The second volume in Robin Hobb?s internationally bestselling Farseer Trilogy.
Honesty is the bedrock for any relationship. But how can Fitz ? royal bastard,
trainee assassin, holder of secrets crucial to the security of the kingdom ?
bare his soul to his beloved Molly? Danger lies all around him ? from the
raiders savaging the coastal towns, and from within the court. The king has been
struck down by a mystery illness and his eldest son, Verity, is bound up in the
defence of the realm. When Verity leaves the court in search of the mythical
Elderlings, Fitz finds himself friendless apart from his wolf, Nighteyes, and
the king?s strange, motley-clad fool, exposed to Prince Regal?s malign
ambitions. He will be asked to sacrifice everything ? his heart, his hope, even
his life ? for the sake of the realm.