
Fia, the Storygiver, had come to the backward kingdom of Veliano to practice her special art. In the mist that swirled between her hands, her mind formed tiny figures to act out simple folk tales for the entertainment of the lords and ladies. But in the court of King Rofdal and his third Queen, Leonore, the story forming in the mist became a tale of twisted passion and shocking betrayal... for waiting in Veliano was the man Fia both loved and feared. Waiting was a web of intrigue to trap her in a struggle for ultimate power - a magic linked to the dark legend of the White Pipes... the secret instrument of Fia's fate, and the fate of all she held dear.
Author

Nancy Kress is an American science fiction writer. She began writing in 1976 but has achieved her greatest notice since the publication of her Hugo and Nebula-winning 1991 novella Beggars in Spain which was later expanded into a novel with the same title. In addition to her novels, Kress has written numerous short stories and is a regular columnist for Writer's Digest. She is a regular at Clarion writing workshops and at The Writers Center in Bethesda, Maryland. During the Winter of 2008/09, Nancy Kress is the Picador Guest Professor for Literature at the University of Leipzig's Institute for American Studies in Leipzig, Germany. Excerpted from Wikipedia.