I wasn't always wicked. Once, I loved.I will not make that mistake again.Wed to the highest ruler of the known world, I am a spurned queen, aging, barren, and unable to bear the septuplets that will save our world.My king, the faithless cur, takes lover after lover while my own chambers echo with emptiness and madness. Yet he will not let me escape, commanding a spell to be cast that chains me to this life.At last, insurmountable heartache drives me from the castle, and I flee to the scrapheap of the city.In that place of unloved things, I find a cracked window upon the grass, and when I press a shard of it to my wrist, it draws blood--but just as I think this will free me from my burdensome body, the sharp face of a gray, fanged monster forms in the glass.The shadow-hungry king.Our ancient enemy.He offers me a bargain: if I vow to him some unspecified future favor, he swears that I will bear the septuplets.As a reward for my willingness, he fills my palms with magic: a vial that swarms within with hundreds of enchantments, each one a ribbon that will enable me to spy upon anyone I wish.What pathetic, magicless wreck such as I would not accept this gift?Let those around me lie to my face now.Let them scorn me behind my back.With the monster's magic, I will look straight into their hearts. Venture into a bitter queen's glittering court, where dreams glisten while the wicked listen...CONTENT WARNINGS: Aside from the requisite killing and violence present in most fantasy, this has near SA (aborted by the assailant), mentions of suicide and suicide ideation, mention of violent domestic abuse, mentions of miscarriages and stillbirths, one baby's soul taken out, one magical abortion of babies that turn out to be monsters, and cremation of a very, very bad man. COMFORT WARNING: There is a very cute dog. I am not a dog person, yet here we are. Born in Texas but somehow having escaped without the accent, Sonya Lano currently lives in Prague, Czech Republic with two cats and a bunch of dust balls, hairballs, fur balls, spiders, story manuscripts, dreams, chocolate, books, and whatever else is hanging around her flat. Her full-time day job testing software pays the bills while her nights are (mostly) filled with living in other worlds.
