The A'ras of Nyaesh have a terrifying reputation: skilled swordsmen, owners of powerful magic, and ruthless killers. When they kill her parents, Carth discovers her parents had trained her for magic she never knew she possessed. She must use the skills they taught to stay alive, discover a way to find answers, and avenge them if she can. Only the discovery of a greater threat than the A'ras forces her to risk herself for new friends, and a home she never wanted.

When Carthenne Rel first came to Nyaesh, she feared the A’ras. Now she trains with them, struggling to use the magic they teach, and cut off from the shadow blessing within her. Isolated for her differences, she has only a few friends among the other students. When the strange and powerful Master Invar offers to teach her to access the powers warring within her, Carth is isolated even more. As the deadly Reshian attack the city, Carth discovers a secret, one linked to the shadows she must suppress, and the combination of her magic is key to the A'ras survival. She needs to master her abilities as an even more dangerous threat appears, one that changes everything she’s become, and challenges everything she knows about her past.

After surviving the blood priests, Carth heads south with a renewed focus, determined to learn more about the Hjan before they gain too much strength and violate the accords. They reach Asador as one of her crew suffers from a mysterious illness. Finding answers leads her deeper into an underworld she knew existed but had not expected to find so easily. Now she needs to help not only her friend but the many others within Asador who have been used. Carth discovers there are unexpected ways to counter her magic, and she must first save herself before she can help anyone else.

Carth has begun to develop her network, and offers her protection to the women of Asador, but not all are pleased with what she has done. When an assassin kills someone close to her, Carth leaves the city in pursuit. What she finds reveals that her plans have been inadequate, and the game she thought she had been playing might have been another entirely. If she doesn’t adapt, those she’s vowed to protect will be in danger, and a greater threat will be unleashed.

Born of shadow magic. Gifted with the power to control the flame that burns within her. A master strategist. All will be tested by the mysterious Collector.As Carth travels south, wanting to solidify her growing network, word of attacks in the south leads her to a distant city with a strange past. While searching for answers and attempting to establish a presence as she has in countless other cities, she finds power that rivals her own and a challenger who might be not only more powerful than her, but an even more cunning strategist. Carth must save her friends—and the city—before the plan set in place by the Collector succeeds.

With the Collector thwarted, Carth realizes that until she uncovers his allies in Keyall, he will continue to threaten the city. When the city is attacked, the ruling tribunal blames Carth and uses the power of the city to confine her. The Collector demands that Carth find the Elder Stone in exchange for her freedom, but there is much more to the demand than it seems. Now she’s caught in a game that she might not be able to win and manipulated by someone more skilled than her. In this game, not only is her life at stake, but the lives of her friends are in danger if she loses. Worse, the person making the moves might be someone much closer to her than she had ever realized.

Carth won the last round, but the game is only beginning. When the Collector escapes from the prison on Keyall, Carth prepares a daring plan to recapture her, but knows the Collector has already planned for any move she might make. Discovering what she’s truly after will require an uneasy alliance and leads to a discovery that sends Carth looking into her past to learn how to survive the present.

Blacksmith. Thief. Murderer. After killing one of the Elvraeth to save his friends, Rsiran finds a measure of peace, but fears that it will be short lived. When attacked using knives he forged, he is pulled into a struggle that he wants nothing to do with. Worse, friends have secrets they do not share, secrets that could place both he and Jessa in danger. Finding answers sends him Sliding throughout the city and beyond, testing his ability all while trying to understand the secret of the alloy that might be the key to their safety. When someone close to him is harmed, he must discover the extent he will go for his friends, and realizes that he might truly have darkness within him. But that darkness may be all that separates he and his friends from an even greater threat.

Trapped by Venass. Tormented by the Forgotten. And both desire the very ability that allowed his escape. Chased through the city by someone able to influence his Sliding, Rsiran and his friends prepare for the next attack, uncertain whether the Forgotten or Venass will move first. When Rsiran learns that his sister was abducted, he must decide whether to help a family that abandoned him. If he does not, Alyse might suffer a fate worse than any torment he has already endured. Finding answers leads him to discover a secret about his family, and himself, that changes everything that he believes, making him question who - and what - to support.

