Robert Reid

In The Emperor, the first book in this trilogy, a young man called Audun discovered that he was the illegitimate son of Alberon, the Emperor of the North. Audun blamed the Emperor for the death of his mother and his grandparents. In Aldene Castle’s dungeons, he recovered a mysterious red stone which was all that remained of Oien, the ancient alchemist whose essence was locked away centuries earlier by the white magic of Alastair Munro. Now in this sequel, Audun has to harness the power of the stone and learn the secrets of the Staff of Power before he can claim his inheritance.

In the early 16th century in the city of Mora, capital of Kermin, a cruel new ruler has come to power – Alberon, self-styled Emperor of the North. Not satisfied with his own power and wealth, he covets the rich southern lands of Amina and plans a brutal campaign of conquest, fuelled by a deadly new weapon – the power of gunpowder. In the same city and at the same time, a young orphan boy called Raimund is forced into picking pockets to keep himself fed. In a northern city another young man, Audun, learns about a mysterious and powerful red stone – and begins to uncover the secret of his royal birthright. Soon the lives of the Emperor, Audun and Raimund will become inextricably entangled. This story is Volume 1 of a trilogy, The Emperor, The Son and The Thief.