Dal Tamareia has everything--a young family and a promising career as an Ambassador in the Sol Fed Diplomatic Corps. Dal 's path as a peacemaker seems clear, but when their loved ones are killed in a terrorist attack, grief sends the genderfluid changeling into a spiral of self-destruction.
Fragile Sol Fed balances on the brink of war with a plundering alien race. Their skills with galactic relations are desperately needed to broker a protective alliance, but in mourning, Dal no longer cares, seeking oblivion at the bottom of a bottle, in the arms of a faceless lover, or at the end of a knife.
The New Puritan Movement is rising to power within the government, preaching strict genetic counseling and galactic isolation to ensure survival of the endangered human race. Third gender citizens like Dal don't fit the mold of this perfect plan, and the NPM will stop at nothing to make their vision become reality. When Dal stumbles into a plot threatening changelings like them, a shadow organization called the Penumbra recruits them for a rescue mission full of danger, sex, and intrigue, giving Dal purpose again.
Risky liaisons with a sexy, charismatic pirate lord could be Dal 's undoing--and the only way to prevent another deadly act of domestic terrorism.