Fresh off a victory against the Forgotten, and with unexpected allies, Rsiran knows that the war is far from over. An attack on someone close to him in the city leads to a search for answers, and he once again must confront the secrets hidden by his family. When he discovers a part of his people’s history long forgotten, he realizes it might hold the key to what Venass really wants… and possibly the means to stopping them. Rsiran must learn to use all of the abilities given to him and discover a way to stop a danger to his friends as well as the city that none other than him is capable of defeating.

Forced into the heart of the Aisl Forest, Rsiran and the guilds regroup and try to find a way to reclaim the city from Venass and the Elvraeth council. Rsiran has stopped the production of shadowsteel, but Venass still possess dangerous weapons, and what’s more, one of the great crystals remains missing. Forced into an alliance with the mysterious Carth in order to find the crystal, they make new allies and discover the means to reclaim the city, but will it be too late? With one of the Elder Trees already gone, recovering the crystal is the key to stopping Venass for good, but as they approach the final battle, Venass proves even more powerful than they ever imagined. The final novel in The Dark Ability series.

After returning to Elaeavn from his exile, Galen is caught up in a fight he wants nothing to do with. When Lorst offers him a job that requires he leave the city, he gladly accepts as there’s no role for an assassin in his homeland. The assignment brings him back into danger, and forces him to reconnect with a woman he’d left behind long ago, leaving him with mixed emotions and Cael with jealousy. Completing the job is only the beginning, and forces a discovery that even those who hired him hadn’t expected. If he fails, the dangerous Hjan will gain the power of the crystal, but succeeding means that he’s brought deeper into something even his skills haven’t equipped him to face. Galen must use friends old and new to survive, but even that might not be enough to stop the Hjan. Set during events of Rise of the Elder in The Dark Ability series.

Some are born to power. Others must find it within themselves. Decades ago, a powerful enemy called the Forgers attacked their homeland, nearly destroying everything. Few remember the time before the attack, but the Forgers have not forgotten. They have spent decades preparing, gaining power, and now their plan has nearly reached fruition. On the outskirts of the city, living within the stronghold of ancient power, Haern longs for a life beyond what he knows—and away from the long shadow cast by his father. When an attack on the city renews a decades old battle, Haern volunteers to leave the city and find the one person that can lead their people to victory. His inexperience might kill him, but his instincts might be the reason they succeed. For Daniel, a member of the ruling family, life in the palace is easy and his path is clear. Eventually, he will rise up to sit on the council and lead the people of the city. An injury to someone he cares for changes everything for him, and he must go to the one person he despises most for help. If he fails, he’ll learn what it means to lose everything he cares about. When their fates intertwine, they must put aside past differences. Stopping the Forgers will require strength and power that both must find within them—or more than their people will suffer.

The Forgers proved to be only part of a greater plan to gain the power of the stones, remnants from powerful beings lost to time. Their power has never been controlled by one person but now someone is close to changing that. Having survived the last attack, Haern trains, working with the assassin Galen to hone his skills, learning about poisons and how to best use his control over metal. When he becomes the target of another attack, he must discover what the Forgers plan before it’s too late. His father might be the key to Haern’s understanding, but the more he learns about what his father has done, the less Haern wants to follow in his footsteps. As Lucy struggles to control her new power, she’s asked to help find the depth of the C’than betrayal. It requires her to learn more about her new abilities and exposes her to dangers she had never imagined. She’s not a fighter, but she must find strength within her to ensure the safety of those she cares about. While staying with Lucy, Daniel hopes she will eventually come to see him the way he sees her. He trains, realizing that despite everything he learned of fighting, he’s still a novice. He needs to improve his skill to protect Lucy, but saving her might require more than his ability with the sword; it will require his mind. The stones must be protected from those who would use them for their own dark purpose, but another has maneuvered for decades, and it might already be too late to prevent the stones from falling into the wrong hands.

