This is the second volume in The Herald Spy series. It begins in the spring, a few months after the events in Closer to Home.
Overview[]
Plans for a big wedding for Mags and Amily are interrupted with alarming news from Menmellith, Valdemar's neighbor. Rebels against their child-king have been supplied with weapons ... from Valdemar. Former King's Own Herald Nicholas and Mags leave Haven, splitting up to check possible sources.
Synopsis (Warning! SPOILERS)[]
Princess Lydia and Lady Dia are planning a state wedding for Mags and Amily. Convinced that such an occasion has disaster written all over it, they take an afternoon and secretly marry with only Amily's father, Herald Nikolas, and all three Companions in attendance.
While serving a shift in Haven's law courts, Mags makes the acquaintance of Linden Pardorry and Tuck. Tuck is a master craftsman who can build anything that can be explained to him. Linden, who views herself as a sort of older sister, has been taking care of him since his mother's death as he isn't entirely capable of coping with the world. Amily discovers that her variant Mindspeech Gift allows her to understand Tuck better than anyone else can. Mags sets up Tuck to work exclusively for the Heralds making things like lockpicks and cleverly hidden grapnel hooks. With her ability to communicate with him, Amily takes Tuck the commissions, including a few for herself and Mags as a surprise wedding gift.
Meanwhile, Amily sets up her own spy network in the noble families. Lady Dia will take in carefully selected applicants from among the pool of poor spinster relations of the noble families to train in her school for handmaidens. Alongside more mundane lessons such as event planning and hair styling, these ladies would be trained to spy for the crown by Lady Dia's husband, Lord Jorthun, who taught Nikolas to be the King's spymaster. Keira Tremainet becomes their first pupil.
Just as everything seems to be going along smoothly, the Menmellith Ambassador shows up with a small escort, all riding horses near foundering. With a ten-year-old king on the throne, the king's cousin Astanifandal stirred up a rebellion in the north of the country. They were found to be supplied with weapons and armor from Valdemar. Not believing that King Kiril could possibly be behind it, the ambassador carried word as fast as he was able, trying to buy Valdemar's government time to find out who was responsible and stop it, before Menmellith's Regency Council declared war on Valdemar.
Believing that the only way these weapons could be purchased was by smuggling undeclared, unusually valuable gemstones from the mines, Mags was sent to investigate, along with Lord Jorthun, Keira Tremainet and one of Mags' street boys, Coot. Nikolas was sent out to investigate the armories that produced the weaponry.
Meanwhile, Amily took care of Tuck, Linden, and Mags' band of street children, one of whom began giving her lessons in roof-running. She also did her best to calm Rethwellan by way of their Ambassador, Maranthenius Vorthelian, delaying any action on Rethwellan's part to join Menmellith in a war declaration.
Eventually, the scheme is traced back to a man calling himself "General Thallan" of the Valdemaran Guard. He had subverted an entire Guard outpost, convincing them that supporting the Menmellith rebellion was in the best interests of protecting Valdemar. When the rebellious Astanifandal became king in Menmellith, he would be beholden to Valdemar, eventually signing on as a client state and paving the way to annexation. That would give Valdemar a second, flanking border on its hereditary enemy, Karse.
As the net to capture Thallan began to close, he kidnapped Mags and Amily and retreated to his stronghold, an abandoned Guard fortress. He deduced that their state wedding was another tactic to buy King Kiril more time, so he kidnapped them to prevent it. Thallan also planned to assassinate the Companions in order to remove the Heralds from the equation.
Using their Gifts, some surprises Tuck had made and worked into their clothing, and a bit of unexpected aid from Healer Cuburn, Mags and Amily escaped the dungeon. They convinced the Guardsmen to stop following the madness of Thallan, put down their arms, and let Prince Sedric and his army in the front gate. Thallan was captured and turned over to Menmellith for justice.
The tale ended with Mags and Amily's state wedding.
