Evelyn Skye just scored a six-figure deal for her YA historical fantasy set in 1825 Russia. The Tsar’s Game will be out from HarperCollins Balzer + Bray in 2016. And there’s only one reason to set a novel in 1825 Russia- the Decembrist Revolt. Hopefully that will feature prominently.
Sixteen-year-old Vika Andreyev can summon the snow and turn ash into gold. Eighteen-year-old Nikolai Karimov can see through walls and conjure bridges out of thin air. They are enchanters, the only two in Russia, and with the Ottoman Empire and the Kazakh hordes threatening Russia, the Tsar wants an enchanter by his side.
In the past, however, two enchanters have posed a problem. Too much ego, too much power, too much potential for betrayal of the Tsar. So the Tsar’s Game was invented, a duel of magical skill. The victor becomes the Royal Enchanter and the Tsar’s most respected advisor. The defeated is sentenced to death.
The Tsar’s Game is not one to lose.
Of course, they both want to win. Until now, Vika’s magic has been confined to her tiny island home, and she’s eager to showcase her skill in the capital city of St. Petersburg. It also doesn’t hurt that the competition allows her to express her mischievous streak. Nikolai, on the other hand, is a study in seriousness. As an orphan with not a drop of noble blood in his veins, becoming the Royal Enchanter is an opportunity he could, until now, only dream of. But when Vika and Nikolai begin to fall for each other, the stakes change.
And then, the stakes change again, as secrets from both their pasts threaten to upset the balance of the Tsar’s—and the Russian Empire’s—power
The Game is so much more complicated than it looks.
Maya Chhabra 