Murtagh

A year has passed since the war against Galbatorix ended, and Murtagh is still despised across Alagaësia. He and his dragon, Thorn, are exiled, held to account for what they did while serving the dead king. Murtagh wants to make amends and has no clear way to do it.

Rumours of a new threat give him a direction. They also point him toward a witch who turns out to be far more than she first appears. He follows the trail from the city of Ceunon to Gil'ead, then north to Nal Gorgoth.

Nal Gorgoth is a remote valley where a secretive cult holds power. Murtagh arrives there as a feared outcast, and the people he meets along the way test his sense of loyalty, his use of magic and what he owes others.

Thorn is still a young dragon, and the journey gives him room to work out who he is next to his rider. The book is a standalone fantasy sequel to Inheritance, set in the world of Eragon, and it asks whether a man the whole land hates can earn a different name.