A kingdom on the brink

The Shadow Castles arrived without warning, burdening the Celtic nation of Dalria with a host of questions. What are they? Where are they from? What is their purpose? In the quest for answers only Artemis Macintyre and her Shieldman James Guthrie seem to have their heads in the game. That’s until a dash to Aberdeenshire in pursuit of a digital key reveals other parties willing to kill to win control of a Shadow Castle.

Back in Stirling, the Dalrian court is increasingly divided while all around them, domestic threats and foreign enemies ramp up the pressure. As war with Mercia balances on a knife edge, they need solid answers, fast. Increasingly isolated within the Concordium leadership, the once powerful Catriona MacAllister watches her influence ebb by the hour.

Beyond the walls of the great castle, Dalria’s enemies are circling. Agent 72 lingers in the shadow of a powerful terrorist organisation and waits for orders. Seeking a route to the enigmatic figure at the top, his interventions could rescue the despised Callies, or cut them off at the knees.

Meanwhile, in another Scotland, Conall Canmore discovers that everything he built in the twentieth century has been ripped away from him. Marooned in another century, he must decide whether to start again or surrender to apathy. But the industrial age is just beginning, and to a man with the right skills, rich pickings are all around.