r0nja_yourmom
Princess Isabelle Maria of France was never meant for the desert. Born into the cold, crisp northern forests, she spent her childhood sleeping under the stars, mapping terrain, and swearing she would remain a virgin forever rather than become a disposable breeding mare for the arrogant lords of Europe. She required a soul connection-and she refused to lower her standards.
But when a desperate geopolitical alliance forces her into a marriage with the sixteen-year-old Leper King, Baldwin IV of Jerusalem, Isabelle prepares for the worst. Instead, she finds a husband who hands her the one thing she never expected: total respect, bodily autonomy, and a razor-sharp wit that matches her own high intellect.
To the treacherous Crusader court, they are a silent, tragic political match. But behind the heavy oak doors of the royal chambers, away from the venomous whispers of Lady Sibylla and the arrogance of Guy de Lusignan, a private universe forms. Surrounded by secret coded letters from her childhood friend Yasmine -the daughter of Sultan Saladin- and the chaotic antics of her lady-in-waiting Claire, Isabelle drops her regal mask. Behind the heavy velvet gowns of the "Dragon Queen" lies a fierce, hopelessly romantic woman who is slowly, utterly falling for the soul behind the silver mask.
In a kingdom built on sand and vipers, a miracle is about to bloom. But as the shadows of war and illness grow closer, the Queen of Jerusalem will have to weaponize her mind, her sword, and her heart to protect the King she was never supposed to love.