Early ReviewersA.K. Chandler

Ella is a skilled soldier, rivaled only by her infamous team leader, Crow.

Years of grueling missions in the wilderness have forged her team into her family, but in a single day, a bloody betrayal shatters it all.

Picking up the pieces of her life, Ella must venture into The Quiet, a sacred and enigmatic realm whose door is guarded fiercely by their government. Determined to find answers, Ella is prepared to risk everything to open it, and unwittingly knocks on another.

Locked and bolted, the door of her past rests like a coffin in the silence of history. Despite all her efforts, she feels the hinges snapping, and learns that no buried secret can stay dead forever, especially when it has a life of its own.

#action #adventure #romance #slowburn #fantasy

Quotes:

* * *

He’d just risked his life to save her and yet she couldn’t help but feel that he was by all means a completely different and altogether more threatening element than her.

She half expected the flowers to wilt in the heat of his eyes as he watched them, but instead they gently arched and fluttered at his caress. His hands were still stained in sweat and blood, and yet life received them anyway.

* * *

Baker had heard stories all her life of the Strike’s cruelty. In a world of mythical proportions, they were dragons to be feared if not slain. He was Death, king of the dragons, with a smile like spring sun, and eyes that saw everything with the wholeness of a full moon.

In the presence of his abundant generosity there was an eerie sense that she sat between his open jaws. More surprising was his ability to coax out some desire to stay.

No one seemed at ease in his kindness, nor could they reject its warmth. He was Death, but to Baker’s surprise and undoubtedly the chagrin of everyone else, Death was a likable man.

Humanity is about to unravel, and Clea Hart holds the final thread.

A light-wielding warrior known as a Veilin, she's stolen the cursed Deadlock Medallion-an artifact of legend that could spell doom for mankind's last three cities. Escaping from enemies she once called friends, Clea knows she has to destroy it, and that means returning home.

The forest of Shambelin is the only thing standing in her way, but it's rife with traps, tricks, and beasts. She can't survive it alone. In desperation, she accepts the help of a mysterious man named Ryson.

The forest is his domain, and Clea and Ryson are as different as the sun and moon that shape its illusions. Together, they face the wilderness, the medallion's influence, and the woes of their declining world. These challenges unite them, but when Ryson's secrets come to light, Clea realizes that the horrors of the forest are nothing but a playground to his past.

Their connection is undeniable, her mission is critical, but trusting him could be the last mistake she ever makes.

Quotes:

* * *

"Throughout the day, he couldn’t help but notice the contrasts between them. She soiled her hands to heal, and he’d soiled his to kill. Yet her hand had found his so gently among the crowd, and she’d asked him to stay with her. He wondered how she would treat him if she knew how different they truly were. What would she do if she discovered how many lives he’d destroyed?"

* * *

“You claim to heal with your hands,” he whispered, “and you’d use them to wound me with such a tender gesture?”

She felt trapped between two intentions, no longer able to explain herself.

“I’m trying to save you,” she replied with a stifled breath.

The blade of his other hand traced over her collarbone and then her neck. She sucked in a breath and flattened her back against the column behind her. He’d only mimicked a version of her gesture, but she reacted as if it were his touch that caused pain.

“But who’s going to save you?” he asked, his eyes full of a pushing and pulling tide, yanking her forward and shoving her back as he whispered threats but kept his tone gentle.

* * *

Ella is a skilled soldier, rivaled only by her infamous team leader, Crow.

Years of grueling missions in the wilderness have forged her team into her family, but in a single day, a bloody betrayal shatters it all.

Picking up the pieces of her life, Ella must venture into The Quiet, a sacred and enigmatic realm whose door is guarded fiercely by their government. Determined to find answers, Ella is prepared to risk everything to open it, and unwittingly knocks on another.

Locked and bolted, the door of her past rests like a coffin in the silence of history. Despite all her efforts, she feels the hinges snapping, and learns that no buried secret can stay dead forever, especially when it has a life of its own.

Humanity is about to unravel, and Clea Hart holds the final thread.

A light-wielding warrior known as a Veilin, she’s stolen the cursed Deadlock Medallion—an artifact of legend that could spell doom for mankind’s last three cities. Escaping from enemies she once called friends, Clea knows she has to destroy it, and that means returning home.

The forest of Shambelin is the only thing standing in her way, but it’s rife with traps, tricks, and beasts. She can’t survive it alone. In desperation, she accepts the help of a mysterious man named Ryson.

The forest is his domain, and Clea and Ryson are as different as the sun and moon that shape its illusions. Together, they face the wilderness, the medallion’s influence, and the woes of their declining world. These challenges unite them, but when Ryson’s secrets come to light, Clea realizes that the horrors of the forest are nothing but a playground to his past.

Their connection is undeniable, her mission is critical, but trusting him could be the last mistake she ever makes.