Archangel

Gabriel is an angel in Samaria, a land where angels and humans have lived side by side for generations. He has been chosen as the next Archangel, a post of great power and duty. The current Archangel, Raphael, will not give up the seat and uses his influence to bend the politics of the realm to his own ends.

While Gabriel works through the court intrigue between the angelic factions, he is drawn to Rachel. She is an Edori woman held as a slave by the Jansai, and her fate is bound up with his. Their bond is forbidden, and it develops through a slow, tense courtship.

The relationship pushes Gabriel to face the prejudices of his own people and the corruption of the establishment he is meant to lead. His choices about Rachel and about Raphael are tied together.

This is fantasy with a romance at its centre and political maneuvering around it. The world has high cities, old traditions and a sacred song that holds everything together. Expect a measured pace, with the love story building gradually and the court plotting keeping the tension up. Betrayal and the cost of power run through it.