by S.M. Gray
Keep the crown.
It had been Len’s only goal for six years, before which it had been to take the damn thing. As Serica’s first ruling queen in centuries, she’s managed to stay on her throne through force of will and a growing trail of blood. For a time, her crown felt safe. Then Bardan Alimen, her lifelong betrothed, called to fulfill their marriage. With no coin to buy her freedom, and an enemy force too strong to attack, Len feels her crown slipping from her grasp.
Then, an idea: she can escape wedding one king by marrying another.
Kaseus Collabel is a man so reviled his name is a curse. As king of hedonistic Hotesa, their marriage should be unthinkable. Their gods? Vicious enemies. Cultures? Incompatible. Their peoples? Hateful. The idea would have repulsed her had it not been for a consuming whisper of something more. That, and the wealth he can use to free her.
Handsome and effortlessly charismatic, Kaseus and his kingdom are everything Len needed and nothing she’s allowed to have. As Len is thrust to the centre of an international scandal, and her own people begin to turn on her, she will have to decide between her heart and her crown before she loses both.
Blood in the Azure is a marriage of convenience on the surface. In its depths is an exploration of consent, culture, autonomy, and judgement. It includes fantasy typical violence, mature themes, and deep feminine rage.
Genres: Epic Fantasy, Romance
Tropes: Marriage of Convenience, Touch Her and Die
254 pages
Published: 2027-03-01