The Sweetest Fiend

The Sweetest Fiend is the first novel in the Played by the Piper series, set in Brekon, a fae world shattered 30 years ago when too much magical power in the earth's core caused a catastrophic eruption. Lava split the continent, killing millions. A rare few fae who survived contact with the molten power gained new magic, becoming Core fae, marked by bloodred stains on their pointed ears. During the upheaval, nine demonic beings called Banes clawed from the fissure. Core fae spent five years defeating them, but before the Banes died, each unleashed a Plague upon the world. The Banes also left behind half-fae offspring called fiends, marked by small horns and widely blamed for the Plagues.

A prologue follows a young soldier named Varrik on the day the earth cracked. He watches as his brother Trigg is separated from him by the fissure. After searching through the night, Varrik finds only Trigg's boot, confirming his brother's death. Varrik himself survives contact with the molten flow, the power burning into his veins.

The main narrative follows Estinya (Esti), a 25-year-old fiend living in the walled city of Hamelyn, which has endured Flies Plague for five months. Esti works at a paper mill with her Aunt Lenna and conceals her small, glittery black horns beneath a linen veil. She possesses a secret ability she calls "reading stars": When she first meets someone's eyes, a constellation appears on their face, revealing character traits. Esti lives with Aunt Lenna and her mother, Marryn, who has a chronic illness causing worsening convulsions and fatigue. Marryn is one of the rare fae women who kept her fiend child rather than leaving her at an abandonment house.

When Poison Plague strikes overnight, killing the Flies but contaminating the water supply, the crisis deepens. Lord Havlon, the city's Core fae ruler, offers only overpriced rationed water. That evening, Marryn suffers severe convulsions, and their medicine is gone. Esti races out to find more, but by the time she locates an apothecary, the sun has set. A patrolman seizes her for breaking curfew, chains her to the city's public punishment post, and whips her 13 times with a poisoned lash.

That night, Rat Plague descends. Enormous rats flood the streets, devouring people and gnawing through buildings. Chained to the oiled post, Esti hauls herself to the narrow top and watches the destruction through the night. At dawn, an eerie song fills the air, and every rat streams toward the city gates. The Pied Piper, a Core fae, strides through the streets playing a black pipe with glowing red engravings, his multicolored cloak trailing behind him. His companion Frid, a Core fae with immense strength, rips out Esti's punishment post and frees her.

The Piper confronts Lord Havlon, demanding 30,000 coins for clearing two Plagues. When Havlon claims the city cannot pay, the Piper demands 130 people instead. Havlon agrees without protest. The Piper plays his pipe, rooting the crowd in place, and selectively draws people from the throng. Just as Esti believes she is safe, his gaze locks on hers. She reads his stars: "Defender. Thief. Liar." His music seizes her body, and she joins the taken as they march through the city gates, which slam shut behind them.

The stolen are ferried across the bay and marched to a prepared camp, confirming the Piper planned this collection in advance. Esti attempts to flee that night, but the Piper catches her with his music. The group eventually reaches a leyline, a form of ancient transportive magic, and is transported to Penbroge Castle, the Piper's seat of power. At the castle, a healer assigned to treat Esti's infected whip wounds tortures her without sedation. The Piper bursts in, carries her to his own bed, and tends to her himself, sitting at her bedside for four days. Ciona, a Core fae working with Varrik whose power allows her to scent blood, reveals the Piper's real name: Varrik.

Over the following days, Esti clashes repeatedly with Varrik. She tricks guards into visiting the fiend quarters, where she reconnects with Kaetir, a fiend from Hamelyn who was also among the taken. Varrik confines Esti to his rooms and tends her wounds with salve, and the physical proximity generates an undeniable charge that Esti refuses to acknowledge.

The fiends are transported to Midoraye Burg, an evacuated settlement where five Plagues have been contained for testing. Ciona reveals her discovery: Fiend blood can neutralize Plagues, with each fiend's blood matching the Plague unleashed by their Bane parent. Several fiends' blood extinguishes specific Plagues, though Esti's does not match any tested. During the testing, Varrik involuntarily clamps his mouth over Esti's bleeding arm, and his pipe erupts with dark smoke. Frid identifies what happened: Varrik's magic has latched onto Esti, forming a permanent life-force bond that sustains a Core fae's power. Varrik explains that latching only occurs when mutual attraction exists. He reveals that the fae were taken because he can detect potential Latches among them, while the fiends were taken to test the blood theory. Ciona suspects Esti may be descended from the Bane who unleashed Darkness Plague, but Varrik refuses to risk testing her against it.

Tormented by a nightmare about her mother, Esti escapes through the leyline but enters the wrong pathway and lands in a barren desert. A massive, venomous sand creature called a serpill attacks her. Varrik arrives and kills the first serpill, but a second bites him through the torso. Esti decapitates it and carries his unconscious body to safety. When Varrik wakes, he lets Esti believe the venom is fatal. She kisses him, confessing she does not hate him. When she discovers the deception, she is furious, but the barriers between them have fallen.

Trust builds gradually. Varrik gives Esti her own room, sends a letter to her family, and arranges dinners where they share personal conversations. His ally Conrad, a territorial ruler called a Govern, arrives at Penbroge. Conrad's Core magic can heal anything he wraps in bandages, and he heals Esti's whip scars completely. Varrik takes Esti to Wystinn Burg, where the collected fiends and fae live in a genuine community. She finds Kaetir working happily and Rimona, a fiend from among the stolen, thriving. Three of Conrad's Core fae find their Latches among the fae at Wystinn, validating the system.

When Ash Plague buries a settlement in Varrik's territory, Esti insists on accompanying him, arguing that her proximity as his Latch will strengthen his magic. Varrik plays his pipe until he nearly collapses, luring over 200 survivors from the suffocating Ash. A letter from Aunt Lenna then confirms that Marryn's condition is dire. Esti reveals her mother's illness to Varrik, and he promises to take her home and bring Conrad to heal Marryn. Their relationship becomes physical, and Varrik plays music for Esti without any magic, marking a milestone in her trust.

Varrik, Esti, Conrad, and Frid travel back to Hamelyn. Esti reunites tearfully with Aunt Lenna and Marryn, but Lord Havlon arrives with patrolmen. When Marryn collapses and Varrik catches her, a searing surge of light erupts through both of them. Pale, branched antlers sprout from Marryn's skull, revealing she is a Bane, one of the nine beings supposedly killed 30 years ago. Havlon screams for arrests. When Esti grabs Varrik's pipe to protect her family, he reveals he can use his magic by whistling alone and compels her to return it. He orders the patrolmen to take Marryn and Aunt Lenna, who are dragged away screaming. Despite Esti's desperate pleas, Varrik uses his music to force her from her home. The novel ends with Esti being taken by the Piper once again, reflecting bitterly on his stars and concluding that stars, unlike him, never lie.