Break—or die. In Halazar prison, there’s no other way. But Klara won’t accept any of the outcomes. In Eclipse City, she survived on a starving ration, relied on chance, and used magic—breaking the law—until one raid turns into a failure… and Klara is sentenced to life imprisonment for a crime: drawing Tarot cards, a rarest gift available only to students of the elite Academy of Arcanes.
Prince Kaeliss, the enigmatic director of the Academy, offers her a deal. Klara must steal a Tarot deck from the king to create an all-powerful card that, until now, had been considered nothing more than a legend. But freedom has a price: Klara will become not only a new candidate for admission to the magic school, but also Kaeliss’s bride. The world of arcane magic draws her in, and the prince turns out to be nothing like the monster she imagined. The question is—will Klara give him power over the world… and over her own heart? Or will she choose to fight for everything herself?..