Krul, an outcast Monk, has been unfairly sentenced to live out his days on the island of the condemned. With thousands of other supposed criminals, he scavenges out a meagre existence, surviving on the discarded trash from the mainland society. He often contemplates whether he should end his own life but is too much of a coward to do so. When a boy falls from the sky, Krul is suddenly given a purpose in life again. Can he find a way to travel to the cannibal stronghold to help the boy find his lost mother? Will he find a way off the island and save them all? Teyra is a proud Bloodsworn warrior captain who has spent her life fighting to get out from beneath her father's shadow. Her father, Havox, is the leader and highest-ranking Monk in their society. He alone can commune with the all-powerful force that guides every aspect of the people's lives. After her father proposes a plan to harshly increase the ruling Council's control over the population due to an apparent threat, Teyra starts to question her place within society. For years, she has covered up her father's secrets and schemes, but now she wonders why her people cannot live free from his control. A dark fantasy novel full of death, power, and sacrifice, From Dust We Rise is the first book in The War of Ideals series.