Death of a Darklord — Laurell K. Hamilton

There is a plague fn the village of Cortton, a plague of the dead. Corpses walk the streets in search of the living. The villagers send for the mage-finder Jonathan Ambrose, for they believe evil magic is at work. They are right. Jonathan soon discovers that ft is Harkon Lukas who is behind the destruction of the town.

Harkon Lukas has a plan for escaping the bounds of his realm. One of Jonathan's followers is just the person that Harkon Lukas needs. Jonathan believes he is in Cortton to save the villagers, to lay the dead to rest. But If Harkon Lukas escapes his curse and can travel the Dark Domains as he pleases ... the slaughter has only begun.

Death of a Darklord is the eleventh in an open-ended series of Gothic horror tales dealing with the masters and monsters of the RAVENLOFT dark fantasy setting.