The Rose and the Thorn

Before Royce and Hadrian became legends, they were just two thieves trying to survive a world that rewards cruelty and punishes loyalty. The Rose and the Thorn takes readers back to the earliest days of Riyria, centering on a woman named Gwen—someone who chose to protect two strangers when she had every reason not to. When those strangers return, what unfolds is less about swords and schemes than about what people owe each other, and what they're willing to risk when the answer matters.

Sullivan's great strength here is his pacing—this is a lean, purposeful book that never confuses brevity with shallowness. The prose is clean without being spare, and the characters earn their moments rather than simply announcing them. What makes this prequel particularly satisfying is how it reframes the partnership at the heart of the entire series: by the final pages, you understand not just where Riyria came from, but why it had to. Readers already devoted to the Chronicles will find new texture in everything they thought they knew; newcomers will find an excellent place to begin.