The Golden Vial

With the realm under threat and an ailment sweeping the land, the last remaining hope may come from an unlikely sourceamp;mdash;a young, orphaned servant with untested and untrained abilities.

Lady Shona, the newly crowned queen of the realm, is a leader without a throne. Pursued relentlessly by a dark force, her small contingent of loyal followers must make a difficult choiceamp;mdash;flee or fight. Determined to save her land from nefarious threats, Lady Shona decides that she must seek out the enemy and attack them head-onamp;mdash;a strategy that leads back to the region of the Three Valleys, where Hyam was born.

Alas, Hyam has been struck by a mysterious illness that is silently sweeping through the realm. Known as the wasting disease, the sickness has no cure. But there is one shred of hope for Lady Shona and the realmamp;mdash;and it comes in the most unlikely of forms. A young orphan, untested and untrained, could well mean the difference between victory and total defeat.

Thomas Locke concludes his epic trilogy with a gripping tale of courage that will inspire listeners to persevere even when all seems lost.