Shards of Earth (The Final Architecture, #1)

by Adrian Tchaikovsky

He felt that familiar, baseline unhappiness of someone who would be judged entirely according to moral decisions made by others.

Solace’s hand closed on his shoulder and he felt a moment of perfect stillness. It was as though all the duelling gravities and energies out there had cancelled each other out, just for a fraction of a second, leaving only calm and peace.