Young King Jaron has taken the throne of Carthya, but after enemies attempt to assassinate him, and a neighboring kingdom threatens invasion, he finds that he has no friends in the palace, not even his bride-to-be, princess Amarinda--and his regents think it would be better for Carthya if he just disappeared again.

A DANGEROUS MIX OF POLITICS AND PERIL... Morgan and Patrick Kell, founders of the Kell Hounds mercenary unit, are riding high. First, they deposed the crime lord that had been ruling the mercenary world of Galatea, then they saved that planet again from a religious zealot who tried to starve the government into submitting to his new theocracy. Along the way, they assembled a crack team of 'Mech pilots, techs, and ground forces that will make the...

THE RULES OF THE GAME HAVE JUST CHANGED... Brothers Morgan and Patrick Kell have just landed on Galatea, the mercenary planet known for its brutal arena 'Mech combat games. They intend to found their own merc unit, building it from the ground up, but there are a few obstacles in their way. The first is a corrupt general fronting for the second, a local crime lord named Haskell Blizzard who crushes anyone he sees as a threat. And, the Kell boys offering...

NEVER BET AGAINST THE KELL BROTHERS… The Kell Hounds are one of the most storied mercenary units in the Inner Sphere. Now, New York Times-bestselling author and Kell Hounds creator Michael A. Stackpole goes back to the Hounds' beginnings in these three short novels, when Morgan and Patrick Kell were just two smart, ambitious brothers-with a plan to revolutionize the world of mercenaries forever… Not How the Smart Money Bets: Morgan and Patrick...