In our last thrilling installment, the identity of the pirate prince was finally revealed. It was none other than Pivor who represented the Zinera. He was exposed and purged from the inn to Baha-char, where the woman whose family he murdered exacted her revenge. It wasn’t swift but it was bloody.
Vercia finally got her just deserts when Orata dumped the entire responsibility for the Muterzen pirate prince into her lap. Branded, or rather celebrated as the hero of the Dominion who risked her own life to expose the terrible, awful, no-good pirate, Vercia realized that she has a space cruiser sized target on her back and attempted to request a room at the inn. The request was denied. Mmm, so satisfying.
Now the guests are in their chambers and the long awaited date between Cyanide and the Sovereign is beginning. Are you suffering from the sweltering summer heat? Read on, for relief is only a few words away.
The branching of the inns was a mystery. Most inns branched to Baha-char. It was rumored that the first seeds of the inns were brought to Earth by the Baha-char merchants, and the first branch of new inns usually opened at the galactic bazaar. Beyond that, there was no rhyme or reason to it.
Gertrude Hunt had a dozen branches, only a few of which were actually useful. The rest stayed mostly shut, and half of the time I forgot we even had them. However, today one of those forgotten branches got its chance to shine.
Cyanide made three requests with regard to her date: she wanted to be up high, she wanted a new view, and she wanted something soft to lay on. Like most big cats, she didn’t fancy walks unless it was the only way to get a delicious snack. We managed to deliver on all three counts.
Kosandion surveyed the rustic alpine lodge. I had created it just inside Gertrude Hunt, where this branch joined an alien planet. To be honest, in the case of this lodge, rustic was a relative term. It wasn’t rustic as in grandpa built a little cabin out of whatever timber he found handy, it was the luxury kind of rustic, a modern homage to a Renaissance Jagdschloss that sometimes occurred outside of the inns when too much money met the need to roleplay as a medieval Bavarian aristocrat hosting a hunting party.
The lodge was sixty feet tall, with a gabled ceiling made of redwood boards in a rich beautiful brown. If a small child was asked to draw a tree, they would pick this exact color out of the crayon box to draw the trunk and the branches.
The floor matched the ceiling. In front of me, a wall built with rough square slabs of grey stone housed a massive fireplace. A fire crackled within, radiating warmth. Thick timbers, stripped of their bark but left naturally round, thrust from the wall above the fireplace, supporting a narrow second story walkway. Matching wooden columns rose to the ceiling to meet thick beams.
The wall on my left was redwood and stone. The walls on my right and behind me were floor to ceiling glass, set into a redwood frame. Beyond the glass a winter wonderland stretched as fast as the eye could see.
We were high up on a mountain slope under a sky smothered with pale clouds. In the distance, on the left, a white peak rose from the forest, jagged and sharp, a sign of a young mountain range. Just beyond the windows, the ground dropped, rolling to the valley below. Alien trees blanketed the steep slope. Their branches, sheathed with long fluffy needles and coated with snow, cast blue shadows onto pristine white powder. It was one of the most perfect winter landscapes I had ever seen. You could almost hear the crunch of the snow under foot just by looking at it.
“Where is this?” Kosandion asked.
“I don’t know. There are no artificial signals coming from this planet. No radio waves, no energy readings. When that happens, the only way to identify the location is by taking an image of the night sky and running it through a Galaxy mapping unit, but I’ve never seen the stars here. It is always like this – a long blue winter under an overcast sky.”
Theoretically, we could get a small craft through the opening and fly up past the cloud cover to capture the image of the stars, but it would be dangerous and there was no need for it.
He crossed his arms and gazed out the window. He’d traded his Sovereign robe for a two-piece outfit that reminded me of the stylish senator wear designs from Nigeria: narrow hunter green pants and a matching shirt with an asymmetric hem that ended almost at his knees. The senator shirts tended to be cut a little loose, while Kosandion’s tunic, embellished with Dominion’s geometric embroidery, was perfectly tailored to accentuate the breadth of his shoulders and his narrow waist.
Kosandion’s body looked elegant, but his face looked troubled. It wasn’t his expression, it was in the eyes, a kind of weary introspective distance.
“How much trouble will Vercia’s mess cause you?” I asked.
“More than I would’ve preferred,” he said. “The Muterzen Fleet is an immediate threat, but the Zinera should keep them occupied. Still, arrangements have to be made, and contingency measures must be implemented.”
“What about her family? Will they make things difficult?”
“The Dominion politics are complicated. There will be quiet inquiries. Those who are perceptive enough will discern that show for what it was -a good save and a swift punishment. In the immediate future, her family will lobby for federal protection.”
“Will you grant it?”
He shook his head. “The penalty for impeding a public official is a tiered charge. The more power one has, the steeper the punishment. An ordinary citizen shouting over Resven would have gotten a warning and a small fine, but Vercia was a highly placed officer with a Liaison Corps. If the Justice Corps proceeded with the charges, she could have faced a prison term. She tendered her resignation last night, hoping to avoid it. Now she is no longer a servant of the people, therefore she is ineligible for the additional federal security. This will not endear me to her family in the slightest. They will bide their time waiting to stab me in the back, and I will spend the next couple of years slowly removing them from the positions of influence.”
He fell silent. First, Odikas and his Conservative Alliance looking for a leader, then the pirates, Vercia, her well-connected family, and that’s on top of the spousal selection and other matters pertaining to running the Dominion which didn’t stop just because he was trying to find a partner. He had a lot on his plate.
“Her Grace asked me to tell you something. I meant to do it last night, but things were hectic.”
Kosandion raised his eyebrows.
“Olivio teseres tares,” I told him.
He smiled.
“What does it mean?”
“Fate needs a mason,” he said. “It’s an old saying.”
She told him to build his own destiny. Interesting.
I felt Cyanide approach. It was time to put on a show for the viewers many light years away.
“Your date is here, Letero.”
The doors in the far wall opened, revealing Tony and Cyanide walking side by side. The big white cat saw the winter outside, opened her blue mouth, and panted once. I didn’t know enough about the Higgra to interpret that.
“Greetings, Candidate Cyanide,” Kosandion said.
“Greetings, Sovereign of the Dominion.”
Tony retreated and shut the door behind him.
Cyanide padded to the fire. I had made her a long ergonomic version of a cushioned chaise lounge, large enough for her to stretch out. Kosandion got a comfortable stuffed chair. I had put a couple of small tables here and there, but I kept it simple.
Cyanide examined the lounge and looked at me. “Sit here.”
I glanced at Kosandion. He frowned.
I sat on the edge of the lounge. Cyanide leaped onto it and flopped herself on my lap, all two hundred and fifty pounds of her.
Ow.
Big golden eyes stared at me. “I require attentions,” Cyanide announced. “All of them.”
Kosandion raised his eyebrows.
“And the brush,” Cyanide said.
Whatever made this date go smoothly.
I reached out, and Gertrude Hunt pulled one of the brushes from the stables. They were soft with dense bristles, originally designed for the beasts of burden the Merchants sometimes brought with them, and I had sterilized them after each use. The brush landed in my hand, and I began working through Cyanide’s fur. Her eyes widened, flashing dangerous gold, then half closed, and she turned her head, presenting me with the corner of her jaw. Just like Olasard. Except he barely weighed seventeen pounds. If this went on for too much longer, my legs would go numb.
Silence ensued.
Cyanide made a soft rumble in her throat. It was too deep to be a purr and not violent enough to be a roar, more like an internal contented cough.
“Do you wish to tell me of your planet?” Kosandion asked.
“No.”
Well, this was going swimmingly.
He tried again. “What would you rather talk about instead?”
Cyanide turned over on her back, her fuzzy paws level with my face. I glided the brush along her chest. Long claws shot out of her paws and withdrew.
“If I marry you, can I bring this human with me to serve me?”
“No,” Kosandion said.
“A pity.”
Cyanide made her coughing noise again.
More silence. Kosandion really needed an image boost, and his spousal candidate was flat out ignoring him. How to salvage this…
Kosandion pulled out a small gadget, squeezed it, and it projected a tablet in front of him. He began scrolling through the documents.
A minute passed. Another.
What was going on?
“You should tell her about our arrangement,” Cyanide said, stretching to get a better brushing angle. “Or she won’t focus on attentions.”
“Is that wise?” I asked.
“This date isn’t broadcast live,” Kosandion told me, still absorbed in whatever he was reading. “Highlights only.”
“I thought all dates were live like Ellenda’s.”
Kosandion put the tablet device on the side table.
“Ellenda didn’t do well in the voting, but her presence guaranteed high ratings,” he said. “My mother was a mysterious, inscrutable figure for most of her stay in the Dominion. She spent twenty-two years there, and by the time she returned to her planet, most people knew just as little about her as they did when she first arrived. For the Dominion’s citizens, Ellenda was a chance to get a better understanding of the Uma, my mother, and my heritage. The Higgra do not generate the same level of interest.”
I thought that the spouse had to stay for the period of 25 years… Oh. Kosandion was twenty-one when his father died. His mother must’ve left when he ascended the throne. Was it voluntary? Did she want to go home?
“I do not care about the Dominion’s interest,” Cyanide rumbled.
“What do you care about?” I asked.
“The neural nets,” Cyanide said. “And Clan Sai.”
Clan Sai, the Merchants who claimed the Dominion as their territory. This was getting convoluted. Officially, the Merchants had no territories, and many of them competed for the best trade partners, trying to outbid each other. But they always strived for a monopoly, and once a Merchant Clan grasped a region in its claws, it was difficult to shake them loose. According to Cookie, a century ago, Clan Sai managed to push out the other three Merchant Clans vying for the Dominion, and they had been highly protective of it ever since.
