The following is a complete, spoiler-filled summary of the events of The Thorn of Dentonhill.
If you do not wish to be spoiled for the events of the book, do not continue reading.
The Nights and Days of Veranix Calbert
VERANIX CALBERT, a young magic student, is caught stealing shipping documents from WILLEM FENMERE, drug trafficker and crime boss in the neighborhood of Dentonhill. He uses magic to escape, but the effort exhausts him. He heads home, but then gets sidetracked, cracking down on a dealer of Fenmere’s main drug, effitte. When he gets back to campus, it is after sunrise. KAIANA NELL, a groundskeeper on campus and Veranix’s confidante, helps him sneak back to join his fellow students, including his roommate and fellow magic student DELMIN SARREN at breakfast. Exhausted from the night’s efforts, he falls asleep in class, and PROFESSOR ALIMEN uses him to demonstrate dalmatium, a metal that represses magic.
Veranix returns to his dorm, Almers Hall, where the hall prefect (RELLINGS) gives him some trouble. Before he can rest, he is questioned on magic theory by two younger students (OAKS and PRENS), and does his best to answer them. He works out that the documents he stole tell of a delivery being made that night on the Pellistar Docks.
Veranix goes into the nearby neighborhood of Aventil with Delmin for dinner, where they are first accosted by a local gang member (of the Knights of St. Julian), but Veranix recognizes that he is out of his territory and scares him off. They go to eat at The Rose & Bush, where Veranix makes contact with his cousin COLIN TYSON, who is a captain in the Rose Street Princes gang. Colin and Veranix communicate secretly, where Colin is annoyed by Veranix’s actions the night before and his plans for the next night, as they are creating too much trouble with Fenmere, who puts pressure on the Aventil gangs.
The Shipment of the Pellistar Docks
Believing the shipment to be more of Fenmere’s main product, the drug effitte, Veranix goes up to the city docks to wreck the deal. He attacks Fenmere’s men (including BELL, who was also at the office Veranix robbed the night before) and gets away with the shipment. He discovers it isn’t drugs, but a rope and a cloak. He is initially confused by this, but after examining them, he realizes that they enhance his own magical abilities, and he can magically control them.
Trouble for Aventil
Fenmere is upset by the attack on the shipment, and makes Bell go to his magical partners, The Circle of the Blue Hand, which includes a mage named FENRICH KALAS., to tell them the rope and cloak were stolen, but Fenmere intends to reclaim them. He begins by putting pressure on his own people and the Aventil gangs, to find this “thorn in his side”.
The news of the attack reaches Aventil, and Colin is called to a meeting at St. Julian’s Church with captains from the other Aventil gangs, including YESSA from the Waterpath Orphans and FOUR-TOE from the Knights of St. Julian. He brings JUTIE, a young Prince in his crew. Later Jutie and the other members of Colin’s crew (HETZER and TOOSER) are confronted by Jutie’s brother, who does not approve of Jutie being in the Princes.
Veranix goes to his Practical Magic study with Professor Alimen (after Rellings harasses him again), where he meets both Kalas and WELLS HARLEYDALE from the Circle of Light and Stone. He immediately reacts badly to Kalas, who is disdainful and abrasive to Veranix, leaving before Veranix’s instruction begins. After the instruction, Veranix reacts to a message that Colin wants to talk to him, and he goes into Aventil, where Colin warns him he must lay low because Fenmere is enraged.
Vengeance for Parsons
Veranix intends to keep his promise by staying in his room and studying, but that changes when EITTLE asks Veranix and Delmin for help because something is wrong with PARSONS. Veranix recognizes it as an effitte overdose, and as he sends Delmin to go find a doctor, he gathers up his gear to attack the effitte sellers in Dentonhill. He focuses on a run down pub called The Dogs Teeth, and roughs up two minor dealers (LEMT and JENDLE), until they reveal where to find their boss. He also learns more about how he can use the cloak and rope.
He stalks the boss, CHARL NEVIN, attacking him in his own apartment. The fight with Nevin is hard won, but Veranix gets away with Nevin’s money and journal, as well as bringing a girl who is overdosing on effitte to The Lower Trenn Ward. Despite being hurt and tired, he looks in on the fifth floor of the Lower Trenn, where his mother is a catatonic patient from her own overdose. He makes it back home—to Kaiana’s carriagehouse– just as he succumbs to his injuries.
