“Lontel, we are no longer in your fantasy world of Sepultha. We’re in the real world now. In the real world there are elves, wizards, goblins, trolls, dwarves, and countless other creatures who can think just as you do. Almost none of them are friendly. Most would as soon kill you as not. In fact, most will go out of their way to do it and then dine on your bones."
Let author Richard S. Wiggins, Jr. take you on a mystical journey into the land of Shangri-la; to the north where the land meets the Cold Ocean.
Meet Lontel. He should have been given the title of master thief long before. He’d proven himself time and again. But no. The guild master, that obese, bald headed Titarnaes refused. He taunted him with the title of apprentice. Lontel could feel the red creep up his neck. He must do something daring to force Titarnaes to accept him as masterthief.
He sets out to steal from his own brethren only to find the sought after prize is an elf; a skinny young maiden. Still, she must be worth something. His efforts are botched by the gnashing teeth of a thrashing crocodile.
He befriends the captured elf, the beautiful Davlena, who is journeying to Shangri-la to take part in the Passage of Life, a ritual which bonds all elfdom together and strengthens their magic. His friendship originates with the less than noble intentions of tricking her into believing he wants to help her only to ransom her back to Titarnaes for a mere half of whatever she is worth. Before his plans can be played out he is found out by Titarnaes and the Guild and forced to follow through with actually aiding Davlena in her journey. In exchange for his life, he is commanded to return to them the king’s reward they are certain the elves will lavish upon him for the elf maiden’s safety.
Davlena shows him, however, that the dangers are not from Titarnaes and the power he holds to keep Lontel from reaching the ranks of masterthief but from the “real world” where they must venture and ban together. Their very lives depend upon the power of the friendship between man and elf maiden and the journey they must make together; bound for survival.