about the book
Efea is a world divided between the haves and the have-nots.
The Patrons are high-class-born individuals brought up in wealth and privilege, protected by the powerful of society.
Their advantaged society was built upon the backs of the Commoners, who have few rights and freedoms and take a mostly servant role in Efea.
Jessamy is caught in the middle of these two classes. Her father is a Patron General rising quickly in the military ranks. His mother is a Commoner, whom he fell in love with as a young boy and has remained loyal to for twenty years even though they haven’t been able to marry. As a result, Jessamy and her sisters have been raised in the status of the Patrons, without enjoying many Patron rights, such as being addressed with respectful titles, being free to roam about the kingdom, and the ability to compete in the Fives, a prestigious athletic competition.
Competing in the Fives, though, has long been Jessamy’s dream, so she trains in secret. When the opportunity strikes, Jessamy illegally enters a competition, competing in disguise. When her identity is revealed, her family suffers the consequences. Devious Lord Gargaron breaks her family apart, imprisoning her pregnant mother and sisters and banishing her to a Fives training camp.
There, Jessamy meets Gargaron’s nephew, kind Prince Kalliarkos who also is training for Fives competitions. They fall for each other and the two scheme to save Jessamy’s family. The risks they are willing to take, however, may subject her family to further peril.
about the author
As a fantasy writer, Kate Elliott is a master at creating the worlds her characters live in. Fantasy world building isn’t as easy as you think: the devil is in the details, as they say. Kate has to ask herself many, many questions. “Where does the food come from?” “Who inherits the land after someone dies?” “What system of plumbing do the people use?”
Notebooks upon notebooks in her home office are filled with the details of the worlds she creates. She makes up some aspects, of course, but more regularly draws upon historical details of ancient civilizations to formulate a vision.
It helps that she’s the daughter of a history professor and that her husband is an archeologist. Kate has had the opportunity to travel around the world and view ancient artifacts and local geographies first-hand. She also combs museums and natural history exhibits. If karate or sword fighting occurs in her novels, you can be sure the details are accurate. As a member of the Society for Creative Anachronism, she pursues medieval sword fighting and she holds a brown belt in Shotokan karate.
Her name is a bit of a fantasy, as well; Kate Elliot is a pen name she took on decades ago to shake up her writing career. Her real name is Alis A. Rasmussen. The change worked; her books now sell better than ever.
Kate does most of her writing in her studio in Hawaii, where she is surrounded by Post-It notes and pig and schnauzer trinkets. She prefers English Black tea to coffee and would choose vanilla ice cream over chocolate. If you ask her about outrigger canoe paddling, a hobby she’s picked up since moving to Hawaii, you may learn more than you ever wanted to know.
Source:
Author biography: Goodreads
Author interview: Writing World
Author interview: SFF World
Video interview: Author Magazine
Author interview: Gail Carriger
Author interview: The Book Wars
Book trailer
Also by Kate Elliott:
Buried Heart (Court of Fives, Book 2). Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. July 2017.
Poisoned Blade (Court of Fives, Book 2). Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. 2016.
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