Reluctant allies. Tangled fates. A world on the brink.

Sheria El-Zacharius is admired for her dedication to the Dragon Isles, respected for her sworn oath to the winged gods who inhabit them, and utterly uninterested in diplomatic matters. However, as nesting dragons are slaughtered and eggs stolen at the beginning of hatching season, the Mistress of Dragons is forced to accept aid from a foreign noble, not only to find the culprits but also to strengthen the alliance between their two countries. 

Unfortunately for Sheria’s too-serious demeanor and impulsive tendencies, that help comes in the aggravatingly confident and sarcastic form of Kerrik Dimetresco. Sent to represent his country of Kalisthéma, Kerrik is determined to prove he’s more than the reckless rake his future court still sees him as. Navigating Sheria’s icy disdain and a mission that could end their empire if they fail, all while dealing with overwhelming grief from his mother’s unexpected death, will be more perilous than any challenge Kerrik has ever faced.

But before the pair can end their bickering, their partnership takes a drastic turn, leading them on an undercover mission to infiltrate the most notorious bounty hunter guild in the known world, to discover who hired them and why they want the empire’s dragons dead. As the two reluctant allies work together, they uncover a conspiracy that will unmake their world—and a passion neither expected nor wanted.