Lost A Thousand Thorns

In a kingdom where roses grow from graves and the moon never fully sets, love is not a blessing-it's a curse paid in blood.

Centuries ago, the Thorn Pact was made between humans and the Veilborn-ancient, shadowed beings who dwell in the forest of Briar Hollow. The pact promised protection from monsters beyond the mountains, but at a cost: every generation, one soul marked by a black rose birthmark must be offered to the forest before their nineteenth winter. No one offered has ever returned.

Eira Valen has lived her entire life knowing she is the next sacrifice. The black rose blooms across her collarbone like spilled ink, and with every passing day, she begins to hear whispers from the woods-soft, aching voices calling her name. But when she is finally taken beyond the iron gates and into the forest's heart, she discovers the truth is far crueler than legend.

The Veilborn are not monsters.

They are prisoners.

Bound to the forest by a dying curse, they are forced to claim a human soul each generation to keep the barrier between realms from shattering. And at the center of it all is Kaelith-an immortal Thorn Prince whose body is wrapped in living brambles and whose touch can both wound and heal. Cold, merciless, and devastatingly beautiful, Kaelith believes love is weakness. He has seen too many mortals crumble under the weight of eternity.

But Eira is not what he expected.

Instead of fear, she brings defiance. Instead of pleading, she demands answers. And as the thorns around Kaelith begin to wither in her presence, an impossible truth surfaces: the curse can only be broken if one of them willingly gives up their heart-literally.

As the kingdom outside begins to collapse under a spreading blight of black roses, Eira must decide whether to sacrifice herself to save her people... or trust the very creature she was raised to fear.