To Crown a Traitor

I’m not sure I forgive her,
but I think I want her to forgive herself.

Available at Amazon.com

To Crown a Traitor
Katherine Macdonald
What Lies Between Stars, book two
ebook, 632 pages
Independently Published July 6, 2026
ASIN B0FRXS34P7
ARC


A traitor on the run. A prince bound by duty. A love caught between ruin and redemption.

Branded a traitor for a murder she did not commit—and haunted by the ones she did—Wren is a fugitive in both worlds. Hunted by her own people, pursued by the humans, and chased most of all by the man she cannot forget, she is left with nowhere to turn.

Prince Cassiel never wanted the crown, yet with his mother lingering between life and death, the weight of the kingdom rests on his shoulders. To rule, he must set aside grief, bury betrayal, and condemn the girl who lied to him. But every choice tears the realm closer to war—and every thought drifts back to Wren.

When Wren offers him the chance to regain his sight, Cass must decide whether to follow her into enemy lands, or lose everything to the darkness closing in. Old wounds burn, old desires flare, and the fragile hope between them might be the only thing strong enough to defy fate.

But with kingdoms ready to fall and blood demanding vengeance, can a traitor and a prince truly carve out a world where they can be together?

Come back.

Stay away.

Explain yourself.

No. Don't.

This is the heart-wrenching conclusion to the tale of Wren, the half-fae girl who was fated to meet Cassiel, the second-born son.

The foundation of their relationship has been shaken, cracked, and practically torched with dragon fire, and it's not enough that they have to emotionally find a way back to each other but from there, they’ll have to fight to craft a world in which they can stay together.

It was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and it delivered.

Our boy, Cass, is missing his girl, and I have never been so hyper aware of the heart in my chest. With every turn of the page, there’s longing edged with pain. Hope touched by devastation. And guilt fueling a quest to make amends.

This book hurt me.

It tortured my emotions until the very end. Two years?! You had to devastate my guy for two whole years??

5 out of 5 stars.

Available in ebook | paperback

Previously in the series:

2026/31

Light Wielder (Fire & Metal #2)

I was always going to come for you.

Available at Amazon.com

Light Wielder
Rachel Schneider
Fire and Metal, book two
Hardcover, 448 pages
Published June 9, 2026
ASIN B0FLYQFYDR
ISBN 9781250419101


It’s been four years since Jovie betrayed Acker, fracturing their relationship. Her decision to take King Edmond’s magic, sparing his life at Acker’s request, has sparked a brutal war. The Kenta and Strou forces ally against the Roison and Alaha, with Maile perched dangerously on the edge of their battles.

Jovie is determined to keep the innocent Maile people from a conflict she helped start―even if it means suppressing the Matching Bond and sacrificing any hope of repairing her relationship with Acker. Yet, visions of him continue to haunt her dreams.

Acker is resigned to aid in his father’s war while in an arranged marriage with a wife who detests him. Though still pained by Jovie’s deception, he can’t stop his thoughts from turning to her. And Acker has found a way to slip into Jovie’s dreams despite her attempts to stifle the Matching Bond. There he watches her, torn between his loyalties and desire.

When he discovers the chilling reason behind the return of his father's magic, as well as Edmond’s dangerous new alliance, Acker must finally decide which war he wants to fight: the one for his king or the one for his heart.

It's been four years. With two years of war. Acker is now occasionally called Ace. Jovie is Jo. Except to Messer, who calls her B.

Acker is married to Irina, having no other recourse but to fulfill his betrothal contract and secure an army against the forces that Jovie has stirred. He's miserable. And Kenta is losing the war.

Jovie has returned to Maile, taking her place as both royalty and soldier. She is surrounded by new allies, though Messer is still in tow. And Beau, Acker's half-sister. Fredrich is basically her guard. He shields her in battle with his powers and treats her like the equal she strives to be. Drake is the commander of her naval fleet. He's not around much, but he's willing to grace her bed should she ask it. Messer... is Messer. Heartbroken, though he may be, since his betrothed, Aurora, has been wed to Kai. He soothes his pain in whatever mischief he can manage, as he is wont to do.

Ah, Kai. He's back in Alaha, still aspiring to usurp his father's role as leader of the banished people and return them to shore.

I trust none of them.

Not true. I trust Messer. Only Messer. Acker is going to do what Acker needs to do. I support him 110%. Fuck 'em all. He lashes out in some of the worst of ways. Can't say they don't deserve it though.

