Royal Exile begins with the capture of Barronel at the hands of Loethar, a barbarian warlord from the Likurian Steppes, who has his sights set on the illusive realm of Penraven.
Fearful, now that its neighbours have been captured, King Brennus of Penraven sees to the birth of his daughter, to whom he declares deceased.
Legate Regor De Vis, and his twin sons Corbel and Gavriel are called to bear witness to Brennus' cunning plan.
Choosing Corbel to whisk away his 'deceased' daughter, the task of protecting Brennus' only 'true' son Leonel is given to Gavriel, who accepts with hesitance.
His twin brother Gavriel finds solitude within the secret passageways within Penraven with the young heir at his side.
It is later revealed that Freath is working with Genrie, a household servant and unrequited love of Gavriel, in an attempt of stopping Loethar, and finding the mysterious Aegis, who is said to be bonded with the Valisar heir who is granted the power of coercion.
Later, Lily joins the pair as they search to seek out Kilt Faris, a highwayman and renegade, who had been given aide by Brennus in order of taking Leo under his wing if Penraven would ever fall.
Gavriel is later separated from Leo and finds himself in the care of Elka, though it is clear that he has no memories of who he really is, stating his name to be that of his father's, "Regor".
At the beginning of Royal Exile, Leo is somewhat naive to the world around him, and is thrust into uncertainty following his father's death at the hands of Loethar.
Aided by Gavriel De Vis, Leo is forced to mature rather quickly, for as fate would have it, he is the only remaining heir of the Valisar line, and is therefore his duty to avenge his father, and reclaim the throne of Penraven.
Brennus was cunning enough to create an elaborate plan for his son Leo, if in the case of Loethar succeeding.
Brennus is also responsible for hiding the truth of his daughter's "death", though for the most part, his motives remain a mystery.
Gav is assigned by Brennus to protect Leo, and does so, not only as a guardian or best friend, but as a blood brother to the young King.
Assigned to whisking away Brennus "deceased" daughter, Corb seeks out Sergius before descending into a realm of magic.
Loethar's main objective is to claim the Valisar gift of Coercion, which he believes can be given by consuming one of the royal bloodline.
Freath is an enigmatic character, and is at first viewed as morally corrupt, seemingly betraying the Valisar line to which he has dedicated his life, in order of winning Loethar's favour.
Kirin's ability comes at a price, yet allows him and fellow Vested, Clovis to attend to Freath's devised plan.
Daughter to a leper, Lily has lived her life in solitude, which is interrupted when she catches Gav and Leo releasing a hare she was hunting.
The Denova Set includes Barronel, Cremond, Dregon, Gormand, Medhaven, Penraven, Vorgraven.
[4] Diane Dempsey, writing in The Age newspaper (Melbourne) noted: "Within McIntosh's world heroes, animals, magicians and highwaymen all have a part to play and all have a particular language and set of beliefs that hold firm for the entire book.