#chronicles of osreth

[suis-je-bovvered]

I finally managed to draw Maia in a way I'm happy with I'm so pleased

[fallloverfic]

The Orb of Cairado by Katherine Addison, a novella in the world of The Chronicles of Osreth, to release 31 January 2025!

Summary:

Set in the world of Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Award nominee The Goblin Emperor, The Orb of Cairado offers an unlikely hero in historian Ulcetha Zhorvena.

Five years ago, Ulcetha was studying at the University of Cairado, working his way toward becoming a scholar first-class in the Department of History. Then a prize artifact disappeared and Ulcetha, deftly framed, was kicked out. Now he works for a crooked importer, using his knowledge of elven history to write provenances for the fake artifacts Salathgarad sells.

When the airship Wisdom of Choharo explodes, killing the emperor and three of his four sons, it takes with it Ulcetha’s best friend, Mara Lilana. But Mara leaves behind a puzzle—the one thing Ulcetha can’t resist. And the puzzle leads Ulcetha back to the Department of History…and maybe the chance to clear his name.

----

This is a standalone novella. I contacted the publisher, and they said it will be sold as an ebook as well (at least in the US and Canada), but didn't say when.

The conclusion of The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy, The Tomb of Dragons, releases 11 March 2025!

[judgeitbyitscover]

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

Cover art by Anna Balbusso and Elena Balbusso

Tor, April 2014

The youngest, half-goblin son of the Emperor has lived his entire life in exile, distant from the Imperial Court and the deadly intrigue that suffuses it. But when his father and three half brothers in line for the throne are killed in an "accident," he has no choice but to take his place as the only surviving rightful heir.

Entirely unschooled in the art of court politics, he has no friends, no advisors, and the sure knowledge that whoever assassinated his father and brothers could make an attempt on his life at any moment.

Surrounded by sycophants eager to curry favor with the naïve new emperor, and overwhelmed by the burdens of his new life, he can trust nobody. Amid the swirl of plots to depose him, offers of arranged marriages, and the specter of the unknown conspirators who lurk in the shadows, he must quickly adjust to life as the Goblin Emperor. All the while, he is alone, and trying to find even a single friend . . . and hoping for the possibility of romance, yet also vigilant against the unseen enemies that threaten him, lest he lose his throne–or his life.

[freckles-and-books]

I’m glad that I trusted I would like this book and bought the fancy editions of it and its companions, because I’m quite obsessed so far.

[palabarian]

Someone be his friend for the love of the gods

[nzbookwyrm]

11 March 2025

[with-my-murder-flute]

I'm still kind of puzzled at the people who think Thara was confused about whether Iäna was into him.

I think he knows. That the answer is yes. That's why he freaked out so hard.

And like, he's Thara, so he was definitely open to the possibility that he was wrong and Iäna didn't like him. Outing and embarrassing himself to no purpose would be bad.

But the scarier answer (and the one he wants) is yes. In which case his first reaction is: "I would be trapped into having to insist that he had made a terrible mistake and having to leave."

He's not some big dummy who doesn't know what gay sex is. He's had previous relationships. There's a reason the possibility occurred to him!

I think this is him being scarred. And scared. He absolutely knows that his society, religion, vocation, and hierarchical superiors all deplore marnae. And on top of that, he has very personal trauma that says initiating intimacy with a man is a great way to kill him.

To have a forbidden relationship, you need to give society the appearance of plausible deniability. Oh, we're not gay, haha; there's some other totally believable reason for what we're doing. Just bros! Gal pals! Hahaha.

Thara specifically says: “And was that denial the truth? Had he recognized my alarm? Or was he denying preemptively so that he didn’t have to admit the truth, either?”

The truth is that he's been gone on Iäna since their very first meeting. And he suspects that the truth is, Iäna's into him too.

It's a possibility he isn't closed off from, but rather, one he is choosing to turn around and walk backwards into. It's a practiced form of self-deception, an incremental movement towards something so frightening and painful that he instinctively flinches back from it.

