Sorcery Rising

From the flaps of the DAW third HB printing: "Katla Aransen, daughter of a merchant from the island nation of Eyra, has come to her first Allfair. It's an annual tradition, and many of the diverse peoples of Elda gather at the Allfair, setting aside their differences, to trade and interact. Katla has heard about the Allfair for as long as she can remember and she has been unable to sleep for sheer anticipation. Even the location of the Allfair, the Moonfell Plain, is a place out of legend. For the Moonfell Plain - a neutral territory though it technically lies within the boundaries of the Istrian Empire, Eyra's ancient enemy - is home to a sacred mount, a hallowed but contested ground. For the Eyrans, it is called Sur's Castle - the place where their god, the monarch of the sea, first surveyed his worldly domain. The Eryans believe that Sur views both men and women equally and welcomes them both onto holy ground. But the Istrians have a different tale to tell. For them the mount is Falla's Rock, the holy place of their vengeful fire goddess. The Istrians, who shroud their women in concealing garments and deny them many of the freedoms of life, believe that for any female other than their goddess to set foot on Falla's Rock is the deepest desecration - a capital offense. Katla, though still young, has come to the Allfair not merely to enjoy herself, but to ply her trade. For she is a master knife maker - the greatest blade-forger in all of Eyra. But she is also a compulsive rock climber and can "feel" the land around her even when she is aboard ship, for she has an inborn magical affinity with the natural elements of the earth - stone and metal - which imbue both her trade and her hobby with preternatural skill. Proud to the point of arrogance, rebelliously willful and strong-minded, yet naive about the religious fanaticism of the Istrians, Katla secretly climbs the holy mount at dawn on her first day at the Allfair. Unfortunately, her "sacrilege" is observed by Istrian elders, who swear to catch this blasphemous young woman and put her to death. But her brazen and ill-considered act is also witnessed by a young and idealistic Istrian nobleman, Saro Vingo, who is awed by Katla's strength, beauty, and daring. He has never before seen a Northern woman, and he is instantly smitten. While Istrian officials search for the offending young woman among the tents of their longtime enemies, and Katla cuts and dyes her long red hair to avoid detection, far stranger events are afoot at the Allfair. For the caravans of the Footloose - sorcerous nomads - shelter a mysterious albino man who sells maps to Sanctuary, an arctic fortress thought to exist only in myth, and draws to him people who secretly yearn for danger. But this enigmatic man has an ulterior motive, and he also harbors two sorcerous entities: an unimaginably beautiful woman with no memory who inspires unquenchable lust in any man who sees her, and a black cat within whom is hidden many of the world's greatest magical secrets. And before the Allfair is over, forces will be set in motion which will threaten every country, every people, and perhaps change the entire face of Elda forever."