In the first book of this touching and darkly comic duology a paladin a forger an assassin
and a scholar ride out of town on an espionage mission with deadly serious stakes. When forger
Slatee is convicted of treason she faces a death sentence. But her unique gift for sniffing
out magic (literally) earns her a reprieve?of sorts. Along with a paladin Caliban possessed
by a demon her murderous ex-lover and an irritating misogynist scholar Slate sets off on a
mission to learn about the Clockwork Boys deadly mechanical soldiers from a neighbouring
kingdom who have been terrorising their lands. If they succeed rewards and pardons await but
they must survive a long journey through enemy territory to reach Anuket City. And Slate has
her own reasons to dread returning to her former home. Slate and her crew aren?t the first to
be sent on this mission. None of their predecessors have returned and Slate can?t help but
feel they?ve exchanged one death sentence for another. Her increasing closeness to Caliban
isn?t helping matters: for the first time in a long time Slate might actually care about
surviving.
