Sara Samuels Rise of the Shadow Lords

The highly anticipated origin novel of the Blade of Shadows series. Before the Timeborne. Before the world knew what Shadow Lords truly were... There were two men who were never meant to survive. Salvatore and Lazarus are bound by loyalty, fractured by betrayal, and thrown into the Shadow Lord Trials-a brutal gauntlet that promises freedom and unimaginable power, but demands sacrifice at every turn. To live, they must endure horrors designed to break the body, twist the mind, and destroy the soul. But the deeper they fall into the trials, the more secrets begin to unravel. Their pasts were never what they believed. Their suffering was never an accident. And the power waiting for them in the shadows may not be salvation at all. As loyalty turns dangerous and truth becomes its own kind of punishment, Salvatore and Lazarus must decide what they are willing to lose, who they are willing to become, and whether brotherhood can survive the birth of monsters. Before they became legends, they were prisoners. Before the world feared them, the trials remade them. And once Salvatore and Lazarus rise, nothing in the Blade of Shadows world will ever be the same. Rise of the Shadow Lords stands on its own and can be read at any point in the Blade of Shadows world. For readers who want the darker origin of the Shadow Lords and the power that shaped the entire saga, this is a powerful place to begin. If you prefer a romance-forward entry into the series, begin with Book One, Timeborne, and return to Rise of the Shadow Lords after Book Five or Book Six for the deeper truth behind the world. Content note: This is a dark fantasy origin novel with heavier themes than the main series. Please review the author's note and content warnings before reading.