Jovie struggles, though not as much as I think she should, but we do roll through the motions of what she did. What she chose. What it cost her. What it cost everyone.

But such is war. And as Fredrich mused, far better to go to war for a lover's revenge than a mad king's quest for power.

So Acker is alone, except for Wells. But he's about to desert him, too. The Match Bond continues to wreak havoc as he still manages to project himself to Jo's side. While she sleeps. While she fights. And despite his anger and resentment, Acker finds himself soothing her. Protecting her. Fighting in her war against his wife's army that is fighting for him. It's such a clusterfuck of emotions and loyalties.

Then his father makes a confession that changes the tide for Acker. Kenta and Alaha are uniting against Maile. Acker's father and Kai's father have made an agreement wrapped up with promises of stolen powers. And so, the time comes for Acker to seek out his Match and throw himself to the mercy of her mother's court in hopes of securing an alliance of his own that will end the war and the reign of the previous generation.

With his wife in tow.

And what he finds is not the girl he saved from Alaha, but a reigning queen. Oh, Jovie, you've come so far.

And if you thought she wasn't capable of hurting our man Acker more... if she wasn't capable of taking you unawares of the depths that she could sink... Chapter 25 comes.

My first screaming, crying, throwing up experience.

She's so incredulously cruel. And makes the worst possible decisions.

And then Chapter 28 happens and I'm screaming for a whole slew of other reasons. Fredrich, you sum of a bitch! Suddenly Acker has his own chaos muppet roaming around and I am beside myself with shock and joy and How Dare You going head to head with You Go Boy in my head!

Trolls. Venomous rabbits. Acker's golden nose ring.

Fredrich out here doing all the things.

Schneider, you're freaking terrifying.

5 out of 5 stars. Bring on Messer's story!

Available in ebook | hardcover | audiobook

Previously in the series:

2026/30

The Wolf and the Crown of Blood

Let me show you how a god prays.

Available at Amazon.com

The Wolf and the Crown of Blood
Elizabeth May
The Broken Accords, book one
Hardcover, 560 pages
Published January 27, 2026
ISBN 9781035912896


A princess and a war-weary god met in the ashes of a broken city, forging a pact in blood and sacrifice.

Now, centuries of fragile peace are on the brink of collapse…

Bryony Devaliant was born to die — again and again. In Vartena, royal blood is the currency of peace, with every monarch sacrificed and resurrected to appease the gods. But when rebellion stirs, the god-king sends his deadliest weapon to restore order: an immortal assassin known only as the Wolf.

Evander has perfected the art of killing over centuries — until his latest target becomes the one person he cannot destroy. When forbidden desire burns between the assassin and the sacrificial princess, their connection threatens the fragile boundary between gods and mortals. And when that boundary shatters, empires crumble. Because when gods fall in love with mortals, mortals are always the ones to break.

Inspired by Beauty and the Beast and Eros and Psyche, this dark, seductive tale is perfect for fans of Raven Kennedy's Plated Prisoner series, with the wit and spice of Callie Hart's Quicksilver. Packed with dark fairytale vibes, gothic romance, and tropes like enemies to lovers, forced proximity, death pacts, and villain-gets-the-girl, this is a story where love is as deadly as it is irresistible.

Based on how the author was promoting this book, I had expected to be much deeper into the smut than I was at twenty percent in.

Due to a centuries' old blood pact, Bryony and her kin are fated to be sacrificed to the god Alexios. Every two weeks. Slain on an alter and brought back by the Oracles.

But Bryony has earned the people's adoration and Alexios decides it better to end her than to continue to suffer their prayers calling out to her instead of him.

So he removes the mark of his protection, bans her from the temple, and decrees her an Oathbreaker.

For there is no greater sin that that.

And so, Alexios sends his Wolf, Evander, to carry out his will. However, two things come into play. First, Bryonny and Evander have crossed paths before when Evander was hunting another target. In that encounter, Bryonny bargained that should the Wolf ever be sent for her that he would imagine her his equal and give her a good death.

Secondly, before Bryonny was forced from the temple she managed to plunge the dagger into her own chest, therefore fulfilling her obligation and is not, in actuality, an oathbreaker.

And Evander, finding amusement in his boredom, not only spares her life, but offers himself up as an outlet for her rage.

It is dark and bloody.

There is so much that this book got right. The monologues. The yearning. Forcing the protagonist to view the world from her enemy's viewpoint. All so good! Unfortunately, I just failed to bond with any of the characters. Bastien and Theo didn't intrigue me at all. Alexios has some potential but he is what he is. I do have lingering questions but none so important as to inspire a compulsion to continue the series.

