A magician, an alien mask, thousands of gods... What could possibly go wrong?
Born an orphan and known throughout the empire as a powerful magician, Paul is on a lifelong quest to find answers about his past.
Jack is a historian obsessed with the famous Face of Xian--an alien mask which has puzzled the universe for thousands of years. An obsession his friends can't understand, and which he himself cannot explain.
Along with a detective, an archaeologist, and others, their destinies cross on a world brimming with alien artifacts. A world where thousands of gods walk among men, and where fanatics consider offworlders as heretics and raiders.
Some might call this a recipe for disaster, and they'd be right.
NOTE: Though this book is the first in a series, it has no cliffhanger and can be read on its own.