The Ascendant Path: Scholar is the first book in a new series by award-winning author Joshua C. Cook.

Generations have passed since the Unsundered god, Sartum, destroyed the City in Blue, the center of mortal use of magic. The betrayal of Sartum by William Reis and Myriam VolFar in the waning hours of that conflict has shaped the world of Alos and continues to do so.

In the south, magic runs free. Though mostly bound to magical creatures and places, mortals are able to use the power that flows through the very land and its people. In the north, the lands are clean from the infection of magic, as the Anchors, an order created by Sartum and his High Prophet, scour the land, destroying any trace of the taint of magic.

Layten Grayread is on his way to the House of Knowledge, to enter a life of a scholar. Dedicated to study, uncovering lost secrets, and learning new ones. Everyone knows the state of life: The north is free and under the strong wisdom and leadership of the church of Sartum. The south is a wild place, lawless and evil, where mere mortals dare to use the power that is reserved for the gods.

A plan, hundreds of years in the making, is starting to unfold. Layten and his friends, Hopwell and Wix, find themselves caught in a series of events that could break the balance between the north and south.