2 After he married his bold Queen Genya the General in 125 AE, many began to refer to this period as the Reign of the General.
3 So called because Aryk was Bellonya’s youngest brother, fourth in line for the throne, and only ascended because his older brother and both her daughters predeceased her.
4 Neither princess was officially crowned, but both were referred to as queens before their deaths in the Blood War.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thank you to my agent, Penny Moore, for picking me out of the slush and seeing my potential.
Thank you to my editor, Sarah McCabe, for making my dreams come true and loving this world and these characters as much as I do.
Thank you to my publishers at home and around the world, to my subrights agents, my publicists and cover designers, and everyone who has had a hand in bringing these books from my head and into my hands.
Thank you to OwlCrate for taking a chance on my series and giving me stunning special edition covers. Thank you to Fae Crate for the endless support and enthusiasm (and merch!), and Uppercase and Totally Booked Crate for giving the Crown of Feathers series its first boost.
Thank you to my friends and family for the endless support and encouragement, and thank you especially to my writer friends, who understand the ups and downs of this career better than anyone.
As always, thank you to the readers, bloggers, booktubers, bookstagrammers, reviewers, librarians, and booksellers for championing this series. I couldn’t be more grateful.
Last but certainly not least, thank you to the First Riders Street Team! You turned my fan base from a fledgling flock into a horde, and so many of you went above and beyond for me and my books. Special thank-you to Holly H., Liza F., Megan J., Alex C., Brianna B., Haley R. B., Brittany P., Laura W., Eileidh M., Callum C. (Val’s #1 fan), Erika D., Lili H., Sam G., Hailey B., Leslie B., Leah T., Ali K. B. T., Shahna C., Maddi C., and Kathy P.
More from this Series
Heart of Flames
Crown of Feathers
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
NICKI PAU PRETO is a young adult fantasy author living just outside Toronto, Canada. After getting a degree in visual arts, a master’s in art history, and a diploma in graphic design, Nicky discovered two things: she loved to escape the real world, and she wasn’t interested in a regular nine-to-five life. Luckily, her chosen career covers both.
Visit us at simonandschuster.com/teen
www.SimonandSchuster.com/Authors/Nicki-Pau-Preto
Simon Pulse
Simon & Schuster, New York
ALSO BY NICKI PAU PRETO
Crown of Feathers
Heart of Flames
GLOSSARY
GODS
Axura5:
Goddess of the sun and daylight, as well as life, symbolized by the phoenix
Nox6:
Goddess of the moon and darkness, as well as death, symbolized by the strix
deathmaidens:
Servants of Nox, who lure lost souls into the dark realms
Miseriya:
Goddess of the poor and hopeless
Hael:
God of health and healing
Teyke7:
God of luck, a trickster, symbolized by the cat
Mori:
God of knowledge and memory, symbolized by the owl
Anyanke:
Goddess of fate, symbolized by the spider
Soth:
The wicked south wind, likely originating from the now-extinct Lowland civilization
Nors:
The fair north wind, of similar origin to Soth, and still prayed to by the people of Arboria North
Eo:
An obscure goddess of unknown origin favored among traders and messengers
Xenith:
An alleged third sister of the ancient Pyraean pantheon of Axura and Nox
NOTABLE PEOPLE
Callysta:
Lover and second-in-command of Queen Nefyra. Callysta’s and Queen Nefyra’s phoenixes were also mates: Cirix, the first male phoenix, and Ignix, the first female phoenix.
Queen Genya the General:
The Five Brides:
Queen Elysia and her four royal sisters (Anya, Rylia, Cara, Darya). They helped secure peace treaties during the founding of the empire through marriage alliances.
The First Riders:
Fourteen female warriors chosen by Axura to fight against Nox’s darkness.
King Rol of Rolland:
Ancestor to Rolan of Stel and originally called Rol the Unruly, he earned fame—and the nickname Rol the Betrayer—for his famed assassination attempt against Ferronese King Damian.
Rolan of Stel:
Governor of Ferro, responsible for the attack on Azurec’s Eyrie
Councilor Halton of Stel:
Rolan’s father
Lania of Stel:
Wife of King Aryk Ashfire, mother of Pheronia Ashfire, Queen Regent of the Golden Empire
General Rast:
Leader of the Golden Empire’s military and credited with enforcing the animage registry and magetax at the end of the Blood War.
