Completed on the 29th of January 2022
Book 3 of the Mogochislenian series but can be read as a standalone
The best order would be as follows:
Book 1 - The Royal Witch (completed, PTR)
Book 2 - The Royal Flower (completed, PTR)
Firebird (free, completed) - You can check this free book to check if you will enjoy my writing style.
Prince Samuel is set to take over Shadowcreek, but he still battles with insecurities. At twenty-five, he still does not have magical powers - unlike most of his family members. The prince also carries the brunt of Erishkigal's curse, as he transforms into a wolf during full moons or moments of great anger. Without a pack, he becomes involved with various shifters hunting through the Forests. Some may be deadlier than they first let on.
As the new Shadow King, Samuel also has to deal with further rebellions and an intense hatred for shifters. Even the People of Nowhere start being banished from the forests as new human kings attempt to take over Shadowcreek and the Forests of Mogochislenia. His mother may rule the Above and Beyond, but even she cannot protect him from the new unease that has been spreading across the continent.
An encounter with a beautiful shifter makes him wonder if his current state is not as harsh a punishment as he initially believes. Discovering where her loyalties lie, on the other hand, may make his melancholy turn into a greater rage.
Excerpt:
“Yes, goodbye. I will be leaving Queenspell soon. I would be taking my father’s place in Shadowcreek,” the prince inwardly kicked himself for revealing too much. Still, it was too easy to say the words in front of this mysterious young woman.
It was her turn to look melancholy, but she tried to hide it with a wide smile.
“An abdication? That is a happier way to rise as king. Your father must be healthy still?” she asked.
“Yes, he is. He wants me at Shadowcreek. It has to do with wolves. Therefore, a wolf must be sent there to do something about it,” the prince gave the shifter maiden a crooked grin to make it clear he was half-jesting.
Melinoe did not smile. She was thinking hard about something, Samuel could tell.
“What is it?”
“Nothing. The hounds and some rebel wolves seem to be getting out of hand.”
“Are you afraid of them?”
“No, I am not afraid of them,” she said indignantly.
“Come with me, Melinoe.”
Samuel did not know where that came from, but he felt the urgency to tell her those words.
“My mother needs me.”
The prince was surprised that she did not laugh or protest. It almost seemed that she would come with him if not for her mother.
“Is your mother old and ill?” he asked, concerned.
She scoffed at that. Then, she held her mouth with a hand as if it had already given too much away.
“No, she is not. But she controls me and everything that I had to do.”
“Is that why you are still not married?”
“At my age? A spinster?” Melinoe was now openly laughing. There were tears in her eyes, from mirth or something else; the prince was not sure.
“Melinoe, you do not look like a spinster at all,” the prince said, closing the gap between them. He did not know why he was bold enough to hold her on both shoulders, but that was what he did. She looked up into his eyes, wondering what was going on. She did not protest when his lips descended on hers for a kiss.