A Curse of Crown and Root

The epic final instalment of award-winning author Bradley P. Beaulieu's Book of the Holt series.

The grand finale of award-winning author Bradley P. Beaulieu's Book of the Holt series, an epic fantasy trilogy charting the rebirth of a forgotten divine contest and the mortals caught in its wake. Set in a world of dragon legions, living forests, and capricious gods who treat humanity like pieces on a board.

In the great forest known as the Holt, a deadly game threatens to rekindle a struggle that nearly destroyed the world a thousand years ago. Inquisitor Lorelei, looking for a way to stop it, journeys to the fabled city of Gonsalond, but the trees that once granted her visions of the past have gone silent, forcing her to deal with a necromancer who may kill her before revealing the secrets of the game.

Dragon singer Rylan, hoping to prevent all-out war, plans to steal a paragon to prevent their awakening, but it won’t be easy. The empire and its powerful church know that awakening the final two paragons will lead to the rebirth of Alra, whom they worship.

Warrior mage Rhiannon is convinced that the only way to prevent widespread destruction is to find Yeriel, the lone player in the game who seems to care what happens to the Holt when the contest is finally over. But Yeriel has fled and doesn’t want to be found. Rhiannon recruits a magical bloodhound to help her locate the wayward paragon even knowing she may refuse to help.

When the heroes learn the forest itself may be sacrificed to Enwe’s game, they’re forced to look for help from Rhiannon’s mother Morraine, the game’s newest player and a woman who’s sworn to win Enwe’s prize, even if it means abandoning the Holt. As the game nears its end, the empire’s dragon legions, a goddess reborn, and Enwe herself threaten to bring ruin upon the Holt and everything within it.