Three years after eating the rich, Paprick Bessa is an infamous war chef known as the Butcher. Numbed by grief and the ongoing war with the ousted rulers, Paprick no longer enjoys cooking and can't create new recipes. So when Ranch finally reaches a tenuous ceasefire with the Rare, Paprick seizes the chance to reheat his passions, opening a restaurant with a menu all his own. But conspiracy interrupts the opening night, his own emphon destroy the restaurant, and all signs point to the neighbouring Empire of the Badgeboar. To find the attacker and stop another all-out war, Paprick, his partner Cori and his kitchen brigade journey west to curry favour with the Empire's questionable elite and investigate its mysterious religions. Treacherous forces and dire prophecies lie in wait for Paprick's arrival, and all the while, the Rare re-arm in the east. Facing magics and flavours unlike any he's ever tasted, Paprick will have to choose what matters most - his people, his passions or his partner. He can't save all three.
