Book review of The Mercy Makers by Tessa Gratton

The world was once full of wonders: monsters and marvels of human architecture, magic that could create visages both impossible and perfect. But such magic—and everything even approaching it—has long been outlawed, labeled as the dangerous apostasy of a bygone age. But Iriset knows that her society could do more with the magic that it has. For years she has flirted with the edges of apostasy: Her alter ego, Silk, creates magic verging on the heretical in service of her father’s criminal enterprises. But when her father is captured, Iriset is at the mercy of the imperial court. Her options are simple. She can either hide her true identity and live in the household of her enemies, or embrace apostasy and die fighting them. But neither of those options can save her from the impossible task of avoiding all feelings toward her new captors.

The Mercy Makers is high fantasy at its most sweeping. In fairy tale-like prose and tense, close-quarters action, author Tessa Gratton builds a consuming world of magic and intrigue where manipulating the flows of the universe and the threads of human interaction can give you power over everything. Dangerous, dead gods are kept asleep through sexual communion, and the fear of apostatical magic has created a society where showing your uncovered face to strangers is deeply taboo. Deep in the clutches of religious zealots, Iriset tries her best to do what she can to not just survive, but to save her father as well. Her successes, when she has them, come after nail-biting suspense; her failures are spectacular, often coming not from incompetence (for Iriset is nothing if not a competent heroine) but from a failure to understand the whole picture. Through her, Gratton has given us an eye into a world both sexy and tense, combining the legacy of the classic Kushiel’s Dart with intricate world building and lush prose.