Description
To save their world, two young men must break a curse by the bonds of
their friendship.
Near his eighteenth birthday, Prince Atraiu, his
family and the kingdom of Altaria lose their ruler King Edric, Atraiu’s
father. This is a golden opportunity for the Lord of a nearby kingdom to
see if he can’t persuade the upcoming king to join his side in
conquering Altaria’s neighboring kingdom of Redaltras; which has a
mercenary group of Dragon Riders. Redaltras is just one of his many
steps in trying to rule the continent, with Altaria being another, but
you have to take it one step at a time right? Also on his agenda is
wooing the departed king’s widow with whom he is enamored and in turn
satisfying his libido. When his plan fails, his persuasion ends up
involving an ancient curse of a long dead dragon king and falsifying the
death of Prince Atraiu who has unwillingly had this curse placed upon
him and in turn ends up a dragon himself. With all evidence pointing to
the kingdom of Redaltras behind this treachery, Altaria joins the evil
Lord Tregone in his quest to snuff out the kingdom. Only Atraiu has an
inclination of what has happened and unfortunately he can’t tell. But
one astute dragon riding mercenary from Redaltras, Davali, stumbles
across the fact Atraiu is more than he appears and learns of the curse.
His will to help is strong but he learns that there is a catch and that
is to become damned himself. Will Atraiu and Davali be able to save the
lands from Tregone’s evil scheme and be able to defeat curse of the
dragon king Adapu?
Praise and Reviews
"Cursed and the Damned is one
of the finer fantasy novels I've ever read. Michelle Scheunemann is an
extraordinary writing talent who has crafted a strikingly beautiful
tale. Full of plot twists and turns, the story has wonderful
characterization and a narrative structure that draws the reader in
and never lets go. She has accomplished nothing less than creating a
fully realized secondary world, and if you pass this novel by it's to
your literary detriment." --Ralph Macchio Marvel Comics Editor