Bee Sting Cake

Book excerpt: Magic is out of fashion. Gambling is merely illegal. Neither law nor common sense has ever stopped anyone in Ragnor Bella from making-or breaking-their fortunes at the table, at the racetrack, and especially at the Dartington Harvest Fair. With Mad Jack Greenwing's only son Jemis finally back from university, this year's betting is bidding fair to be the stuff of legend. Jemis assumes the speculative glances are for his inherited notoriety (and, perhaps, his adventurous first weekend back in town), and is determined to do nothing more than a little light wagering at the Fair. Perhaps one footrace. The odds on his placing are remarkably high-but the real bets are whether he makes it to the starting line at all. Lost heirs. Botanizing dukes. Riddling dragons. High Gothic melodrama. And all that's just to get his name in the race. Book Two of Greenwing & Dart, fantasies of manners-and mischief.