The desert keeps its secrets. The Jungles harbor still more...
Secrets of the Sands by Leona Wisoker
Cafad Scratha, a powerful desert lord with a persecution complex, believes everyone is lying to him. When his obsession collides with the king's efforts to rebuild the shattered realm, the orphaned street-thief Idisio and the king's emissary Alyea become pawns in their multilayered game. 
The secret world into which Idisio and Alyea are drawn will not only change their lives: it will change them.
Guardians of the Desert
by Leona Wisoker
The new desert lord Alyea Peysimun returns to Bright Bay in the company of ancient, mysterious Deiq, who has agreed to serve as her mentor, and the young ha'ra'ha Idisio, whose powers and history are only beginning to emerge. Alyea's changed status will upset a precarious balance in Bright Bay--
but that is nothing compared to the hidden havoc her transition is already creating in the desert.
Available March 2011
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Royal Library Map no. 123: The Southlands and Southern Kingdom |
Cultural Resources
Dolls of the Kingdom and Desert
Virginia artist Angela Wade created a series of dolls related to the Children of the Desert series, capturing the essences of the three principal regions of the world: the Northlands, Bright Bay, and the Southern Desert.
The Bead-Language of the Southlands
Bead codes in the south range from incredibly complex to very simple. A few general guidelines apply.
Kingdom and Desert Calendars
The same calendar structure (ten-day weeks, twelve-month years) is used north to south. Names are usually different, although there are a few overlaps. South of the Horn, the southern style holds sway, whereas above the line of the Hackerwood Forest, the northern style predominates. However, in the Horn and coastal areas just south of the Hackerwood, either style is as likely to be used, as those areas are generally a composite of southern and northern cultures.
Games
"The king only held Open Audience three times a tenday: Syrtaday, Fireday, and Windsday. The audience about the tath-shinn had been on Syrtaday; three dawns past that put it at Waterday. Alyea worked her way through the maze of palace hallways, stairs, and rooms, knowing just where Oruen would be. She found him, as expected, on a tiny, semi-enclosed patio, facing off against one of his advisors over a game of chabi...." |
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Historical Resources
Introduction to the Desert Families
Dominated by five major Desert Families, a few sub-families, and the reclusive teyanain,
the southern desert runs on a complex web of relationships, grudges and grievances stretching into the far reaches of human memory and beyond.
May contain "spoilers" for earlier volumes.
Letters to a Northern King of Merit by Lord Cafad Scratha
"Meanwhile, I enclose the first of several missives to come, providing an account of southland politics and history which you may find useful in avoiding egregious errors in the future. As a matter of policy, the desert Families have not provided this information to northern kings; you yourself must admit that the majority of the last few kings have not been particularly safe to entrust with any real knowledge..."
May contain "spoilers" for earlier volumes.
An Examination by Loremaster Council no. 1576 of Gerau Sa'adenit's A History of Places
"This book, which was only recently made available to the Council of Loremasters, is a detailed and mostly accurate, if unauthorized, examination of the kingdom and its relation to the southlands. It must be stressed that King Oruen commissioned this study without the knowledge or approval of this Council, and thus this History must be examined with great care and appropriate corrections submitted to the King with the greatest possible speed. . . ."
Language Resources
A number of the words in the southern language include the glottal-stop. A glottal stop involves closing, to some degree, the back of the throat, resulting in a near-coughing sound when released. Sometimes this sounds as though a hard “H” has been inserted.
The full contents of all glossaries published. May contain "spoilers" for earlier volumes.
Glossary: Secrets of the Sands (.pdf)
Glossary: Guardians of the Desert (.pdf)
