This is by publishing order the third book in the World of the Five Gods series but it could probably be read as a stand alone; it has no overlapping characters with the previous two and is set in a new country with its own mystical monarchy problems. As the old kind lays dying, Lord Ingrey is sent to retrieve the body of one of his sons, killed by a young woman in a struggle tinged with supernatural and sexual violence. Ingrey's task seems straightforward: investigate the scene, transport the woman and the corpse to the capital. But immediately things begin to get complicated. As a child, Ingrey was infused with the spirit of a wolf, a type of ancient magic now forbidden in his country. It seems as if the dead prince was trying to perform the same ritual- but where did he get the power? And where did the spirit of the leopard killed at the scene actually go? And what will become of the woman, Lady Ijada? Ingrey concludes that she is a victim who killed the prince in self-defense, but will the justices at the capital see it that way? This is a satisfying and emotional fantasy, with enough moving parts to keep the reader guessing until the end. I'm constantly trying to decide which is the best book to suggest to friends to get them hooked on Bujold, but it's so hard to figure out where people should start. Maybe here?