Amira is her father’s weapon. Bound by a curse that forces her to do his bidding, she doesn’t have a choice but to follow his orders even when they amount to treason. But when Amira is sent to kill the heir to the empire that is betrothed to her younger half-sister, she finds a demon in a man’s body. Failing in her mission but managing to escape, Amira soon finds herself swapped for her sister in the marriage contract and control of her curse switched to her husband to be. Archduke Daindreth also bears a curse, and he’s convinced that Amira might hold the solution to it. Can they figure out how to break their curses or are they both doomed to their fates?
I really enjoyed this one. It doesn’t do anything especially new or different, but it was a solid fantasy story that wasn’t overly complicated or have the romance overshadow the plot. I blasted through reading it in about a day. It’s been awhile since I’ve found a fantasy like that. Or at least it feels like it’s been awhile. I’ve been struggling to get into a lot of the fantasy books I’ve been reading lately (my DNF pile this year is huge), and this was like discovering a cookie you bought at the store reminds you of an old favorite.
I have a few quibbles about some things in the story, but they’re almost all nitpicks. The biggest one was I think the story would have been better served if there was another point of view besides Amira’s. I also would have liked just a little more information about the world. The reader gets filled in along the way, but there are a few things I’d really like to know more about. Maybe some of them will be explained in the next book. It was a good story overall though, and I’ll be interested in seeing where the series goes from here. Four out of five stars.