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Set in the Archipelago, the first book in THE ALDABRESHIN COMPASS tells the story of Daish Kheda, ruler of a peaceful southern domain. From the outer islands comes the news that a powerful sorcerer is wreaking chaos and destruction. But the locals are wary of magic and refuse to fight fire with fire. His own family and domain threatened, Kheda resolves to defeat the unknown power of the south - a decision that will lead to battles of sword and wizardry, and the discovery of a magical force the like of which has never been imagined. The Aldabreshin Compass is a major new epic of empire and intrigue from an author whose storytelling has set fantasy fiction alight.

The Aldabreshin Archipelago has been ravaged by war, its fragile alliances sundered by new enemies, enemies wielding forbidden elemental magic and spreading terror throughout the scattered southern realm. Warlord Daish Kheda has vowed to reclaim his people's land but in the process loses his own kingdom, is exiled from his family and is forced to journey north to seek answers. The wizard Dev has pledged to assist Daish, hungry to discover the secrets of this powerful dark magic. This causes turmoil among Dev's northern countrymen, leading to a political battle where strength in magic is key to the highest rank of all.

Warlord Daish Kheda has been building political alliances, working to consolidate power over his new realm. Although he has saved his people from the twin evils of wizardry and dragons, he feels tainted by association with forbidden magic and fears he may bring great ill-fortune to his people. So Kheda resolves to once more join his Northern wizard allies in the hope of removing the dragon threat once and for all, and to seek whatever purification he can find. Only time can tell whether he will be condemned for his actions, or whether magic is less a sin than he was brought up to believe ...He tells his son in secret that he may not return, and sets his face to the future.

The Archipelago is still plagued by dragons and its peoples live in terror of their coming. Kheda, Risala, and Velindre chase rumors of a water dragon, as they alone have gathered secrets of how to repel these fearsome beasts. Yet this has won them no friends as they are forced to travel incognito, their lives at risk. The delicate political balance of the islands teeters as rival factions spar and warfare threatens. Kheda is reluctantly drawn into the fray as his dragon fighting powers become a powerful political tool—but he and his companions are tainted by the suspicion of forbidden magic. This not only places them in great danger but also has wider implications for the power structure of the islands. Kheda's contact with northern magic has caused him to doubt the very foundations of his people's ancient beliefs, placing his future as a warlord in doubt and the making the succession of his realm a dark and bloody question. The Archipelago was first established in McKenna's previous series The Tales of Einarinn.