Masquerades

Masquerades, by Jeff Grubb and Kate Novak, is the tenth novel in the loosely connected The Harpers series. It is based on The Finder's Stone trilogy.
== Summary ==
Alias and Dragonbait arrive in Westgate to deliver a magical staff to Mintassan, a sage, in exchange for a scrying focus they intend to bring back to Grypht and the Lost Vale. Alias is haunted by the false memories of her childhood here, including memories of Jamal, a Harper and actor recruited by Finder Wyvernspur. In the false childhood memories, Alias remembers Jamal as her mother. 
They deliver the staff but run afoul of the Night Masks. Victor Dhostar, son of the Croamarkh Luer Dhostar, convinces his father to hire Alias to drive out the Night Masks, suspecting her of being a Harper agent. Alias begins hunting for the Faceless, leader of the Night Masks, who uses the skull of Mistinarperadnacles Hai Draco the red dragon to learn Alias's history and an enchanted mask of platinum coins made by the church of Leira and stolen by the church of Mask to hide himself from divination magic. 
Alias and Dragonbait stay at Blais House, an inn where they befriend a half-elven servant girl named Mercy. They are joined by Olive Ruskettle, employed by the older noble Nettle Thalavar, who has a granddaughter named Thistle. Due to her fondness for Nettle, who employs many halflings, Olive also seeks to destroy the Night Masks. Their investigations cause them to take in Kel, a young Night Mask, and lead them to Melman, a vintner living in Cassana's former home and one of the Night Masters, the ten secret rulers of the Night Masks. Melman was branded by the Facless for speaking against him. 
With information from Melman, they find the secret meeting place of the Night Masters and their treasure hoard, but Victor arrives and prevents Mist from revealing the Faceless's identity by triggering a water trap, seemingly by accident. By the time they arrive the next day with Durgar, priest of Tyr and head of the Watch, the Faceless has removed all the treasure. 
Victor, who has been the true Faceless all along, frames his father as the Faceless, with the help of Kimbel, a Night Mask assassin who tried to kill Luer and was geased to serve the family, although he really only served Victor. Victor kills his father when Luer discovers Victor was smuggling black powder to the Night Masks. Dragonbait realizes that Victor was using magic to fool his shen sight, and sees the evil and corruption in his soul, but Alias, who has developed a romantic connection with Victor, does not believe him.
Victor has iron golems attack the Regatta Masquerade ball, killing most of the older nobles to weaken their power, so that he will become Croamarkh and eventually restore the monarchy of Westgate. Nettle is killed, and passes a copper feather, token of her family, to Thistle. Kimbel poisons and kidnaps Dragonbait, but is knocked out by an invisible Mintassan, who switches their appearance and feebleminds Kimbel. 
Victor has the Watch find Luer with the Faceless’s mask, but when Alias realizes that Luer wasn’t the Faceless and tries to tell the Watch, he poisons her. Mintassan, in the shape of Kimbel, fakes Alias’s death and uses the lure of the lost treasure of Verovan Lorndessar, last king of Westgate, to draw him into a trap, tricking him into assembling the Night Masks in one place. 
Alias, in the guise of a halfling named Winterheart, gets employed with Olive protecting Thistle, whose copper feather token is the key to the treasure. Victor attempts to charm her so that she will give him the token. Alias springs her trap, killing or capturing the Night Masters and most of the Night Watch with the help of Durgar. Victor briefly escapes into the demiplane holding Verovan’s treasure with Thistle, but is killed by the manes inside. Alias becomes trapped, but escapes by letting go of her anger at Victor. She, Dragonbait, and Mintassan escape. Thistle makes Durgar interim croamarkh, intending to encourage him to transition to a more democratic system of power, with Jamal determined to make sure it is a full democracy. Kel and Mercy become enamored with each other, as do Alias and Mintassarn
==Appendix==
===References===
Category:Novels
Category:Books
Category:Works by Jeff Grubb
Category:Works by Kate Novak
Category:Published in 1995