PLAYING THE COMMONER

THE PRELUDE TO A SPLATTER-FANTASY TRILOGY

Jakob Tortsmane is a Dot—one of Marthernia’s unclaimed. He lives among the poorest of the poor in the heart of Scarlet City, deep within the Centerlands.

Far above the city, in the highest tower of Scarletsbrey Castle, sits Garrash Sterneye, the evil little king who rules all of Marthernia. He takes pleasure in the suffering of his subjects and all those unfortunate enough to catch his attention.

Jakob is one of them.

But while the king toys with his newest victim, something far more dangerous is unfolding beneath the castle. Garrash’s private collection of weapons is fighting to break free from their dungeon. If they escape, they will spread across Marthernia, leaving slaughter and chaos in their wake.

From the murderous North to the cannibalistic South, pieces are already moving. Marthernia is engulfed in battle, but the war they know is only the beginning.

Jakob may be the only one who can stop it. When the king’s deadly game begins, the fate of an entire kingdom will rest in the hands of the boy everyone thought was worthless.