Age of Ash

I get the impression that the city of Kithamar itself is the main character of this story. The story is entirely self contained within this city, only vague allusions to a larger fantasy world are made. The city itself is characterized by an extreme wealth stratification that makes for a nice gritty fantasy read. The characters range from the ruling family to poverty stricken thieves. The main plot interweaves the different levels of the society as a cult like group try to maintain their control on the city. The manipulations through calls for patriotism are a dark reminder of many events that are happening in the real world. Alys provides the central character - a thief who is drawn into the plot after her brother's death.

Being so focused on one place allows a real depth to the world building for the city, giving life to a very real feeling place. Daniel Abraham has a beautiful prose style that works well to bring this place to life. The characters are interesting, although maybe not as well developed as the place. I am intrigued where the story will go now though - it felt reasonably self contained so far so it will be interesting to see how it develops in the series