Characters[]
Main characters[]
Major characters[]
- Dallen - Mags' Companion
- Rolan - King's Own Companion to Amily
- Herald Nikolas - spymaster, former King’s Own and Amily’s father, aka "Willy the Weasel"
- King Kyril
- Princess Lydia - Amily's childhood friend, married to Prince Sedric
- Lady Dia - Lydia's friend, Jorthun's wife
- Lord Steveral Jorthun - Dia's husband, former spymaster
- Tuck
- Linden Pardorry
- Keira Tremainet - daughter of the deceased Sir Halcon Tremainet and his late wife Maonie, remote cousins of House Holberk - first volunteer for Amily's new informant ring
- Coot - one of Mags' child gang, brought in spy mission
- Renn - one of Mags' child gang, teaches roofwalking
- Aurebic Lemanthiel - ambassador from Menmellith
- "General" Thallen
- Healer Cuburn
Minor characters[]
- Aunty Minda - housemother for Mags' child gang
- Evory - Nikolas' new Companion
- Prince Sedric
- Stef - poor carpenter
- Brother Elban - Healer and tender of the little Shrine of Alia of the Birds in Haven
- Creed - Bailiff at a local Court
- Judge Bryon
- Cobber Pellen - man who bullies Tuck and others
- Miana - Lady Dia's maid
- Jem
- Liam - footman at Jorthun's manor
- Seneschal - (unnamed, possibly Lord Barethias)
- Master Soren - guildmaster and one of Kyril's Council
- Harras - Coachman
- Maranthenius Vorthelian - Rethwellan ambassador
- Kleventhalaril - secretary to the Rethwellan ambassador
- Mendeth Rolmer - mine owner, Tiercel's father
- Tiercel Rolmer - son of a mine owner
- Jake Dawe - miner amputee
- Pol - gem sorter
- Maree - cook
- Merdeth Hara - mine owner's son and Kirball enthuiast
- Malcon Laon - mine owner's son and Kirball enthuiast
- Medoes Kiren - mine owner's son and Kirball team captain
- Landen Walis - mine owner's son and Kirball player with a broken wrist
- Jess - Kirball pony
- Jess - stablemaster at the inn in Attlebury
- Lord Dalten - young highborn man
- Retner - Kirball player in Attlebury
- Tem Hara - Kirball player in Attlebury
- Jumper - Kirball pony
- Dust - Kirball pony
- Reg Killian - Kirball player in Attlebury
- Herald Sai
- Ethan Dalliger - new spy from Hardorn
- Herald Yvan - Seneschal's Herald
- Herald Gerd - Lord Martial’s Herald
- Prince Sedric
- Healer Danil
- Father Gellet - High Priest who performs the public wedding ceremony for Mags and Amily
- Bear - Healer friend of Mags
- Lena - Bard friend of Mags
- Jakyr - Herald who originally rescued Mags from the mine
- Lita Darvalis - Master Bard, former Dean of the Bardic Collegium
- Members of Mag's child gang, now being placed in service:
- Berk
- Ray
- Sally - will be placed in the Palace to train as a lady's maid
- Starling
- Kip
- Jo
- Servants at the inn in Attlebury:
- Darvy
- Klem
- Jon
- Jone
- Bet
Referenced characters[]
- Judge Madows
- Brand Kaltar (unnamed)
- Lord Kaltar - head of House Raeylen formerly feuding with House Chendlar
- Lady Kaltar
- Violetta Chendlar
- Seneschal's Herald Yvan
- Daisy
- Bey - Sleepgiver, Mags' cousin
- Anhita (unnamed)
- Alia of the Birds - minor goddess whose solitary clerics dedicate themselves to healing and teaching the very poorest of poor people
- Sir Halcon Tremainet
- Lady Maonie Tremainet
- Brendan Keteline - seduced Keira Tremainet
- Lady Emaline Keteline - Brendan's mother
- Jerrold - cousin who was forced to take Keira in
- Nathan Delmat - cousin that might have married Keira
- Tiayada - Jerrold's daughter. He hopes to save himself a dowry by sending her into a Temple
- Klerence - boy-king of Menmellith, ten years old
- Ebon Aleric - Lord Martial of Valdemar
- Lord Barethias - possibly the Seneschal of Valdemar
- Astanifandal - leader of Menmellith rebels, cousin of King Klerence
- Rosemiel - a high-priced courtesan at the Crescent Moon
- Mistress Bellamy - the madam at the Crescent Moon brothel
- Herald Tarlin - stationed near the Karse border to spy with ForeSight
- Herald Jacinth - has Menmellith relatives to pump for information
- Herald Alissa
- Cole Pieters
- Herald Ferrin
- Herald Lyle
- Herald Watsen
- Herald Asher
- Herald Marga
- Herald Fenris
- Herald-Mage Vanyel
- Walther - one of Lord Jorthun's servants
- Petras - one of Lord Jorthun's servants
- Larek - a groom in the royal stables and a Kirball player
- Provo - one of Mags' child page informants
- Heatapha of the Hearth - a goddes with a large temple in Hestaford
Places[]
- Haven, Valdemar
- Palace Complex, Haven
- Collegia, Palace Complex
- Royal Palace of Valdemar, Palace Complex
- Shrine of Alia of the Birds, Haven
- Cabbage Row - a neighborhood in Haven
- Gooseneck Lane, Haven
- Attlebury, Valdemar - a country market town in an area full of gem mines
- Rolmer's Roost - miner housing area
- Tanner and Dyer's District, Haven
- "Haunted Temple", Haven
- Rolmer Great House, Valdemar
- Hestaford, Valdemar
- Temple of Hestapha, Hestaford
Referenced places[]
- Karse
- Doll Market, Haven - an honest brothel owned by Lord Jorthun
- Flora's, Haven - an honest brothel owned by Lord Jorthun
- Lunar Lady, Haven - an honest brothel catering to rich mature men, owned by Lord Jorthun
- Menmellith
- Rethwellan
- Hardorn
- Hartcliff Manor, Valdemar
- Crescent Moon, Haven - a brothel
- Rose and Crown Inn, Haven
- Tailor's Court, Haven
- Tinker District, Haven
- Rising Sun Tavern, Tinker District
- Guard Archives, Palace Complex
- Swallownest, Valdemar
Terminology[]
- Sisters of Nenya - a religious order Sally studies with
- Chirra
- Guard
- Council
- Court Royal
- Lesser Court
- Truth Spell
- Haven City Watch
- Sleepgiver
- Queen's Handmaiden
- House Holberk
- Sword That Sings (unnamed)
- Holderkin
- Jewelers' and Gem Cutters' Guild
- Kirball
- Gemcutters and Assessors Guild
Gallery of cover images[]
