THANK YOU to Tor and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of "The Book of Ile-Rien" by Martha Wells in exchange for an honest review.

Martha Well is truly a master at her craft. No matter which book of hers you start with, you are in for an adventure. "The Book of Ile-Rein" is an excellent place to begin.

"The Book of Ile-Rein" is a combination of two previously published novels, "The Element of Fire" and "Death of the Necromancer", both updated and revised.

"The Element of Fire" features Thomas Boniface, Captain of the Queens Guards, and Kade Carrion, the bastard half-fae daughter of the now-deceased King Fulstan. The story opens with Thomas on a rescue mission, sent to retrieve the kidnapped sorcerer Dubell from the clutches of the EVIL sorcerer Grandier. The mission goes a little sideways but ends well enough. Meanwhile, Kade has joined a theater troupe to quietly infiltrate the palace to confront both her past and her half-brother, who now sits on the throne. That starts well enough, but goes pear-shaped when the performance is crashed by a golem intent on murdering her.

And then the Fae invade. The Unseelie Court, to be specific. These are not the lovely, dainty fairies from a "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (although Titania and Oberon DO rule the Seelie Court here). These are the nasty, vile, hateful fae, who have allied with Grandier.

What follows is an extraordinary adventure tale, led by a Thomas and Kade. The story is large in scope but never feels overwhelming. The characters, for the most part, feel real and appropriately flawed. Every detail is well-thought out, but never info-dumped so the pace remains steady. It's exciting, interesting, and emotional. Wells's ability to pull together a complex plot is incredible.

"Death of the Necromancer" is set in the same city, about 100 years after "Element of Fire." While the city is not London, it definitely has a Victorian era feel to it, not the least of which because the city now has gas-lighting and a deep interest in Spiritualism. The main character of this story is Nicholas Valiarde, master thief.

It begins when Nicholas and his associates undertake an intricately plotted heist of a wealthy but sketchy society matron. But while they are about their business, they discover someone else has broken into the manor at the same time, apparently with different aims. Nicholas tangles with a ghoul and they make off into the night with the Duchess's, now theirs, ill-gotten gains. They return to Nicholas's manor for the evening, only to be confronted by.... a golem.

Again, what follow is a fantastic story. Whereas the previous story was an adventure and a bit of a conspiracy, this one is a mystery too. Her writing is well-plotted, thoroughly detailed, and man, she really knows how to use the English language. Recommended for readers of High Fantasy.

As a dedicated Murderbot fan, it was a treat to delve into Martha Wells’s earlier fantasy work! This newly revised two-volume set collects her debut novel The Element of Fire, and the subsequent book The Death of the Necromancer, both set in the fantasy kingdom of Ile-Rien. I found both novels to be incredibly readable, and Wells always excels at writing exciting action scenes and loveable characters.

In The Element of Fire, we are introduced to a kingdom at war with the Unseelie Court of the Fay, with delicate power structures and simmering treason. The Captain of the Queen’s Guard must team up with the newly returned half-Fay princess to restore peace to the realm. I loved the complex dynamics between all of the characters, with royal intrigue and past trauma and otherworldly agendas all contributing to the already intense plot. Excellent dialogue, lots of twists and turns, and even a lovely blossoming romance amidst all of the battles.

The Death of the Necromancer takes place a century later, and while I missed the characters I had come to love in the first book, I quickly got wrapped up in the mysterious heist plot, as we follow a band of thieves desperate to avenge a framed execution, who get unexpectedly embroiled in a paranormal conspiracy. Once again there was incredible pacing, keeping me on my toes as the characters investigated sewers, made unlikely allies, and untangled a dangerous web of magic and murder.

I was struck by the decision to place these novels so far apart in time; the very real threat of the Fay in the first book became long-dead myths in the second, with all new enemies and different sensibilities. However, it all worked for me, and I found I slightly preferred The Death of the Necromancer (though I very much enjoyed both novels). Wells’s books never disappoint, and I’m excited to check out more of her earlier work!

Thanks to Tordotcom and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Like last year's City of Bones, The Book Of Ile-Rien finds Martha Wells revisiting and revising past works. Unlike that work of a dystopia grappling with its past, The Book of Ile-Rien contains two full length adventures set within the nation of Ile-Rien, on a world full of magic, fayre, political intrigue and combat that sometimes spills in to war.

