Silver in the Bone (Silver in the Bone #1)(127)
Author: Alexandra Bracken
Myfanwy—A little-known sorceress of the maiden rank, whose Immortality unlocks the mystery of why the Larks were at Tintagel.
Neve Goode—A cheerful, caring self-taught sorceress who seeks the Ring of Dispel and joins forces with Tamsin and the others.
THE NINE OF AVALON
Arianwen—A member of the watch, responsible for setting up the necessary elements for rituals. Despises laundry duty.
Betrys—A quiet, no-nonsense figure among her sisters, she’s level-headed and a skilled fighter, but is quick to ensure her sisters are taking care of themselves.
Caitriona—Chosen to be the new High Priestess by her sisters, Caitriona is the de facto leader of Avalon, both spiritually and in its defense.
Flea (Fayne)—The youngest of the Nine, who has yet to come into her magic. She has sly fingers and a bad attitude.
Lowri—A skilled smith of both weapons and smaller items like jewelry, she is now the eldest of the Nine and mostly keeps to herself in the forge. She, too, serves on the watch.
Mari—A shy elfin who is caretaker of the tower and is highly knowledgeable about the legends and history of Avalon.
Olwen—The half-naiad healer of Avalon, who believes there’s a larger role for Tamsin and the others to play in the salvation of Avalon.
Rhona—Serves on the watch and frequently leads the ritual songs; she has taken it upon herself to cheer the others up by creating stories and rhymes.
Seren—Frequently inseparable from Rhona, she serves on the watch and is a skilled archer.
Viviane—High Priestess and the last living priestess of the Arthurian age, who lived for centuries as she waited for the new Nine to be chosen. A motherly figure and tutor for the priestesses, she was killed in the early days of darkness in Avalon.
AVALONIANS
Aled—Uncle to Mari and keeper of the stables. One of the few surviving elfins of Avalon.
Angharad—A tough-as-nails gnome who works in the forge with Lowri.
Bedivere—The last living Knight of the Round Table, he returned Excalibur to the Lady of the Lake and now protects Arthur’s body.
Deri—The last hamadryad who is bonded to the Mother tree and tends to it.
Dilwyn—Aunt to Mari. An elfin who runs the kitchen and cooks for the survivors.
King Arthur—The once and perhaps future king of Great Britain. His body lies in Avalon, protected and sustained by magic until the day he is needed again. Per Flea, he has grown somewhat pruny.
Merlin—Once a Druid and mentor to a young King Arthur, he attached himself to the Mother tree to survive a duel with Morgan and now babbles nonsensical prophecy to the few who will listen.
OTHERS
The Bonecutter—A enigmatic figure who acts as a procurer of skeleton keys to open Veins, as well as other oddities, such as basilisk venom.
Dearie—The sorceress Madrigal’s pooka companion, who acts as both her butler and enforcer.
Franklin—Tamsin’s lovesick tarot customer, who would really benefit from actual therapy.
Griflet—A kitten given to Mari.
The Hag of the Mist (Or Gwrach-y-Rhibyn)—A primordial deity who occupies liminal spaces and has the ability to pass between the boundaries of worlds unimpeded.
Ignatius—The hand of glory Tamsin carries to tap into the One Vision, also capable of opening any locked door.
Librarian—An automaton that used to guard the vault of the sorceress the guild library now occupies. Now tends to the library and protects its many treasures. Has a passion for soft, fluffy things and vacuuming.
Linden Goode—Neve’s adoptive aunt, who is a Cunningfolk Finder. She hides Neve’s true ancestry from her for her beloved niece’s protection.
Pumpkin—A rascal of a library cat, but otherwise a very clever, sweet boy.
KNOWN VARIETIES OF CUNNINGFOLK
Brewer—creates tonics with potent abilities
Coaxer—able to soothe and control animals
Expeller—breaks curses and other enchantments
Finder—able to locate things with accuracy
Grayspeaker—able to commune with the dead
Greenworker—able to commune with and influence the growth of plants
Healer—specializes in healing arts
Mindwalker—able to inhabit creatures or other people and see through their eyes without them knowing
Seer—experiences visions of the future
Excerpt copyright © 2023 by Alexandra Bracken. Published by Hodder & Stoughton
Greenwich, Connecticut
In all the time he’d been a member of the Hollower guild, Cabell had never been invited to the Dyes’ Summerland Estate.
Curiosity may have once been enough to tempt him, especially if it came with some assurance of a big job—an expedition he’d never be able to fund himself for a relic he might otherwise never set eyes on. But on the whole, it had been easy to live without knowing what the inside of the palatial home looked like. He hadn’t even tormented himself with wondering what treasures or resources the Dyes were jealously guarding from the rest of the guild behind tony walls.
Nothing good came of coveting things that were never going to be yours. It only made you feel bad, knowing what you lacked. Better to focus on what was meant for you, and to hell with the rest of it.
The gravel driveway crunched under his feet as he strode forward, matching the powerful strides of the dark figure a step ahead of him. They’d arrived in an icy whirlwind of shadowy magic that had bit at his senses. It wasn’t necessary to travel by Veins—he couldn’t believe he’d ever been excited to find and open them. His lord could transport them between locations with a fleeting crush of death magic.
Cabell had never been a stranger to magic, but this—Lord Death’s magic held the vastness of a night sky. It was no misty, sweet song. It thundered, triumphant and unrelenting. It was inescapable, like death itself.
The elaborate iron gate at the base of the driveway had been left open, anticipating their arrival. Cabell shook his head. That was the way of it with the Dyes. They assumed everything would always go to plan, that others would come when they called, that nothing was beyond their reach, not even a god.