The Monster of Karth has risen once more. Quin Tern of Azbar has met his fate, and his council has borne the price of crossing Raz i'Syul Arro. Now, as the cruel walls of the city fade into the winter storms at his back, Raz rides north, seeking to take the High Priest Talo Brahnt up on an offer he never should have refused. The path Raz has chosen, though, is a bloody one, and before long he and his new companions find themselves pitted against hardships they can neither anticipate nor ignore. As man and snow and beast alike rise up to block their path, it seems almost as though the North itself has woken to wage war against the Monster.