Table of Contents

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Introduction

CHAPTER ONE - “Princes met and talked against me.” PSALMS 119:23

CHAPTER TWO - “Hell hath no fury like the woman scorned, Or the woman mourning.”

CHAPTER THREE - “And I will give him the morning star.” REVELATIONS 2:28

CHAPTER FOUR - “O God, with your judgement endow the King, and with your ...

CHAPTER FIVE - “And a voice shall speak from legend.”

CHAPTER SIX - “A Spokesman of the Infinite must guide. . . .”

CHAPTER SEVEN - “Things are not what they seem.”

CHAPTER EIGHT - “In the unknown lies terror, and in the night, deceit.”

CHAPTER NINE - “Whence comes the wonder, whence the miracle?”

CHAPTER TEN - “Even as Father, so the Son.”

CHAPTER ELEVEN - “For surely laughter masks a nervous soul.”

CHAPTER TWELVE - “A gilded silver crucifix—yours, Duncan!”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - “Who, then, is the Defender?”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - “Defender’s Sign shall seal . . .”

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - “You placed on his head, O Lord, a crown of precious stones. ...

INDEX OF CHARACTERS

INDEX OF PLACE-NAMES

PRAISE FOR KATHERINE KURTZ

“At her best, Kurtz’s love of history lets her do things with her characters and their world that no nonhistorian could hope to do.”—Chicago Sun-Times

“Kurtz has created a fascinating idealization of the Middle Ages and infused it with a kind of magic one can truly believe in.”—Fantasy Review

PRAISE FOR THE
DERYNI NOVELS

DERYNI CHECKMATE

“Great read. Action, characterization, and smooth story-telling combine for a real page-turner.”

—Yet Another Book Review Site

HIGH DERYNI

“A fast, fun read for sword-and-sorcery fans.”

—Yet Another Book Review Site

KING KELSON’S BRIDE

“Kurtz’s triumphant return to the magical medieval realm of Gwynedd . . . exciting and intriguing.”—SF Site

“The author remains just as polished and expert as ever.”

—Publishers Weekly

IN THE KING’S SERVICE

“Kurtz’s fidelity to the customs and mores of medieval Europe gives a richness of detail to her alternate medieval world.”—Library Journal

CHILDE MORGAN

“The author’s meticulous re-creation of a medieval world provides a sumptuous background for her characters’ struggles to remain true to their honor and to their beliefs.”

—Library Journal

Deryni books available from Ace

DERYNI RISING
DERYNI CHECKMATE
HIGH DERYNI
KING KELSON’S BRIDE
IN THE KING’S SERVICE
CHILDE MORGAN

Title Page

Copyright Page

THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada
(a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia
(a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632, New Zealand
(a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196,
South Africa