Tropes

Hidden power / secret lineage
Slow-burn tension
Touch her and die
Found family
Magic training
Who hurt you energy
Jealous protector
Fated mates
Why choose
Dark academia
Political betrayal
Power awakening

Lyra never thought a scholarship to the prestigious Crucible Academy would change her life, until the shadows answered her call.

The deeper she trains, the more the darkness inside her stirs… and the more she begins to understand she isn’t human at all. She tries to hide her awakening power as she searches for the truth of who she is, but the commander is watching, and the king is closing in.

Kael was forged from those same shadows, dangerous, disciplined, and sworn to teach her control.

Talon is his second-in-command, the protector who would die before letting the king take her.

When Lyra’s power threatens to expose what she truly is, desire and loyalty collide.

If the king comes for her, will she surrender to save her bondeds,

or will they fight to the death?

Triggers

Violence & Injury
Sexual content
Explicit language
Parental death (past, referenced)
Mental health struggles