The last few months of the moontide - when the bridge connecting East and West rises above the sea - has come, and in the West Emperor Constant prepares the final phase of his plan to conquer the East.For failed mage Alaron and his companion Ramita - widow to the mage who built the Leviathan Bridge - the unthinkable has happened. They have lost the Scytale of Corineus, the key to the Rite of Ascendancy, as well as one of Ramita's infant sons, to the hands of their deadliest enemies.In Javon, Cera Nesti, the imprisoned queen, has been freed, and plots to take on the overwhelming might of the Rondian Empire. But standing between her and her goal is a band of deadly mercenaries playing a dangerous game of their own.And in the East, Seth Korion's Lost Legions must navigate treacherous roads to gain safety, bearing secrets that could bring down the Emperor.The time has come for the Rite of Ascendancy to be performed. New powers must rise to save or damn Urte, and on the mighty Leviathan Bridge itself, all will be decided.

In Scarlet Tides David Hair continues his stunning fantasy epic set in the masterfully crafted world of Urte. With the Leviathan Bridge now uncovered from the sea, it re-opens the East to the Rondian legions and the Third Crusade ensues in the name of Emperor Constant. The Rondians are determined to succeed in their latest Crusade and have recruited the strongest and most lethal magi of the Church's Inquisition to lead the way--and to leave nothing but blood and ruins in their wake.While most of the Rondians have their sights set on gold, one fraction of the Inquisition is set on finding a more important treasure--the Scytale of Corneus. As the source of all magical power, the Scytale is a sure game-changer, and it is imperative that the power-hungry and ruthless Rondians to keep it out of the hands of their enemies if they wish to maintain their growing empire.Yet, as the Inquisition marches forward, conspiracy to overthrow the new emperor lurks in the shadows in both the East and West. With the unlikely heroes of Alaron, a failed mage; Ramita, a lowly market maid; and Cymbellea, the daughter of a gypsy set on ending a world of war, Scarlet Tides is an impressive world-building feat that proves that sometimes even weapons and magic cannot overcome the power of love and loyalty.

David Hair is the award-winning writer of two young adult fiction series, The Aotearoa and The Return of Ravana (based on the Vedic epic The Ramayana). Mage's Blood, the first volume of a series called The Moontide Quartet, is Hair's first work of adult fantasy. In a starred review of Mage's Blood, Publisher's Weekly said, "This multilayered beginning to the Moontide Quartet plunges readers into a taut network of intrigue and mystery that tightens with each chapter. Hair portrays a stark and beautiful world breaking apart, with both good and evil characters desperate to reshape it through magic, war, and treachery. This strong debut should draw in fantasy readers of all stripes." Most of the time the Moontide Bridge lies deep below the sea, but every twelve years the tides sink and the bridge is revealed, its gates open for trade. The Magi are hell-bent on ruling this new world, and for the last two Moontides they have led armies across the bridge on "crusades of conquest." Now, the third Moontide is almost here, and this time the people of the East are ready for a fight... but it is three seemingly ordinary people that will decide the fate of the world.