Tanya Huff 
Silvered [EPUB ebook] 

The Aurora Award-winning fantasy novel of a lone kingdom struggling to hold on to its freedom, and a pair of untested heroes who must work together to save their people-from the critically-acclaimed author of the Peacekeeper novels.The small, were-ruled kingdom of Aydori has long kept to its own ways, living under the protection of the powerful Hunt Pack and the wisdom of the Mage Pack, who have mastery of the six disciplines-air, fire, water, earth, metals, healing.It is these very gifts that have drawn the wrath of the rapacious Emperor Leopald, whose soothsayer has prophesized a threat to his dominion about to be born from Aydori. Launching an all-out assault against the shapeshifters, he kidnaps five members of the Mage Pack who are with child, including the wife of the Pack Leader. With the Pack engaged by the Emperor’s army, the kidnappers believe they have a clear escape.But they are already being harried by the unlikeliest of hunters-young Mirian Maylin, whose true magical potential has yet to emerge, and Tomas Hagen, the reckless younger brother of the Pack Leader. Both have much to prove to themselves and each other-and both are willing to risk everything to do so.Their pursuit will take them into perils unknown and deep into the black heart of the Empire, where the fate of their people will be decided by the strength of their courage, sacrifice, and loyalty in this "seamless mix of steampunk, epic fantasy, and paranormal romance" (Publishers Weekly)."The Silvered paints a fascinating society based on the symbiosis of mage and wolf-pack, each group partnering and tempering the other." -San Francisco Book Review"It all adds up to a fun, old-fashioned adventure made new with an interesting magic system." -Locus"The way that Huff tied all of the strings together from this epic journey was masterful. She paid equal attention to her characters as she did her world-building, resulting in a seamless whole. The melding of science, magic, era-specific technology, superstition, war and how ordinary people can do extraordinary things was captivating." -The Book Pushers"[Huff] knows not only how to world build, but how to build magic systems and do phenomenal characterizations. Her experience shows on every page of The Silvered….Books this good don’t come along that often. The Silvered is a well-planned, well executed adventure tale. I loved it. Completely." -The Ranting Dragon