"Tolerance is an act of humanity, which we must nurture and enact each in our own lives every day, to rejoice in the diversity that makes us strong and the values that bring us together." - UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay Denounced by her own father and charged with crimes against the state, Kali Titian - pilot, soldier, and engineer - is sentenced to Erbärmlich prison camp, where she must somehow survive among her fellow inmates the Vary, a race she has been raised to consider sub-human; a race who until recently she was murdering to order. In Erbärmlich she encounters Mohab, the Speaker's son, and stumbles upon two ancient energy sources which may just bring redemption to an oppressed people. A story told from the heart, a book released to coincide with the United Nation's International Day of Tolerance (November 16th); Rise is a potent tale of courage against the odds and the power of hope in the face of racial intolerance, from the author of the critically acclaimed Cyber Circus. "A searing portrayal of redemption and compassion in the face of prejudice and brutality. Kim Lakin-Smith is one hell of a damn fine writer." - Gareth L. Powell, author of Embers of War