"The Element of Fire" is the first of the two tales, and centers on Thomas Boniface, Captain of the Queen's Guard, and his efforts to keep the kingdom safe from threats. As we join the story, Boniface is raiding the house of a foreign wizard to rescue a kidnapped sorcerer. After this mission he learns that the king's bastard half sister, Kade, has been in contact after a long period of silence. Kade was born of an affair with a fairy queen, and her current desires are unknown and a possible threat to the kingdom. The scars of the cruel old king linger in his children, Kade who fled and his son, Roland who is at least the power by name. But he is surrounded by courtier's jockeying for their own power and favor and he is weak and easily swayed. The true power, Dowager, formerly Queen Ravenna, brilliant and ruthless, maintains the balance of power, but know she is getting older and needs to find a way to strengthen her son.

"The Death of the Necromancer" takes place centuries after "the Elements of Fire" but remains in Ile-Rien. Here we following Nicholas Valiarde and his team of oddballs as they are putting in place the final portion of a long gestating plan to ruin the noble who caused the death of his adoptive father. However on the night of the key heist, another party has already broken in to the wealthy home they've targeted but seemed concerned with treasures from the past. Not only do Nicholas and his team get pulled in to the mystery of this unknown thief, but have for years been playing cat and mouse with a Sherlockian detective named Sebastian Ronsarde.

Both tales are very well paced, starting with a bright bit of action before calming and revealing backgrounds and details of the main characters. Then events rise and resolve with a ratcheting of tensions leading to the critical denouement. While the events of the first book are important to the second, for the most part the influence is more subtle. "Fire" is more chaotic and combat filled, whereas "Death" plays out as more of a procedural mystery. The latter, "Fire" is heavily indebted to Sherlock Holmes as Valiarde is very much a descendant of Moriarty, but all the better for not being named as such and in a world where magic is possibly but difficult.

Martha Wells again shows her talents for building well realized worlds, full of complex systems and competing motivations. These two tales, revised and updated, should be a treat to any fan of fantastical magic worlds, political intrigue or those who like their whodunnit with lots of twists.

This is a collection of two books: The Element of Fire and Death of a Necromancer, which were originally released in 1993 and 1998. Martha Wells is an award-winning fantasy writer, who is republishing these revisions in one title.

The Book of Ile-Rien sets the stage for a later trilogy, which I’m still debating if they’ll make it to my TBR. The work is best described as historical fantasy, with subtle hints of romance. The first book (which I preferred), Element of Fire, has hints of a cozy mystery. Death of a Necromancer brings in elements of horror.

Both stories, loosely connected, have strong main characters with complex layers, plus a supporting cast you’re interested in knowing more about. The concepts of the Seelie and Unseelie Courts run consistent with the typical fantasy lore, though Wells investigates the more dark and chaotic side of the Fay.

The second book, Death of a Necromancer, is intense and intricate, particularly during the last third of the book. I’m glad I saw it through to the end, and I know I’ll ponder it for a little while, but it’s not often that I struggle to keep up with the story.

The Book of Ile-Rien is revised compilation of the first two novels in Ile-Rien: The Element of Fire and The Death of a Necromancer.

The Element of Fire follows Thomas Boniface, the captain of the Queens Guard. When the kingdom is threatened by a sorcerer, and the kings bastard daughter returns, it’s up to Thomas to find out the plot against the kingdom.

The Death of a Necromancer follows Nicholas Valiarde, once a nobleman who is now one of the greatest thiefs in the city as part of his act of revenge upon some of the other nobles. When one of his heists goes wrong, a dark necromantic magic is after him, he must put aside his plans for revenge to keep himself and his friends alive.

I’ve read almost all of Martha Wells recent books, so I was excited to try this revised versions of Ile-Rien because I haven’t read her earlier novels. I’ve been hit and miss with her fantasy, some of them I’ve loved, and some I’ve been so-so on, but I’ve always loved her Sci-Fi. I was hoping The Books of Ile-Rien would fall firmly into the love category.

What I didn’t realize with this being a compilation of two novels was that they wouldn’t be direct sequels. Both books are set in Ile-Rien, but that’s all they have in common, with The Element of Fire being set many years before The Death of a Necromancer. So instead, like most of my experience with Wells Fantasy, I had one book I loved, and the other I was only so-so about. And I’m an outlier in this, because most readers seem to prefer The Death of a Necromancer, but I loved The Element of Fire.

