Kelvin Wiltshire lives the life of a simple cook in a remote village on the far side of Trendham. The townsfolk think little of the man, and his son, and believe him to be just another refugee from the Terabinian war. On cold winter nights they share rumors of the bloody conflict and the mysterious death of Will Cartwright, the mighty mage who had the power to command storms. They like the new cook. They fear the fallen king.

But the two men are one and the same.

Haunted by nightmares from his past, Will has chosen a life of exile, hoping to erase the blood from his soul by forging a simple life. Service and family might ease his pain, but beneath his scars are deeper wounds. A queen and wife turned into a lich. Friends poisoned with hate. While he seeks peace in isolation, his absence has left a void, and an ancient foe craves a return to power.

Patient and malevolent, the enemy knows the nature of man, and anger is an oh-so-useful tool in the game of nations. As war looms, Will's anonymity-and the life he's built-are threatened, forcing him to choose between the friends of his past, and the allies of his present. To win, he'll need what he left behind, the mantle of the Stormking.