Serpent Heart - kindle ebook by Blair MacGregor

http://www.amazon.com/Serpent-Heart-Blair-MacGregor-ebook/dp/B00JU9A6SI

From fortified alcazars to barren desert canyons, winged serpents command the Heart to return home.

Azim, son of the deposed warrior-prince of Tirhaj, dreams of black and silver serpents guarding the precious frankincense groves that once brought his family wealth and prestige. Now those serpents demand he overthrow the conqueror of TIrhaj and restore his family's rule. But no one will fight beside an impoverished, untested seventeen-year-old who has grown up in the squalor of a foreign city, always shunned because of his father's shame.

Then a wealthy patron offers Azim riches enough to buy weapons, camels, and the service of warriors. Assured of victory, Azim rallies his men and rides across the desert to restore his family's pride and honor. But the patron has plots of his own, and sending Azim away is the first step. Far from home, betrayed and deserted, Azim must confront the dream-serpents in the flesh and decide if defeating his father's conqueror is worth the price.

But Azim doesn't know his sister Aaminah is facing a battle of her own against the conqueror's son. Though she'd have her own voice in Tirhaj, the city of exile gives her father sole authority to decide her future. And her father has already given up on Azim, choosing instead to use Aaminah as a treasure dear enough to buy back the honor and privilege he lost so many years ago.

Trapped by failure and weakened by treachery, bowing to defeat is the best hope Azim and Aaminah have for survival. Yet still they hear the serpents call—Seek, Hearts of Tirhaj. Seek, remember, return...