BOOK II: Tamsen yearns to complete his Masterwork on the lute, and present it to the love of his life, but he is a Rider now, and the Winds, demons from the Wastes, are rising. Wounded, he survives his first battle with the demons, but other evils are active in the kingdom.

Kagan Morric escapes imprisonment by faking his own death, and regains his use of Mage Gift. His plan to gain the throne by orchestrating a convenient "accident" is ruined when the untimely death of King Cedric leaves Kagan's line further from succession. His next plot, more bloody and direct, is thwarted by Tamsen himself.

Kagan escapes and flees, but leaves in place the seeds for his eventual return and rise to power. The only obstacle in his path is Linnet, the Queen's powerful mind healer and Tamsen's betrothed.