FAMOUS BATTLES
Dark Days:
The dawn of time, when Axura’s phoenixes battled Nox’s strixes, saving the world from endless night
Lowland Invasion:
Attempted invasion of Pyrmont (then the entirety of the Pyraean Queendom) by an unnamed civilization living in modern Pyra’s Foothills
Stellan Uprising:
A series of lords who banded together in Stel, attempting to wrest several major cities from empire control, eventually defeated by Avalkyra Ashfire
Blood War:
The conflict between opposing heirs and sisters Avalkyra and Pheronia Ashfire
Last Battle:
Fought in Aura Nova, final conflict of the Blood War
COMMON TERMS
animage:
A person who has animal magic
shadowmage:
A person who has shadow magic
Red Horde:
The first-ever gathering of the entirety of Pyra’s Phoenix Riders, under Queen Lyra’s reign
False Sisters/Shadow Twins:
Siblings born mere moments apart by the same father and two different mothers
Mercies:
Phoenix Riders that checked battlefields for survivors and resurrections
Shadowheart:
Spymaster, position in ancient Pyra in service to the queen
magetax:
Tax charged to animages for the use of their magic
magical registry:
Record of known animages in the Golden Empire
bondservant:
An animage working off a criminal debt to the empire
mageslave:
A derogatory term for a bondservant
dark realms:
The endless black abyss where lost souls wander for eternity
Soth’s Fury:
A series of caves near Azurec’s Eyrie, named after the south wind and currently in use as a Phoenix Rider training course
Silverwood:
A stretch of forest near the eastern Pyraean Foothills featuring taller, straighter trees likely brought to the region by settlers from Arboria North
Originally built by Queen Lyra the Defender during the Lowland Invasion and updated and heavily expanded by Ellody during her Reign of Prosperity
Copper Hill:
A once-thinking mining community on the outskirts of Ferro, now home to warehouses, processing facilities, and an abandoned outpost-turned-prison
Haven:
A secret hideout for animages located in Arboria
horde:
The technical term for any flock exceeding one hundred birds
wing widow:
A derogatory term for a Rid
er whose mount has died
Shadow Blooms:
A spiky black flower that grows only on the upper reaches of Pyrmont, also commonly called “Deathmaidens” after the servants of Nox
PYRAEAN TERMS
aeti:
Yes, affirmative
apex:
literal translation is “first” but it generally refers to the highest-ranking bondmates in a flock. They are often oldest and strongest, but that is not always the case
apexaeris:
Apex Rider or Apex Master
Aura:
City/place of gold, and the ancient capital of Pyra
Aurys:
River of gold, which flows from Pyrmont’s highest peaks down into the valley of the Golden Empire
benex:
literal translation is “second” but it generally refers to a secondary bonded pair, linked to the apex pair
diyu ma:
“Long time,” an expression or greeting
duovol:
A two-Rider flight pattern, called a “queenstrike” when a queen leads the charge
impyr:
Term of endearment translating to “little fire,” originating in a Pyraean song
maiora:
Grandmother
mundi apex phoenix:
The world’s first phoenix
nyx:
Victory
onbra:
Dark or shadow
pyr:
Fire or flame
Pyra:
City/place of fire; also known as the Freelands, an emancipated province of the Golden Empire
pyraflora:
Fire Blossom, a tree with red flowers symbolic of Pyra. Petals can be made into poison, and sap is used for fireproofing.
phoenixaeris (s); phoenixaeres (pl):
Phoenix Rider or Phoenix Master
phoenixami:
“Phoenix friend,” usually meant to indicate apprentices or young, untested Riders, and carried with it the hint of derision or condescension
phoenovo:
Phoenix egg
petravin:
Rockwine, a distilled Pyraean liquor aged with a blend of local herbs and flowers, made only in the small village of Petratec
sapona:
Soaptree, plant used to bathe with
Sekveia:
The Second Road, an ancient route through the wilds of Pyrmont that supposedly leads to lost treasure
stellaflora:
Pale white Star Flowers used to commemorate the dead
trivol:
A three-Rider arrowhead flight pattern
vollancea:
A spear or single file flight pattern
xe:
Prefix meaning “sweet” or “dear”; can also mean “brother” or “sister,” based on the gender of the name it’s paired with.
xe xie:
Generic term of endearment translating to “sweet” or “dear” (xe) “one” (xie)
FOREIGN LANGUAGE TERMS
sia:
Yes, affirmative in dialect of Arboria North
verro:
Yes, affirmative in Ferronese
5 “Azurec” in the Trader’s Tongue
6 “Noct” in the Trader’s Tongue
7 Teyke’s cat was given the name “Felix” in the Scrolls of Luck, discovered in Orro at a Temple to Teyke, and according to that text is considered a god himself
MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS
An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division
1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Text © 2021 by Nicki Pau Preto
Jacket illustration © 2021 by Kekai Kotaki
Map illustration © 2021 by Jordan Saia
Jacket design by Tiara Iandiorio © 2021 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.
MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS is a trademark of Simon & Schuster, Inc.
For information about special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact Simon & Schuster Special Sales at 1-866-506-1949 or business@simonandschuster.com.
The Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event, contact the Simon & Schuster Speakers Bureau at 1-866-248-3049 or visit our website at www.simonspeakers.com.
Interior design by Mike Rosamilia
Series design by Sarah Creech © 2021 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Author photograph by Megan Ewing
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Pau Preto, Nicki, author.
Title: Wings of shadow / Nicki Pau Preto.
Description: First edition. | New York : Margaret K. McElderry Books, [2021] | Series: Crown of feathers ; 3 | Summary: “Veronyka has been revealed as the heir to the empire, but to protect her people, she’ll have to face the most devastating enemy she could imagine: her own sister”—Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020044678 (print) | LCCN 2020044679 (ebook) | ISBN 9781534466029 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781534466043 (ebook)
Subjects: CYAC: Sisters—Fiction. | Princesses—Fiction. | Magic—Fiction. | Phoenix (Mythical bird)—Fiction. | Human-animal relationships—Fiction. | Fantasy.
Classification: LCC PZ7.1.P384 Wi 2021 (print) | LCC PZ7.1.P384 (ebook) | DDC [Fic]—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020044678
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020044679