Azure Flame" Rise of the Wraith is book 1 in a dark fantasy that follows the exploits of Halloway McKellen, her friends and her bonds with the Ashray. Halloway, a parentless child, raised by her grandmother in the remote village of Fall Kirk, yearned to follow in the elder woman's footsteps. Yet not everyone embraced her skills. Many local citizens hesitated to trust a female, teenage healer or feared her rumored abilities as a witch who could conjure angry winds and wild animals to behave erratically. In actuality, the Ashray, mystical beings that only the gifted few with talent, like Halloway, could see, caused this havoc. Still, Halloway persevered through the obstacles. Everything changed when the wraith appeared far earlier than expected. Every fifty years they woke, hellbent on infecting and devouring humans. Caught by surprise seventeen-years after the last infestation, the Empire orders emergency conscription to refill depleted military ranks. And those with talent would be trained to hunt, fight and kill the wraith—if they survived basic training. Halloway's dreams are smashed as the exorcists, the most elite fighting force in the empire, arrive and recognize her talent. Forced into the army, knowing soon she will face the wraith, and drawn ever further into the world of the Ashray, the healer must transform into a killer.