The Devils (The Devils, #1)

by Joe Abercrombie

The cardinal raised one brow. “Your commitment to the cause of the Church will be rewarded, in this world and the next.” Alex coughed as she tried to swallow too much in one go and had to thump her breastbone then slurp some wine to wash it down. “You can hold off on the heavenly rewards,” she said, grinning, “if I can cash in on the earthly ones now, eh? Eh?” No one laughed. Oh God, she was drunk. She thought the answer might be to drink more, and drained her glass. “We should set out for Troy as soon as possible,” Duke Michael was saying. “My dear friend Lady Severa stayed in the city after the civil war, she served as Warden of Eudoxia’s Chamber.” He held up a folded little sheet of paper. “She’s risked everything to keep me informed ever since.” And he did what Alex had been afraid of, which was to hand the paper to her. “Lady Severa,” she muttered, “very good. Very good.” She shook the paper open and frowned at the writing, the way she’d seen priests frown at the writing in holy books. It all looked very neat and careful but meant about as much to her as the patterns the pigeon shit made on her windowsill. “Mmm. Hmm.” Duke Michael looked slightly pained as he leaned close, took the letter from her hand, and turned it the other way up so he could read it.

I am cackling. The comedic timing of the writing is perfect