Some By Virtue Fall

Some By Virtue Fall, Alexandra Rowland, 2022 novella. Fantasy in the line of Swordspoint, like, it's set in a fictional city in a fictional world sort of reminiscent of the past (in this case, the Elizabethan-era theater scene), but no magic or supernatural elements. (There is polytheism and some praying but no indication of the gods, like, existing or doing anything.) Stories about Theater are usually a tough sell for me, as are "messy" characters (in the sense of people who seem to be creating unnecessary drama for themselves), but I thought the ending, involving people trying to be less messy and more strategic, was ok. And I got a chuckle out of there being exactly one het dude named in this story (otherwise mostly queer women), literally named "Leony Token". (There was also a throwaway description of one stage being wider but the other being deeper that I think would pass to most readers as completely unremarkable, but, knowing Rowland is in fandom, cracked me up.) Anyways, I don't think it's a likely candidate for the Hugo ballot, but it's entertaining.