Wijesekara, M: Witch Without Memory

The second epic instalment of the Obsidian Throne fantasy trilogy, melding Indian myth and history into a story of a witch and a prince determined to burn an empire to the ground in order to raise it up out of the ashes. An empress with vengeance in her heart Prince Ashoka's sister, Aarya, has named herself empress and is determined to reverse her brother's mercy for the mayakari. A witch lost in dreams Shakti is being held by shadowy figures, drugged and forced to commit an unspeakable crime. When she wakes, she finds herself prisoner, but gaps in her memory around the curse she has cast trap her more thoroughly than any cage. The prince trying to change the world Ashoka must find allies and quickly if he is to usher in a new dawn for the mayakari, but the tougher the decision he makes, the farther he gets from his true self. He must determine what he is willing to lose in pursuit of his vision of the future. The first blow has been dealt by Ashoka and Shakti, but the empire not only remains, it appears stronger - and more brutal - than ever. Both must find ways to fight back before nature is deprived of its spirits and guardians, and the reign of the new empress spreads its destruction and oppression to lands beyond.