Sworn in Steel: A Tale of the Kin
Drothe, newly promoted Gray Prince of the Kin, returns under cover of night to the city of Ildrecca. He’s got problems. The most pressing one is that he’s being framed for the murder of another Gray Prince. Then he meets someone who claims to be able to make the frame job go away—in exchange for a favor. The favor is a complex one, requiring a trip to the Despotate of Djan, which requires patronage. Fortunately for Drothe, he befriended a group of players on his way back to the city, and one of the princes of Djan styles himself a patron of the arts. So Drothe heads to the capital city of Djan as patron of an acting troupe and finds himself embroiled in the underworld politics of a completely foreign city; the person he’s working for has definitely not told him the whole story, which makes for some interesting missteps. Drothe tries to do the right thing despite gaps in his knowledge, even in the midst of complicated politics he’s not familiar with. It’s an entertaining story, and enjoyable, even without knowledge of the previous volume; one hopes there will be more tales of Drothe. --Regina Schroeder