The Jargoon Pard — Andre Norton

A young heir is drawn into a labyrinth of deception, death, and magical destiny in this bold adventure in the bestselling Witch World series.   Kethan is heir to the throne of Car Do Prawn in the realm of Arvon—but there is little he has to be proud of. He can sense trouble brewing amongst the people. And he can feel the weight of those who wish to bend his will to their own. From his overbearing mother, the Lady Heroise, and her duplicitous Wise Woman, Ursilla, to his vindictive cousin, Maughus, they all want to rule through him when he comes of age.   But his attention is turned from such palace intrigues when a strange traveler gifts him a belt of leopard skin embossed with a stone—a jargoon—carved in the shape of a predatory snow cat.   At first, the belt intrigues Kethan. Then it entrances him, for it possesses great magical powers—and it is up to Kethan to learn how to control them. He will need to tread a crooked path between good and evil if he is to retain his soul even as his body transforms into a form more lethal than anything he’s ever dreamed. The Jargoon Pard is the 1st book in the Witch World: High Hallack Cycle, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.