OVERVIEW OF BOOK 1,
Sky Without Stars
Marcellus Bonnefaçon:
Second Estate. Officer of the Ministère. Grandson of General Bonnefaçon and son of Julien Bonnefaçon (an infamous traitor and member of a rebel group known as the Vangarde). As the general’s protégé, Marcellus was a loyal member of the Regime until recently, when he discovered that seventeen years ago his grandfather framed his father for the crime that sent Julien Bonnefaçon to prison. Marcellus now suspects the general is responsible for murdering Marie Paresse, the Premier Enfant, and plotting to take control of the Regime by force.
Chatine Renard:
Third Estate. A skilled thief and the daughter of con artists. Grew up in the Frets (slums) of Vallonay after moving from the mining city of Montfer with her family when she was a child. For the past ten years, she posed as a boy named Théo to avoid the blood bordels, which prey on young women. She was hired by General Bonnefaçon to spy on his grandson, Marcellus, and was later sent to the prison moon of Bastille for refusing to give up the location of the Vangarde’s rebel base.
Alouette “Little Lark” Taureau (aka Madeline):
Third Estate. Daughter of wanted fugitive, Hugo Taureau, recently revealed not to be her biological father. When she was a young child, her mother left her in the care of the Renards who badly mistreated her. She was later rescued by Hugo and brought to live in the Refuge of the Sisterhood, an off-grid, underground bunker. For the past twelve years, she’s served as a guardian of the First World knowledge and the Forgotten Word before recently discovering that the sisterhood is actually the Vangarde and the Refuge their secret rebel base.
Hugo Taureau (aka Jean LeGrand):
Third Estate. Alouette’s adoptive father and wanted Bastille fugitive, Prisoner 2.4.6.0.1. Intimately acquainted with Alouette’s mother. Hugo recently escaped to the planet of Reichenstat after being discovered by his longtime pursuer and nemesis, Inspecteur Limier.
Inspecteur Limier:
Second Estate. Cyborg and head of the Vallonay Policier. For years, he’s been hunting down runaway convict, Hugo Taureau, and recently tracked him to the Forest Verdure where he managed to capture Taureau. He was soon after incapacitated by Alouette, allowing Hugo to escape again.
General Bonnefaçon:
Second Estate. Marcellus’s grandfather and Julien Bonnefaçon’s father. As head of the Ministère and chief advisor to the Patriarche, he is one of the most powerful men on Laterre. When Marcellus confronted the general about hiring a spy to follow him, the general responded by brutally beating Marcellus. A ruthless strategist, the general is determined to take control of the Regime by any means necessary.
Julien Bonnefaçon:
Second Estate. Son of General Bonnefaçon and father to Marcellus. As a member of the Vangarde, he was framed by the general for a copper exploit bombing that killed 600 workers and brought an end to the Rebellion of 488. Julien was sent to Bastille when Marcellus was a baby and recently died in prison. He left behind a message sewn into his uniform, directing Marcellus to find Mabelle Dubois.
Mabelle Dubois:
Third Estate. Marcellus’s childhood governess, who secretly taught Marcellus to read and write the Forgotten Word. When Marcellus was eleven years old, Mabelle was discovered to be a Vangarde spy—and sent to Bastille. A recent message left by his father led Marcellus to Montfer where he tracked down Mabelle who tried, and failed, to recruit him to join the Vangarde.
Patriarche Lyon Paresse:
First Estate. Leader of Laterre and direct descendant of the founding Paresse family. Lyon lives in the Grand Palais in the center of Ledôme and has always been more interested in hunting than running the Regime—until his young daughter, Marie, was poisoned. The Patriarche suspects that Citizen Rousseau, the imprisoned leader of the Vangarde, was somehow behind the murder.
Matrone Veronik Paresse:
First Estate. Wife of Patriarche Paresse and mother to the Premier Enfant, Marie Paresse. Before the shocking death of her daughter, she spent most of her time dressing in the latest Laterrian fashions and drinking champagne.
Premier Enfant Marie Paresse:
First Estate. Daughter of the Patriarche and Matrone and only heir to the Regime. Just before her third birthday, Marie was poisoned and her murder (and the subsequent cancellation of the Ascension lottery) ignited riots on Laterre.
Nadette Epernay:
Third Estate. Governess to the Premier Enfant. She was recently accused of working with the Vangarde to murder her charge, Marie Paresse, and was soon after put to death by exécuteur (aka “the Blade”) in the Marsh, the central marketplace of the Frets.
Citizen Rousseau:
Third Estate. Former leader of the Vangarde. In 488, Citizen Rousseau led a rebellion that sought to end the Regime’s inequality and injustice, but was eventually arrested and sent to Bastille where she has been kept in solitary confinement for the past seventeen years.
Monsieur and Madame Renard:
Third Estate. Con artists and parents of Chatine, Azelle, and Henri Renard. Former owners of the Jondrette Inn in Montfer, they moved to Vallonay ten years ago where Monsieur Renard became the leader of the formidable Délabré gang. After Hugo Taureau, the escaped convict, was spotted in the Frets, the Renards pursued and kidnapped him, in an attempt to secure his bounty, but were soon after arrested by Inspecteur Limier.
Azelle Renard:
Third Estate. Oldest daughter of the Renards and sister to Chatine and Henri. A law-abiding employee of the TéléSkin fabrique, she dreamed of winning the Ascension lottery and ascending to the Second Estate. But in the recent spate of unrest, the TéléSkin fabrique was bombed by an unknown attacker, killing Azelle and eleven other workers.
Henri Renard:
Third Estate. Youngest child of the Renards and baby brother to Chatine and Azelle. Chatine believed him to be dead until recently when it was discovered that her parents sold him off to pay their debts.
Sergent Chacal:
Second Estate. A bullheaded Vallonay Policier sergent who reports to Inspecteur Limier. Chacal is ruthless, cruel, and doles out violent punishments with a metal baton.
Commandeur Vernay:
Second Estate. The general’s closest friend and former commandeur of the Ministère. She was killed on a failed mission to assassinate Queen Mathilda, the “Mad Queen” of Albion (Laterre’s longtime enemy) during Usonia’s recent war of independence. Since her death, General Bonnefaçon has been grooming Marcellus to take Vernay’s place as commandeur.
Roche:
Third Estate. An orphan—or “Oublie”—who grew up in the Frets of Vallonay. He was recently arrested for delivering messages for the Vangarde. In an attempt to prove he’s innocent, Marcellus recruited Chatine to interrogate Roche which inadvertently resulted in Roche’s imprisonment on Bastille.
The Sisters of the Refuge:
A secret society of ten women who protect the Forgotten Word and an extensive library of books rescued from the First World. Led by Principale Francine, all ten sisters live in a bunker hidden beneath the Frets and wear a string of “devotion beads” around their necks. For the past twelve years, Alouette Taureau has lived and studied with the sisters, unaware until recently that they are also the leaders of a rebel group known as the Vangarde.