by Juliet Kemp
He glanced sideways at Tait, who looked like that was a very appealing thought, and also like they didn’t think they were included in the idea.
“Yes? Coming with?” Cato asked.
Tait’s face brightened a little, then dropped again. “My money’s back in the room, and I don’t know, I shouldn’t just…” Their shoulders were hunched in embarrassment.
“Don’t worry about the money,” Cato said, then, more sternly, “really, don’t worry. Hang onto your demon-bear payment, and you can owe me one for some future time when you are a rich Mareker sorcerer. Also, you need to pick up those clothes you left for cleaning, so you might as well.”
“Oh! But I don’t have the token… ?”
“You’re with me,” Cato said. “They’ll remember which are ours, trust me.” They’d have washed them and kept them separately, because people were annoyingly superstitious about some things in this city. Not that it wasn’t handy enough.
Tait looked like they really, really wanted to agree. Gently, giving them plenty of room to back away, Cato put a hand on their arm.
They didn’t back away, and Cato’s heart – no, no, he refused to engage with any notions of his heart. Something else – leapt.
“Come on,” Cato said firmly. “Come and soak with me.”
They didn’t talk much in the baths, but Cato surreptitiously watched the tension soak out of Tait as they scrubbed themself off, steamed for a while, and then soaked next to Cato in the warm pool. The enormous tumblers of cheap red that Cato had bought for both of them were probably helping, too.
“Reb’ll do right by you,” Cato said at one point, though the words stuck a little in his craw. “She’s bloody annoying, and terribly ethical, but she’s a good sorcerer.”
“Whereas no one ever finds you annoying, I’m sure,” Tait said.
“I don’t know what you could possibly mean,” Cato said loftily, and rejoiced in the indication that Tait might be beginning to bounce back from the afternoon’s events. It would take longer than this, of course. But if Cato could help, a little…
They both swapped their dirty clothes in for their clean ones, dressed, and walked up the road together, then up the stairs to the landing where both of their doors stood. Tait hesitated, for a second, and Cato took a breath.
“So,” he said. “Are you up to anything this evening?”
Tait looked at him. “Not that I can think of.”
Cato grinned, and leaned on the doorway of his room. “Want to come in?”
Tait grinned back. “Sounds like an interesting plan.”
They were already kissing as the door shut behind them.
k k
Marcia watched Cato, Tait, and Jonas head off towards the squats, and raised an eyebrow at Reb. “Am I seeing what I think I’m seeing, there? Cato and Tait?”
“No idea how long it’ll last,” Reb said. “He’s your brother, you know what he’s like. But better I apprentice Tait, either way.”
Marcia was still looking thoughtfully after Cato. “He was being surprisingly… nice. Though it’s not like I’ve ever got to meet any of his, ah, friends, before. I don’t get the impression they last all that long.” Cato hardly ever mentioned lovers to her, though she was confident that he had them, even if only ever temporarily.
Reb shrugged. “As long as they can get on politely afterwards I honestly don’t care. Tait seems nice enough, when they’re not bringing demons to Marek, so I’m not sure it’s the best of matches.”
“Hey,” Marcia said, automatically. “Cato’s nice… enough…” She stopped. “He’s my brother. Be kind.”
“Of course,” Reb said, and smiled sideways at Marcia.
“Was the demon Tait’s fault, though, in the end?” Marcia asked. “I had the impression it wasn’t, but that part all went by a bit fast for me.” She waved a hand. “Magic and stuff. You know.”
“They raised it in the first place,” Reb said, “but they say they banished it, and the demon confirmed it, inasmuch as you can trust that. That other sorcerer must have raised it and used the old link to hunt Tait, I suppose. So – yes, not their fault.” She frowned. “What with everything else Tait said about Teren sorcery, I’m a bit… I need to talk to Tait, once they’ve had a rest.”
“Selene talked about a demon army,” Marcia said.
Reb blinked. “She what?”
“She threatened us – sort of – with a demon army. If I told the Council what she’d been up to. She said, it would be civil war, and did I really want that.” Marcia chewed on her lip. “Which – I don’t see that I can say anything, now.” She decided not to mention Selene’s other threat. It seemed like it would be hard to talk about that without also getting into the matter of where she and Reb were going. They’d have to discuss it, eventually. But… not right now.
“Storm and fire,” Reb said. “I really do need to speak to Tait.” She sighed. “But there won’t be any demon army right away. It can wait a while.”
“Maybe you need a rest, too?” Marcia suggested.
“I was about to say the same to you,” Reb said.
They were close to Reb’s house now, and Reb stopped on the street corner.
