Rise

He was supposed to be a king. He became a killer. Now an infant's divine blood will force him to become something far more dangerous: a hero.

Lysander has spent years running-from his throne, from his crimes, from the man he was supposed to be. As a pirate aboard a flying galley, he's finally found a kind of peace in the sky.

Then his crew rescues a dryad sealed in a wooden box.

When Charis gives birth aboard his ship, her infant's first cry drives back creatures from another realm. Lysander realizes too late: this child should never have been born. His blood is ancient, divine, and dangerous-the blood of the Watchers, the fallen angels who were imprisoned for their crimes against heaven.

And now everyone wants him.

Lilith, the serpent priestess who feeds on infants, unleashes demon hounds to hunt them. She knows what the child is: leverage to free the imprisoned angels she serves.

The mad Emperor Cassius, obsessed with achieving godhood through forbidden experiments, doesn't yet realize the answer to his quest sails on his enemy's ship.

Ships crewed by the headless dead emerge from between worlds, drawn to the child who holds the key to all realms.

As Lysander flees across an ancient Mediterranean where mythology breathes and walks, he must finally confront everything he's running from: his royal blood, his unforgivable betrayals, and the prince he abandoned. Protecting Kalos means facing the empress who once owned him, the emperor who wants him dead, and powers that haven't walked the earth in millennia.

But Charis-fierce, otherworldly, and willing to burn the world to protect her son-doesn't know the child's true father. She doesn't know that Azazel, one of the most powerful Watchers, is beginning to wake. And she doesn't know that the greatest threat to her son may be his own divine destiny.

When Kalos is finally stolen by forces they can't fight alone, Lysander must choose: keep running, or stand and face the darkness-both the monsters hunting them and the guilt that's haunted him for years.

Because some sins can only be redeemed with everything you have.

And some children are worth dying for.

"Epic fantasy at its finest-mythology made flesh, stakes that matter, and characters who'll break your heart." -[Author Blurb if available]

RISE is the first book in an epic fantasy series exploring divine bloodlines, impossible redemption, and what happens when the children of fallen angels must choose between their heritage and their humanity.

Perfect for readers who love:

• The mythological depth of MADELINE MILLER (Circe, The Song of Achilles)
• The dark complexity of R.F. KUANG (The Poppy War)
• The found-family dynamics of ROBIN HOBB (Assassin's Apprentice)
• The epic scope of BRANDON SANDERSON (The Way of Kings)
• The ancient gods of NEIL GAIMAN (American Gods)

Featuring: Flying ships powered by maelstroms • Mythology from the Book of Enoch, Norse sagas, and ancient Mediterranean legends • Complex characters seeking redemption • Multiple factions converging on one impossible child • Stakes that threaten the foundations of the world

Award-winning author Elizabeth weaves mythologies from her childhood in West Africa with classic legends to create an unforgettable epic about the weight of divine blood and the cost of choosing courage over comfort.

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