Kushiel's Dart, Book 1: The Marque, CAREY-J

Phèdre nó Delaunay was sold by her mother when she was just a child. Now living in the household of a high-ranking nobleman, who is enigmatic to say the least, she learns history, theology, politics, and foreign languages, but above all... the arts of pleasure. For she possesses a unique gift, cruel and magnificent, making her the most coveted of courtesans... and a valuable spy. Yet nothing seems to promise her a heroic destiny. But when she accidentally uncovers a conspiracy against her homeland, Terre d'Ange, she has no choice but to act. Thus begins an epic and heartbreaking adventure for her, fraught with pitfalls, which she must see through to the end to save her people.
A tale full of grandeur, luxury, sacrifice, and Machiavellian conspiracies, Kushiel's Dart reveals a world of venomous poets, murderous courtiers, betrayed and besieged monarchs, barbaric warlords, magnificent traitors... seen through the eyes of a heroine unlike any you have ever met!