Renewing the Arbors by Samantha Hickey

The world has not seen druids for two hundred years. The demon lord, Mathias, has hunted them to extinction in pursuit of vengeance, leaving their cities and magical groves empty and unattended. Declan Arbor has been in hiding all that time, raising his apprentice, Alia. She’s a gifted druid who is ready to to take the last step in her training, but the ceremony that gives her access to those advanced powers will leave them exposed and vulnerable. Declan has been dragging his feet in fear of loosing another apprentice, just like so many others before her. To further complicate things, Galvin has arrived on their doorstep, seeking Declan’s help. As a half fairy in a strict matriarchal society, he looks to escape a life where his greatest expectation is to do as he’s told. Before Alia can get her new powers and before Galvin has any answers, Declan is captured. Now on their own with no mentor, the two discover a spell that could protect Declan and the long empty groves from Mathias’s vengeance, but the spell is more advanced then either of them. Only too late will they discover that it has altered them both forever.