Böcker av Carmen Webster Buxton

Praxiteles Mercouri, known to his friends as Prax, has spent his whole life on the plains of the planet Celadon. He knows nothing of technology; his nomadic people travel in huge wagons pulled by enormous beasts native to Celadon. His culture is based on clans, duty, and obligation.Rishi Trahn lives on Subidar, a much more populous world with a much higher level of technology. Rishi, the only survivor of her family, has inherited her family's very profitable trading company. On a trip to check up on her business, she travels to Celadon. While sightseeing she is able to avert a disaster for Prax's clan. In the ensuing celebration, Rishi overdoes the potent local wine and causes a crisis for the clan she saved. As a result, Prax ends up travelling back to Subidar with her, but he is a man lost in a maze of a foreign culture and unknown technology. Rishi, meanwhile, feels terrible for taking him away from his people. But not so terrible that she wants to send him back.

Aveline is a trained magician, but Princess Inessa, the Heiress of Mazuria, hired her to pose as a lady-in-waiting, to protect her from court intrigues and literally sniff out lies. When a wicked duke tries to force Inessa into marriage, Aveline uses a spell to hide the princess. But even magic has limits, and when Aveline stumbles over Zarek, a man whose life has been cursed by more than one tragedy, she demands his help in getting the princess back to the capital. Zarek is on his own errand, and he''s suspicious of Aveline-magicians are feared-but he does help. As he and Aveline travel Mazuria in company with the princess and his wolf-dog Burden, they come to rely on each other and to respect each other''s skills. After Zarek leaves the two women in what he thinks is a safe refuge, he learns they''re in more danger than ever. So of course he and Burden go back to save them.Now if only Aveline can bring herself to believe that Zarek wants to save her even more than he wants to save the princess-and admit to herself that what she feels for him goes way beyond gratitude.