Rook

The morning after her wedding, Retta wakes from the sound of her son's screams. Quite jarring, and things only get worse from there. A new governess that she's never met holds a pistol on Anders; she gets reminded that even though the war is over, there's always possible danger; and she must figure out who the heck is now the Duke of Petidar.

But, life doesn't stop, even so queens can have a honeymoon. And since she refuses to be a queen who lets things happen around her, she has to be involved. Which means she's inviting the most important people from the provinces to join her at the palace. And she's warned they can act like children. Just great.

She's got a country ravaged by war with no real idea how to fix it, a weird woman watching her son who unsettles her, and a husband who can finally openly pay attention to his son. Except for the whole step in front of father thing. Cause, yeah, that's still a secret hovering in the background. And that's just today.

Rook is the fourth book in the Chess series, which must be read in order.