The cholera epidemic that ravaged the city of TrevHael has left many orphans in its wake, including Neb, the scribe's son, and his brother. Sent to the desolate farm of their last living relative, they soon learn that a worse plague lurks beyond the western border of Deverry. The savage Horsekin tribes, spurred on by their new goddess, Alshandra, are raiding the villages and taking slaves as the first step in their plans to destroy the nomadic Westfolk and the Deverrian farmers both. Drawn into a war for the survival of the kingdom, Neb and his soulmate Branna will face enemies they have fought before in past lives they no longer remember.

Prince Dar of the Westlands calls the new fortress of Zakh Gral "a dagger laid against our throat." It was built by the Horsekin, ancient enemies of his people. To destroy the threat, the elven prince has called upon his dwarven and human allies. Their leaders know that if the Westlands fall, their own throats will feel the dagger next. Joining them are two powerful dragons, who have their own bitter reasons to hate the Horsekin. But the fanatical Horsekin have a powerful ally as well, a new goddess. Alshandra's priestesses have announced that She has given Prince Dar's lands to the Horsekin-and that his people must be utterly destroyed.

Katharine Kerr's Deverry novels tell a complex tale of ancient wrongs and of a timeless vow made to set things right. But it is a vow that will take centuries to fulfill, and the key characters will live through numerous incarnations along the way - for their destinies have been inextricably linked by both powerful dweomer magic and by the debts they own to one another. With the publication of The Gold Falcon and The Spirit Stone, Books One and Two of The Silver Wyrm, Katharine Kerr began the long-awaited fourth and final cycle of the Deverry chronicles. Now, The Shadow Isle, the third novel in The Silver Wyrm cycle, weaves together many of the story strands of this fantasy masterwork, paving the way for the final volume, The Silver Image. The wild Northlands hold many secrets, among them the mysterious dweomer island of Haen Marn, the mountain settlements of Dwarveholt, and the fortified city of Cerr Cawnen, built long ago by escaping bondmen from Deverry. thanks to the Horsekin, who continue to push their religious crusade south toward the borders of the kingdom, the human beings of Deverry and their elven allies have realized the fate of the Northlands lies tangled with their own. Although the dwarven race holds strong, the island of Haen Marn has vanished and Cerr Cawnen seems doomed. Only through the magic of Dallandra and Valandario and the intervention of the powerful dragons, Arzosah and Rori, do the allied forces have a hope of mastering the secrets that can save the Northlands and themselves from conquest.

Read Katharine Kerr's posts on the Penguin Blog. ”Prepare to get lost in the magic” ( VOYA ) of Katharine Kerr’s newest Deverry fantasy. The Horsekin are assembling along Prince Dar’s northern border, and the Deverry alliance simply does not have the men and resources to prevent their enemies from moving into the wilderness areas known as the Ghostlands. But suddenly, the Dwrgi folk and the dragons come to Dar’s aid, tipping the balance in their favor and offering Dar’s people a chance to defeat the Horsekin once and for all.