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If I remember right all nobles have black hair, and a daughter to a noble or a king was to be sacrificed. The father saved his daughter by hiding her away with a farm couple. She ends up in a desert with short magical people.

There is also an invading army conquers all lands. All soldiers can speak the tongue of the native people in land they are currently conquering. If I remember right if a country can hold out for up for 10 years they'd be integrated into the Conquering Empire rather than conquered. I read this book about 10-15 years ago, the book could be much older. The book was written in English but the languages of the book were fictional. Also if I remember right the invading armies uniforms were similar to that of roman armor. I could be wrong though. this may have been a teen/young adult book maybe

I remember one of the first battles all the black haired nobles were on there Their best horses (even if the horse had white socks, that was bad luck in their culture) if I remember right the nobles were so confident in their Cavalry. That all the Nobles families watch the nearby hilltops with all their Treasures. They lost the battle and Nobles were captured.

Set in Medieval Times. Book series.

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  • You might want to elaborate: when did you read this, what was the language? Nov 27, 2016 at 14:44
  • The book was in English all the languages in the book were fictional. I read the book at least 10 years ago, abs I have no idea when it was written.
    – Becca J
    Nov 27, 2016 at 14:48
  • Great! Now you only need to integrate what you just said to your question. This can be done by using the edit button. Nov 27, 2016 at 14:49
  • If I remember right the invading army had uniforms that were simular to Roman armor, but I could be wrong
    – Becca J
    Nov 27, 2016 at 14:49
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    Thanks I hope that helps. I remembering bits and pieces
    – Becca J
    Nov 27, 2016 at 14:52

1 Answer 1

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I believe this is Hilari Bell’s Fall of a Kingdom, originally published as Flame (2003).

If I remember right all nobles have black hair, and a daughter to a noble or a king was to be sacrificed. The father saved his daughter by hiding her away with a farm couple. She ends up in a desert with short magical people.

“Her loose hair—the straight, black hair of the noblest of noble lines—was disheveled.”

“The commander of the army must sacrifice the being he holds most precious in all the world,” the priests had said. “Or the djinn of war will give their favor to the armies of the Hrum, who will roll over Farsala like the darkness of the pit itself.”

There is also an invading army conquers all lands. All soldiers can speak the tongue of the native people in land they are currently conquering. If I remember right if a country can hold out for up for 10 years they'd be integrated into the Conquering Empire rather than conquered.

“The Hrum try not to let it be known among the lands in their path, but their commanders are given a time limit—one year from the day of the first battle. If at the end of that year they do not control all cities, large towns, and most of the countryside, their army is withdrawn, and negotiations begin for the country they attacked to become an independent, allied state.”

I remember one of the first battles all the black haired nobles were on there Their best horses (even if the horse had white socks, that was bad luck in their culture)

“And though one white sock was thought to unbalance a horse’s beauty, Rakesh wasn’t the only horse who had one. Deghans might be fools about a great many things, but horses weren’t one of them. In battle they rode the best horse, not the most beautiful.”

if I remember right the nobles were so confident in their Cavalry. That all the Nobles families watch the nearby hilltops with all their Treasures. They lost the battle and Nobles were captured.

“Knowing the decisive battle was imminent, the deghans had sent for their families, “to witness and share in the glory, according to our ancient tradition.” It was traditional for a deghan’s family to accompany him to the field, bringing with them as much of the household’s treasure as they could reasonably—or sometimes unreasonably—carry. This was supposed to show confidence in the army’s invincibility, Jiaan supposed.”

Fall of a Kingdom is the first of the three volumes of The Farsala Trilogy.

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  • This is the second time I've identified a book as being 'Fall of a Kingdom". I found it interesting that two reasonable questions could each mention several points, and with none in common. Certainly this one I was much slower to get.
    – Barnaby
    Jun 15, 2022 at 12:42

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