“What’s a neural net?” I asked.
“There is a special plant that grows on our planet,” Cyanide said. “A fur lichen den, formed by the long tendrils of the fur lichen plant colony. Many organisms coexist within the fur lichen, some microscopic and others large enough to be visible by even a human eye. The Fuzzy Worms feed on the many creatures of the fur lichen den and craft their webs within it. We harvest the webs and weave them into neural nets with our tools and claws.”
“The neural nets are the best solution for regenerations of the nervous system,” Kosandion said. “Once they’re implanted, the healing is miraculous. People whose paralysis resisted every other treatment regain the use of their limbs within days. Transplants, nano therapy, artificial neurons, nothing else comes close.”
“We want to sell them to the Dominion,” Cyanide said. “But the Sai are blocking our way.”
“The Sai have moved a ship into the orbit of the Higgra planet,” Kosandion explained. “They’re pressuring the Higgra to use them as intermediaries for the sale. The Higgra have applied for a direct trade agreement with the Dominion; however, Clan Sai indicated that they are not above using their other trade agreements as leverage.”
“If you buy directly from the Higgra, the Merchants will pitch a fit and stop supplying you with other goods?” I guessed.
“Precisely,” Kosandion said. “According to federal guidelines, a thorough review of the potential impact must be conducted by the Commerce Department, which could take years.”
“So you’re cutting out the middleman and the bureaucracy by using the Higgra’s minor ask.” I brushed Cyanide’s throat.
“Yes.” Kosandion smiled. It was a sharp and cold smile. “I do not react well to blackmail.”
A lot of things suddenly made sense. I kept brushing. Cyanide rumbled, her eyes closed. In the fireplace a log popped, sending sparks into the flue.
“If Clan Sai suddenly cancelled their trade deals, it would put the Dominion’s economy into a difficult position,” I said. “If only there was another Merchant clan willing to step into the gap. Someone with a lot of resources, able to react to the situation quickly. Someone who might have sent a representative to observe this spousal selection.”
Kosandion chuckled. “By the end of this affair, we will make you into a proper Dominion politician, Dina. Let me know if you ever consider a career change.”
“No thank you,” I told him. “I’m happy right here, doing what I do now.”
Cyanide rumbled and turned on her side. Kosandion picked up the tablet and resumed his reading.
Outside the snow began to fall, fat fluffy snowflakes drifting softly to the ground. For the next half hour, I brushed the big cat and watched the snow, while the Sovereign caught up on his paperwork.
1st?
Certified!
No fair! I wasn’t expecting it this early. ::whine::
Congrats, Jane.
*giggles that the icy person got first on this post.*
1st?
Happy Friday everyone!
ooh just saw post YEA
Yay!
Awww, I love it. I really like Cyanide. So different.
But very definitely a feline !!!!!!!!!!
House Andrews really writes felines well. It’s almost like they have some experience with quirky cat behavior….
OMG top 10! happy dance!!
Now on to read! TGIF! Thank you House Andrews!
Wow! Early surprise.
Yay! Thank you and happy Friday. 🙂
Darn it too 10?
First?
Wooow, this was sooo goood!
+1000
Thank you!
Aaaaaall the attenions XD
Oh no! No love for the big fluffy kitty?! (Sad face)
But she gets ALL the attentions! 😀
lol
😺😸😺😸👍🏽
She got the attentions AND (most likely) exactly what she came for! All cat.
Pretty Kitty….mmmm, nice.
(can almost hear in the background; Here kitty, kitty 🙂 )
I just won the bet 😀 – I knew it would come up in the first 30 minutes of the chapter going live hehe.
Hehe. With that image, could there be any other reaction?
I thought that after reading. Here kitty, kitty is spot on for this read. 😂
Will Wight put “Here kitty, kitty, kitty.” Into his most recent book and I’m sure it was meant as a homage.
I love Cynanide…. “Bring this human to serve me” I had two cats this is their MO. We are but their lowly humble servants 😁.
But it was Olasard that gave her the idea. I don’t know if he did it on purpose, or just showing off.
And how is Olasard going to react when he smells Cyanide on Dina and sees some of her hairs? Olasard might try to live up to his namesake’s title.
It was Olasard’s dignity that attracted Dina. The Ripper of Souls will simply sniff, walk away, and sit down with his back to Dina. If he’s extra dignified, he might not even look back to see if she’s notices how much she’s being shunned.
Oh much better than what I said. 🙂
I think Olasard is too dignified for revenge. Instead, he will make sure Dina is throughly marked as his personal attention-giver once more.
And now I want to coax my own two cats into my lap for some brushing.
I think olasard is a person hiding in the form of a cat, and that he knows exactly who Dina is.
So true but I would absolutely sign up to be an attendant to the Higgra.😻
I’m wondering if the Higgra are going to start abducting humans for all the attentions.
It would be a hilarious variation on the typical abducted by aliens tale. Instead of little green men, it’s very large kitties demanding to be pet.
+1!
Oh I still love Cyanide. She’s awesome.
Thank you for another excellent Friday.
Oh dang I was hoping I’d be in the top 10 today 😩
Thanks for this great chapter section!!!
Thank you! Now I must read!
Woo-hoo! Date time – off to read.
While I liked Cyanide as a spouse candidate, I had no idea what to expect for their date – this was … purrrrrfect – ALLL the Attentions! No fuss, just the comforts and a smooth business deal.
Nice snowy imagery in a hot summer world. Thanks for this and happy weekend!
Yes! Yes! Yes!
Cats! *ROFL*
Thank you for the instant mood upgrade. 🙂
Now the involve of the merchants is clear…
involvement
That was absolutely wonderful! I love Cyanide! And “I require attentions. All of them.” is so utterly relatable.
It’s exactly what a housecat would say, or is saying when one walks over your keyboard or phone, lol.
I didn’t know I needed a quiet, informative chapter until I read it.
+1000
Yes!
That was my feeling after reading this too 🙂 This unhurried, subdued moment where three powerful (often rather cut-throat) individuals have “turned off” their public personas and are just being for a moment. A soft wintry escape from the drama.
House Andrews has me under their spell for sure.
+1000
Same for me. Got some hard stuff going on right now, so I’m choosing my reading for light, quiet, soothing, humorous, and HEAs. This chapter checks all the boxes — even HEA, since the trade agreement will presumably provide that for all involved. Thanks, House Andrews!
Lol. Love it. 😸😸😸😸
Well now we know how Cyanide feels about the brushing of Olasard. Lol
So many thanks to HA and ModR for new chapter, outtakes post, and the chat with the Dravens and Andrews. Catching up on the last few posts after surgery, this is so good and the laughs will be good medicine. Even if I laugh so hard that I bust stitches, it will be worth it!
Oooh attentions! Purrrrrr.
No matter what is going on in my personal life or the world when I read these, they always manage to leave me smiling.
Thank you for that Ilona and Gordon. It’s a precious treasure.
Thank You for putting into words what I feel! This! I look forward to everything House Andrews writes, but I can never figure out how to properly articulate it. Many Thanks to House Andrews, Mod R and Jessica R!
Dogs have people, cats have servants😁
Go Dina!
And thank you, once again, HA!
I want all the attentions is so cat-ish! Great way to start my day.
I love the image at the end. Even in he summer heat I can feel the warmth of the “hunting lodge “ and the quiet of them just being there, doing regular stuff. As regular as combing a giant cat person would be 😉
Thank you for this early read. I feel for Dina right now. 250 pounds of cat on the legs is a definite ow. Then to have to keep brushing throughout the whole date? Anyone with cats can commiserate with is snippet. 🐈🐈⬛
Hmmm…another lees merchant. Could that be why Cookie is at the Inn? Plots on top of plots.
This snippet. Oops!
All cats love attention!
I love it, and cyanide being proper kitty, all humans are my servants
“Dogs have masters, cats have staff”
Cats rule, Dogs drool. Lol
Imagining 250lbs on my lap 😵💫
Does nobody want Kosandion for Kosandion?
Who knows him well enough to?
Lady Wexyn would famously love him the best 😉 . He will be her favourite hehe
I can’t wait for her date.
+1000 The popcorn will be strong that day! 😀
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from her (yes I know a very short time in story chronology but a weeks outside the story) and I’m really wondering what she’s up to. Guess we will find out in the next challenge!
Everyone with an in-depth review has had an ulterior motive. What is the Lady’s? I would not even guess right now but I’m pretty sure it’s now only love.
But I hope love is a major component. Even ruthless, cunning, and powerful rules of vast star domains deserve love.
“Favorite” does imply that one is part of a group, of several … so how many whats is Kosandion the favorite of? and no, I cannot parse the grammar any better than that …
Good insight. 🙂
No need to imagine if you’ve ever had a Great Dane playing lapdog!
I had an Irish wolfhound that thought he fit on me. Sometimes it was hilarious!
There’s a YouTube clip of a Dane who gets on top of his owner to lounge while both are watching TV. The owner looks at him like “are you shitting me, dude?”
Not a GD, but my brother’s Old English Mastiff service animal, Belle. When she’s “off duty” her most favorite person is her “Aun’Kaffy!” because she doesn’t see Aun’Kaffy for days and days!!
So Aun’Kaffy has to sit down and instantly there’s a head nearly the size of my chest in my lap, her legs over my legs, because it’s Aun’Kaffy and she has to make sure I know she loves me so much by drooling all over my legs.
If you think a Great Dane drools, you’ve never seen the inch-thick, floor-length ropes a happy OEM can produce. I never wear anything Nice over to my brother’s house.