The Element of Fire had a more traditional fantasy feel to it. We have the captain of the guard, questionably capable kings, political intrigue and deception, bastard children who are half-fayre, and evil sorcerers. It kind of ticks all the boxes of what you’d want from a more typical fantasy book. I really liked Thomas, and Kade - the kings daughter - and the banter between the two was well done. The magical in this one was something I really enjoyed, a lot of it being fayre magic. There was also a couple of solid twists in here with the political intrigue that made it more entertaining, and less predictable. The ending felt a little bit abrupt, especially after realizing the second book wasn’t going to continue with Thomas, but all in all, The Element of Fire was a really fun book to read.

The Death of a Necromancer is a heist story, with some necromancy thrown in for some excitement. This is definitely a me problem for not enjoying it more. I used to love magical heist stories, but have read too many over the years, and I’ve become burnt out from them. Valiarde is your typical heist thief - a nobleman who is doing this to take down the other wealthy and get revenge for the wrong they’ve done. His group of companions are other good people, who only fell to a life of crime because of something that was done to them. When they discover some dark magic and necromancy, they can’t stand by idly so they starting trying to investigate who the Necromancer is to stop him in time, It was still a really fun story, and I never felt like I was bored, it just isn’t a subgenre that I love anymore, so I only felt so-so about it. For readers who love heist stories, they’re going to love this one.

I do understand why it was decided to do a compilation of the first two books of Ile-Rien, but personally that was my biggest issue with this. I would have preferred them to be published separately because the two books are so different from each other, it felt jarring to jump straight into an entirely different book. Maybe in the finished version, there is also more of a division between them, but in the e-ARC, there wasn’t even a dividing title page to realize you’ve switched books. I also feel like because they are basically stand-alone stories set in the same world, it would be nice to have them as separate books to give them a chance to stand on their own rather than have people review or compare them to each other.

But whatever my feelings about the publication are, this was still a fun read. For reader’s who love Martha Wells fantasy, they’re going to love being able to go back to her earlier novels with a revised edition. These are also a good spot to start with her fantasy if you’ve not read it before, and want to start with some more traditional fantasy. The banter in both books are really great too, so if you’re seeking out more Wells after Murderbot, this is the most similar in humour I’ve found in her fantasy (although not the same, and Murderbot readers should not expect the same from any of her fantasy books). Basically, most fantasy readers will find something they enjoy in The Book of Ile-Rien,.

Martha Wells is the master world builder. This book is a great example of her fantasy work. The characters are complex, the storytelling is top notch. And she makes you immediately seek out more of her work.

I had been meaning to read this author’s works for a while and I jumped at the chance to read these revised editions of these two books. I can only conclude that it definitely will not be my last by her.

This book includes the first two novels in the Ile-Rien series. The Element of Fire was originally published in 1993 with The Death of the Necromancer being published in 1998. Here they are collected in one book. The two stories are connected, but follow different characters and are quite different stories in their own right.

The Element of Fire – 3.75* (7.64)

The first book, Wells’ debut novel, is a full-on fantasy novel which centres around court intrigue and court politics. It also takes a foray into the land of the fae, but luckily it does not centre too heavily on those elements. They are there and the fae definitely have a role to play, but this is far more about the people that are connected to the human court. This one does lack a little bit of something and the writing feels quite basic, but the story was pretty good and I still really enjoyed it. I really liked both the main characters.

The Death of the Necromancer – 4* (8.14)

The second books is very much a mystery and kind of a heist story. The main characters get up to lots of shenanigans as they try and figure out who is performing necromancy in the city. It is well plotted and has a whole host of characters. I liked the understated relationship between Nicholas and Madeline in particular. The novel was a little longer than it truly needed to be, but overall I really enjoyed this and it kept me interested enough.

The two novels are connected by the fact that they take place in the same city but book two is set about 100 years after the first. I found the transition into the second book quite jarring as we follow completely different characters and I am not sure it quite works as one volume for that reason, but I have to admit I enjoyed both stories in their own right. There are some things that connected the first novel to the second, but I wish there was a bit more that connected them.

I am glad these were the first books I read by this author. Now I can happily dig deeper into her bibliography, because I know I will have a good time doing so.