What he did, by not asking, was keep the opportunity open. Because he was having fucking panic attacks over the very idea of it, and manifestly not able to seize it right there, right then. And then kept coming back to Iäna while their denials got steadily less plausible.

In other words, it's exposure therapy. He's deliberately and methodically exposing himself to the thing that scares the shit out of him. It's the same thing as choosing to make his pilgrimage to the top of the Sanctuary's roof when the stairs are scary, he doesn't like heights, he already finds its gardens restful, and he goes there all the frigging time to see Ulzhavar. It's not comfortable! It's not necessary! But he's very very good at forcing himself into situations other people would run from.

Maybe I'm just too much into queer trauma and self-deception and navel-gazing and this is basically equivalent to being a big dummy in other people's books. But what I see in his relationship with Iäna is Thara playing a chess game against himself. And Iäna is the prize.

[asquareinverona]

what happens in the goblin emperor please help

Hahah that's an understandable feeling either having read or not having read the book.... Either way, a very unprepared, anxious 19 year old gets thrown into the seat of Emperor very unexpectedly because his father and all the other heirs die in a airship crash and then lots and lots of court politics happens.

I love the book so much. The complexities of an unwanted heir suddenly accending to the throne after living their entire life in exile, the court politics, the assassination and coup attempts? All so good. The Witness for the Dead and The Grief of Stones, the two other books in the series, are brilliant as well, although they follow another character.

[hapalopus]

If you could add one (1) F bomb to the entire Chronicles of Osreth, where would it be?

I'll start with the obvious: "We regret extremely that we cannot challenge her to a duel & prove her worthlessness upon her carcase, but we are told that dueling is barbaric & unbefitting a lady & in any event Sheveän would not fucking know how."

[thereadingmoon]

To the person who made that disco elysium x witness for the dead fanart, i understand your vision more now because why did celahar encounter a murderous chair

[fallloverfic]

The Tomb of Dragons by Katherine Addison to release on 11 March 2025

The end of Sarah Monette/Katherine Addison's The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy, a spin-off of The Goblin Emperor (together known as The Chronicles of Osreth) has been listed as releasing on 11 March 2025, with cover art by Sachin Teng, design by Esther Kim, and there's now a summary:

"Thara Celehar has lost his ability to speak with the dead. When that title of Witness for the Dead is gone, what defines him?

While his title may be gone, his duties are not. Celehar contends with a municipal cemetery with fifty years of secrets, the damage of a revethavar he’s terrified to remember, and a group of miners who are more than willing to trade Celehar’s life for a chance at what they feel they’re owed.

Celehar does not have to face these impossible tasks alone. Joining him are his mentee Velhiro Tomasaran, still finding her footing with the investigative nature of their job; Iäna Pel-Thenhior, his beloved opera director friend and avid supporter; and the valiant guard captain Hanu Olgarezh.

Amidst the backdrop of a murder and a brewing political uprising, Celehar must seek justice for those who cannot find it themselves under a tense political system. The repercussions of his quest are never as simple they seem, and Celehar’s own life and happiness hang in the balance."

[recurring-polynya]

Sorry to spam you with my musical statistics, but I like to have a record of these year over year, sooooo:

Was honestly really surprised about Silver & Gold, because I really had no sense of listening to it all that much. It is the first song on my a little in love playlist, which goes to prove my theory that "most played song" may be more related to "most played playlist", at least in my personal Spotify usage. To be honest, all of that ::waves hands: is just a representative sample of my "ductwork pt 2" playlist.

Spotify decided I also needed to be bullied this year:

it was my what, now?

okay, that's...better?

no, that's worse. that is definitely worse.

[grassangel]

99¢ Sale, including Katherine Addison/Sarah Monette titles on Rebellion

If you want a DRM free copy (epub and mobi) of The Witness for the Dead, The Grief of Stones or A Theory of Haunting, Rebellion are having a Halloween sale on some of their spookier titles.

