God's War by Kameron Hurley

 

Nyx is a former Bel Dame, a paid government assassin made up entirely of women.  The men are all at war, a war that has lasted centuries and wiped out entire generations of men.  No one really remembers what started the war but everyone agrees there is no stopping it.  

But Nyx has always been a rule breaker, living on the edge.  When she does something the Bel Dames consider over the limit she loses her Bel Dame affiliation and is sent to jail for a year.  Now she is just a bounty hunter, considered one of society's lowest creatures, fighting with other bounty hunters to bring in those with a price on their head.

She has a band of helpers.  Khos is a shapeshifter, able to turn into a large dog at will.  Anneke is another mercenary whom Nyx stole from her greatest rival.  Taite is a gay man who handles their communications.  He has brought his sister, Inaya, over the border, heavily pregnant and judgemental of everyone's lives.  Rhys is from the other side, a man who would have been a mullah if he had stayed but left rather than go to the front of the war.  He is the team's magician.

Nyx is summoned by the queen and offered a commission that would see her wealthy and able to retire and might even give her back her Bel Dame license.  An alien woman is here and wants to gain this world's knowledge to enable her people to rule the universe.  Nyx needs to bring her in.  But with so many enemies gunning for her, can she do it?

This is my first read by Kameron Hurley but it won't be my last.  I finished this book today and immediately bought the next two in the trilogy.  Hurley does a fantastic job of world building, a world that is half destructed, torn apart by war. Insects are used as weapons and protection, an entire society built on their powers and those who can control them. Boxing is also a big part of the world and those successful in the ring are honored.   Nyx is not a typical hero; she uses everyone she meets in her quest to complete missions and lives her life as she chooses without worrying about the opinions of others.  This book is recommended for fantasy readers.