Overall rating: 3.5 stars

The Element of Fire: Rating: Enjoyed It, 3.5 stars

This is Martha Wells first novel, and I can see how much she has grown as a writer and a story teller. This book was fine, I enjoyed it, but it definitely doesn't compare to the Books of the Raksura, Murderbot, or Witch King.

In this we follow a couple different players in the kingdom of Ile-Rien where the king is weak and open to control from his nobles, and the dowager queen runs the kingdom behind the scenes: Thomas Boniface, the captain of the king's guard, and Kade, the illegitimate and half-fae daughter of the previous king. Ile-Rien is in peril from the weak rule, a ruthless neighboring kingdom, and an evil sorcerer who has returned after years away.

I would say that this is pretty standard sword and sorcery fantasy, and there's not anything that really makes it stand out for me, which is why I didn't rate it higher. I liked the characters well enough, it was fast paced and I wanted to know what would happen, but it ultimately wasn't as compelling as what I know Martha Wells is capable of with her later works. The characters were interesting but not as three dimensional as I would like and there was more telling over showing for a lot of this.

I also thought that there was a weird romance sub-plot between Kade and Thomas and they mention multiple times the large age gap between them and the fact that he was the same age as her father. So that was weird. I liked the introduction of the fae to the more traditional medieval setting, but I would have preferred more exploration of that.

So overall, it was fun enough, and I'm glad that I read it, but I definitely think Martha Wells has improved as a writer as she continued in her career.


The Death of the Necromancer: Enjoyed It, 3.5 Stars

I love Martha Wells, but I unfortunately have not loved her more classic, medieval fantasy. I enjoyed The Death of the Necromancer, but it doesn't have the same cozy feeling as some of her other works. I know this was one of her earlier works, and while it has the bones of the excellent relationship-building that I love her books for, it just didn't quite hit.

In this one, we follow Nicholas, a nobleman turned thief, who is seeking revenge for the unjust execution of his adopted father. He is in the midst of a revenge scheme when he and his crew stumble onto a much more dangerous plot involving necromancy.

We also have a Holmes-Watson duo that end up joining the crew, which was fun. I think that there were glimmers of Wells' trademark dry humor and some of the really solid interpersonal relationships, but her crafting of these things has definitely worked better for me in some of her later works (i.e. Raksura, Murderbot, Witch King) than in this one. I never fully connected to the characters, and the plot was interesting, but not enough to sustain my full interest throughout. There were times that I was invested in the plot, but that was also inconsistent.

Overall, I enjoyed this one well enough, but it isn't one that will necessarily stick with me.

My actual rating of this book is 3.75 stars, which I rounded up to 4. This book was definitely the hardest for me to review of the Martha Wells books that I've read so far. It took me the longest to get into, but the payoff was still there. This book (or these two books) has many more common elements to its plot and characters, but these tropes are quite well. This book reads as a nice high fantasy, even if somewhat different than what I've come to expect from Martha's books. and of course, I have to say it: I'm sorry Thomas Boniface, but I'm in love with you just like all the rest.
I think that a lot of readers who have enjoyed Six of Crows will probably enjoy the second half of the book more than the first, but I did struggle a little bit with the change in time and characters. It may have been partially due to the format of the eARC, which jumped quite suddenly in from one part to the next without pause. If I was reading my own copy, I would've paused to take a longer break between the two halves to get my mind straight. I'm interested to see how this is formatted in the final copy of the book and if it makes the flow of the reading any better or worse.

This was the best 750 page book that I’ve read.

The Book of Ile-Rien is actually an omnibus of two books, the Element of Fire and Death of the Necromancer, that have been updated and revised as an author’s preferred edition. The Element of Fire is more of a political fantasy with intrigue and drama a la Game of Thrones, whereas Death of the Necromancer is more of a crime heist conspiracy sort of tale.

I liked The Element of Fire for its political intrigue and worldbuilding but LOVED the Death of the Necromancer. The characters are absolutely fantastic, the romantic subplot is cute (but definitely very subtle), and the conspiracy had me on the edge of my seat. It was definitely my favorite of the two and I think of it as an elevated version of Six of Crows: there were a lot of similarities and I couldn’t help but think of Kaz Brekker when I read about Nicholas Valiente.

