Emma Bannon, forensic sorceress in the service of the
Empire, has a mission: to protect Archibald Clare, a failed,
unregistered mentath. His skills of deduction are legendary,
and her own sorcery is not inconsiderable. It doesn't help
much that they barely tolerate each other, or that Bannon's
Shield, Mikal, might just be a traitor himself. Or that the
conspiracy killing registered mentaths and sorcerers alike
will just as likely kill them as seduce them into treachery
toward their Queen.
In an alternate London where illogical magic has turned the
Industrial Revolution on its head, Bannon and Clare now face
hostility, treason, cannon fire, black sorcery, and the
problem of reliably finding hansom cabs.