Aithera Kilbray was assassinated at birth, but destiny has plans for her. With the essence from two others, she lives. Orphaned at 5 she grows up with the pet name her brother always called her, Tera, until at 20 she is told her real name and how she was found. Now on her own and followed by those that hunt for the female child of Kilbray, she meets others that teach her how to harness more of her abilities. Those lessons are put to the test before she can disappear once more, only to take the path that destiny has chosen for her, when she meets an old man along the road. With Chaka the hawk and Tinabara her horse she sets out on her own, to gain knowledge of her origins, grow and reveal magical abilities and avoid those who seek the female child of Kilbray.
Steve was born in South Dakota and raised in upstate New York loved reading when he was younger and would read most anything he got my hands on. Steve still reads whenever he get the chance. Though, once into a book not much else gets done. Both he and his wife were in the Air Force when they met. Steve introduced his wife, D.A. Swem to the DragonRiders of Pern and their courtship began with many reading sessions. It worked for them. Now they collaborate on writing books.
Great read! Lots of very well described details of folks, the animals, and the scenery. Well done. Looking forward to finding out what other adventures await Aithere!
First in the series led by enigmatic and lovable heroine
This is the first in a series following the fate of a girl called Aithera, whose miraculous birth immediately sets her apart for an extraordinary life. Born into an important position, as the first girl child of the Kilbray estate, Aithera’s infancy is shaped by the pressure of her future marriage and the possible gifts she might inherit.
The book begins with a prologue, whose distant, magical tone does a great job of raising Aithera to myth-like status. From this atmospheric beginning, the Swem pair structure and pace Aithera’s story suspensefully and romantically, every so often cleanly jumping into a new era of her life, and reminding us of time’s passing by counting her summers. In this way, Aithera’s life and the world she’s growing up into comes clear to the reader, and with an increasing sense of foreboding as she grows into a more beautiful, and more dangerous, presence...