City of Stairs

Before its heavenly guardians were slain, the city of Bulikov used the might of the gods to subjugate the whole planet, enslaving and torturing millions of people. Bulikov's past has now been suppressed and obliterated, and its people have been enslaved. However, the city's bizarre terrain, which has been permanently changed by the hundreds of miracles its guards have performed upon it, serves as a menacing reminder of its previous dominance.

Shara Thivani enters this damaged city. The modest young lady is formally simply another junior diplomat sent by Bulikov's overlords. Unofficially, she is among the most skilled spies in her nation; she was sent to investigate a murder with her dreadful "secretary," Sigrud.

Shara begins to worry that Bulikov's brutal rule may not have come to an end as she follows the murderer, however, and that the creatures that governed this horrible realm may not be as dead as they seem.

City of Stairs is a riveting espionage thriller and a wonderfully inventive work of fiction all at once. It is a story of massive conspiracies, dead gods, and hidden histories.