“Are you going back across the river, or,” she paused, “uh, I know I’ve been a bit of a shit lately, but would you like to come back to mine?”
“I’d like to come back,” Marcia said “I mean, I’ve been a bit of a shit too.”
Reb started walked again, and Marcia walked with her.
“I should apologise,” Reb said, at the next street corner.
Marcia looked over at her. “Really? I figured it was me that ought to, as it happens.”
“I may have my responsibilities, but you’ve got yours too. I don’t like politics, but it’s your job, and I accept that. I’ve no right to dictate how you manage that, and I shouldn’t have tried. I’m sorry.”
Marcia laughed. “Funny. That was more or less exactly what I was going to say, but the other way around.”
Her responsibilities. Like, for example, the promise she’d made to her mother. Which she really did have to tell Reb about. Just… later. Another time. Right now, they were in charity with each other, and she was tired, and all she wanted was to go to bed with Reb and forget about everything else, just for a while.
Nothing was happening right away. There was no decision that she had to make immediately. She could just… leave it, for now.
Reb put out a hand, and Marcia took it. “Maybe we both need to make allowances?” Reb suggested.
“And a bit more time for each other?”
Surely they could work something out, between them, if they both wanted to. They’d solved far harder problems, right? If they both wanted to… She’d tell Reb, and they’d talk about it, and they’d find a solution. Both to the business of Marekhill and magic, and regarding Marcia’s heir. It needn’t be a problem for Reb, right?
Another day. Another day, she’d tell Reb all about it, and they’d sort it out together. For now, she was just going to enjoy Reb’s company.
They’d reached Reb’s door, and Reb opened it, and smiled at her. “More time, huh? I’m free this evening. How about you?”
“No plans,” Marcia said.
“I can think of some,” Reb said, and pulled Marcia a little closer as she shut the door behind them.
“I was hoping for dinner first,” Marcia said, plaintively, then gave the lie to her statement by kissing Reb.
“How about dinner after?” Reb said.
“Oh,” Marcia murmured into her mouth. “I imagine that could be arranged.”
aaaaaaaaaa
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
A book is simultaneously a thing you create whilst spending a lot of time all by yourself in a room, and a thing contributed to and supported by many other people.
Shoutout to Jo Ladziński, Lore Graham, and Ian Llywelyn Brown for reading an earlier version of this book and giving me patient and helpful feedback; and to the folks
on the writing Slack for cheerleading, problem-solving, and making ‘sitting at a desk staring at a computer screen’ feel like a slightly less solitary endeavour. Thanks to Aliette de Bodard for kind words and fountain pen enabling.
Peter and Alison at Elsewhen continue to be both excellent publishers and lovely people to chat to. My thanks too go to Sofia for her sterling editing work.
Everyone who’s said to me anything along the lines of “oh, there’s going to be another book? Cool!” — it really does help to hear that when toiling in the word-mines. Thank you!
And finally, love and gratitude as ever to doop, Pete, and Leon, for putting up with me.
Juliet, November 2019
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A Locus Recommended Read in 2018
THE DEEP AND SHINING DARK
BOOK 1 OF THE MAREK SERIES
JULIET KEMP
“A rich and memorable tale of political ambition, family and magic, set in an imagined city that feels as vibrant as the characters inhabiting it.”
Aliette de Bodard
Nebula-award winning author of The Tea Master and the Detective
You know something’s wrong when the cityangel turns up at your door
Magic within the city-state of Marek works without the need for bloodletting, unlike elsewhere in Teren, thanks to an agreement three hundred years ago between an angel and the founding fathers. It also ensures that political stability is protected from magical influence. Now, though, most sophisticates no longer even believe in magic or the cityangel.
But magic has suddenly stopped working, discovers Reb, one of the two sorcerers who survived a plague that wiped out virtually all of the rest. Soon she is forced to acknowledge that someone has deposed the cityangel without being able to replace it. Marcia, Heir to House Fereno, and one of the few in high society who is well-aware that magic still exists, stumbles across that same truth. But it is just one part of a much more ambitious plan to seize control of Marek.
Meanwhile, city Council members connive and conspire, unaware that they are being manipulated in a dangerous political game. A game that threatens the peace and security not just of the city, but all the states around the Oval Sea, including the shipboard traders of Salina upon whom Marek relies.
To stop the impending disaster, Reb and Marcia, despite their difference in status, must work together alongside the deposed cityangel and Jonas, a messenger from Salina. But first they must discover who is behind the plot, and each of them must try to decide who they can really trust.
Book 1 of Juliet Kemp’s gripping new series
ebook, paperback (272pp)
Visit bit.ly/DeepShiningDark
Thorns of a Black Rose
David Craig
Revenge and responsibility,
confrontation and consequences.
