Retribution

Having just solved a difficult case in his home city of Tryum, Sun
Chamber Officer Lucan Drakenfeld and his associate Leana are ordered to
journey to the exotic city of Kuvash in Koton, where a revered priest
has gone missing. When they arrive, they discover the priest has already
been found – or at least parts of him have.

But investigating the unusual death isn’t a priority for the
legislature of Kuvash; there’s a kingdom to run, a census to create and a
dictatorial Queen to placate. Soon Drakenfeld finds that he is suddenly
in charge of an investigation in a strange city, whose customs and
politics are as complex as they are dangerous.

Kuvash is a city of contradictions; wealth and poverty exist uneasily
side-by-side and behind the rich façades of gilded streets and
buildings, all levels of depravity and decadence are practised.

When several more bodies are discovered mutilated and dumped in a
public place, Drakenfeld realizes there’s a killer at work who seems to
delight in torture and pain. With no motive, no leads and no suspects,
he feels like he’s running out of options. And in a city where nothing
is as it seems, seeking the truth is likely to get him killed.