Shadow-Ward and Light: A Dark Fae Romantasy: Forbidden Magic, Deadly Trials, and a Prince Bound to Kill the Girl He's Falling For (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9798249114473)

Looking for a Dark Romantasy where the Shadow Prince is bound by blood oath to kill the girl he's falling for? He's scarred by duty, haunted by his murdered mother, and utterly lethal. His protection? Forbidden and all-consuming: "I should kill you right now. Instead, I'll teach you to survive-and pray the oath doesn't force my hand."

* * *
They came for me in the dead of night, and my world became trials I wasn't meant to survive. I'm dragged to the Obsidian Palace-human, powerless, already dead. The Shadow Queen's trials are spectacle. Fifteen enter. One lives. But I'm hiding magic the kingdom burned to extinction centuries ago. Lightbringer magic. Forbidden. Hunted. And the brutal trials meant to break me might be what finally sets it free. He's supposed to execute me the moment I manifest. Prince Caelan Nightshade-the Queen's perfect weapon. Ruthless. Controlled. Blood-oathed to end any surviving Lightbringer without mercy. Instead, he trains me in secret.
Guides my forbidden magic.
Touches me like he's memorizing the shape of what he'll have to destroy. "You remind me what it feels like to have hope," he says, his hands scarred from the oath that will eventually kill me. "And I had forgotten." We're playing a game where discovery means death. Where every stolen moment in the shadows pulls us closer to the choice neither of us wants to make: Each other-or the kingdom that demands our loyalty.

* * *
Perfect for readers who crave:
- Morally gray Shadow Prince who HATES what he's become
- Powerless heroine to forbidden power awakening
- Enemies-to-lovers slow burn that INCINERATES
- Forced proximity and secret training sessions
- "I should kill you but I won't" tension
- Blood oaths, deadly trials, Fae court brutality
- He falls first AND harder
If you devoured Fourth Wing, From Blood and Ash, or A Court of Thorns and Roses, this addictive dark romantasy will consume you.

* * *
DUAL POV - Aria & Caelan
COMPLETE STORY with HEA (series continues in Book Two)
SPICE LEVEL: Explicit romantic content with 2 detailed on-page scenes
Content Warning (18+): Violence, deadly trials, blood magic, execution scenes, mature themes, and explicit romantic content. This book contains a morally gray MMC who is genuinely conflicted (not toxic), and an FMC who refuses to stay powerless.
Book One of The Cinder Crown Chronicles 87,000 words

Author: Thalara Voss
ISBN-13: 9798249114473
Publisher: Independently Published
Language: English
Published: 02/20/2026
Pages: 294
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.87lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.66d