age, found family, a slow-burn clean romance, and a heroine who grows into her power.

Edited by Lisa Cassidy and Mianna Lotz, Philosophies of Adoption: Perspectives and Reflections explores contemporary philosophical analysis of adoption, providing insight into new and underexplored topics in the field. Three scholarly developments are central to the emerging philosophical discourse on adoption explored in this volume: a problematizing of the adoption triangle or "triad", a critique of the so-called “bio-normative family", and an attention to specific issues in transracial and First Nations adoption. The book’s contributors expand on all three of these areas by addressing a range of questions—How does being adopted shape self-knowledge and identity? What challenges arise at the intersection of race and adoption? What can be learned about epistemic justice, identity, and belonging from transracial adoption? What are the narratives told about adoption?—to show how current conditions and lived adoptee experiences give new shape, meaning, and importance to philosophical thinking about adoption. Showcasing a diversity of styles and standpoints, and organized into three core themes—situating adoption, knowing adoption, and telling adoption—this book grapples with the adoption experience, historical and recent developments in adoption practice, and emerging directions in philosophical scholarship.

One kingdom bound by duty. Another ruled by fear. And a woman caught between them.Grab all four books and binge this bestselling epic fantasy series today.Once the finest warrior of her generation, Talyn Dynan now measures every step against the fear of failing again. Still haunted by the partner she couldn't save, she takes an assignment far from home, hoping to find redemption. But Mithranar is no ordinary place. Its people have wings, its court is a viper's nest of politics, and something restless stirs in the shadows beneath the surface. Tasked with forging a royal guard from the human outcasts no one else will touch, she builds the one thing she swore she'd never risk again—a family.In the darkest streets of Mithranar, a masked rebel known as the Shadowhawk steals from the powerful and vanishes into the night. To the oppressed human folk, he represents something far more dangerous than crime. Hope.Crossing his path forces Talyn to confront who she could become—and as loyalties blur and unrest rises, she must decide who she truly serves, and whether she's willing to stand with the people who were never meant to be hers.A Tale of Stars and Shadow is a complete adult epic fantasy series—for readers who love court intrigue, a fierce found family, layered magic, and a slow-burn, closed-door romance.

She is the granddaughter of the Darkmage. And the Mage Council will never let her forget it.Lira Astor learned long ago that fear is its own kind of power. Orphaned on the streets and hunted for a name she never chose, she's survived as a thief, a liar, and the best con artist in the business — and now she's talked her way into the Mage Council's most elite apprenticeship with no intention of playing by their rules.Because Lira isn't there to belong. She's there to play every side against the other: the Council that fears her, the rebels who want to use her, and the ruthless, magnetic crew leader from her past who knows exactly who Lira really is.But the deeper she burrows into other people's secrets, the harder it gets to tell whose game she's running — and whether the cold, dangerous heir everyone sees is a mask… or the truth.In a world still scarred by war and stalked by things far worse than mages, Lira must decide what kind of legacy she'll claim. Her grandfather's. Or her own.

Loyalty. Magic. Ambition. Which will triumph?Returned to Temari Hall after her abduction, Lira's ultimate ambition remains unchanged. Destroy Underground and leverage that victory to rise up the ranks of the Mage Council. Make them all forget about the Darkmage and remember her instead.To do that, she must win back the trust of Underground while secretly spying on them for the Mage Council. Exposure would mean her death.But the arrival of Ahrin Vensis at Temari Hall places Lira in greater danger than ever before. The Darkhand's agenda is unknown, and she hides secrets that could undo everything Lira is working towards. Winning the Darkhand to her side would guarantee victory, but to do that Lira will need to betray those who offer a gift she's always yearned for … acceptance and friendship.Can she successfully walk the line between ambition and loyalty, or will Lira's hunger for danger leave her standing amidst the ashes of all her hopes? Heir to the Darkmage is a complete epic fantasy series for readers who love a morally grey heroine, slow-burn sapphic romance, and a found family worth fighting for.

They thought the Darkmage's cause had died. They were wrong.Lira Astor has been rotting in prison for over two years. The passage of time has only reinforced her determination to be free of her cell and wreak a trail of destruction on those who put her there. No longer avoiding her name, Lira Astor has accepted her heritage.When a shocking disappearance sends old allies looking for Lira's help, she uses them to get what she wants. Freedom. A chance to burn Lucinda and the Shadowcouncil to ashes. Yet vengeance means more than just relying on those who once betrayed her. Lira will be faced with an enemy more powerful than she could ever have imagined.To survive, the heir to the Darkmage will be faced with a choice. Take on her grandfather's mantle, for real this time.Or lose the thing she loves most in this world. Heir to the Darkmage is a complete epic fantasy series for readers who love a morally grey heroine, slow-burn sapphic romance, and a found family worth fighting for.

Love drives her. Magic fuels her. But vengeance always has a price.To save Ahrin Vensis, Lira Astor has agreed to take control of the Mage Council and use that power to subdue the kingdoms on behalf of Lucinda and the Seven. She must succeed where her grandfather—a vastly more powerful mage—failed twice. And to do that, she will have to face down Alyx Egalion, the woman who destroyed the Darkmage.Lira is no fool. Lucinda is the most daunting adversary she's ever faced, and the task before her seems impossible. But Lira is determined to win this time. To succeed, she's going to have to pull off a con of epic proportions, and all without the help of her Darkhand. But Lira has learned. She has allies now. Friends even.Lira Astor doesn't give up. And she doesn't lie down. She's going to beat them all.Or she's going to die trying.

She is the granddaughter of the Darkmage. And the Mage Council will never let her forget it.Lira Astor learned long ago that fear is its own kind of power. Orphaned on the streets and hunted for a name she never chose, she's survived as a thief, a liar, and the best con artist in the business — and now she's talked her way into the Mage Council's most elite apprenticeship with no intention of playing by their rules.Because Lira isn't there to belong. She's there to play every side against the other: the Council that fears her, the rebels who want to use her, and the ruthless, magnetic crew leader from her past who knows exactly who Lira really is.But the deeper she burrows into other people's secrets, the harder it gets to tell whose game she's running — and whether the cold, dangerous heir everyone sees is a mask… or the truth.In a world still scarred by war and stalked by things far worse than mages, Lira must decide what kind of legacy she'll claim. Her grandfather's. Or her own. Heir to the Darkmage is a complete epic fantasy series for readers who love a morally grey heroine, slow-burn sapphic romance, and a found family worth fighting for.