Stealing Death — Janet Lee Carey

“I want that soul sack,” he said suddenly.
“What?” the witch asked around the scrap of meat she was chewing.
“I want it so no one I love will ever, ever, ever have to go inside again.”
“It's not for mortal hands to have.” The witch spat out a bit of bone.
“You know magic. Give me the power to steal the sack.”

When fire steals his family from him, Kipp is left with only his little sister to protect as best he can, and he's determined that death will not come to her�"or to the girl he loves but can never approach.

But who would dare to master death? As Kipp finds out, it's complicated, and possession of the soul sack is no guarantee of success. Dragon' s Keep author Janet Lee Carey has crafted a stirring and original fantasy set in a harsh and beautiful desert landscape, in which a young man who has lost everything finds the strength within himself to care for those he loves�"and to allow those he cannot keep close to him to take a path he cannot follow.