Description:

Horkers are thieves of an unusual sort. Trained from childhood in skills of deception, misdirection, slight of hand, confidence, etc., they are also taught a strict code, a code that governs their decisions and strategies. They are taught to avoid violence whenever possible, and live by their wits. One of the most important lessons in this code is that Horkers never use magic. Magic is notoriously unreliable and hard to control, and Horkers must control their environment.

Spivver MacAnders is one such Horker. A young man, working his way through life, Spiv horks enough to meet his needs, trying to get ahead (while taking only from people he figures truly deserve it, and trying to do a good turn for common folks, from time to time.) All this, while staying one step ahead of his marks on his way out of town. But when Spiv comes across the aftermath of a heinous crime, he is drawn into a commitment to deliver a valuable object; an object which he realizes is a powerful artifact, steeped in very specific magical properties. A secretive and skilled Horker is perhaps the perfect messenger to transport such an object unnoticed, especially because the one who seeks it is a powerful wizard, who has already sent his army to invade the realm Spiv must travel through on his mission.

About the Author

Mike Lee lives in Denver, Colorado, where he divides his time between his psychotherapy practice and writing. He started writing fiction in 2008, and currently writes Fantasy and Sci-Fi. His previous work has been published in magazines and news papers, from Colorado to as far away as Bulgaria.