A teenage orphan girl must mend a magical conflict in this “superb adventure story” from the New York Times-bestselling author of The Hands of Lyr (Science Fiction Chronicle).The king's lottery has determined that Twilla, a young orphaned apprentice of a renowned wise woman, must marry-for only the wedded can survive the terrible fate awaiting those who penetrate the primeval forest. Altered by a talisman of great power, she escapes her unwanted lot and joins a commander's tragically blinded son on a remarkable journey from peril to peril. For they are the chosen who must rescue the vanquished of an ancient war of magic . . . and shape the destiny of a bloody, disputed land.