Shadows on Fire: Book Three of the Kivattar Bridge

At the start of Book Three the young group have found two of the three Talismans, but they are all far apart, separated across the world. Tariska is in Shardd, deceived by a Shadowmaster into believing that Caldar is a slave there in the most dangerous of the Fisher Kingdoms. She learns sorcery in the hope of using it to divine where he is.

In fact Caldar has been waylaid and sold off as a slave before he even reaches Shardd. Drugs have blanked off his memories, but he comes to the notice of the Shabbatsa who take him into the Rhudila, the deep desert, to cure him. Later Jedorje, one of his teachers, arrives to complete the process and guide him further on the Kivattar path.

Berin traces Herao to the centre of the Borogoi grasslands and rescues her from a renegade shaman. They travel on together to QuinQuiya, where Meruvai, Berin’s mentor, sets them to find the original Quezma people, who are the only hope of salvaging something from the coming civil war in the Republic.

In the Empire Rasscu counters an attack from the Terrechar assassins. But soon afterwards they take over the Empire in a sudden coup. They torture Princess Shkosta to make her side with them, but she escapes into the mountains with a few loyal soldiers. Rasscu meets them in the mountains and takes Shkosta onto the Harb. Together they organise the defence of Tarkus which is under attack from a Quezma army, the start of the long-threatened invasion.

The Kivattar warn the other three that Tariska is approaching a crisis in Shardd which will involve them all. Her sudden final showdown with the Shadowmaster is so powerful that it endangers the whole group, before revealing to them the origin of the Talismans.

Finally the young four are summoned back to Esparan to meet all the Kivattar. Tariska has found the last Talisman and it is time for them to hear more about the path ahead.