Martha Wells delivers a wonderfully detailed world in the Kingdom of Ile-Rien, with a combination of magic and royal bureaucracy taking center stage. The two books, set 200 years apart, show the variety of stories Wells has in her repertoire and reflects her supremacy in the fantasy genre. I loved this book, but I have to admit that it felt slow to get through because of its severe length. Other than that, its a perfect fantasy read.

A must for fans of high fantasies like LOTR and GOT and definitely recommend for fans of Six of Crows who are looking for something more adult 🙌🏼

I’ve come to the conclusion I really don’t gel with Martha Wells’ fantasy as much as her sci-fi (Murderbot) books. I’m glad she’s getting a lot of love, given she has been in the industry so long, but her style here doesn’t really do anything for me.

The Book of Ile-Rien collects the first two books in Martha Wells’ Ile-Rien universe, which takes place in a fantasy world with a steampunk flavor. Though I have the much-lauded Murderbot series on my TBR, I have never read any of Wells’ work before. The Element of Fire is her debut, and when this book crossed my dashboard I thought it’d be a decent place to start.

The Element of Fire – 3.5 stars

The return of the king’s bastard sister to the court of Ile-Rien ought to be Queen’s Guard commander Thomas’s biggest concern, but when the city comes under siege by a mysterious sorcerer, Kade might end up his best ally instead.

Though a semi-generic fantasy setting and convoluted world-building made it somewhat hard to get into the story, the characters completely won me over. Kade is an excellent heroine, combining in herself both whimsy and darkness, and I enjoyed her budding relationship with the swashbuckling Thomas. There’s plenty of action and political intrigue, and the complex secondary characters kept things tense.

I did wish the end was not so abrupt though – maybe we’ll see more of Kade and Thomas later in the series?

~

The Death of the Necromancer – 4.5 stars

Gentleman thief Nicholas’s focus is on bringing down the man who betrayed his foster father, but his mission is disrupted when traces of forbidden necromantic magic appear to be dogging him.

Set a century after the previous book, we are introduced to a brand new cast of characters and an adventurous whirlwind of a story. The magic and the world felt more unique and fleshed out compared to the first book, and the homages that Wells paid to Sherlock Holmes and The Count of Monte Cristo were very fun. I also enjoyed the camaraderie and banter between Nicholas’s crew, as well as his relationship with the artful Madeline.

However, I did think the action sequences had a tendency to drag on a little – I wish they’d been tightened up more.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This is a DNF but not because of quality - sometimes you just don’t vibe with a book and that’s okay! I still love Martha Wells as an author, this just wasn’t the book for me. Perhaps I’ll return to it but for now, I’ve been trying to get into it for days and it isn’t quite clicking.

The Book of Ile-Rien
The Element of Fire
By Martha Wells

This was originally her first published book, and she has re-edited and released it (alongside The Death of the Necromancer) I decided to do a separate review for each.

I really loved The Element of Fire! The world building was excellent, the characters were nuanced (flawed but likeable), and the plot was very well structured. But then again, I’ve come to expect all of that with Martha Wells.

Unlike Witch King, I was immediately immersed in this story. Thomas and Kade are both great main characters. Thomas has some complicated relationships which makes his character intriguing and with an interesting view on life (and the worth of his own life). Kade is facing some demons and learning how to trust herself (and others).

The Book of Ile-Rien
The Death of the Necromancer
By Martha Wells

Absolutely fantastic! I loved this one even more than the first story.

If you love Found Family as much as I do, then you’ll love this.

Nicholas is a scoundrel, but a scoundrel with a distinctive purpose: to avenge his foster-father. Over the years he has gathered an eclectic family of lock picks, an actress, a disgraced cavalryman, an addict sorcerer, and a very loyal body guard. When they stumble onto something bigger than revenge, they can’t look the other way but dive in to solving the case. With a little help from a detective/doctor duo.

This book is a romp, a horror show, and a love letter to the chosen family you surround yourself with.

Thanks to @netgalley and @marthawellswriter for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Collecting Martha Wells' The Element of Fire and The Death of the Necromancer for the first time in one place.

The Element of Fire
The kingdom of Ile-Rien lies in peril, menaced by sorcerous threats and devious intrigue, when Kade, bastard sister of King Roland, appears unexpectedly at court. The illegitimate daughter of the old king and the Queen of Air and Darkness herself, Kade's true desires are cloaked in mystery.