Forgot to mention, last time she got weighed Belle was 150lbs.
My 70lb retriever thinks he is a lap dog. His weight is plenty! 250lbs, no thank you!!
Just like a big old cat! Love it! Kinda wonder if any of the candidates really want to be the spouse.
I just went to your website, thinking “It’s probably not here yet, but I’ll check anyway”, and here it is, the newest Sweep!
So I had a question. It does not exactly fit with this chapter but it just occurred to me. While I do think Dina is getting stronger magically. Is the reason she could do so much magic while fighting the corrupt adhal at Bar Char because it has so much magic innately? We were reminded that she almost died from using her magic outside of the inn at Walmart fighting the evil space hound (cannot remember their name). Earth does not have as much innate magically beings as Bar Char to my understanding
Ooh. That’s a good idea. Of course, the idea of Dina getting magically stronger (along with Gertrude Hunt) is very appealing. Could it be both?
I think you are probably right. We know that Maud can do Innkeeper-Adhal magic on house Krahr’s planet. Dina and Maud’s mother seemed like a very strong innkeeper. Dina’s father also lived within an Inn for long enough that he could get power boost from that, that could in theory be passed on to Dina. I also do not know if there is a correlation with the strength of an old Inn and how strong the Innkeeper is. Gertude Hunt has gotten more guests and is building a new doorway (please be a short cut to Krahr vampire planet so Maud and Helen can visit). Also would an additional bond with the baby Inn seed even though it died increase Dina’s magical power reserves? So all together Dina’s innate magic ability potentially greater because of her magical parents, plus Gertude Hunt’s increased strength/health, and being on Bar Char which has a lot of magic innately make Dina’s abilities stronger?
Oh yes that my hope. I dont think they would react well to a branch in that but Im sure one on the solar sistem that Planet is would be as good. I want a branch close to maud qnd Helen so bad.
I suddenly imagined what a door to Daesyn could do for the upcoming wedding and snickered. The bride’s wassail alone …
I too want it to be a shortcut to house kraur. I would love it if in future inn series to see maude, Arland and esp Helen pop in for short visits. The humor could be so delightful
Dina, Klaus and Maud all have their fathers blood.
Klaus and Maud have a different biological father than Dina 😊 “Gerard Demille wasn’t her biological parent, but he was the only father she ever knew.” (Chapter 7 of Sweep of the Blade) and https://ilona-andrews.com/gerard-demille-and-helen-meet/
Thanks, hadn’t read that snippet. Now Maud makes no sense in my mind 😐
So happy to read a new one! (Does happy dance). Also,) having just read this aloud for the four millionth time) it should be “terrible, awful, no-good, very bad” pirate. 😉
Ha ha.
Oh, the Attentions…
It just occurred to me… Does anyone else think HA might have been thinking of the Horde when they wrote about Cyanide wanting all the attentions? Does HA see the Horde as a bunch of cats?
(If so, then they’re onto us and we need to change tactics. Time to start working on our puppy eyes.)
I’m sure there is absolutely nothing about the BDH that might suggest the term “herding cats”.
Meow. 😉
They could be channeling Tuna’s thoughts as she lays either on the keyboard or near it with her paw or paws on the keys and blocking the computer monitor. 🤭🐈
Delightful! Thank you!
happy dance……. My friday fix is up early
Thanks IA & mod R
I had no hand in it hehe – it’s all House Andrews magic! 😍
Silly Clan Sai. They could learn a thing or two from the Merchants.
Methinks they will be getting a lesson or two soon.
Clan Sai are Merchants too 🙂 . But I agree, they will so get played by *our* merchants, Clan Nuan!
Yes, sorry. That’s what I meant. OUR merchants. Heh.
Much joy on Fridays when the next part if available!
I want to make a spread sheet of where all the candidates stand. One was a pirate and got sent home. One wanted to go home and did. The snow leopard doesn’t want to marry him and just came to get the minor ask for trade purposes. So we’ve got the rest to get through and remember all their pros and cons and how they did on the debate. It’s so much interesting data!! And more than anything else it’s an incredible glimpse into other planets and societies that makes this such a fantastic part of building the universe that is this book series!
“One was a pirate and got sent home. One wanted to go home and did.”
This little piggy went to the market…
Lol Tink! That’s exactly what went through my head too
Haha Yes!! Tink I’ve been following your blog comments for years and 99.999% of the time you are spot on!
“This little piggy went to the market,
This little piggy stayed home,
This little piggy had roast beef,
This little piggy had none,
And this little piggy cried wee wee wee all the way home.”
I guess we know which little piggy cried all the way home.
Funny thing is, I didn’t remember the whole nursery rhyme and had to look it up. I do not remember one of the piggies having roast beef. I bet there’s a darker version out there where one of the piggies has bacon. 😛
There’s an extended version.
This little piggy stubbed his toe,
This little piggy said “oh, oh”,
This little piggy laughed, he was bad,
This little piggy cried, he was sad,
This little piggy was very good, he ran for the doctor as quick as he could.
Mind you the first part, it’s dark in its own right. Going to market meant that pig was killed, and the same goes for the one that stayed home and the one that had none. Roast beef pig was probably kept alive for breeding purposes.
I already made a spreadsheet. I built it from the candidates info made by Mod R, then updated it as new chapters came along. I had an idea that Pivor was the pirate before the reveal tnks to said spreadsheet. Plus i have 3 candidates for possible assasin.
Which one is in the library with the candlestick?
LOL the hope crushing horde and house meer one whistling and looking at the books and the other nonchalantly trying to look innocent……..
I’m very much buying into the idea that Pivor was not the assassin, or at least not the only assassin. Too flashy for the murky waters of the Dominion.
The Donkomins are also gone.
One little piggy was voted off the island.
One Donkomin is still there, asked to stay and observe. But I think this is a case of looking terrifying and really being nice. They were not as aggressive as other species. We’ll find out.
The pirate didn’t get sent home, remember? The scaled woman at Baha-Char offed him.
But that just it, we DONT know what the asks are about. We do know that some sort of contracts got signed which allow Kosandian to know what the major ask of the finalist would be and also what the minor ask of the runner ups would be. But we don’t.
We are given these glimpses of fascinating cultures behind HAs fan dance with such as possible ships with Karat and Dagorkun and other distracting possible relationships.
But we have no idea, really, of what they would in most cases be their minor ask. BTW, minor in these cases is also a bit misleading. Financial, political or social alliance on the scale of a star kingdom like the Dominion to some of the candidates home worlds as single world entities would be enormous.
I think that the majority of the candidates were asked because they had some political, social or financial importance to the Dominion and were not serious spousal candidates. Dushegubs really? But I admit to curiosity about what their minor ask would be and why they were included as finalists.
Also, there is one more joker still in the field. Kosandian indicated he has been targeted for assassination.
Mysteries abound and my crystal ball is cloudy.
Nice!🥰
fantastic
thank you
Love the gradual reveal of each candidate’s motivations. Kosandian knows what everyone wants, presumably including the asks from the non-finalists as well! A great treasure trove of material for political intrigue.
Waiting eagerly to find out what cooperation is in store with the Oomboles. Would the ask for Lady Wexyn come from the Temple of Desire, or more likely from her sponsor, Clan Nuan? Will their ask tie into why Lady Wexyn was immediately considered a threat who might interfere with Caldenia’s unrevealed, long term plans? So many threads to follow! Thank you House Andrews!
+1
All the attentions
Meow 😻
Just like a cat !
Thank you !
So interesting, so many different levels, so many points of view in this story. I love this book, I can’t wait to see how Klaus appears. Thanks as always, have a good week
Klaus is an Arbitrator. When they sign on, they agree not to return home for 10 years. Based on memory, when he and Dina visited Maud about their missing parents, Maud was pregnant or just gave birth. Helen is about 5 (or 6) years old. I’m guessing that Klaus became an Arbitrator after he and Dina parted. I’m guessing that Klaus has another 4 or 5 years before he can visit Earth. Therefore, I’m being optimistic that they will all meet at Maud’s wedding on planet Daesyn.
Correction. Not 10 years but 20 years… memory isn’t so good.
He can’t return to earth for awhile so they’ll meet at the wedding hopefully
A cat is a cat is a cat. Also, why do I feel like Tuna’s personality matches Cyanide LOL.
😂
soft kitty, warm kitty,
little ball of fur.
happy kitty, sleepy kitty,
purr purr purr
Alien kitty, Higgra kitty,
Brush, brush, brush
😀
Love it!
Love it. Very good.
Purr, Purr
+1,000,000
Aww, perfect!
Cyanide reminds me of this cartoon…
The cat is standing by the door with its empty food dish in its mouth, calling “Here, human, human, human”…
LOL! Perfect mental image.
+10
Love the early post and the cat. Somehow I started getting Facebook posts of cat art. There are so many of them I’d love to have on T-shirts or posters enough to fill my walls. They make me smile and improve my day.
Big smile this morning, just have to pass a drug screen today and I can start my new job next week. WooHoo!
Happy weekend!
I *knew* Cyanide would want a grooming session.
So lovely to read and I appreciate that “Build your Destiny” has now been implemented.
Thank you! Very fun/enjoyable. I love your descriptions of the various surroundings in the stories. Would love to visit that cabin/chalet for a vacation.
Hope that you are feeling back to normal at home after the last 4 weeks.
That is NOT how I saw this date playing out. HAHAHAHAHA!
Poor Dina.
Thanks for the chapter. Im surprised I was sure cyanide was the assassin. Also this ““Olivio teseres tares,” I told him.
