A city rife with rumors. A failed printmaker. A vial full of inadvisable choices. A glowing imperial ship has sailed into Nirsuathu carrying someone drawn by a professor’s newly created magic. Tyatavar feels change coming to her city, even if her own life remains stagnant--she's stuck running the family bakery while her sister studies the mysterious new magic. Only now, she has a stolen vial, one can carry her through the world's waters--if only she could control it. If only she hadn't almost died using it. But with obligation pressing in around her, Tyatavar turns to the vial as an escape, night after night. As the secret weighs on her, she edges closer to telling the glass merchant who visits the bakery each morning--and who knows what it is to fail. But Tyatavar has grown used to keeping secrets, and this one is tangled up in the unwanted marriage looming before her. Using the vial strains her daily life and raises risky questions. But even through its mysteries, it offers something she didn't have before: choice. Against Dark Waters is the second book in a character-driven gaslamp fantasy series full of slice-of-life vibes, mysterious magic, and looming imperial conflict. If you enjoy… * Cozy fantasy—with sharper edges * Character-driven stories with rich worldbuilding * Misfits, mayhem, and magical worlds * Banter, baked goods, and bad decisions …the story continues. Authorship statement: This is a human-created and human-written work of fiction. The world, characters, story, and wording are the author's own. The cover has been created with stock photos by a human designer.