Akron Public Library

Tavi is ostensibly serving as a page but secretly training to become a spy. When the first lord falls to a sorcerous attack, Tavi and his closest friends and teachers must conceal the lord's condition lest the realm fall into civil war. In the Calderon Valley, a long--forgotten horror awakens and heads for the heart of Alera, while Tavi's closest relative, the newly appointed Steadholder Isana, faces at least two sets of assassins.

"Florence, the 1550s. Lucrezia, third daughter of the grand duke, is comfortable with her obscure place in the palazzo: free to wonder at its treasures, observe its clandestine workings, and devote herself to her own artistic pursuits. But when her older sister dies on the eve of her wedding to the ruler of Ferrara, Modena and Reggio, Lucrezia is thrust unwittingly into the limelight: the duke is quick to request her hand in marriage, and her father...

"The final installment in Bernard Cornwell's bestselling Saxon Tales series, chronicling the epic story of the making of England ... England is under attack. Chaos reigns. Northumbria, the last kingdom, is threatened by armies from all sides, by land and sea, and only one man stands in their way. Torn between loyalty and sworn oaths, the warrior king Lord Uhtred of Bebbanburg faces his greatest ever battle--and prepares for his ultimate fate"--

Clashing empires, forbidden romance, and a long-forgotten queen destined to save her people-- in an epic, romantic trilogy inspired by Persian mythology. To all the world, Alizeh is a disposable servant, not the long-lost heir to an ancient Jinn kingdom forced to hide in plain sight. The crown prince, Kamran, has heard the prophecies foretelling the death of his king. But he could never have imagined that the servant girl with the strange eyes, the...

Freddy is the Prince of Wales, Fredericka his wife. Freddy commits one gaffe after another, for which he is massacred daily in the British press. Because of the epic public relations disasters caused by these heirs to the throne, they are sent, in a little-known ancient tradition, on a quest to colonize a strange and barbarous land: America.

"The latest novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Philippa Gregory features one of the most famous girls in history, Lady Jane Grey, and her two sisters, each of whom dared to defy her queen. Seventeen-year-old Jane Grey was queen of England for nine days. Her father and his allies crowned her instead of the dead king's half-sister Mary Tudor, who quickly mustered an army, claimed her throne, and locked Jane in the Tower of London. When...

Lord Ingrey is sent to the country estate of the murdered Prince Boleso in order to smooth over the region's political turmoil, but discovers that the kingdom is in imminent threat of falling into malevolent hands.

A young king's ascension threatens a traitorous conspiracy of powerful nobles who plan to brutally eliminate all magic-users from their medieval realm The brief reign of Alroy Haldane is nearly at an end, as the life of the young king of Gwynedd slowly slips away. Called back from the abbey where he has sought sanctuary for the last three years, Alroy's twin, Prince Javan, prepares to ascend the throne-against the wishes of the former regents, who...

Legendary man of war and the rightful First Lord of Alera, Gaius Octavian, must save his world from eternal darkness, and stand against the savage Vord in the Calderon Valley.

Princess Skara has seen all she loved made blood and ashes. She is left with only words. But the right words can be as deadly as any blade. She must conquer her fears and sharpen her wits to a lethal edge if she is to reclaim her birthright. Only half a war is fought with swords The deep-cunning Father Yarvi has walked a long road from crippled slave to king's minister. He has made allies of old foes and stitched together an uneasy peace. But now...