Paperback, 544 pages
Published March 23, 2021 by Orbit.
Touraine is a soldier. Stolen as a child and raised to kill and die for the empire, her only loyalty is to her fellow conscripts. But now, her company has been sent back to her homeland to stop a rebellion, and the ties of blood may be stronger than she thought.
Luca needs a turncoat. Someone desperate enough to tiptoe the bayonet's edge between treason and orders. Someone who can sway the rebels toward peace, while Luca focuses on what really matters: getting her uncle off her throne.
Through assassinations and massacres, in bedrooms and war rooms, Touraine and Luca will haggle over the price of a nation. But some things aren't for sale.
A nuanced take on colonization and colonial liberalism with light fantasy themes.
I feel like I would have enjoyed it much more had the plot not primarily been driven by the main character repeatedly making Poor Life Decisions in alternating directions.
