A. K. Larkwood

The Unspoken Name (Bok)

Does she owe her life to those planning her death . . . Csorwe was raised by a death cult steeped in old magic. And on her fourteenth birthday, she'll be sacrificed to their god. But as she waits for the end, she's offered a chance to escape her fate. A sorcerer wants her as his assistant, sword-hand and assassin. As this involves her not dying that day, she accepts. Csorwe spends years living on a knife-edge, helping her master hunt an artefact which could change many worlds. Then comes the day she's been dreading. They encounter Csorwe's old cult - seeking the same magical object - and Csorwe is forced to reckon with her past. She also meets Shuthmili, the war-mage who'll change her future. If she's to survive, Csorwe must evade her enemies, claim the artefact and stop the death cult once and for all. As she plunges from one danger to the next, the hunt is on . . . The Unspoken Name by A. K. Larkwood is the incredible first book in the Serpent Gates duology.