by
"Once upon a time, there was a girl who spoke with birds"
She’d used her mage powers to build a successful detective agency, but Dhana’s impressive skills might not be enough to save her family.
MIDNIGHT CROW is a standalone sequel to the WOODSPELL SERIES and one of the TALES OF ARDONNA.
Content Advisory: Contains adult themes and situations, including violence and assault, plus spoilers for previous Modern Era books
Publisher: Kapeo Press
Editors:
Cover Artists:
Genres:
Tropes: Dragonriders, Found Family, Immortality, Portals
Setting: The improbable planet of Ardonna
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Same Universe / Various Characters
Tropes: Dragonriders, Found Family, Immortality, Portals
Setting: The improbable planet of Ardonna
Languages Available: English
Series Type: Same Universe / Various Characters
The gray owl, Ashton, soared to my right, grumbling. His wings stretched wide as he banked, then leveled, blocking the light underneath. I yawned. It was midnight. Sky and water had merged into a seamless curve. Three quarter moons hovered over the ocean, pouring beams like milk. We’d searched for hours with no luck. I circled in crow form—gliding through the air like a fleeting apparition, scanning with my magery-enhanced eyes—but nothing stood out. The seascape shifted like a kaleidoscope, making me woozy.
Are you sure they’re due here this evening?
I shook off stupor. They were sighted three days ago, less than two hundred leagues off.
Somewhere below, an illegal shipment of potions approached land. I had to find the boat, a dark spot amid the glitter.
Ashton tutted. The Dayonian coast is long.
READ MOREThat marina’s a smuggler’s favorite. It’s isolated and discreet—offers everything but a health plan. Locals have been known to actively divert law enforcement.
I dove, catching sight of a long shadow. It was only driftwood.
My scouts could have handled this search, but I like to work in-field. I love to fly. Bird mastery is a humanborn skill. No other beasts would associate with our shady refugee ancestors. Birds sensed an opportunity: mages mistrusted them, but humans were desperate. Fliers filled a niche, exploiting their natural talent for spying and gossip, and lived well. As I do.
I’m no true crow—I’m a wayward beast mage who broke all rules and decorum. Beast mergery is frowned upon, but I’d made a business of it: Morlani Surveillance and Security, contract bird speaker and shifter.
COLLAPSE
