Shamal's Secret

Summary
The official summary states: "Meet Shamal, a desert horse with remarkable strength and a mysterious past. When a young girl needs his help but resists it, Shamal must find a way to guide her to safety. Together they go on a journey that bonds them forever."

The story ends on a cliff hanger, set for a sequel. However, the sequel was never written.

Amber Murin
Amber is a young girl living in the Autumn Sands. She is accepted for a Year of Grace with the Deserée, in which she can prove herself and become a Deserée. During the first week with the Deserée, the women capture a horse and bring it to the camp. Amber is afraid of the horse at first, as she has never seen one and has been told that horses are her enemies. Ruby dares Amber to get close to the horse, and the girls begin throwing rocks at him, but Amber stops them. She then overhears the Deserée stating they want to use Shamal for his horse magic, before receiving a mind message from Shamal asking her to free him from his bonds. She steps closer to loosen the rope, but not to free him, when she is caught by the Deserée. However, Yris tells her it is the horse charming her, and it isn't her fault. However, Amber isn't so sure any more that horses are evil, as Shamal's presence didn't feel evil to her. Suddenly, a sandstorm arrives and the Deserée blame the storm on him. Amber becomes lost in the sand, and meets a Scarab phaerie. She also finds that Shamal has been freed by the phaerie, and he reveals Shamal is a prince and shows Amber an oasis in their cave. She then leaves the cave, and Shamal and a red Scarab Phaerie follow to assist her. Amber tells Shamal they can't be friends, but agrees to the help. As they wander, she learns that Shamal had saved her and brought her to the cave, which confuses her. Shamal then makes an oasis for them for the night, and Amber sings a Dune Lupine song about horses being the enemy. Shamal becomes angry, and shares with her the truth about horses, that they aren't the enemies. She goes to sleep, and wakes up to find that the Dune Lupines have followed them. However, she chooses not to bring Shamal, and will help him escape first before she returns. Shamal leads her some ruins from when horses ruled the Autumn Sands, and shows her the glory of horses. But they are found by the dune lupines and the Deserée. They demand she turn him over, but she lies and says she hasn't seen him. However they find him, and realize she was lying, and the dune lupines move to attack. At the last minute, she yells out for the Scarab Phaerie who brings his friends to their aid and create a sandstorm. It buys them time, but they are unable to escape. In the midst of the battle, Amber realizes she has been on the wrong side all along. She then rides Shamal and they run from the Deserée. They make it out, but not before Amber is sworn as an enemy by the Deserée. As they run out of the ruins, they see that the sandstorm has made the ruined city rise out of the ground. She rides away on shamal, and the story ends on a cliff hanger, suggesting she and Shamal would need to fix the misunderstandings of her people.

The Deserée and the Dune Lupines
The Deserée are desert warrior women who have bonds with the desert wolves, Dune Lupines. They are known as protectors by those in the Autumn Sands, however, they are actually the opposite. They keep horses from entering the area, and are the sworn enemies of horses. It is unknown where their ideas came from, but it is likely that Feral planted the ideas before leaving them behind with the Dune Lupines. As such, for hundreds of years, the Autumn sands have been deprived of the magic of horses, making life harsher than it needs to be. Throughout the book, when Amber attempts to save Shamal, they stand in the way and fight against them. The story ends on a cliffhanger, so it is unknown if they later would join Ivenna after Emma's return, or if they would ever see the error of their ways.

A few Deserée are named in this story, including Yris the leader, and Uli a Deserée in training.

Kyran Murin
This is Amber's mother. She is only briefly mentioned, but seems to care for her daughter.

Myri
Myri is described as a small, gentle girl who lives above Amber. She is also selected for a year of grace.

Ruby
Ruby is another girl from Amber's village who was chosen for a year of grace. She is a curious girl who asks lots of questions. Ruby shares a false story with Amber about a horse that burned a town known as Ilnut. In reality, the horse sent a mind picture to warn the village, but was then blamed for the fire that came later.

Scarab Phaeries
Amber comes across scarab phaeries after being lost in the sandstorm. A red phaerie follows her and Shamal throughout the story.

Shamal
Shamal is captured by the Deserée and forms a bond with Amber. He escapes with her by accident in a sandstorm and saves her by bringing her to a nearby cave. He then follows her and offers her a ride as she tries to return to the Deserée. Shamal also uses his magic to make them oasises out of thin air when they need them.

Location
A list of all locations mentioned in the book are:
 * Autumn Sands
 * Cavernest
 * Ilnut
 * Medab
 * Ruined city of Upir