We Lie with Death

November 2, 2020
The land of Kisia is in turmoil in Madson’s fast-paced second Reborn Empire fantasy (after We Ride the Storm). Former Kisian empress Miko Ts’ai—now on the run—finds an unexpected ally in Levanti Sword Rah e’Torin, who has escaped from imprisonment for opposing the new Levanti emperor, Gideon e’Torin. For his part, Gideon’s embroiled in conflict with the young Kisian Emperor Jie Ts’ai and at odds with a growing number of his people, leaving Captain Dishiva e’Jaroven caught in the middle of the widening gap between the Levanti and their leader. Meanwhile, Chiltean assassin Casandra is transported into the body of Miko’s mother, Hana, by the Witchdoctor and the pair set off on a mission of their own. And then there is the enigmatic Dom Leo Villius, Veld Reborn, who seems to have ties to every player in the heated political chess game unfolding across the war-torn country. The story moves at breakneck speed, with frequent point of view changes propelling the plot forward. Far from just an in-between book, this immersive, action-packed fantasy is sure to please. Agent: Julie Crisp, Julie Crisp Literary.

January 1, 2021
The second book in the Reborn Empire series picks up after the fall of the city Mei'lian at the end of We Ride the Storm (2020). The various players seek to regroup, find lost friends, and create alliances while overcoming language and cultural barriers in a vast world of magic, mysteries, and political machinations. Former Levanti Captain Rah e'Torin is torn between his search for a way back to his people and his loyalty to his former leader and friend, now the emperor. Emperor Gideon e'Torin works to solidify his new empire through marriage in a land not his own. Miko Ts'ai, the daughter of the previous emperor, is seeking to regain her empire while her Mother Hana Ts'ai is on the run. Hana Ts'ai crosses paths in captivity with failed assassin Cassandra Marius as each tries to exploit her problems for her own gain. These threads weave together convincingly as characters work through conflicts between loyalty, duty, and personal honor and are forced between bad and worse choices time and again. This book sets up for a third book in which anything can happen when death does not appear to be enough to stop Leo Villius, the leader of a growing religious movement.

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