$0.99 USD each for the above titles, plus more of their catalog including titles by Isabel Cañas & Premee Mohamed.

ETA: sale is now over, but the link goes to their sale section, so whenever Rebellion have a sale on (which is irregularly) it should display the titles available

[mariana-oconnor]

Did you discover any new authors that you love this year?

Definitely.

On top of M. A. Carrick and R. J. Barker, who I already mentioned. Katherine Addison. I read The Witness for the Dead and The Grief of Stones as well (third book is out next year) and it's just really refreshing. The world building isn't as complex or in depth as those, and the books are a lot shorter (they come after a book I haven't read, The Goblin Emperor, which probably is where the world-building is). It's about an elf who can read the thoughts of the dead and thus has the job of acting as their Witness. So he does. He helps bring them justice and helps the people they've left behind answer the questions left hanging. I'm looking forward to reading more. I already have book 3, The Tomb of Dragons, on my TBR list as is The Goblin Emperor.

I also quite enjoyed Jen Williams' series The Winnowing Flame this year, it was a really interesting take on fantasy that combined things I have seen before in a way I'd never seen (even had "vampires"* that didn't put me off, which is rare) and I found Stephen Deas' Dominion trilogy hilarious. I'm not sure that was entirely the vibe he was going for, but there's something about the delusional necromancer who's sure that this time he'll be able to save the world with the evil forbidden magic... Love that guy.

*I know they're not actually vampires but they live for ages and drink blood.

Question from this post

[nzbookwyrm]

There’s a release date and blurb for the final Cemeteries of Amalo book!

Coming 11 March 2025

In The Tomb of Dragons, Katherine Addison returns to the award-winning world of The Goblin Emperor, deftly wrapping up The Cemeteries of Amalo trilogy.

Thara Celehar has lost his ability to speak with the dead. When that title of Witness for the Dead is gone, what defines him?

While his title may be gone, his duties are not. Celehar contends with a municipal cemetery with fifty years of secrets, the damage of a revethavar he’s terrified to remember, and a group of miners who are more than willing to trade Celehar’s life for a chance at what they feel they’re owed.

Celehar does not have to face these impossible tasks alone. Joining him are his mentee Velhiro Tomasaran, still finding her footing with the investigative nature of their job; Iäna Pel-Thenhior, his beloved opera director friend and avid supporter; and the valiant guard captain Hanu Olgarezh.

Amidst the backdrop of a murder and a brewing political uprising, Celehar must seek justice for those who cannot find it themselves under a tense political system. The repercussions of his quest are never as simple they seem, and Celehar’s own life and happiness hang in the balance.

[with-my-murder-flute]

Obscure Cemeteries of Amalo theory

About who Tura Olura's lover is.

Spoilers for The Witness to the Dead

What if it's Ema Dravenezh?

Iäna says the Marquis Parzhadel "seems the last person who would support an opera company, especially when he can’t attend himself." Meanwhile, Ema Dravenezh is an attendee every single night

Except for the period following Tura's death, when after the theatre was repaired, he "missed so many performances [Iäna] thought he'd been fired"

Iäna also comments on how he's always the only one in the box. That can look like a weary solitude... but if you are, perhaps, secretly connected to one of the people most frequently onstage, you can feel a lot less alone

Arveneän met and blackmailed Tura when she'd scheduled an appointment to visit the Marquis

If it became a public scandal, it could be argued that Mer Dravenezh persuaded the Marquis to fund the Vermillion Opera, so the fallout would hit not just him and Tura alone, but potentially the entire company and enterprise, which is the kind of secret that's honestly kinda worth murdering over. Arts funding before hoes, etc.

Imagine him sitting there after Tura's death, where it's such an enormous reminder of him, but probably also, what else will he do with his nights? Despite the pain, there are benefits to familiarity, and this collection of people he's supporting.