Land of Sand and Song, Paperback

Legend has it that a magical spring lies dormant in the heart of the Khuzar desert. Said to be a gift from the gods, the spring holds the cure to all mortal woes. As mercenaries from everywhere try in vain to find the mystical spring, 17-yearold Desert Rose is on the run after her chieftain father is overthrown and captured by rebel clans. Now out for revenge, she sets out alone to the Oasis Capital to assassinate the person instigating the rebellion: the corrupt Emperor Zhao, who will stop at nothing to possess the elixir of life from the spring. To infiltrate the Imperial Guard, Desert Rose must pass a series of trials to test her wit, mettle, and her loyalty. But the real test lies in navigating the cut throat court politics with no ally but a rogue prince and a latent magic stirring in her - magic that can bring a kingdom to its knees or destroy her from within.

Joyce graduated from the National University of Singapore with a degree in English and her contemporary YA novel, Lambs for Dinner, was published by the Straits Times Press in 2013 as part of a nationwide competition. She lives in the perennially sunny island-city of Singapore, where she co-runs and publishes her short stories at Muse in Pocket, Pen in Hand and blogs at The Writes of Passage in between writing her next novel and dreaming about mythical worlds.

• Author: Joyce Chua
• Cover type: Paperback
• Publishing Year: 2021
• Publishing Month: 9
• Pages: 264
• Language: English
• Publisher: Penguin Books
• Weight: 340 g
• Dimensions: 20 x 240 x 150