The Cold Nowhere: The Jonathan Stride Series

Paris, 1660. As the daughter of itinerant actors, Claudette always thought her future lay in the theater. But a series of chance encounters pulls her into the orbit of Athénaïs de Montespan, the mistress to Louis XIV. Impetuous Athénaïs wields a disconcerting amount of power—a fact that has ruffled many of the Sun Kings key advisors. Needing someone to act as her eyes and ears, Athénaïs hires Claudette as a personal attendant. She fears political enemies are plotting her ruin while young courtesans angle to take the coveted spot in the kings bed. As Athénaïs begins to lose her grip on the Sun King, her plots and fascination with the magical arts take a dark turn.