by Richard Swan
Part of Empire of the Wolf
First published 2023
The Battle of Galen's Vale is behind him, but Sir Konrad Vonvalt rides back to the capital city of Sova to find it rotting from within. Senators argue openly against the Emperor. Street preachers call for holy vengeance. The Magistratum's authority is slipping, and Vonvalt can feel it. He has barely taken stock of the crisis when a new order arrives: the Emperor's grandson has been taken, and Vonvalt must bring the boy back alive. He heads south with Helena, Bressinger, and Sir Radomir at his side. The southern frontier is hostile ground, and waiting there is Bartholomew Claver, the puritanical templar knight who has already proven himself a dangerous enemy. But Claver is not the worst thing they will face. Something darker is moving at the edges of this mission, something none of them anticipated. Vonvalt carries three roles at once: detective, judge, executioner. The Empire gave him that authority. Now the Empire itself is the thing that needs saving, and it is not clear whether one Justice is enough.
Genres: adventure, mystery, fantasy, dark-fantasy, epic-fantasy
Vibes: dark, gritty, morally-complex, political-intrigue, suspenseful
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family, power-struggle, quest-narrative
Setting: Galen's Vale, Sova, Southern frontier, Empire
592 pages · Paperback · Orbit
Content warnings: death, kidnapping, violence