Court of Fives

In this imaginative escape into an enthralling new world, World Fantasy Award finalist Kate Elliott's first young adult novel weaves an epic story of a girl struggling to do what she loves in a society suffocated by rules of class and privilege.

Jessamy's life is a balance between acting like an upper-class Patron and dreaming of the freedom of the Commoners. But away from her family she can be whoever she wants when she sneaks out to train for The Fives, an intricate, multilevel athletic competition that offers a chance for glory to the kingdom's best contenders. Then Jes meets Kalliarkos, and an unlikely friendship between two Fives competitors--one of mixed race and the other a Patron boy--causes heads to turn. When Kal's powerful, scheming uncle tears Jes's family apart, she'll have to test her new friend's loyalty and risk the vengeance of a royal clan to save her mother and sisters from certain death.

Kate Elliott is the author of more than a dozen novels, including the Novels of the Jaran, the Spiritwalker trilogy, and the Crossroads fantasy series.King's Dragon, the first novel in the Crown of Stars series, was a Nebula Award finalist, andThe Golden Key (with Melanie Rawn and Jennifer Roberson) was a World Fantasy Award finalist. Kate was born in Oregon and now lives in Hawaii. She invites you to visit her website at kateelliott.com or her twitter account at @KateElliottSFF.