Waiting on Wednesday – With Blood Upon the Sand by Bradley P. Beaulieu

Waiting on Wednesday is a meme hosted by Breaking the Spine to let us share our excitement for books coming out soon.

OK, I know that every book featured on Waiting on Wednesday is a book that I am really looking forward to, but in this case, I am REALLY, REALLY, REALLY eager to get this book! I think it is probably one of my most anticipated books for next year. If you haven’t read Twelve Kings of Sharakhai, seriously, check it out. It has a kick ass female lead, desert setting, evil kings and a main character driven by vengeance. If you aren’t sure you have time for that, then at least check out the prequel novella, Of Sand and Malice Made where you get a good look at Çeda and the world. This is one my favorite epic fantasy series right now, and I literally Can. Not. Wait! Plus: LOOK AT THE COVER!

With Blood Upon the Sand by Bradley P. Beaulieu
Also by this author: Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, Of Sand and Malice Made
Published by Daw Books on February 7th 2017
Pages: 592

   

Çeda, now a Blade Maiden in service to the kings of Sharakhai, trains as one of their elite warriors, gleaning secrets even as they send her on covert missions to further their rule. She knows the dark history of the asirim—that hundreds of years ago they were enslaved to the kings against their will—but when she bonds with them as a Maiden, chaining them to her, she feels their pain as if her own. They hunger for release, they demand it, but with the power of the gods compelling them, they find the yokes around their necks unbreakable.

Çeda could become the champion they’ve been waiting for, but the need to tread carefully has never been greater. After the victory won by the Moonless Host in the Wandering King’s palace, the kings are hungry for blood. They scour the city, ruthless in their quest for revenge. Unrest spreads like a plague, a thing Emre and his new allies in the Moonless Host hope to exploit, but with the kings and their god-given powers, and the Maidens and their deadly ebon blades, there is little hope of doing so.

When Çeda and Emre are drawn into a plot of the blood mage, Hamzakiir, they sail across the desert to learn the truth, and a devastating secret is revealed, one that may very well shatter the power of the hated kings. They plot quickly to take advantage of it, but it may all be undone if Çeda cannot learn to navigate the shifting tides of power in Sharakhai and control the growing anger of the asirim that threatens to overwhelm her.