Nethergeist by Nick Stevenson

For thousands of years, the Emperor Goat, a necromancer so powerful he has declared himself God, has had an iron grip on the universe, causing most worlds to fall into disrepair.
In a paranoid city of renegades, the last bastion of humanity holds out against his might.
Ayilia, its Regent-Elect, is friendless, single, the 'wrong' sex, the 'wrong' heritage, and apparently cursed. While attempting to rout a coup, she is selected by outside forces to search for the impending birth site of Al Kimiya, a mage who is said to be the only match for the Emperor. To save herself and her people, she must ally with heretic magi, necromantic freedom fighters, the human-hating, reptilian Krayal, and her sworn foe, the cowardly, lifeless warlord Vespasian.
A complex literary fantasy, Nethergeist is a story where the conflict is as much about the characters' inner turmoil as the outward struggle against the maniacal emperor. Featuring intense battles, snappy dialogue, and a world on the edge of ruin, Nethergeist is a fantasy in the vein of Malazan Book of the Fallen and The First Law.