To Break a Vow (The Soulmark Cycle, #1)

Their match was meant to serve the Empire. Instead, it may destroy it.

Sabine Almarien has survived on cleverness and careful obscurity. But when a mark said to bind her to a magically perfect match appears on her skin, the Empire forces her into the Season: a cruel marriage mart where blood vows determine magical power.

Worse, that supposedly perfect match is Lord Death himself.

Azrian Vaelros—the Emperor's ruthless enforcer—has buried one wife already. He has no interest in another blood vow, least of all with a maddening woman who despises everything he represents.

But the Emperor gives him no choice.

To survive the Season, Sabine and Azrian strike a careful bargain: fake a courtship to satisfy imperial scrutiny, while quietly searching for a way out of their arranged marriage. But when other marked couples turn up dead, the two of them are drawn into a shared investigation that binds them closer than either intended. Each truth pulls them deeper into each other's orbit... and into a conspiracy at the heart of the Empire itself.

As their blood vow approaches, they'll have to choose: become the perfect weapon the Empire demands, or forge something far more dangerous.

If Bridgerton were doused in magic and murder mystery, To Break a Vow is perfect for fans of tension-filled slow burn enemies to lovers romantasy. It will appeal to readers who loved The Crimson Moth duology by Kristen Ciccarelli, Belladonna by Adalyn Grace, and Throne of the Fallen by Kerri Maniscalco.