The Twice-Cursed Serpent

Even though she was born a peasant, Caes belongs at court. After all, her father is the Chosen One, the prophesied hero blessed by the goddess. While on his quest to save their kingdom from being conquered by the Maltihian Empire, he leaves Caes at court with her royal betrothed and all the luxuries a future princess could imagine.

But when her father fails in his quest, she loses everything. Reviled and used as a scapegoat for her kingdom's anger, Caes is given to the very enemies her father died fighting to destroy. While the Malithian emperor allows Caes to live instead of killing her outright, she is constantly guarded by Soul Carvers—undead magic wielders whose power stems from what killed them. Worse, Malithia's murderous crown princess believes Caes should be executed because the princess, thanks to a prophecy, sees her as a threat to her succession to the throne.

Alone in a treacherous court, Caes finds the one thing that might save her life–making a perilous bargain with Malithia's patron goddess, granting her one year of safety during which she must figure out how to awaken a cursed god who is trapped in stone. If Caes succeeds, freedom is hers. If she fails, she forfeits her life. Desperate, Caes seizes on the one scrap of hope–the attention of Alair, one of her Soul Carver guards, who unexpectedly offers to aid her.

If she hopes to have any chance at survival, Caes must figure out how to break the thousand-year-old curse all while navigating the brutal court and the princess' ever-present threats. But in this court, the lines between friends and enemies are blurred, and even an innocent conversation could be a deadly mistake.