Cities of Steel and Blood

Requiem:

The world of Requiem is one of death and rebirth; bones built upon bones. Long ago, the world was shattered and has been rebuilding for many years since. Most of the old world is lost to ancient history, people are too concerned with the days ahead than those behind. The last hope for people, the Cities, were founded centuries ago. The beings known as the Founders rule from on high, and oversee the last remnants of order.

The spires, the upper levels of clean and wondrous creations are not for the masses. The slums and gutter are the providence of the many. And it is here that the many crime families vie for power. They control every part of the lower levels, carved into a long dead carcass.

It is here that these stories take place, centring on one of the cities, Forthiron. Adriana Cosmili is one of the citizens of Forthiron. She is a witch, a magi, a rare-touched soul that can wield the now-awakening forces of magic. With her severe mind and sharp eye, Adriana might be the key to a new world, or she could be its unmaking.

Book 1:

Adriana has been a broken woman for over a year now. Her cost of hubris is one shared by the world of Requiem: Decay. Her life has been a rotting mess, her own efforts to improve it gave way to desperate attempts at stagnation. She works for one of the most powerful crime families in Forthiron, the Nummari family. Adriana works as an enforcer, investigator, and sometimes executioner. She does what she can to stay off anyone’s radar, and tries to live a life she can call her own.

Her only problem is Mia.

Her handler, former lover, and current pain-in-the-ass, Mia is the one who sets Adriana on a trajectory towards disaster. Both of them answer a simple call—yet another mission from the family—which becomes a matter of increasing complexity. Dealing with a woman who fell from the stars, the two women have to do their best to cover anything up, avoid the eyes of the Nummari family, and survive each other.