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The Hills Have Spies

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The Hills Have Spies is the first book in the The Family Spies series.

 Synopsis, part one[]

(publisher's description)

Mags, Herald Spy of Valdemar, and his wife, Amily, the King’s Own Herald, are happily married with three kids. The oldest, Peregrine, has the Gift of Animal Mindspeech—he can talk to animals and persuade them to act as he wishes. Perry's dream is to follow in his father's footsteps as a Herald Spy, but he has yet to be Chosen by a Companion.

Mags is more than happy to teach Perry all he knows. He regularly trains his children, including Perry, with tests and exercises, preparing them for the complicated and dangerous lives they will likely lead. Perry has already held positions in the Royal Palace as a runner and in the kitchen, useful places where he can learn to listen and collect information.

But there is growing rural unrest in a community on the border of Valdemar. A report filled with tales of strange disappearances and missing peddlers is sent to Haven by a Herald from the Pelagirs. To let Perry experience life away from home and out in the world, Mags proposes that his son accompany him on an expedition to discover what is really going on.

During their travels, Perry's Animal Mindspeech allows him to communicate with the local wildlife of the Pelagirs, whose connection to the land aids in their investigation. But the details he gleans from the creatures only deepen the mystery. As Perry, Mags, and their animal companions draw closer to the heart of the danger, they must discover the truth behind the disappearances at the border—before those disappearances turn deadly.

Characters[]

Major characters[]

  • Herald Mags
  • Perry - Mags' son
  • Herald Arville - semi-retired Herald, one of the Fearsome Foursome,[1] Luck Gift
  • Larral - Perry's kyree
  • King Stag Roya - dyheli herd leader

Minor characters[]

  • Lord Jorthun
  • Lady Dia
  • Master Leandro - Jorthun's weaponsmaster
  • Herald Laurel - head of the Heraldic Circle, one of the Fearsome Foursome[1]
  • Abi - Perry's sister
  • Prince Kyril "Kee" - Sedric's youngest child
  • Princess Katiana
  • Tory - Perry's younger brother
  • Teo - Mags' spy
  • Ryu - Arville's kyree
  • Mina Weaver - Arville's cook
  • Una Miller - Whithern's miller's wife
  • Ruvus
  • Jeffer Miller

Referenced characters[]

  • Sedric's siblings , including one brother whose Companion is Darly
  • Lyspeth - Trey's very young Companion
  • Alyson - Queen's Handmaiden
  • Seris - Queen's Handmaiden
  • Herald Nikolas - former King's Own Herald
  • Heir, Herald Prince Trey - age 16
  • Herald Prince Niko
  • Willy - new Herald-Trainee
  • Houndmaster - cares for Lady Dia's dogs
  • Seneschal (unnamed)
  • King's personal secretary (unnamed)
  • Herald Rod - Laurel's husband, one of the Fearsome Foursome[1]
  • Herald Alma - former Artificer and one of the Fearsome Foursome[1]
  • Pog - horse Jorthun lends Perry
  • Daisy - vanner horse to pull caravan
  • Lily - vanner horse to pull caravan
  • Pelas - Arville's Companion
  • Healer Ivy
  • Herald Elyn - senior Herald for the Fearsome Foursome's[1] journeymen Circuit

Places[]

Referenced places[]

Terms[]

Synopsis part two (Spoilers!)[]

(picking up where the publisher left off)

King Kiril has abdicated in favor of Sedric. Former Monarch's Own Herald Nikolas has retired; so King's Own Amily and King Sedric are firmly in their positions. Mags Amily and their three children live in a suite in the Palace, near Sedric and Lydia and their four children.

The missing persons reports are confusing, coming from a shaggy retired Herald, Arville, who has some trouble with reading and writing. Haven has no Heralds to spare to investigate, so Mags and Perry accept the job. They take a caravan and pose as traders. When they reach Arville, Perry is Chosen by a kyree! Perry, his kyree Larral, Mags and his Companion Dallen head off into the wilderness to try and figure out what's causing the disappearances. The Hawkbrothers are long gone from the area, but a flock of raven bondbirds and a herd of dyheli remain. After assistance from impulsive and goodhearted Perry, the ravens and the dyheli agree to assist in the spycraft training mission.

Unfortunately, the true cause of the disappearances is a greater threat than the spy duo ever imagined it could be. After an unfortunate incident at a "honeytrap" of an inn, Mags has to call a halt, as the trouble is happening outside of Valdemar's borders. Indignant, Perry and Larral set off on their own into hostile territory, leaving Mags to try to coordinate between the remote borderlands and Haven. Perry finds an empty city, where the beginnings of a small army are living and training. He infiltrates the camp as a mentally impaired dog keeper, but is surprised by the tense atmosphere and the men who will not talk about their leader and his plans. It becomes clear that the leader is a insane Mindreader, is capable of totally Mindcontrolling an army, and seeks more and more power in ways that frighten his men. Perry realizes he is in over his head, and will have a hard time escaping. Meanwhile, he notices that the empty city is very strange ... and it has a mind.

Chronology[]

No dates are given. It is summer. Perry is 13, Trey is 16 (he was 15 when he was Chosen last year.) Kee is the youngest of the royal children.

References[]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 The "Fearsome Foursome" were close friends. Their first appearance was in "Moving Targets," when they went on their journeyman Circuit together
  2. ↑ Mentioned many times as having left the area a generation ago. In Chapter 5, "There had even been a Hawkbrother enclave not more than two or three candlemarks away when Arville had first gotten the Circuit that included Whithern—but they were long gone. They'd left in the third year he'd been stationed out here."

Gallery of cover images[]

See also[]


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