After the events of the Fourth Trial, Martial soldiers hunt the two fugitives as they flee the city of Serra and undertake a perilous journey through the heart of the Empire. Laia is determined to break into Kauf - the Empire's most secure and dangerous prison - to save her brother, who is the key to the Scholars' survival. And Elias is determined to help Laia succeed, even if it means giving up his last chance at freedom. But dark forces, human...

"Tori Spring feels completely disconnected from her life--until she meets the relentlessly cheerful Michael Holden, and a series of schoolwide pranks starts to draw her out of her shell"--

Beyond the Empire and within it, the threat of war looms ever larger as the Blood Shrike, Helene Aquilla, Laia of Serra, and Elias Veturius all face increasing dangers. The Blood Shrike, Helene Aquilla, is assailed on all sides. Emperor Marcus, haunted by his past, grows increasingly unstable, while the Commandant capitalizes on his madness to bolster her own power... the lives of all those in the Empire hang in the balance. Far to the east, Laia...

Ember stands with Riley and his band of rogue dragons, instead of becoming an assassin for Talon. Meanwhile, she's lost contact with her twin brother Dante, as well as with Garret, a former-enemy soldier who challenged her beliefs about her human side.

"Desperate to be forever remembered for her music, Nannerl Mozart makes a dangerous pact with a mysterious stranger from a magical land, which may cost her everything"-- Born with a gift for music, Nannerl Mozart has just one wish: to be remembered forever. She delights audiences with her masterful playing, but has little hope she'll ever become the acclaimed composer she longs to be. She is a young woman in 18th century Europe, and that means composing...

Unable to forget the human boy who saved her from a Talon assassin, Ember is determined to save him from execution with the help of rebel dragon Cobalt and his crew of rogues.