The Death of the Necromancer
Nicholas Valiarde is a passionate, embittered nobleman and the greatest thief in all of Ile-Rien. On the gaslight streets of the city, Nicholas assumes the guise of a master criminal, stealing jewels from wealthy nobles to finance his quest for a long-pursued vengeance.

I've now discovered that when it comes to Martha Wells and her fantasy stories you better prepare to get thrown into the fantasy world the story takes place in, and either you sink you swim. Similar to my experience with Witch King, I was barely able to tread water most of the time, and while it is difficult to rate this, I would say Element of Fire is better than Death of the Necromancer.

But rest assured, Wells' signature world building and political intrigue when it comes to her fantasy is still prevalent, even if it does take you a bit to really get into the story.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this rerelease.

I’ve previously only read Martha Wells Murderbot series. If you’re going into this series hoping for the same vibe, it’s very different (and also not science fiction).This is a rerelease of two of her books that I’ve never read, but it was an enjoyable adventure. I’m now looking for the rest of the books set in this world.

These two books set in the world of Ile-Rien are being released in a newly edited edition together and I was so excited to get to check these out as I love Martha Wells’s writing in the Murderbot Diaries series.

I fell in love with the characters in book one, The Element of Fire, especially Kade the half-human, half-fay sorceress who is pretty badass and is also an exiled princess of the kingdom. And Thomas, the captain of the queen’s guard is one of those characters that just gets things done, no matter the cost to himself. Some of the main bad guys in this story are the fae and I enjoyed them being depicted as more of a dark and scary creature instead of how fae often get described in books now.

Book two, The Death of the Necromancer, took me a lot longer to get into. It’s essentially a crime/whodunnit story set in the same world but about 100 (?) years in the future. Once I fell into seeing some familiar tropes with the mystery side of things and we finally had some time to get to know our larger cast of characters better, it got more interesting. It was weird knowing this was the same world but the fae get mostly left behind now while magic does become a bigger focus.

Overall 4.5/5
Book 1 5/5
Book 2 4/5

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Thank you to tordotcom and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Netgalley and TOR for this advanced copy.

This is an omnibus of two previous works (The Element of Fire and Death of the Necromancer) that I haven't read before and thus was very excited! While both books take part in the same universe, timeline wise theres a difference of hundreds of years. I prefered the first part more since it focused on court drama, fay and politics. The second book felt a bit more Victorian (and even had a character that reminded me of Sherlock) and had heists, mystery and revenge.

A definite recommendation for those that love fantasy, drama and mystery!

This is an updated omnibus version of Martha Wells first (The Element of Fire) and third (Death of the Necromancer) novels and both take place in Ile-Rien, although about two hundred years apart. There's a lot of sword-and-sorcery and fae of various characteristics, especially in the first novel, while the second one has much more of a steam-punk, Victorian vibe. Although the second novel glancingly references the first one, these are essentially separate stories. Both are very well done and the characters and the action hold the reader's attention throughout. I love the Murderbot stories, but these two are very different. However, they are still very good in a completely different way.

"Collecting Martha Wells' Element of Fire and Death of the Necromancer for the first time in one place, in a new and revised edition!

From the author of Witch King and the Murderbot Diaries:

Both novels included in this volume have been revised and updated. These are the author's preferred texts.

The Element of Fire
The kingdom of Ile-Rien lies in peril, menaced by sorcerous threats and devious intrigue, when Kade, bastard sister of King Roland, appears unexpectedly at court. The illegitimate daughter of the old king and the Queen of Air and Darkness herself, Kade's true desires are cloaked in mystery.

It falls to Thomas Boniface, Captain of the Queen's Guard, to keep the kingdom from harm. But is one man's steel enough to counter all the magic of fayre?

The Death of the Necromancer
Nicholas Valiarde is a passionate, embittered nobleman and the greatest thief in all of Ile-Rien. On the gaslit streets of the city, Nicholas assumes the guise of a master criminal, stealing jewels from wealthy nobles to finance his quest for a long-pursued vengeance.

But Nicholas's murderous mission is being interrupted by a series of eerie, unexplainable, and fatal events. A dark magic opposes him, and traces of a necromantic power that hasn't been used for centuries abound. Nicholas and his compatriots find themselves battling an ancient evil.

And if they lose? Death would be preferable to the fate that awaits them...."

Because we've all become addicts of Martha Wells and have to wait out the time until the next Murderbot book somehow...