The Vow of Hollow Crowns
A dying man crashes through the Thornwood canopy and dies at Wren Ashvale's feet, his blood still warm, his final oath searing into her name. He is the Dying Courier, and the vow he passes to her cannot be refused. Now hunted by Captain Lireth's cavalry and haunted by the ghost of her own father, wrung from the grave and dripping with secrets, Wren must carry a broken oath to the Winter Court before the Burning Town burns for the last time. Kael Varrin, a sellsword with too many names, fights beside her not for gold but for a debt he will not name. Sera Duskwhisper trades safe passage for memories Wren cannot afford to lose. Ahead lies the pale throne of Queen Seraphine, the Winter Court Champion waiting in the snows, and King Aelindor's hollow crown, worn by a monarch who has already sold his kingdom to the dark. Mother Yvenne warns that the Rootweavers are stirring beneath every road, and Lord Halric's generals are already closing the net. The spectral father follows, offering answers wrapped in silence. To break the vow is to watch Wren's imprisoned father hang. To keep it is to crown a new ruler in blood and ash. The road to the Winter Court has only one direction, and it leads through fire.