The Grief of Stones (The Cemeteries of Amalo, #2)

by Katherine Addison

The sable queen butted my shin imperiously with her head, and I obediently began petting her. Her purr was extravagant, a tremendous noise from such a small and delicate-looking creature. It changed nothing, but, for that long moment, until she turned her head and caught my hand gently between her teeth, it made me feel better, as if all problems were inherently solvable, as if no answer I chose would be wrong.