Manipulator's War

All roads lead to war. Nonbinary Ruarnon is determined to prove their worth as heir to Tarlah's perfect King. But when their parents are abducted, Ruarnon must rule Tarlah in the face of assassination attempts, unreliable allies and a brutal, expansionist neighbour. Assuming they succeed in convincing Tarlah's experienced, binary male warriors to follow the lead of a bookish enby youth through war. Trapped in Ruarnon's world, Linh is desperate to return to her family in Australia, and isn't above using her host's belief that she's a figure from local myth to achieve it. But her gateway home lies on the far side of a war zone, and her only transport option is reinforcements sailing towards Ruarnon. Monsters and the will of an unknown king lie between Linh and her destination. Escaping them could yield Linh half the strategy Ruarnon needs to end two wars. Tarlahn kitchen servant Ethlin hopes to distinguish herself as a soldier and gain the approval she needs to marry above her station. Meanwhile, the peace-loving ruler of Tarlah's expansionist neighbours, King Kyura, faces mounting pressure from his warmongering subjects to conquer Tarlah once and for all. An LGBTQ+ YA Fantasy packed with action and adventure, for readers of Lynette Noni.