Akash Mahendra will stop at nothing to get what his province needs.House Mahendra is just trying to survive. Their province cannot ignore the war; they’re caught in the crossfire regularly, craters litter their crop fields, and their citizens are fleeing. Akash, heir to House Mahendra, is preparing to take over from his aging father, and he is desperate to form alliances with other houses for support and resources.

Arcania Eloise Leigh-Van will do anything to get what she wants.

House Leigh-Van is thriving. Their province is wealthy, respected, and safely located. Their top priority is arranging advantageous matches for their future, particularly the main family’s only daughter, Arcania. Arcania has her choice of suitors, but the man she has her eyes set on believes them to be ill-matched.

Akash has known Arcania since they were children and doesn’t trust his ability to provide for her in his dangerous province. He wants to protect her from living with the realities of the war, just as she is insistent that he deserves to prosper with his people and is determined to help him in any way she can.



When whispers of a rebellion begin to stir, Akash has to weigh his own strict moral code against the future of his people. As Arcania learns more about life outside her own province and the war reaches a boiling point, she’s forced to question her loyalty to her country and the king she’s always considered family. Caught between the war and rebellion, Akash and Arcania make a fateful promise to one another.

But ultimately, they both must decide … what is a promise worth?