Mastering the Tools
Veranix wakes in the Unversity hospital ward, having been brought there by Kaiana. He crafts a story about being jumped by gang members in Aventil while going for a doctor—taking care to point the blame toward the Hallaran’s Boys—a story which Professor Alimen and LIEUTENAT BENVIN of the constabulary seem to accept. Delmin, however, knows better and demands to know what’s really going on. Veranix tells him his real history: growing up in a circus before coming to the University of Maradaine, and that his father had ties to the Aventil gangs, and in returning to the city, Fenmere killed his father and forced an overdoes on his mother. He also introduces Delmin to Kaiana, and gets his opinion on the cloak and rope. Delmin thinks it might be laced with napranium, a rare metal that draws and amplifies magical energy.
Fenmere wakes up to news about the attacks by “the Thorn”, and is visited at his home by Kalas and LORD SIRATH, the head of the Circle of the Blue Hand. Sirath is very put out by the loss of the rope and the cloak, and gives Fenmere two days to recover them. Realizing that the Thorn has Nevin’s journal and is attacking effitte dealers, he decides to hire three assassins (THE THREE DOGS) to get the Thorn that night.
Veranix spends the night stretching and training while Kaiana decodes the journal for him, and then learns more about how he can use the cloak—he can change his appearance and make himself nearly invisible. He uses this aspect to go into Aventil and scout what is happening in the Rose Street Prince hangout, The Turnabout.
At the Turnabout, members of Hallaran’s Boys come to confront the Princes, as they’re being hassled by constables for the attack on a student. Lt. Benvin arrives to threaten the Princes, as he’s gathering up gang members in the lockwagons. A fight almost breaks out, and Colin notices Veranix in disguise in the Turnabout.
The Hero is Named
Fenmere’s men rough up some shopkeepers on Waterpath, and Colin and other Rose Street Princes respond. Before a fight breaks out, Veranix shows up as The Thorn and chases Fenmere’s men away, to the cheers of the crowd. Colin is troubled by this development, and confronts Veranix, and it almost comes to blows between them. Colin then arranges for the Princes to do a paperjob to publicly disavow themselves from the Thorn so Fenmere won’t come after them.
Veranix slips back onto campus with some difficulty, because Rellings is already looking for him, but he is able to get back to his room without trouble thanks to Delmin.
Using Nevin’s journal and Kaiana’s codebreaking skill, Veranix determines that there is a large delivery of effitte being made in Oscana Park that night, and despite seeing the public declaration against him by the Rose Street Princes, he decides he is going to stop it.
The Battle of Oscana Park
Veranix suits up and goes to the delivery site, in Oscana Park deep in Dentonhill, ready to deal with whatever he finds. Unfortunately, what is waiting for him are the assassins known as The Three Dogs: SAMAEL, a crossbow sniper; COLEMAN, a knife expert; PENDALL GUROND, a massive strongman. His first skirmish with the three is brutal, and despite injuring all three of them, he barely escapes, getting hurt in the process.
Fortunately, he is rescued by a camp of doxies and their children who live in the park, including MAXIANNE, the woman he rescued from overdose the other night. They help him recuperate, but the camp is invaded by Pendall Gurond, who threatens to kill the women unless Veranix disarms. Veranix does so, but then blasts Pendall with as much magic power as he can muster, sending the giant man flying. Veranix struggles to get out of the park, looking to two constables for help, but the constables are killed by Coleman, and Veranix manages to kill Coleman and get out of the neighborhood and back to the university, but Samael sees him return there.
Veranix realizes that the rope and the cloak are the reason that Fenmere is going after him so strongly, and asks Kaiana to hide them.
The Campus Lockdown
Fenmere is upset that the Thorn wasn’t killed, especially with the Blue Hand leaning so hard on him. When Samael returns with the information that the Thorn lives on campus and is using the rope and cloak, the Blue Hand decide that they will handle it themselves.
Veranix wakes up to the campus being locked down, with Delmin warning him that the Blue Hand Circle are there to find stolen magical artifacts. Delmin gives Veranix a piece of dalmatium, a metal that has the opposite effect of napranium, to keep the Blue Hand from being able to track the items. Veranix races around the lockdown to the carraigehouse to warn Kaiana, but is caught with her before she can tell him what she did with the cloak and rope: give them to Colin. Thanks to her quick thinking, the presumption is made by Professor Alimen and the Blue Hand that Veranix was only in the carriagehouse for a romantic entanglement with Kaiana. The Blue Hand dismiss Veranix as a mage of any note, not knowing that he has the dalmatium in his pocket. Kaiana is fired before Veranix can talk to her.