A hot desert land of diverse peoples dealing with demons, mages, natural disasters … and the Black Rose assassins.
On a quest for vengeance, Shukara arrives in the city of Mask having already endured two years of hardship and loss. Her pouch is stolen by Tamira, a young street-smart thief, who throws away some of the rarer reagents that Shukara needs for her magick. Tracking down the thief, and being unfamiliar with Mask, Shukara shows mercy to Tamira in exchange for her help in replacing what has been lost. Together they brave the intrigues of Mask, and soon discover that they have a mutual enemy in the Black Rose, an almost legendary band of merciless assassins. But this is just the start of their journeys…
Although set in an imaginary land, the scenery and peoples of Thorns of a Black Rose were inspired by Egypt, Morocco and the Sahara. Mask is a living, breathing city, from the prosperous Merchant Quarter whose residents struggle for wealth and power, to the Poor Quarter whose residents struggle just to survive. It is a coming of age tale for the young thief, Tamira, as well as a tale of vengeance and discovery. There is also a moral ambiguity in the story, with both the protagonists and antagonists learning that whatever their intentions or justification, actions have consequences.
ebook, paperback (256pp)
Visit bit.ly/ThornsOfABlackRose
Quaestor
DAVID M ALLAN
When you’re searching, you don’t always find what you expect
In Carrhen some people have a magic power – they may be telekinetic, clairvoyant, stealthy, or able to manipulate the elements. Anarya is a Sponger, she can absorb and use anyone else’s magic without them even being aware, but she has to keep it a secret as it provokes jealousy and hostility especially among those with no magic powers at all.
When Anarya sees Yisyena, a Sitrelker refugee, being assaulted by three drunken men, she helps her to escape. Anarya is trying to establish herself as an investigator, a quaestor, in the city of Carregis. Yisyena is a clairvoyant, a skill that would be a useful asset for a quaestor, so Anarya offers her a place to stay and suggests they become business partners. Before long they are also lovers.
But business is still hard to find, so when an opportunity arises to work for Count Graumedel who rules over the city, they can’t afford to turn it down, even though the outcome may not be to their liking.
Soon they are embroiled in state secrets and the personal vendettas of a murdered champion, a cabal, a puppet king, and a false god looking for one who has defied him.
epub, paperback (304pp)
Visit bit.ly/Quaestor-Allan
The Unwritten Words series by Christopher Nuttall
The Golden City has fallen, the Empire is no more, ancient magic threatens the land. In The Unwritten Words, Christopher Nuttall’s story-telling mastery weaves a new epic which follows on from his bestselling Bookworm series and is set in that same world.
I – The Promised Lie
Five years have passed since the earth-shattering events of Bookworm IV. The Golden City has fallen. The Grand Sorcerer and Court Wizards are dead. The Empire they ruled is nothing more than a memory, a golden age lost in the civil wars as kings and princes battle for supremacy. And only a handful of trained magicians remain alive.
Isabella Majuro, Lady Sorceress, is little more than a mercenary, fighting for money in a desperate bid to escape her past. But when Prince Reginald of Andalusia plots the invasion of the Summer Isle, Isabella finds herself dragged into a war against strange magics from before recorded history …
… And an ancient mystery that may spell the end of the human race.
epub, paperback (416pp)
Visit bit.ly/ThePromisedLie
Available as an audiobook from Tantor
II – The Ancient Lie
After the campaign in the Summer Isle, Isabella rides out the winter storms by studying the godly magic under Mother Lembu, in the process learning about the origins of the old gods.
Crown Prince Reginald receives word that his father the King, is ill while his sister Princess Sofia, acting as regent, is imposing a regime that is strangely similar to what had been happening on the Summer Isle – nobles killed, temples smashed, enforced public worship of old gods. Concerned that his family, and indeed his homeland, are in danger, Reginald is determined to return home. But the storms are still raging with what appears to be unnatural force, making any attempt to return to Andalusia too risky for the Prince and his men.… unless Isabella can somehow use the new rituals she has learnt to placate the powers behind the storms and navigate the fleet safely home to face whatever has taken control of the kingdom.
epub, paperback (352pp)
Visit bit.ly/TheAncientLie
III – The Truthful Lie
Coming soon: The story concludes.
ABOUT JULIET KEMP
Juliet Kemp lives by the river in London, with their partners, child, dog, and too many fountain pens. They have had stories published in several anthologies and online magazines. Their employment history variously includes working as a cycle instructor, sysadmin, life model, researcher, permaculture designer, and journalist. When not writing or parenting, Juliet goes climbing, knits, reads way too much, and drinks a lot of tea.