Gods be kind to me.
Veil of Web and Ruin
Aria Ashbrook
The Hirathean Path, prequel
ebook, 99 pages
Published January 1, 2025
Free Read
Before Rose enters the tournament that will change her fate, she’s fighting a different kind of battle – one she can’t afford to lose.
Cast into the slums after Prince Kyor’s lie shattered her family, Rose is barely surviving. With her parents gone and her younger sister facing a future as bleak as the frostbitten alleyways around them, Rose will do anything to protect what little she has left.
So when a ruthless underworld queen offers Kay a respectable job in exchange for a single favour, Rose takes the deal. The task? Steal a deadly plant from the Goddess’s own temple garden – a theft punishable by death.
The heist forces her into the heart of Wrohelm’s sacred rings, where priestesses tread softly, wolves sniff out lies, and the Goddess of Life watches from every shadow.
And when the night twists into bloodshed, Rose discovers that even the smallest choice can stain her hands forever.
𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒈𝒓𝒊𝒑𝒑𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒍 𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑹𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍 – 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒔𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒆’𝒍𝒍 𝒄𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒚 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑻𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑮𝒊𝒇𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅𝒔, 𝒍𝒐𝒚𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒔 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆.
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This prequel was done right! It has everything one might expect to get a fine taste of the series. The protagonist. The villains. The despair. The bloodshed. The grit. The spice. The world as a whole is introduced in these mere ninety-nine pages, and it absolutely will have you greedy for more.
What it doesn't have is the MMC.
What it has too much of? Ruben.
4 out of 5 stars.
Available in ebook
Also in the series:
2026/15