The Three Faces of Dissatisfaction. The Foreign Sorcerer, #1

He thought this mission was a joke at his expense, and now he's got the fate of the region in his hands. Liath-Tamren is the largest urban center in  a land around an inner sea that was all once claimed by an empire. The Cities reflect the diversity and trade that flow across the Halu, enriched by numerous immigrant enclaves and temples to foreign gods. Not all of its citizens find that pleasing, and there's no people more misunderstood than the Malisaat, with their secretive faith, their envy-inspiring wealth, and their freaky black-eyed sorcerers, who scare them too.
As one of said freaky sorcerers, Japhet's used to being in on the secrets. But when the head of his cabal sends him to the Cities, his orders are basically: go there for reasons. Not the usual mission. And why here? His beat is the arcane, and Liath-Tamren is a tame, bourgeois place (which he hates). It's confusing that everyone is suddenly acting like it's the world capital of sorcerous drama, especially when that looks like proving true.
He needs to figure out what changed before evil priests open a gateway to the apocalypse. An urban center so real it must be. A labyrinthine plot centuries in the making. Laugh-out-loud dark comedy. Fall in love with Liath-Tamren!(Just don't call it a 'city.' Really.)