He smiled.
“What does it mean?”
“Fate needs a mason,” he said. “It’s an old saying.””
Olivio either means fate or mason and that means that the title latero olivione might mean something + fate related word or something + mason related word. I like both options. Thats the first hint of what that title is since the begining of the series I loved that. Thanks a lot
Well, not quite 😅 , we were in fact given the entire translation to the titles in Chapter 10 here https://www.ilona-andrews.com/2022/chapter-10-part-2-2/
Letere Olivione, Dystim Adrolo, She Who Controls Fate, the Light of the Midnight Sun for Caldenia
Letero Kolivion, Dystim Arbiento, Sovereign of the Seven Star Dominion, He Who Is Immune to Fate, the Light of the Morning Sun for Kosandion
Oh its the translation. I assumed it was like other titles and translation. Thanks modR.
Woo Hoo!! Got in early!! Maybe to 10???
Whoops!! So NOT top 10..
As I read this my cat is on my chest demanding attentions…
Wonderful imagery
Thanks for a great chapter. Cyanide was my pick, if i remember. Sad she is out of the running, but happy she got what she wanted. How about an update post on the contestants? Who left, who is left, etc. With the lovely pictures. And we get to vote again. Pretty please?
(I like the lead in summaries, thanks for those!)
Oh yeah! That would be super. Please, please…..
Hhhmmmm perhaps Clan Lee could help out here 😉.
Have a great weekend!
So I guess this answers the question on whether Cyanide would purr or chuff. I know that there was a whole thread some chapters ago about that.
Yay!
As much as I sympathize for Kosandion, that no candidate wants to marry him for himself (no, I don’t trust Lady Wexyn!), at least Higgra is honest with him and he can enjoy some peacefull minutes….working, but peacefull.
I’m looking forward to the date with the Oomboles and wander what the Dushegubs are after with their wishes.
I also still believe that Amphie is the assassin (“girl-next-door-image” from Team smiles practically screams something is up) and that Gaston would give Kosandion the much needed image boost and a lot more. Swift and smooth sailing ship Gasandion 😉
Actually she is my assassin candidate too for the exact reason
The Dushegub were voted out in the same chapter as the Pirate Prince was uncovered and killed.
Actually it was the Donkamins– aka Children of the Silver Star, the 12th in the ranking who was voted out. Unessa Sybate of the Dushegub is still in the running.
Thanks May. For a moment I doubted my memory after that comment. 😅 Though I doubt even more that the Dushegubs will get through the next election.
But let’s watch what Amphie will be up to 😉
Love it! I will try to be patient about the second half.
LIKE!
Great thanks for the chapter, again.
Ahhhhhh. So satisfying. She what Dina (and I needed)
So awesome to see another branch! I bet the highlights from the date will be like a travel bureau’s ad and there will be many more guest requests for this lodge.
I was hoping for a little more of Cyanide’s insight into Olasard but the Merchant angle explained was awesome. As always, HA knows best and always surprises in the best way.
Where does the new branch go??
Hope you have a great weekend and stay cool.
Wow… I have looked at pics of snow leopards and wished I could pet them, but I don’t know about 250lbs worth wanting to be like a housecat! I still love the mental image, though. =)
I think olesard was giving cyanide some interesting tidbits on why humans have value😁
I don’t know. As soon as I read Cyanide asking Kosandion if she can bring this human, I was so glad that Earth has a treaty. She didn’t even ask Dina but Kosandion. I can just see the Higgras coming to Earth and grabbing any humans off the street or farm, etc… to be their slaves to Attention their needs. {{{shudder}}}
LoL, I was off picturing a new HA series with this as the plot line … only instead of unwilling kidnapping victims, the humans were willing to trade a period of time of pampering Higgras in return for ___
land? wealth? entrance to the greater gallaxy? Safety from some danger?
Lol this is awesome! I was totally voting for cyanide lol but this works
Thank you!
I have a 9 pound cat that sleeps on me at night, I cannot imagine what Dina must feel like with a 250 pound cat on her lap…….🤣
and I don’t understand why those kitties like to place their paws as close to your neck as possible while lying stretch on your chest
It’s either that or pushing their heads firmly into your neck until you wonder about blood vessels getting pinched off.
But of course it’s done out of … um … well feline motives are mysterious.
Politics!
It makes me wonder how many of the other candidates are only there for the ask and don’t actually want to be the spouse. Maybe all of them? That would certainly give Gaston a chance and he seems more and more like the perfect companion/helpmate for Kosandion.
Also, one thing I love about now is that when I run across something unfamiliar like “Jagdschloss” I can just pause and look up pictures so I have a more accurate image in my head as I read.
Finally, Kosandion and possibly Adira need to visit Gertrude Hunt regularly, just to stay at that lodge. Can I?
Beyond finally … I wouldn’t put it past George to have actually planned the whole thing to make Gaston eligible as the spouse.
But then would that mean that the Arbitrators get the big and small asks?
I can’t see Gaston pinned down to one planet for 20-some years … could so see him as a marriage broker a/k/a “yenta” … now I will have Fiddler on the Roof songs playing in my head all day…
But it isn’t a single planet, it is a multi-planet system steeped in politics, intrigue and drama. Totally in Gaston’s wheelhouse. If George can wrangle four months a year to be an Arbitrator, maybe Gaston can get some “vacation” time too (if he were to be selected as the spouse).
Dina just got two career options! Dominion politician and permanent cat groomer.
The first is easy to pass on though, and Olesard will tell her that she already has the second one.
Also, I am so good at forgetting to do things that it is nice to see Dina forgetting to do something (immediately giving Kosandion Caldenia’s message). Makes her feel more real.
just musing on GH’s branches…perhaps those branches that don’t seem that useful can be getaways for Dina and Sean….
Also, any branches that pre-date Dina might have been high traffic in the past.
In SotB, it is predicted that once Serak’s and Kozor’s criminal and dishonorable activities are widely, trade will stop going to that sector. Instead the highly secure trade station by Daesyn (Krahr homeworld) will anchor the favored route.
Oooooh, that is a good thought! After all, there is a lovely trade and research station thanks to Maude 😁
widely *known*. sheesh
Love the looping back to Cyanides interest in Dina brushing her cat – all cat roads lead back to a good brushing.
Again, literally, LOL.
“I require attentions,” Cyanide announced. “All of them.”
Attentions.
If my cats could talk, this is exactly what they would say.
You have to watch a YouTube channel called Billi speaks!
I rather envy Cyanide!
Thank you for the latest installment HA, I hope the house is more or less back to being a home, and you are as a result just in a normal state of being rather than an anxious one!
Thank you Mod R too, for the links to the (mainly) Ruby Fever snippets!
Happy friday and thank you very much HA!
Hysterical! Kosandion Is clever and sneaky like his Aunt. I liked the encouragement she sent him too
A cat’s a cat, and that’s that!
This. Is. Awesome. Thank you so much!
This was awesome! I love this story!
Clever….so kosandion has decided to marry lady wexyn??
Okay, Cyanide is out as a candidate in my mind. All she and her people want is Clan Sai out of the way. Those merchants are not very good, and Clan Nuan is waiting to take over.
Lol, but Cyanide learned something!
I did a reread and had a thought. Wouldn’t it be nice if the Muterzen pirates had difficulty reaching Garcia and went after her family instead? That way they would be less of a problem for the sovereign and Dominion politics
Don’t forget the birds who are coming for the pirates. Perhaps Vestia should offer herself as bait in return for protection.
She lost them both of their asks because of Pivor. They won’t see that they should have vetted their own candidate better.
Oh! That was both fun and funny. Wheels with in wheels…..
I’ve held a theory since House Andrews has gifted us with this book, that Her Grace quite dearly loves her nephew. And, in fact, that many, if not most, of her actions have to benefit Kosandion.
Also, I pity Dina’s legs after this date. 🙂
Also, Cookie is going to bring such glory to Clan Nuan!
I started to subscribe to that theory two chapter parts ago. His father was mentioned to be weak and that’s problematic in a ruler. If true it makes Caldenia even more fascinating
We don’t get Caldenia’s actual age i don’t think other then implied long lived, she could have bred Kosandion to strengthen the line then offed the father when he came of age.
SotH is not (emphatic) a story about intergalactic incest.
errr… what?
“she could have bred Kosandion to strengthen the line then offed the father when he came of age.”
Caldenia is Kosandion’s father sister.
Is your mind in the gutter? even rereading my comment I’m not sure where you get incest from.
We know who Kosandion’s mother is and it’s not Caldania.
I’m sorry, maybe I misundertood “Caldenia could have bred Kosandion” 🙂 It is such a distinctly peculiar word choice.
I think Cyanide may be related to my Sheba… all the attentions! I never realised my little Bengal was part mini-leopard and part Higgra!
I love Fridays so much…
Thanks HA <3
Happy dance! Thank you!
I love how we get to see how intellectual Kosandion really is and how everything is a plan within a plan!!
Wouldn‘t it be funny, when the new door opens to Mauds place?
Only 111 people in front of me when I got here today! Personal best for me. 😉
I bet Higgra nails are a lot tougher to trim than my cat’s, not to mention the attitude that would be present whilst trimming. My cat has the same thick, luxurious pelt that I imagine on Cyanide.
Great Chapter – thank you!
Being a dog person I can’t really comment on the cat behaviour – but I was expecting Cyanide to ask Kostandion to groom her rather than Dina!
Well, Dina has proven skills!
