Tower of the Deep: The Prisoner and the Traitor

THE PRISONER AND THE TRAITOR by H. M. Richardson is an enthralling start to the Tower of the Deep series, blending immersive storytelling and emotional depth to explore fierce loyalties, betrayal, and the clash of two vastly different worlds involving fourteen-year-old Hennelyn (raised among the warlike Starkhons) and her adopted brother, Arcmas. Hennelyn questions her people’s brutal conquest of the peaceful Bunji when she frees a captured prisoner, branding herself a traitor, while Arcmas (a winged warrior created as a weapon) returns from war, hardened by his training to subdue the Bunji—until Hennelyn deceives him to free yet another prisoner, hoping to open his eyes to the truth. This novel masterfully explores identity, duty, and the transformative power of empathy as Hennelyn and Arcmas struggle to choose between the paths set before them and the uncertain cost of forging their own destiny.