3 out of 5 stars. First started this in January. Grew bored and put it on pause. Finished in June.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback | audiobook

2026/29

Between Tides and Thunder

At least your fear was one truth.

Available at Amazon.com

Between Tides and Thunder
Leena Kazak
ebook, 496 pages
Independently Published March 31, 2026
ASIN B0G4RDHHQZ
ISBN 9798991767477


She was raised to hate him. Now she shares his bed.

Princess Mayah of Tundrayn isn’t allowed to want. Not freedom. Not love. Not even her own future. Instead, she’s spent her life healing others’ pain and swallowing her own. But when her father strikes a fragile alliance with enemy-kingdom Arbinj to crush a rising rebellion, she is bartered into a marriage she didn’t choose for a crown she doesn’t want.

She expects a prince. She gets the Dark Commander.

Zevayr is ruthless, unyielding, and a stormwielder with a reputation soaked in blood. He is everything Mayah was taught to fear. Yet as they race across rebel-torn lands, the less certain she is of where the monster ends and where the man begins.

In Arbinj’s glittering courts, the Rebellion surges and dangerous secrets stir from Mayah’s past—secrets that could shatter her kingdom, and her heart, if she lets them.

The question is not if Mayah will betray, but who: her people, her love, or herself?

Mayah is both a princess and a healer. Her people have long waged war with those of Arbinj in a world where the blessed are given the ability to wield powers over forces such as water, earth, heart, storms, and so on. Those lacking such gifts are referred to as Commons in Mayah's land. A slur for the lesser citizens of Tundrayn, a land of ice and snow.

Food is rationed. Citizens are ranked. And those unwielders will go without so that their betters can continue the fight.

Mayah is selfless in her plight to heal the wounded. Wielders and unwielders alike. And when she's worn herself into exhaustion, it's with Daak she finds her rest. He's her friend, her trainer, and her lover. Or, as much of a lover as he can. For Mayah's been promised in marriage to the crown prince of Arbinj and her chastity is demanded as his bride to be.

The Dark Commander.

This man opened his mouth and from there, I could not put this book down.

Zevayr, second born son and commander of the Arbinji army, is not her betrothed but is sent to stand in for Faramir in the betrothal ceremony and escort her to her husband.

Upon their first meeting Mayah chastises him only to follow it up with defying him, headbashing him, and promptly slapping him.

Daak was right. She's a tidesdamned force of nature.

Every time Zev opened his mouth, I swooned. He apologized. He bent the knee. He was her shield. Her warmth in the cold. Her comfort in the storm. He assuaged her fears and empathised with her pain. Struggled to keep his thoughts from being spoken, but willingly shared the parts of himself that he could.

Zev is top tier.

They travel for weeks and arrive only to be told that plans have changed. Faramir will marry the princess of Volca and Mayah is betrothed to Zevayr.

The wedding?

"Tomorrow," Zev insists. Tomorrow.

Easy, right? Too damn easy.

But they wed and all seems to be going splendidly, but... Mayah's holding back. She won't consummate the marriage.

Then the trauma of Metal Slinger begins to tickle my brain. And the foreshadowing begins to drip from the pages.

"Because I have to."

“There’s nothing I hate more than a liar.”

A few weeks is all it takes for the first plot twist to drop.

It's unexpected. There's a brutal reveal. And the story veers from there with death after death. Torture and hate and so much spiralling.

At one point or another, Mayah has managed to betray every character that matters.

RIP Daak. Sorry, ...not sorry? The guy that always pulled away didn't stay away. It was magnificent and I may have cheered Zev on despite the emotional damage it inflicted on dear Mayah.

Dear traitorous Mayah.

"If you attack me,” he murmurs, his voice a silky threat, “I will kill you. If you betray me, I will kill you. And if you try to run…” His gaze drops to my lips before he drags it back up. He reaches for my cheek—then grabs my jaw instead. “I’ll let you go.”

Second plot twist. Third. Fourth. Her mother. His mother. Rebels everywhere.

You want an emotionally and physically tortured MMC? Look no further.

Absolutely will be reading the companion book, Between Sky and Sea, for Zev's POV. Must know what else he was doing with that hidden secondary power. Side note: Much prefer Vayru.

5 out of 5 stars. The best closed door spice I've ever read.

Available in ebook | hardcover | paperback

Companion Book: (MMC POV)

2026/28