<p>Connor&#39;s supposed to be dead.</p><p>He&#39;s not very good at it.</p><p>He did save his village . . . by destroying it.&nbsp; And the armies vying to control his powerful curse think he&#39;s dead.&nbsp; But he needs patronage from a high lord or his curse will transform him into a raging monster. &nbsp;So Connor creeps back into the land of the living joining his Aunt Ailsa at the Carraig the school of the Petralists hoping somehow to find patronage on his terms.</p><p>He should have known better.</p><p>At the Carraig it&#39;s all about the game and the stakes have never been higher.&nbsp; With old enemies appearing from under every rock Connor plunges into games within games that form a maze of conflicting loyalties and deadly intrigue.</p><p>Dying again isn&rsquo;t an option. &nbsp;So with the help of trusted friends Connor launches his own game breaking all the rules gambling on the one chance at a free life with the girl he loves.&nbsp; The alternative is chaining his powers to one of the nations planning to unleash him upon the world.</p><p>Connor doesn&#39;t want to kill anyone.</p><p>He might not have a choice.</p>