Mask of Shadows

Sallot Leon is a skilled thief with little patience for the life that skill has earned them. An invitation to compete for a place among the queen’s assassins offers a way into the court—and closer to the powerful people connected with the destruction of Sal’s home. The trials are lethal, and every rival has reasons to win that cannot be trusted. Success requires learning the court’s rules without losing sight of the revenge that brought Sal there. Elise, a court scribe, introduces another kind of possibility, one that does not fit neatly into an assassin’s ambitions. As the competition narrows, Sal must navigate attraction, shifting identities and the cost of pursuing power inside the system they want to punish.