No Solace (The Flames of Retribution - Book 1)

***Amby Awards Top Pick for Young Adult 2023***

***Featured on Stories Undiscovered for September 2023***

*** 1st place Literary Book Award from @Kiannawrites01 October 2023***

She was meant to ascend to greatness. Instead, they buried her alive.

Solace Mercy Grace Partridge was destined to become the youngest Imperial Librarian in Sanfelton's storied history, until jealous rivals framed her, stripped her title, and exiled her to a prison island. Alone, disgraced, and forgotten, she swore revenge.

But fate has other plans, and so do her enemies.

Xīwàng, the Tavla of Beltrit, her country's enemy, rescues her from a fate worse than death, offering her a dangerous bargain: disguise herself as a male Calashan noble and spy for him in the very empire that betrayed her. As part of the deal, she must play the part of his devoted fiancée and help him escape the golden cage of his responsibility as god-king of the Beltritian empire.

To survive, Solace becomes Kaashif Rathe. To win, she must bury her heart.

But the longer she assumes the dual role of the Tavla's Frelan, Beltrit's title for his fiancée, and the fake prince, Kaashif Rathe, the harder it becomes to tell where the lies end and something real begins.

Xīwàng is kind, clever, and... broken. She realizes how similar she is to the Beltritian. And beneath her mask, Solace is no longer sure if her vengeance can survive his touch.

And her role as Kaashif puts her in the sights of the three princes of Sanfelton... and dangerously close to Kohl Sanfelton, who destroyed her former life.

In this world of deception, she must be careful not to deceive herself and lose her very soul.

#2 in genderbender on 4/7/2023