Heart of Flames

War between the empire and the Phoenix Riders is close to certain. Veronyka has finally been accepted into the Riders, but training bores her. What she wants is to fly out and defend the villages of Pyra from the empire's advance.

Three others are pulled in alongside her. Tristan is now a Master Rider, and his ideas about how to protect their people differ sharply from those of his father, the commander.

Sev is posted inside enemy ranks as a spy. Keeping his cover could force him to fight for the wrong side. Veronyka's sister, Val, wants the empire she lost back, even if she has to start the war herself.

This is a young adult fantasy told through several viewpoints, and it is the sequel to Crown of Feathers. Phoenixes and their riders are central to the world, and the mood is tense, with the threat of open conflict building throughout.

As tensions reach a boiling point, the four are drawn into a fight that will decide the course of the empire and the future of the Riders. Each has to settle how far to go and what to give up along the way.