In a city of ancient automata, strange spirits, and sleeping gods, a cleric of death finds his own life on the line in this vividly imagined fantasy murder mystery from the acclaimed author of The Bone Ships and Age of Assassins.

Irody Hasp is a Mortedant, a cleric tasked with reading the last thoughts of the dead—though no one thanks him for it. No Mortedant is popular, but Irody is scarcely tolerated even by the other members of his own guild, and rarely selected for anything but the lowliest of jobs.

This impoverished existence would be dismal enough—but after reading the corpse of a low-level records keeper, Irody's troubles quickly multiply when his own apprentice is murdered, and all fingers point to him as a suspect. The only way to save his own skin is to find the real culprit himself, an investigation that quickly attracts powerful enemies with few scruples, and draws him into a plot that threatens the entire corrupt yet wondrous city he calls home.

Perfect for fans of The Lies of Locke Lamora, Foundryside, and Witness for the Dead, this investigative misadventure begins a perilous new series by award-winning author RJ Barker.

At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.



Praise for this book

Praise for Mortedant's Peril:

"Mortedant’s Peril is a fabulous fantasy mystery set in a fresh, imaginative world and featuring a trio of underdog characters with nothing in common except an unfolding sense of justice that propels them into one engrossing caper after another. Long live Irody, Mirial and Whisper!" —Sebastien De Castell

"Mortedant’s Peril is like a fantastic dream I didn’t want to wake up from! Characters I adore follow a twisty mystery that winds through a weird and wonderful city, in a story full of action and humor and stakes that cut straight to your heart. More, please!!!"—Melissa Caruso

"RJ Barker does it again! Mortedant's Peril is the perfect blend of humour, darkness, and puzzle box mystery."—Sunyi Dean

"[A] perfect mix of the wit of Pratchett, the city building of Scott Lynch and the unexpected emotional gut punches of Robin Hobb. Barker takes that most common of fantasy tropes, a magic city with a conspiracy at it heart and, fittingly for a tale of a man who reads the dead, breathes new life into it. A deeply wonderful fantasy that made me fall in love with the genre all over again." —Grimdark Magazine

"With plots and mysteries, unexpected friends and foes alike, strap in for a baroque romp of squalor and grandeur, horror and humour. Fabulous, frantic and moving."—Daily Mail

"For Hasp, and for Barker, easy is not the same as right, and there is nothing atavistic about insisting that humanity cannot be optimized into obsolescence. Elbay’s survival depends on Hasp and his allies’ intransigent belief that, in fact, people matter. Perhaps, Barker implies, ours does as well."—Bookpage (starred review)

"A fascinating world that readers of fantasy will thoroughly enjoy, and mystery and thriller readers will be drawn to the tension of the time crunch in solving the crime. A seamless mixture of genres."—Booklist

"[A] propulsive, (mis)adventurous fantasy mystery."—Shelf Awareness




About the AuthorRJ Barker is a critically acclaimed and award-winning author of fantasy fiction. He won the British Fantasy Award for Best Novel for his fourth novel, The Bone Ships, and his debut trilogy The Wounded Kingdom was nominated for the David Gemmel Award, the Kitschie Golden Tentacle, and the BFS Best Debut and Best Novel awards. RJ lives in Leeds with his wife, son, and a collection of questionable taxidermy, odd art, scary music, and more books than they have room for.
Title: Mortedant's Peril
Author(s): RJ Barker
Volume: 1
ISBN: 9781250398819
Copyright 2026
Release Date: May 19, 2026
Publisher: Tor Publishing Group
Countries: United States, Canada | Learn more about available countries
Language: English
Format: ePub | Learn More about our supported formats
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