And now with skill proven, the Higgra will flock to her Inn to join her other dangerous but devoted guests. Pilgrimages of Vampires for the holy relic practice weapons, spa visits from the Higgra for all the brushing, Clan Nuan for the cuisine and intrigue from other guests, and the werewolves to look upon their alpha. (And probably by the end, the grudging respect of the dushgubs and the only Inn they are permitted to visit, with corresponding increase in rates.)
Oh, that would be funny. All the Higgras going to Dina’s inn for brushing. Or going to other inns and demanding to be brushed because Gertrude Hunt does that so of course other inns must provide that amenity.
So what do we think Gertrude Hunt’s rating will be after this whole affair? Up to a 4 maybe?
Somehow I think the Assembly will not wNt to raise Dina’s rating at all.
Had to comment for the nod to my Nigerian heritage. Thank you😊
Sisi,
That’s such a lovely thing to share. Thank you!
Awesome! Thank you!
I felt surrounded by that hug as I read this comic. Wonderful. Meaningful.
Oh, wow. That’s beautiful.
I love this.
Ok, can I just say…. I’m changing my vote for spouse to House Andrews (can’t separate them, because we still need our fixes, right fellow BDH members). Because they clearly observe and understand all. They proved that with Cyanide. That is exactly how my cats would react.
Lol. As a servant of three cats, this was very appreciated… 🥰🐾
As a cat lover, I’m blissfully fantasizing on this episode. Ah, to have a huge gorgeous cat rumbling purrs while being brushed … and the “blue mouth” … wow, the visuals are stunning … many thanks!
Cats are the same on any planet lol
As the ‘servant’ of a 15 year old Queen of the Universe who expects brushing before breakfast each morning and lap time each evening, Cyanide and Olasard make perfect sense to me! Thank you, as always.
(And, on a separate note, many thanks for the virtual dinner chat with Grace and Patrick and to ModR the Magnificent (her new title!), for all the lovely bits this week).
Finally, where is the female werewolf?
Last I recall was she and Karat were in the medbay. Karat’s well but I probably just need to reread the blog chapters again.
It’s been less than 24 hours in book time since the fight in Baha-char 🙂
Karat was much less injured, as she had syn armour on, and the female werewolf doesn’t seem to shift, so her recovery might be slower.
Gosh, thanks so much, ModR, for the quick response. You’re the best!
“It’s been less than 24 hours”
This book has been like an episode of 24 Hours, hasn’t it? Stretched out a little bit more, but still passing much slower than the reading of it.
Ok, I pretty much chortled all the way through this one! My office mates kept shooting me looks. And we were right, Cyanide wanted to be brushed!! I’m going to be laughing all day every time I think of this. Poor Dina, 250 pounds of big cat in her lap.
ooooooh method to Cookie’s madness! Clan Sai is about to shoot themselves in the foot and Clan Nuan will laugh all the way to the bank. Gotta love it!
Now what highlights will they show? Dina brushing the cat? The cat ignoring Kosandion and vice versa?
Hmmmm, Vercia should take her possible imprisonment and wait out the pirates in relative safety, heh. If the MurderBirds take down the pirates, then she’s back on the street and plotting her revenge in a couple years, assuming her family allows her back into the fold. Assuming her family still has political pull. Still, what a nasty mess it is all around.
Same here, my colleagues are now officially convinced that I’m insane…☺️. Lovely installment, thanks a Lot!
I ADORED the definition of “luxury rustic” and it helped me imagine the scene perfectly. It also gave the giggles, which is always a bonus! 🥰
I wonder if Tuna’s demands for attention helped inspire this scene?
Lol
It was also nice that Kosandion got a straight forward “date” and some down time and Dina was clued into to the situation 😁
So, since Cyanide can talk to cats, when is she going to tell Dina that Olasard is Sebastian North… Is she going to try to blackmail Dina into brushing her and giving her “all of the attentions” forever before she says anything?
Hey Eeyore, could you point me to which chapter states that “Cyanide can talk to cats” or that Olasard is Sebastien North?
Cyanide talked to Olasard in Chapter 18, part 2. They stared at each other the way that cats do and had a moment or two of silent communication. Cyanide acted oddly after it happened, like she wasn’t expecting to be able to communicate. (Other people have speculated that Cyanide and Olasard were talking as well.)
As for Olasard being Sebastien North: The end of One Fell Sweep,
“”Did you notice he has a collar?”…
He held the cat out to me, parting the fur with his fingers to expose the collar. A small metal plaque embedded in the blue nylon caught the light. Two letters, engraved in elaborate cursive, shone on the plaque.
S.N.
Sebastien North?”
Right, so in fact Cyanide only looked at Olasard, the talking is your assumption.
And his collar only has the initials SN, which Dina doesn’t know what they stand for. She wonders whether it might be Sebastien North, but it’s not confirmed and no more is given, for either her or us.
SN can stand for many things, and if a cat’s collar has an inscription it is not necessarily their name 🙂.
Also, since the collar came with the cat, SN could be the previous owner.
And Now I am insanely jealous of Dina. Having worked in a hotel the very thought of the floor swallowing troublesome guests made me giddy. The BIG cat though, so green with envy.
I want to brush the big fuzzy!!
Love 💕 this!
Ah, such a cozy evening. Cat purring and happy. Catching up on emails. And plotting galactic politics.
Thanks, HA!
Thank you for the chapter installment. I’m glad we get to see more inn connections. On another note, this may be one of the most relaxing dates.
The Higgra might just ask for brushes for their small favor along with people to brush them regularly.
Happy sigh. That was lovely, thanks. Your words draw such clear pictures in my mind.
“If a small child was asked to draw a tree, they would pick this exact color out of the crayon box to draw the trunk and the branches.”
And the snow falling outside, while inside the fire crackles, Kosandion deals with the neverending paperwork and Cyanide enjoys all the attentions. Such a peaceful interlude.
I’m jealous! I wish to brush to very large kitty! 😀
That’s a beautiful cat picture!
Well I’m going to go and brush my cat. 😃thank you
Every cat, everywhere. Not sure I’m glad mine can’t talk tho.
I love it. Every. Single. Word.
“I require attentions,” Cyanide announced. “All of them… [a]nd the brush.”
“…[t]ell her about our arrangement,” Cyanide said, stretching to get a better brushing angle. “Or she won’t focus on attentions.”
“If I marry you, can I bring this human with me to serve me?”
“No,” Kosandion said.
“A pity.”
Every cat owner in your readership understands this in their bones. Especially the part where there’s only one human designated to serve. Or, in the case of my baby/old man m0053, service.
If the Higgra don’t have spas, perhaps Dina can drop hint of a “Purrfect Attentions” franchise. Surely there will be some enterprising Dominion or Merchant clan.
As long as they remember the golden rule 😀
Oh that’s perfect!
so tricksey
Thank you!
Ooh sneaky, yes I likey.
Not sure if it’s been discussed but I love the little intros to the chapters. They remind me of the old Batman series. I’m waiting for the outro “see you next week same bat channel same bat time.”But I guess this would be same cat channel same cat time. Mostly because I think Cyanide (whom I love) will be calling on Dina for all the attentions regularly.
Another great chapter – thank you so much for this
The intros are extremely popular with the Horde 😀
They are! I love reading them (almost) as much as the chapters! It makes me feel like I’m reading a movie serial come to paper, ala Flash Gordon.
I apologize in advance if someone else has already posted about this and I also apologize for any spelling mistakes.
So, I’ve been thinking (as my husband would say – “That’s dangerous” lol) but it seems to me that Wilmos was kidnapped in order to force Gertrude Hunt to host the spousal selection. From there, I started thinking who would do that. George maybe? Because…George? Caldenia because she’s still meddling? But Dina called Her Grace “the ultimate survivor” (or similar) who wouldn’t endanger her refuge and Caldenia seemed genuinely surprised to see the Dominion was at Gertrude Hunt… So, in my weird mind, the most likely candidate is….Kosandion. He was the one who provided the proof of life recording, he would have been apprised of the capabilities of Gertrude Hunt/Sean/Dina because that’s where his Aunt Caldenia lives. He and his Aunt seem to have an oddly friendly relationship. Maybe Konsandion and Caldenia conspired together to remove his father, Caldenia “cleaned house” and Konsandion swooped in to “save” everyone? If I read today’s post correctly, Konsandion’s mother left the Dominion before her 25 years were up, and having your son be at least okay with your husband being murdered by his sister would certainly qualify as a reason to leave. But then so would having your husband assassinated period. However, I think it was Dina who said Konsandion was “cleaning house” after the events surrounding Ellenda, so I really hope Caldenia isn’t part of his house cleaning… I really don’t know how Kosandion would know about the corrupt innkeepers, but part of the fun in reading SotH has been trying to figure things out. If it is Kosandion – that makes me wonder if there is an assassin after him because he could have told Sean and Dina that in order to have them focus on his safety over that of other guests – such as Caldenia. Although if there is an assassin after him, my money is on Lady Dion-Dian.
My Fellow Book Devouring Horde Members – What do you think? Am I so far out in left field I can’t even see home plate? Is there someone else who would have an interest in having the spousal selection at Gertrude Hunt I haven’t considered? Is it really just an elaborate trap Sean and Dina have to work to get into? Am I overthinking everything? Am I crazier than usual (lol)?
I don’t see Kosandion hiring a corrupted Innkeeper. Or the corrupted innkeepers being interested in working towards such a mundane, non-inn related cause. They seem pretty single-minded from what we’ve seen so far, focused in inn-related power.
But what about the corruptrd ad-hal… Fit those monsters in your scheme and I’ll get on board.
LOL – twists and turns within twists and turns.