Alimen kicks the Blue Hand off campus, and admonishes Veranix for not taking his studies seriously, and for further aggravating the Blue Hand.
The Blue Hand return to Fenmere, and after he berates them, he decides to handle the situation on campus himself.
Consequences for Vee and Kai
Alimen goes to Kaiana as she’s leaving campus to apologize for what happened to her, and when they are talking, Fenmere’s men and Blue Hand mages show up and kidnap them both. Fenmere and the Blue Hand know she knows where the rope and cloak are, but she won’t tell them. They decide to put out word that they have her and will trade her and Alimen for the rope and cloak.
Veranix is looking for Kaiana off campus, and in the process, sees the paperjob message that Fenmere is putting out, and realizes what it means. However, he doesn’t know where the rope and cloak even are anymore. He decides he needs to go and rescue them without them, just with his raw skill, and a plan to stop Lord Sirath. Delmin agrees to help him by using his magic-tracking skills to help find the Professor.
Colin has the cloak and rope, and when he sees the Fenmere Paperjob, he remembers the promise he made to his uncle and realizes that he cannot let Veranix deal with this alone. He goes to the meeting to trade the rope and cloak in Veranix’s stead. Seeing that Colin is heading into Dentonhill and serious danger, Hetzer joins him.
Convergence on Dentonhill
With Delmin’s help, Veranix tracks his way to a warehouse in Dentonhill where Kaiana and the Professor are being held. At the same time, Colin makes the meeting (having given the rope and cloak to Hetzer with instructions to follow him). Nevin meets Colin, and Colin refuses to give over the items until he sees the people are safe. Nevin brings him to the warehouse.
In the warehouse, the Blue Hand are preparing for the magical ceremony they are intending to use the rope and cloak This preparation, including abuse of Alimen and Kaiana, is too much for Fenmere, and he leaves, deciding to cut his ties with the Blue Hand.
Veranix, perched on a rooftop across from the warehouse, sees Fenmere leave, and is primed to shoot him with an arrow, but decides that he has to let him go to rescue Kaiana and Professor Alimen. As he lowers his guard, he is caught on the rooftop by Samael.
The Warehouse Scrum
Colin arrives at the warehouse with Nevin, and he talks tough to the Blue Hand who want to know where the items are. He doesn’t yield—instead chiding them for poor form in making a trade—but the two magic-trackers in the Blue Hand (KENT and FORDEN) sense the rope and cloak are nearby, and go out after them. They come charging at Hetzer and Delmin, who were hiding in nearly the same place. Hetzer and Delmin try to fight Kent and Forden, but they are easily defeated, and the rope and cloak taken.
Veranix stands off with Samael, but is able to get away when the sound of Kent and Forden distracts Samael. He manages to injure Kent and then kill Samael before sneaking into the warehouse to surprise Kalas and Sirath.
As Kalas is getting the cloak from Kent and Forden, Veranix shoots him through the hand. Sirath is about to kill Veranix when Veranix shoots one more arrow—this one dalmatium tipped, which gravely injures Sirath. In the confusion, Colin fights and kills Nevin while Veranix frees Kaiana and Professor Alimen (who is unconscious). Kaiana runs with Alimen over her shoulder, while Veranix squares off against Kalas and Kent. Forden grabs the rope and attempts to use it on Veranix, but Hetzer tackles him, and Forden and Hetzer kill each other. Colin kills Kent as Veranix gets the cloak away from Kalas, and reclaims the rope from Forden’s body. Kalas uses the last of his strength to teleport Sirath away before dying himself.
Victories of the Thorn
Veranix—fully in his Thorn Persona—lets Bell escape with a message for Fenmere that he is not to cross Waterpath again. He and Colin reconcile and go their separate ways. Veranix rouses Delmin and they go back to the University, where they find that Kaiana has gotten their safely with the professor, and she’s been credited for rescuing him.
Colin returns to the Princes with Hetzer’s body and tells them what happened, without revealing the Thorn’s identity. They decide to honor Hetzer by standing with The Thorn, and organize another paperjob to show their support, that the Thorn protects the line between Dentonhill and Aventil.
Veranix meets Professor Alimen for breakfast, and learns that he has little idea what happened other than the Blue Hand went too far, and they will be sanctioned by the other mage circles. Kaiana has gained her job back thanks to Alimen’s testimony of her bravery, and knowing that Veranix is engaged in something beyond the scope of his studies, Alimen decides to put him to work assisting with classes and special study. Veranix accepts this, knowing that he’ll get his chance to stop Fenmere in the future.