Sperring, Kari - Living with Ghosts

The city of Merafi has traditionally been impervious to magic, but lately, the ghost of six-years-dead Valdarrien has been haunting his brother-in-law and best friend Thiercelin. Thiercelin seeks out failed priest-assassin-turned-courtesan Gracielis for help, and soon, they're enmeshed in intrigue and a plot to tear down the city.

This is a terrible summary of the book, which is less plot and more atmosphere and tangled character relationships. The city seems perpetually shrouded with fog and ghosts that people cannot see. Character-wise, Thiercelin is married to Yvelliane, workaholic advisor to the dying queen and sister of the dead Valdarrien; Gracielis is the unwilling tool of Tarnaroqi sorceress Quenfrida; dead Valdarrien is still seeking out his lost love, the Lunedithin Iareth Yscoithi who is currently in Merafi serving the Lunedithin prince Kenan; Iareth is protected by Merafien soldier Joyain.

I loved the prose and the characters and the overall atmosphere of the book. I loved the men who are driven by love and the women who are driven by duty; I loved the tangled politics and intrigue; I loved the feeling of the age of Merafi, of cobblestones and mist off the river and flickering lights; I loved Gracielis and his foppish veneer over his vulnerable core; I loved the ghosts and the weight of the dead and the way history, personal and institutional, oppresses and limits and constrains.

I loathed the ending so much that I chucked the book across the room.

( Book-destroying spoilers )

In conclusion: gorgeous prose and atmosphere, characters I adored, and I cannot recommend it because I am still so mad at it.