I think the phrase “All the attentions” is going to become as popular as “ripper cushions” for the BDH 😁
Even though I voted for her, I’m very happy with Cyanide’s non-spouse-worthy date. No matter where they might have originated or how big they are, cats are cats are cats.
I would’ve loved to have been Dina myself, even with 250 pounds of kitty to deal with. So wonderfully peaceful and hypnotic a scene.
Thank you so much HA. Thank you; this was exactly what I didn’t know I needed.
May you have all the attentions you want, need, and desire too. 🙂
“ I require attentions. All of them.” I’m dying!!! Think I should rename my cat Cyanide, except only members of the BDH would appreciate it!
Yippee!! Friday at last
☺️☺️☺️
Lovely! I knew I liked Cyanide, if only because she is so beautiful. I can imagine snowflakes falling while brushing a big kitty like that — but I think my little orange tiger, who weighs in at around 10 pounds, is a great deal easier to manage.
Another great chapter! Speaking of branches…have we heard the location of the new door? Is there a procedure when a new door opens? How many doors does GH have?
From above 🙂 “Gertrude Hunt had a dozen branches, only a few of which were actually useful”
Since reading about the dozen branches. The Inns are sentient though generally not regarded (per the Sweep series) as fully sapient entities. But they are living and growing entities. The doors may be useful to Gertrude Hunt if not to the Innkeepers per se. There maybe some thing useful to the Inn itself in its connections’. Perhaps one of the reasons this Inn survived so long without an Innkeeper til Dina.
Also I have a different destination for the new door than is currently being speculated. Will sit on this guess a little longer,
I never see this on my tablet til Sat so I’m thrilled for a Friday read!!! Now I have to get a cup of tea and get comfy for the adventure . Thanks so much even before reading!
I started reading this, get to the part where Cyanide comes in and I’m like “…wtf?”. And then “attentions. All of them.” and I just started giggling uncontrollably.
It took me two readings to really realize that Cyanide’s askes were only the minor ask. She never planned on being a spouse, she just needed to get this far in the selection.
And all the Attentions… that is the absolute best!
i like this part so much. reminds me of a calm before the storm for some reason. and it ties some of the other stuff too 😁
The brush was involved. What a coup for Cookie.
LOL, Cyanide is the perfect cat!! Cats everywhere would approve. “I require all the attentions” indeed.
Cyanide is perhaps the most beautiful candidate, and so far the most practical. Cookie will be so pleased and so obviously surprised. LOL. He’ll be bucking for a promotion.
I’m not so certain about the surprised part. I have a feeling he knew it was coming and participated in the scheme. It probably wouldn’t be too hard to find out Dina (and her parents) have had multiple dealings with Clan Nuan over the years, so getting word to Clan Nuan that they might want to be observers wouldn’t be that hard.
+1 or just for Clan Nuan to recognize the opportunity through their own intelligence operations.
Lovely, just lovely.
As much as I love the exciting action posts, this was a much needed level-out in the pace of the story.
A tiny bit of exposition didn’t hurt either, especially since you made it interesting.
(Not that your writing is ever less than interesting!)
Thank you.
(Having attempted to sleep with 15 pounds of Maine Coon on my chest, I sympathize with Dina!)
My husband found it early. He was so happy he called me into his office and read it to me. It made me smile. Thanks.
Awww, that’s so sweet!
Lovely!
Thank you very much, have a great weekend.
Aww. Yay, for a chance to relax and decompress?
Thank you for such an informative chapter. Great writing. Tight but with a lot of info.
Another great chapter! Thanks HA. I keep imagining what will happen next and I haven’t been right yet. One of the many reasons I love your writing. Hope the temps cool a bit for you guys.
😂😂😂
Orange kitten in his window box.
Ok, don’t know why When can’t load a pic 🤦🏽♀️
ModR said size requirement is 1MB. You probably need to compress it.
You can take a screenshot of the picture, that usually works 🙂
I do it what is probably the complicated way, which is email the picture from my phone to myself, choosing “small” from the send options. Small being almost always under 1 MB. Then use the “small” picture here.
This presumes, of course, that you are using your phone to take pictures.
Oh boy, a great portrayal of Cyanide. I wondered how she would react to seeing Olasard groomed. Perfect cat. We also found out more about how the Inns connect to other worlds. Gertrude Hunt could have more surprises there.Cookie should owe Dina for facilitating his upcoming rise in his merchant clan.
And-bonus-on a day with 107 heat index, azaleas looking wilty, and continued heat with no rain in sight for at least a week, we just got the utterly perfect cool, calming winter scene. Loved it. I don’t really miss cold and snow,but I have missed those perfect quiet snowfalls viewed from inside by a fire. I loved it from start to finish. Here’s to House Andrews. I hope they enjoyed watching the snow as much as we did.
My absolute favorite chapter! I pity those who have never had the pleasure of a cat jumping into your lap, gracing you with her presence and allowing you to brush her. I laughed so much that my biggest girl, at 19 pounds, wandered over to see what was wrong. She then flopped onto my tablet to permit a few moments of scratching. Later, I resumed to find out that Cyanide thinks just like a cat–sly, yet so to-the-point.
Damn that’s clever! I love how this story is playing out. So many puzzle pieces and we’re only on date 2! It is, however, nice to know that Cyanide won’t be a threat and will go peacefully when the time comes to eliminate again. Thank you House Andrews and Mod R!
Love it! Thank you!
A lovely little vignette – nice to have a restful moment after all the excitement and bloodshed of the last few installments! Snow falling, fire roaring, winter lodge is perfect for a quiet interlude… Love it!
So much political intrigue. So many twists and turns. Using the “spouse selection” for back-door mechanisms. Was it created for that purpose?. Long-game plans….years in the making. Once in a life time opportunity to accomplish almost impossible feats within a “government” overflowing with traditions, rituals and bureaucracy.
You guys are great! Thank you! Have a restful, peaceful weekend.
Tried to post a pic of 2 of my feline masters, that I took earlier this morning on my phone, but the file size was too big. Perhaps, one day I will figure out how to share my babies with you all.
Ah. My problem is getting them to pose in first place. My vet and 5 year old neighbor are only humans that know Jupiter, my black cat 🐈⬛, exists. 🤣
They were sleeping, and I was reading on my phone. All I had to do was not move as I switched apps. One was on my lap and one was under the blanket next to my foot on the footrest.
You have to reduce the size to 1MB or less
I had the same challenge. Emailed the picture to myself. Was able to downgrade the file size as the attachment. Saved to pics from email after sent / received (smaller size now, then uploaded that version.
Perfect as usual
That’s a really lovely interlude. Thank you. 🙂
Oh, HA is the best. I mean, is there a more perfect ‘date with a cat’ anywhere???
Splendid!!!!
Or for better words:
SQUEEEEEEEEE!!!
Now I really really curious about what will be the minor ask of the Dushegubs, and the Oomboles if that eventually is revealed.
Thank you, Ilona Andrews for the snippet.
Yes I can tell house Andrews is owned by felines. Cats rule and dogs drool is the adage that comes to mind. Delightful snippet. And now we know why Cookie is there.
Glad to hear house renovations are proceeding well and the painters didn’t manage to kill anyone. 👍
It’s so good, It’s So Good, IT’S SO GOOD!!! (Yes, I said this out loud and was screaming at the end!) I don’t even know where to start! Thank you!
Did Cukie suspect such an opportunity would arise? Or will it be a pleasant and welcomed surprise?
So Cyanide isn’t interested in being spouse. Can we have the list of who is left for the selection?
Awwww. Now the Higgra will want to start importing humans to give them all the attentions. 😂 House Andrews cleverly crafts its own fur lichen story nets.
I still wonder what Cyanide initially wanted to ask Dina.
Happy weekend!!!
This chapter is incredible, Cyanide is a typical cat!!! And we know why Cookie is in he Inn!!!
Attentions, heh.
A wonderful birthday present! Thank you!
Was my birthday on 27th so I agree. Best present yet.
Happy belated Birthday!
Happy Birthday!
Thankyou! Awesome as usual. Many hugs and thanks, wished to you and yours (Mods you too)!
Thank you! This was exactly the correct length: shorter than my afternoon break! I feel recharged and ready to return to sorting out database problems. 🙂
Thank you.
Just like a cat would do if they could talk. Awesome
bahahahahaha I love Cyanide in all her cat glory. also, i now direly want to read a scene where Roman and Cyanide interact. why, idk, i just feel it would be amazing. XDDD
Oooh this was very intersting. A much quieter scene, nevertheless but so helpful for unterstanding about the undercurrents. Thank you!
Hahaha Cyanide got her ‘attentions’ and Cookie has a trade in (pun intended). Thanks for the snippet!!
I love this.
I loved this chapter so much! The new world (but that already existed) with its wonderful winter forest, I’m sure it has a spectacular ecosystem too and maybe some Higgra cousins from Cyanide🤭, Dina’s Sharp Cleverness and the “I’m happy where I am”❤, E I misunderstood or is Clan Sai extorting the Higgras traders? I think my mind went wrong in the part of the ship docked there in the space of the planet Higgra, like my brain translated the situation like this the Sai arrives and: “It only sells there with our participation and profit sharing with people too, or no trade for you guys!” it’s so aggressive that it seems illegal, can’t Kosandion reduce their influence just with this act?
Develop all this politics, drama, the worlds, not to mention the
interior designer one more beautiful than the other, you guys are amazing thank you so much!
And they really know all about the cats! It reminded me of my own cute felines 🥰all three 😸😸😸 but only the two males like to lay on their laps, affection and attention, because the female is not like Cyanide, no brushes lol but she likes to sleep on cute things, I think when Cyanide returns to her home planet she will bring the news and every Higgra couple will brush their mate.
