The First Beast

Two beasts bond with Ryland Kestmore during his Kindling ceremony—an event that has never occurred in the thousand-year history of Acranthos. A frost-wolf from the north and an ember-lynx from the south each claim him, branding his palms with dual marks that ignite a political firestorm between two rival kingdoms already teetering on the brink of war. Caught between generals who see him as a weapon and queens who want him dead, Ryland must uncover an ancient truth buried beneath the very sanctuary where all bonds begin—before the conflict tears his world, and his soul, in two.