The sequel The Standing Dead was published in 2002 and a third novel, The Third God, appeared in 2009, its completion delayed by the effects of a fire at the author's home.

The Stone Dance of the Chameleon trilogy concerns the harrowing experiences of the young and inexperienced heir to a ruling dynasty who is suddenly taken from his protected childhood and thrust into a cruel society where he must fight for his family honour, his position and his life.

[2] He acknowledged that his ideas on writing and creating fantasy worlds had been influenced by the works of J. R. R. Tolkien and the Dune novels of Frank Herbert.

In this slave-owning civilisation of dazzling beauty and ancient ritual, the purity of noble bloodlines is paramount to the strict and ruthless caste system headed by the God Emperor and his Chosen.

As the series begins, Carnelian follows his father Sardian, Lord Suth, from their outlying home to the capital of Osrakum as the current Emperor lies dying and a successor is to be named.