House War 03 - House Name

HOUSE NAMEby Michelle WestHOUSE NAME is the third novel in The House War, the series that began with The Hidden City and City of Night. Set in the same rich fantasy universe as Michelle West’sSacred Hunt duology and her six-book Sun Sword series, theHouse War novels recount the events leading to the momentous battle between the demonic minions of the Lord of the Hells and defenders of the Essalieyan Empire–a realm with a long and bloody history. The empire is ruled by the Twin Kings, themselves the sons of gods. It is also controlled by The Ten, the heads of the most influential Houses in Averalaan, the capital of the Empire.But The House War focuses no only on the larger war but also on the campaign to control the most powerful of the ruling Houses in the Essalieyan Empire–House Terafin.As House Name opens, former street orphan Jewel and her den have been given shelter in House Terafin. The price for them to remain there is that Jewel must prove her value to the House. And saving The Terafin, the ruler of the House, from a demonic assassination attempt is certainly a good start.Now Jewel has been assigned the task of finding the entryways to the ancient undercity that lies beneath the streets of the empire’s capital, Averalaan. But even with the aid of the most powerful First Circle Mage of the Order of Knowledge, Jewel’s search seems hopeless. All of the ways into the undercity seem to be magically disappearing before Jewel can lead the mage to them. And if they can’t find a means to reach the undercity, they will not be able to prevent the demon kin from whatever attack they are planning.Not only does Jewel fear that failure on her part will see her den expelled from House Terafin, but she has been troubled by grim visions of the future–visions of the death and destruction of all she has come to hold dear.Yet is is not until the unthinkable happens–a direct attack on House Terafin–that the stakes are raised to a whole new level. And both Jewel and the Terafin can only hope that it is not already too late to prevent the demon kin from reaching the goal they have worked centuries to achieve–the return of the Lord of the Hells to the mortal realm....