Aceso doesn't remember what happened to her. She had forgotten the sounds of her bones snapping over and over again and the nausea that coursed through her as they melted her to the stones only for her to awake whole the next morning. She had hated them with all her being. But how can a puppet hate its maker? Waking again in a seemingly bottomless glass cage is the least of her worries when all goes to hell and the sky turns to flames. And the worlds collide. Literally.

When powerful witch Marithyda Skyelorn becomes a participant of the Royal Exposition, the last thing she expects is to fall in love with the Prince--or to be the cause of his death. ***** Every year, the kingdom of Karvoth hosts the Royal Exposition: a corrupt carnival where a race of citizens who possess powerful magic, known as the Touched, are exploited for the enjoyment of nobles. But when Marithyda Skyelorn's grand performance ends in tragedy and pits her against the deranged King, she must make the impossible choice between remaining in exile and participating again in the dangerous competition that ruined her life--to end it once and for all. (Book One of the Skyelorn Chronicles trilogy) [[2020 Watty's winner, Fantasy]] Content and/or Trigger Warning: Some scenes contain violence that may upset sensitive readers [[Word Count: 50,000-60,000]]