Spymaster

March 1, 2017
The war with the Bottom Dwellers is over, and the Freyan economy is a disaster. The crown prince has been killed, and the Freyans discover that they won't be able to take over the refineries that create the more efficient crystalline fuel for their ships. The wheels of politics turn. Henry Wallace, spymaster, works to discredit the pretender to the Freyan throne, Prince Tom, all while searching for a way to refill Freyan coffers and uncover the motivation behind a rather cleverly planned assassination attempt. Wallace sends an old agent, Phillip, to work on dissuading Prince Tom from angling for the throne, with unexpected results. Captain Kate, a scavenger given a letter of marque as a privateer, is caught between Wallace and the crime bosses who want him dead. A tangled web of intrigue and politics, driven by characters who are thrown again and again into situations that they can't control, this is a solid addition to a new series, with a cliffhanger ending promising more intrigue and adventure in the next installment.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)