Exiled from the imperial court, Ampris has learned the archival history of the Viis Empire, its languages, its weaknesses. Now she must learn to harness the innate savagery of her race in the gladiatorial arena. Fighting for sport. Fighting for life. Fighting for the chance to lead a desperate battle for the future of the slave races.

Meanwhile, Israi, princess of the Viis, is coming of age. The childhood friend of Ampris is about to become queen of the Viis Empire … and Ampris’ mortal enemy.
DC: This is my favorite book of The Alien Chronicles trilogy. As a child I used to watch those big epic Hollywood movies about ancient Rome, with gladiator fights and chariot races, etc. So when it came time to make Ampris a gladiator, I had a blast figuring out what kind of training she’d go through.

Later in the story, her incarceration in the lab as a test animal was a harrowing section to write. I kept thinking at the time about the so-called scientific experimentation performed on people by the Nazis, when in fact it was really just sadistic torture of the most despicable kind.
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