Thank you! Subtle……… Next……
I love this chapter for its peaceful cozy visuals, clever politics, quiet humor, and the giant pussycat. All the things you probably aimed for. Great job!
Very nice chapter! Loved the snow and the quiet cat brushing…
Lots of informations also, so much political intrigue!
But I was hoping that we would get an explanation about why it was Cyanide turn for the date, and not Oond the ombole? Because in a previous chapter, Kosandion asked to switch Elenda with Oond, Oond was supposed to be the first date…
Still, can’t wait for the second challenge, more info about the remaining candidates and their motivations, news of the female werewolf, the new branching, and so many other things happening in this book!
Hi Sophie,
Oond’s place was switched with Ellenda, meaning Ellenda went first (as we saw) and Oond will be the whatever # Ellenda was instead. We don’t know what that number was.
The schedule as it was had not been announced, and modifications will happen given everything else going on!
You’re totally right Mod R (as always!), my mistake!
I though it was a switch Oond 1st / Ellenda 2nd, but indeed, we don’t know what was Ellenda place in the schedule.
In fact, in chapter 15, it was Oond 1st / Amphie 2nd.
So no 2nd place for Amphie finally… Let’s hope we will here about her soon, since so many BDH members believe she has a secret agenda !
* we will hear sorry!!
Elenda switched with Oond, but that doesn’t mean she was 2nd on the list. She could have been 7th for all we know.
This installment is a delight. Thank you.
Cyanide plopping herself down on Dina and demanding ALL of the ‘attentions’ made me laugh and laugh. 😀 😂
And Clan Nuan is about to get so much richer! Thank you for the snippet.
‘Wheels within wheels’ does not begin to cover the convolutions here. Fun!
Top 10?
I can offer top 300, just about?
Lol. I noticed the post (got once in the Friday) saw that it was over 200 comments and just went on to read the post first rather then trying for the comments 😆
Mod R, you are a trip, you make me laugh, I love it. I was like waaay down there, but it isn’t about the comment numerical position, its about the fun of the comment section. As a cat owned human (servant to 5) I understand fully this vignette… it is completely how the cat mind functions. See human. See human pet ‘insert animal critter’ … cat think ‘i need that’… arrogantly leaps upon lap, kneads, settles and look up with expression that demands ‘adore me NOW’… All cat owners see and obey with ‘all the attentions’. All other pet owners say cat owners are strange…they let their pets dictate their action… strange. OUR pets don’t dictate our actions (meantime they are pampering their own pets … lol). It is funny though. I would NOT rule out a dialog non verbal between the domestic cat and the big cat… I think it would be a funny one. More in the vein of the little cat admonishing the big cat about the proper ways to be ‘worshipped’. Because yes, cats were once worshipped and they have not forgotten this…Dogs and horses were once worshipped as well, but being more grounded and humble they didn’t let it go to their heads, like, well Cats.
Awwwwwwwwww attentions
Ah man, I actually really like Cyanide as Kosandion’s partner! Maybe I’m just a sucker for respect and communication. I like that they have an agreement and understand each other’s political game. But if she’s getting everything she wants with the minor ask… 😭
Changing my vote. I love cyanide.
Such a perfect cat.
I have been waiting for the cat brushing. You delivered. I am in awe.
I’m amused by how much Dina sounds like Maud in this chapter – I guess sisters will be sisters…
Dina from this snippet:
“If Clan Sai suddenly cancelled their trade deals, it would put the Dominion’s economy into a difficult position,” I said. “If only there was another Merchant clan willing to step into the gap. Someone with a lot of resources, able to react to the situation quickly. Someone who might have sent a representative to observe this spousal selection.”
Maud in the Maven’s gardens in Sweep of the Blade, in Chapter 16:
“A safe harbor in space has three major applications. First, it is a base of scientific inquiry….Second, it is a hub of shipping and supply…Third, it is a military installation…The military might of the Holy Anocracy, and House Krahr in particular, is unmatched. If only suitable partners could be found to fulfil these other roles.”
Aaah, and forgot to mention that Maud is talking to the Tachi and (you guessed it) the Lees…
Sisters will be sisters and perhaps more importantly people who grow up at inns will be familiar with the Merchant clans’ ways 😉
I was enjoying the attentions I gave my two new cats while I read it. Guess I’ll have to change my vote on the next round, although Kosandion needs to experience the joy and relaxation of attending to the large Cyanide himself.
Wheels within wheels. It’s all. Connected. Thinking about branches…. We still waiting to find out when the inn was branching to.
Thanks.
OMG thank you, this was the perfect tonic for a blah week. Cyanide is the personification of a cat, just amazing.
As to the machiavalian politics you created with this scene, don’t play poker with the minds that could create such things, you will end up in your underpants and an old barrel by the end of the game.
Totally captured a cat. Love it! Thank you.
A quiet evening with Kitty lol
Perfect 🥰
Love it! Love it! Brush ME!! Thank you!
Thank you, House Andrews! Happy Friday, everyone. 🙂
Awwww gee whiz. Kosandion has no idea what he’s missing – she could have been in HIS lap being brushed!! Great instalment, thank you.
This is the first we’ve heard??? Of The inn having more than doors to baha-char, kolinda, and that desert planet she gives water to.
This could be interesting, wonder where the other 8 active doors go to?
I am amazed at the brush loving cats. I have 5 and only one of them tolerates brushing. Pets and scratches though, are just fine.
I wonder if there are more pre-deals with Kosandian and the candidates
A highly sentient cat would recognize the potential more easily than an Earth cat that was unfamiliar with the possibilities. My elderly cat wasn’t interested in brushing when she was younger, and I wasn’t interested in brushing when she could take care of her own coat. Now she needs me to do it for her. It took a few sessions to acclimate her but these days she comes looking for it.
“All the attentions” and “the brush” 😻 😻😻 yasss!!! The amazing art of being a cat!
I’m late to comment and so much has already been said. I will simply add my thank you and appreciation for this installment!!
I love it
I wonder how many searches for “Senator Wear Designs Nigeria” originated from the BDH today? #trending
Yes! I had to look Nigerian senator shirts up as well… and I could totally picture Kosandion in them after that, just perfect.
😂 that was excellent. Thank you HA. Such a cat! & a un-filmed Letero. Lovely.
The Highest need a grooming salon, like the Prowlers in the L M Lacey Daughter of Ethos books, don’t know who would run it/them, someone with appendages, loved the lodge, so soothing.
Fascinating. I enjoyed Cyanide’s very feline priorities. I miss having cats around the house to do that kind of thing with.
I also look forward to seeing any reactions from Clan Sai as the mess they’ve made for themselves is resolved. It seems they’ve forgotten something very important about making deals: that both sides need to feel that they gain from them. By being the middleman, to get the maximum benefit to themselves they need to actually make it better for both the Higgra and the Dominion to deal through them instead of trading directly. A deal where the Higgra lose a cut of the profit to Clan Sai, for no other gain, and the Dominion pays the same or higher price to Clan Sai as they could get for a direct trade with the Higgra in exchange for not having their economy disrupted is a bad deal for everyone but the Merchants involved.
Maybe the Sai could hire Cookie to give them some remote, (because he wouldn’t be stupid enough to get within poisoning distance) remedial lessons on how to deal with others for maximum benefit once Clan Nuan snags their prior monopoly in the Dominion. Clan Sai couldn’t afford the price Nuan Cee would charge for the same lesson.
So comfy and cozy…. now I want a snowstorm outside, a fire inside, and hot chocolate, with a good book. And an Innkeeper to brush my hair 😉
Awesome! A 250-lb puddy cat! Lol! Dina will be flattened by the end of the date!
Interesting and convoluted – just like we like it! 👍
My first thought when Cyanide commanded Dina to brush her was a flashback to my cats, who also commanded me to brush them. They would signal they were done with bites. I’m hoping Cyanide chose a less painful way.
Only one cat here. She does the same thing. A little nip/bite to say: You are done. Quit it. Your “owner/cat” has decried it.
I was completely surprised by how this “date” went!
1. The politicking in this book is intense. Wheels within wheels. Nothing is as it seems. Gotta love it.
2. Brushing!!
And now I’m thinking about how sternly Dina turned Vercia away from the inn…but she’s had Caldenia, also on the run, as a guest for years…does this mean Dina knows the real deal about that assassination? What did Caldenia tell Dina that persuaded her to accept her as a guest?!
And so the pieces start to fall together. What a wonderful picture! Thanks for the chapter!
I just did a search on DuckDuckGo for ‘Renaissance Jagdschloss.’ The 14th entry is:
https://www.ilona-andrews.com › 2022 › chapter-21-part-1 🤣 🤣 🤣
LOL!
Thank you for a glimpse into one of the benefits of being owned by a cat (ACHOO!)
101*F at 1700 today, it will be hotter tomorrow, I enjoyed the calm & the mental image of snow inside a lodge brushing a cat.
What fun, thank you! Love the change of pace and feline priorities!
I’m beginning to wonder whether who Kosandian will marry (if anyone) was decided before this competition began.
In some ways, it sucks to be the ruler of the Dominion so I’m hoping he gets his happily ever after or, at least, his happy for now.
Somewhere in the beginning chapters Calendia mentions that most of the spousal candidates are there for other considerations and only 5 or so of the 12 are actually in the running. That seems to me to indicate that Kosandian truly hadn’t picked one candidate before the event.
But with the elimination of 2 candidates due to chicanery – Pivor because he was a false candidate and Uma because she was coerced and the 3rd the DonKamin just because they were so creepy.
