In Jefferson, Aaron Turner is a small crippled man with a gimpy leg and a twisted arm. He also happens to be the front runner for an illegal militia's invasion into Isabella, a parallel world, an honor he earned because he's one of only two people capable of accessing the place. The situation is temporary since the militia is using scans of Aaron's brain to build a machine. Until this happens, Aaron is on his own.
In Isabella Aaron is still small but no longer crippled, a matter offering him some confusion, but not nearly as much as the world about him. Taking on the persona of the small town owner of a general store, he fulfills his roll as a spy by slowly filling his cellar with weapons and money while learning about the world and its people, neither of which are as he imagined. The world is wide and fresh, backward and vibrant, and lacks almost any trace of iron. Its people are large, boisterous, and many possess a magical Talent accessable only through the use of a Talent Stone. Oh yeah, it's also mostly run by women, making things rather difficult for a young man possessing almost no experience with that particular breed. But women aren't his only problems. There are the small matters of restless natives, a Talent Master intent on empire, and evil criminals who want access to Aaron's resources. Two governments and several women want to control him, and he has conflicting loyalties between the militia who raised him and the people who have accepted him, bringing Aaron to the eventual realization he has to stop the militia at any cost.
A lot to handle for a small man with limited strength and questionable courage who believes maintaining his integrity is paramount. To help him, he has his single talent, his new friends, and a whole bunch of shotguns All of this makes him under armed and unprepared when dealing with magical Talents, the Talent Master, and an armed uprising by unhappy natives, especially when the militia takes his ability to teleport away.
On the face of it, The Turner Chronicles is a fun adventurous ride, but in many ways it is also a morality tale intermixed with lessons on how great courage and skill aren't needed for a person to make a difference. Although he lacks personal ambition, Aaron quickly becomes a political and religious focal point, first inside the small frontier town of Last Chance, then within the country of Isabella, and finally through the entire world. He wants none of this, tries to avoid it, but events and his personal commitment to the concepts of integrity and honor leave him no choice. Throughout the series Aaron often stumbles, frequently falls, but always rises when he is the final option--no matter what the personal cost. From a small insignificant cripple being used by an illegal militia, he becomes a titan before whom entire nations tremble. He finds and loses love, builds fortunes, invents industries, and is named Bringer, Death, and Chosen of the One God, a heretical belief of the Isabella Clan which he fights against every step of the way. In fact, the only thing Aaron seems unable to overcome is a young lawyer who sees Aaron as her pathway to fortune.
Did I mention book one, Traitor, is free