Every so often I'll Google (OK, or Amazon search) an author I haven't read anything from in a while, just to check that I haven't missed any new released, or sometimes to let the Algorithm suggest something with a similar mood to me. Not long ago, I searched for Carol Berg and was surprised to see a YA-ish trilogy by Cate Glass cropping up in the results. It turns out Glass is a pen name for Berg, and An Illusion of Thieves, published by Tor, is the first of her new Chimera trilogy. Like other Berg books, the setting is rich (Renaissance-Italy-inspired but with a backdrop of forbidden magic and a historic natural disaster that turned the boot into an archipelago) and you get a real sense of milieu. I'd say the pace is a bit quicker than typical Berg, and the protagonist seems perhaps a bit more worldly. Her situation changes dramatically in the opening scenes, and the book follows her re-establishing herself, then getting drawn into a high-stakes caper. I'm looking forward to seeing how this all turns out, but I'm even more curious about what might come in the sequels--inter-city warfare? religious revival? an artifact-hunting expedition? I'll find out soon.