The Knave of Secrets

Livingston (Glitch Rain) delivers an entertaining fantasy about the lengths people will go to uncover—and protect—their secrets. Cardsharp Valen Quinol is known to be one of the greatest gamblers in all of Valtiffe—but he’s really one of the land’s greatest cheaters. With the help of his unconventional friends, Teneriève and Jacquemin, masters of disguise who assume ever-changing characters at the card table, and his wife, Marguerite, who’s a master of card marking and dice loading, there’s not a game he can’t win. Then the leader of a dangerous gang strong-arms Valen into playing in the biggest game of the year—and the stakes are the players’ deepest secrets. Of course, Valen wins, and he and his friends are unwittingly pulled into a complex war among gangs, rival rulers, and the mystical Sèminaire—all of whom want to get their hands on the state secret that he’s won. There’s intrigue and magic aplenty as Valen and friends work to avoid the power players coming after them. The novel’s weakness, however, lies in the secret itself, which doesn’t feel scandalous or even interesting enough to warrant all the commotion. Still, readers who enjoy wily con artist protagonists and complex political machinations won’t want to miss this. Agent: Becky LeJeune, Bond Literary. (June)