About the book: 2024 / The Curse of Chalion (2001), the novel that launched the new fantasy series The Chronicles of Chalion (The World of the Five Gods), was nominated several significant awards, received the Mythopoetic Prize, and, most importantly, delighted readers! Lupe di Cæseril, a poor nobleman, returns to Chalion after hard, grueling years of captivity on pirate galleys. He is exhausted and mentally broken. It seems that there is not a single house left where a poor, destitute person could be accepted. The last hope is the Provincara of Baosia, his former mistress, for whom he served as a page many years ago. The kindness of this woman and her justice are undoubted, but what price will Caseril ultimately have to pay for shelter and food? A terrible price. A price that hardly any mortal has paid.