Archetypal victim - or manipulator exraordinaire? The love-match between Prince Lemyr of Vameria and the beautiful Linsl, 14 years younger, is seen as a means of restoring the fortunes of an unpopular monarchy in times of political instability at home and unrest in foreign affairs. The new princess, eager to please, is keen to learn all the duties and protocols of her position. She has to learn its contraints, too, however and the road ahead is not always to be strewn with roses. At the same time, Corporal Jakkr of the Border Guard is courting Saryl, daughter of the landlord of the Inn at the Top of the World, a romance which has its own troubles to overcome. The trials and conflicts of these two different relationships are set against the impending war with Karagia, which will shape the destiny of all four protagonists. The island of Vastameria, comprising the two nation states, Va'meria and Karagia, lies in the Western Ocean, eighty miles from its nearest continental neighbour. The island is approximately twelve hundred miles in length, lying on a slight SW to NE axis, and spans two hundred miles at its broadest point. A belt of high moorland and mountain terrain divides the two countries in roughly equal proportions, and forms a natural border between them running from the western to the eastern seaboards. The countries are presently at peace with each other and have been so for 65 years, though tensions often run high, particularly over the so-called Disputed Territories, land annexed by Vameria after the war of 1744-61. From "A Journey in Vastameria" by Alens Brinst, 1816