So possibly this has upset Kosandians original 4 or 5 basic possibilities. Or not.
Right now I’m not really happy with most of the remaining candidates except for Oonda of the Oombules with her Jazz Fins and empathetic abilities . And Nycati of the Gaheas with the telepathic powers. If Kosandian is going for a genetic upgrade that he doesn’t yet posses either of these two would be ones to seriously consider.
Unfortunately Kings or emperors or rulers at Kosandian’s level don’t get to be happy.
James Thurber quote:
The world is so full of a number of things, I am sure we should all be as happy as kings and you know how happy kings are.
I vote for a picture of this date — especially Cyanide in Dina’s lap — among the illustrations with this book!
That would be awesome! I second that request!
Attentions! Awesome.
I totally forgot about the previous interaction between Cyanide and Olasard. It was mentioned this happened in Chapter 18 part 2.
Since I’m a lazy sod and don’t want to click endless “previous post” linksof the Heart page.
https://www.ilona-andrews.com/sweep-of-the-heart/
Only my chronological view stops at Chapter 17. Or rather the “no Innkeeper” message of mid June.
Is that a glitch on my mobile or has that page not been updated the past month and a half?
Is there a chance the chapters after 17 could be added?
Hmmm. Half of that post disappeared.
I hope the meaning is still clear.
Chapter 18 part 2 would be easier to find on the dedicated Sweep of the Heart page, then by clicking on “previous chapter” links in the blog.
Only there are no chapters on the SotH page after 17.
Could those be added? Please?
Hey Patricia,
I will investigate, it does appear to be a glitch 🙂.
In the meantime maybe you could use the link in the SotH tag where all the chapters appear https://www.ilona-andrews.com/category/innkeeper-chronicles/sweep-of-the-heart/
Edit: link fixed 🙂
I don’t think Cyanide was my candidate (I have a bad memory) but why are most people dismissing her now as a spousal candidate? It may not make for great TV, but I think this date shows Kosandion and Cyanide could be good companions to one another. It shows the two have a prior understanding, are comfortable enough to be themselves with one another, and can work towards a goal that benefits both their interests.
Cyanide was my choice of candidate.
Frankly I don’t like any of the candidates. I figured, if Kosandion doesn’t like them either, he might as well spend 25 years with a cat. After all many people prefer cats to people. I know I do 😉
If Kosandion is willing to keep providing Cyanide with the attentions, she may even come to appreciate him.
“May” being the keyword here.
It’s not guaranteed with cats.
On a more serious note. I doubt Cyanide will win the election after this date.
I don’t think Cyanide is here primarily to get a spouse, or necessarily to get a spouse at all, but rather to get a trade agreement.
I don’t think anyone (except Wexyn) is trying to present themselves as in it for love or playing that angle up for the camera. Gaining the minor ask is definitely the goal, anything more than that is icing on the cake.
And now we understand why “Coukie” is there! This is so much fun and makes fridays so kuch more enjoyable, thank you!
That was lovely.
A very good date all in all ❤️
I love the Nigerian fashion reference.
That a beautiful sentient feline species would be jealous of a housecat… yet still consider humans as their servants. *Just* like a housecat. Hahahaha
I require attentions 😂😂😂
Gosh! I want to brush The Danger Kitty, too! 😂
Is that interior of the lodge based on the image Iona posted a few months (with the rock bathroom)? It has same vibe to me and I wondered if it would pop up……
I saved reading this until now when I would have a chance to savour it. One of my better decisions this week.
This is purrrfect.
Thank you! OmG this was so funny! The brushing
I love the soothing vibe of this week. It’s good to have a pause in the action.
I lost the other comment on the doors,but it made me wonder. If the new door isn’t a connection to Maude, could it be a connection to her parents? I can’t remember the rules on branches. If inns can connect to inns?
+1
looking forward to more
Hi Mod R, can you please tell me the name of the language of the Dominion? I plan on saying “Olivio teseres tares” and would like to be able to respond appropriately if anyone asks.
Happy Saturday 👏
Sigh… sooo good!
Thank you!
Love the story! Hope all is well with your blood work.
Hi Mod R,
Sorry I´m a little late to the game, but I was wondering if you could clarify something for me. I was reading old posts a while ago and I came across a post (I have no idea which one at this point) that mentioned that people (I think the beta readers?) weren´t liking Maud in Sweep of the Blade and that House Andrews were having to do some serious changes. Could you please add some context to this, was this something that happened while Sweep of the Blade was doing its weekly thing and they had to go back and do some serious edits before publishing it, or was this in the preplanning stages? Also a little while ago Ilona commented that she thought Sweep of the Blade wouldn´t need and major edits or overhalls, could you elaborate on which innkeeper books did need such overhalls?
Thank you!
Hi Beth,
Could I get a bit of clarification here, you’re saying Sweep of the Blade but do you mean Sweep of the Heart?
“Also a little while ago Ilona commented that she thought Sweep of the Blade wouldn´t need and major edits or overhalls, could you elaborate on which innkeeper books did need such overhalls?”
To my recollection, having read both serialised and final publish versions, the Innkeeper books have mostly had minor edits, but I will add it to the list for House Andrews 🙂
Also, just out of curiosity, do you have a search algorithm or do you go through all of our comments by hand, because either way you do an almost supernatural job of keeping on top of us.
All Hail Mod R, she who herds and corrals the BHD!
I get each comment emailed to me in real time 🙂
I seem to recall people not being happy that Maude agreed to marry Arland at the the end of the online serial. In the final book she agreed to go with him but it was a maybe … Which led to Maude’s book. Sorry I am bad with book titles
Now I’m in the mood for a cabin respite. Looking up rentals…
I wonder if the Higgra will now look for humans (or similar beings) who want to contract themselves out as brusher/groomers. It will be the new thing. Another new trade option for Clan Nuan?
That was so lovely. I would so like to be there in that rustic luxury cabin. It’s so HOT here. lol.
So I have a quick question. Is Pivor the Pirate our assassin or is the assassin someone else and Pivor was actually trying to be the spouse for his own agenda?
Pivor was *an* assassin, but not necessarily the *only* one 😉
“I require attentions,” is my new catchphrase. 😄
Hahah! OMG! If Dina’s not careful, she’s gonna have a permanent Higgara guest and Olisard might get jealous *lol* Not to mention one possibly irritated werewolf. 😀
I absolutely love this chapter and can’t stop laughing about it. Cyanide’s still my favorite, but then I love Cats. Well, animals in general, but Cats have a special spot. Oh! I wonder what would happen if you introduced them to balls of yarn or the little red light on the floor? Or since Cyanide’s an alien, I wonder what she’d think of the documents about the variety of Wild Cats on earth, let alone the domestic (misnomer! They’re only domestic when they want to be) Cat.
Anyway, I’m going back to re-read this chapter. 🙂
is that “the” Sandra Bullock who gets thanked in Magic Binds?
For a moment there I thought Konsandion was going to pull out a laser pointer, since she did say ALL the attentions.
Love that! 🤣🤣
I happy laughed when Cyanide’s third request – something soft to lay on – turned out to eventually be Dina 🫶🏼😸
That was a lovely date compared to the last round of drama. The lodge sounds wonderful. Very clever on both their parts. Cyanide is beautiful but deadly but I would love to brush her. Well done Dina.
Delightful, insightful, relaxing and cool (wishing for winter cool in my overheated house!). All the attentions indeed!
Thank you for another great installment. I love the intrigue and Cyanide and Kosandion plotting together!
I am catless at the moment, but this is making me eager to get one again! Nothing like a cat on your chest impeding your breathing!
Love it! What a fantastic read! I love that Cyanide watched her brush Olasard and decided she wanted the same attentions!
Well obviously Clan Sai should be aware of what he is doing and I caan’t wait to see how they’ll answer
Wow great chapter! Thank you very much!
Moderator R
I read in a comment that someone wanted to know where Dina’s parents’ Inn was. I just saw it in: Gerard Demille and Helen Meet. Mirabelle Heath, the real estate agent told Helen that (It was owned by Colonel Groves, a hero of Mexican American war, who had chosen to settle here in Musk, Georgia )
I assume they mean “at the moment”, since the inn disappeared with the parents 🙂
yes, someone wanted to know where her parent’s Inn was, where she grew up.
Two comments!
First, about why cats get in your face. It is because cats don’t believe in people larger than themselves. To make this work, they decide that the face is the person. The rest of the body is just furniture.
Okay, that was wonderful. Thank-you! 😀
Lovely change of pace. And interesting new tidbits. Have to say the mountain chalet with snow image was very satisfying. It was purrrfect. 😉
😆 I can just imagine my cat doing the exact same thing, we’re she the size and intelligence of one of the Higgra.
Sorry its in my head, gotta get rid of it… every single time .. I hear GASTON I hear this.. LOL..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-pXtSuxEXA
I’ve been looking forward to this for days! Thank you so much for the update 🙏🙏🙏
Due to work, life and other complications I have gotten completely behind on reading Sweep of the Heart. Is there any plan to publish this in its entirety? If not, do you have any recommendations as to how to find it sequentially among the blog posts? Thanks.
Hi Rose,
You can find all the chapters here https://www.ilona-andrews.com/sweep-of-the-heart/ The link is also available from the front page, on the blog submenu or by following the “Sweep of the Heart” tag underneath the Chapter title 🙂
They will also be published in traditional book form, all the Innkeeper novels begin life as a weekly serial on the blog 🙂 . It does not have a release date yet, but we will announce it as soon as it is known.
Hope this helps 🙂