In a land of falling blossoms and rising steel, one woman's fate is rewritten by the edge of a sword?and the quiet heart of a warrior.
Helena Montclair never imagined her father's final diplomatic journey would end in blood. Or that she, a stranger to sword and soil, would be the only one left alive.
Rescued by samurai and taken to a mountain village untouched by time, Helena is placed under the watchful care of Mariko?wise elder, healer, and widow to a great warrior. But not everyone welcomes her. Least of all Ujio Takahashi, the Daimyo's hatamoto, whose loyalty to tradition runs deeper than any blade.
Ordered to train the foreign girl in the ways of defense, Ujio is prepared for disobedience. What he finds instead is a flame that refuses to go out?a spirit unbowed by grief, and a woman who speaks his language with startling fluency and grace.
As cherry blossoms bloom and enemies gather beyond the mountains, Helena and Ujio find themselves caught between honor and longing, duty and desire. What begins in silence grows into something neither of them can name.
In a world on the brink of change, love may be the most dangerous rebellion of all.
Autorentext
Born and raised in upstate New York, with a brief and very influential stint living in Great Britain, Beth A. Freely now calls Texas her home.
With more than 14 years of writing experience as a copywriter and published author, she holds a bachelor's degree in Journalism and Mass Media Communication with a minor in Marketing and a master's degree in English and Creative Writing.
In 2003, after the prodding of some friends, she published some of her fanfiction online. She won awards for it and decided to write her first full-length novel. She is currently in the process of rewriting the novel in the hopes of publishing it in 2021.
In 2005, Beth was the first-place winner of the 2005 Arche Books Publishing Novel Writing Contest, Women's Fiction with her novel Behind the Eyes of Dorian Gray.
The Legend of Captain St. Pierre, her second novel, was written with her best friend, Mariam, and is the first book in a planned trilogy.
The Loch is her third novel.
Beyond The Steps Of Stone is the first of a planned trilogy.
She is the owner of The Muses Funhouse.