An unexpected threat to the power of the elder stones begins to emerge. With his father likely dead, Haern trains to face the Ai’thol, using every ability he possesses to be strong enough to defeat them. A chance encounter with someone who’s lost more than him changes everything. Daniel uncovers the Ai’thol using a new alloy that gives impossible powers and he might be the only one capable of stopping them. The search to understand the alloy brings him back to Elaeavn where he uncovers something unexpected. To understand his future, he must face his past. Lucy gains an understanding of her abilities but struggles with her role among the C’than. How can she serve them when those she rescued need her help and leadership? Not all is as it seems. The search to understand the elder stones continues, but powers maneuvering for decades are playing a game only a few understand leaving those stuck in the middle facing a deadly threat for survival.

A dangerous plan might be the only way to defeat Olander Fahr. With the threat of another attack, Haern must use his new abilities to make a dangerous gambit. Doing so requires he trust someone who has betrayed him once before, and count on others who still don’t fully understand the nature of their abilities. If they succeed, they might finally be able to stop Olander Fahr before he manages to acquire another of the Elder Stones. Daniel struggles to understand his connection to the shadows along with what it means that he can sit at the Council of Elders. When a new threat appears, his unique understanding of the shadows might be the key to survival. Lucy continues her search to discover the longer game. With the Architect now imprisoned, she has access to someone who can guide her to where Olander Fahr might attack next, but they remain a step behind. A growing fear that someone has deceived her leads her in a new direction, but it’s one that will require her to make a dangerous choice. Isolated within the city of Lexa, Ryn must continue to serve the Great One, but a new challenge to her authority forces her to look for power in a different way. Plans unfold, but for the first time, all begin to wonder if the one behind them is different than who they had believed. And if not Olander Fahr, who is the real threat?

A dangerous game nears its end. All must find their purpose, but the rules have changed around them. A dark energy descends, and Haern searches for understanding. The metal he’s known his entire life, metal he’s come to know better than almost anyone alive, has changed. Now he must find out why. The key to this dark power is something unexpected, and requires him to seek a dangerous alliance. While exploring the space between Sliding, Lucy finds a danger she had never expected. Now she must find her way past before it’s too late. She searches for help from an expected source, but the key to survival must come from her. As Daniel discovers an attack unlike any the Ai’thol have thrown at them before, he realizes the game has changed—as has the opponent. Surviving means gaining a new understanding, but time is short and he still doesn’t fully understand his newly augmented powers. Ryn searches for answers, questioning everything she’s been shown. The Temple of the Mind is the key, but when it falls, how will she learn what she needs in time? A dark power pushes toward them unlike anything they’ve ever faced. All must find their purpose before the final battle unfolds, but each move reveals they might have already lost.

A dark energy descends, and Haern searches for understanding. The metal he’s known his entire life, metal he’s come to know better than almost anyone alive, has changed. Now he must find out why. The key to this dark power is something unexpected, and requires him to seek a dangerous alliance. While exploring the space between Sliding, Lucy finds a danger she had never expected. Now she must find her way past before it’s too late. She searches for help from an expected source, but the key to survival must come from her. Understanding the Shadow Queen brings Daniel, Rayen, and Carth back where they first encountered her. What they discover changes everything Daniel knows of the stones. For Ryn to know her purpose, she must return to where she began to question. As she enters the Temple of the Mind, she uncovers a danger greater than anything she has ever imagined. For her to survive it, she must accept her past. The real game begins. All are nothing more than pieces on a game board, but who will lead the attack?

The Shadow Queen begins her attack. Can the Council learn their purpose in time? The four members of the Council begin to work together as they search for the fifth. Finding that person might be the only way to stop the Shadow Queen. They’ll need all the help they can get, but the remaining Elders have disappeared, leaving only those they’ve chosen to replace them. As the Shadow Queen’s nearly unstoppable attackers begin to move, the four new members of the Council are all that stand between her gaining the power she’s sought for centuries. Each of them has a role to play, but the game is not what they have thought. Anticipating what she might do requires finding one who knows her mind, but that way opens each to her machinations. Enemies must put aside differences. Beliefs are shattered. And sacrifices must be made. The thrilling conclusion to the Elder Stones Saga!