Lázár

The snow of the dying century still blanketed the edge of the dark forest when Lajos von Lázár, the boy with almost translucent skin and aquamarine eyes, first laid eyes on the man who would be his father for life and beyond. Lajos von Lázár arrives in this world with the dawn of the new century, and his birth is both a miracle and a curse: his true lineage is a secret he will never know. The Lázárs have ruled their Hungarian lands for generations. In their ancient castle, on the edge of a dark forest that drives mad those who venture into it, they succumb to vice and live only to satisfy their desires. But the old order is crumbling: the days of the Habsburg monarchy are drawing to a close. When Lajos inherits the title, at last there is a baron capable of rekindling the lost splendor, but even his strength cannot withstand the ravages of war and occupation. It will fall to their children, a boy who speaks with shadows and a girl who renounces her blue blood, to find a way to defy oppression and take the first steps, still hesitant, towards freedom.