Damsel

‘The perfect spin to a fantasy fairy tale’ – New York Times bestseller Chloe Gong

‘Has all the fantasy, beauty, dragons, and intrigue of Game of Thrones’ – New York Times bestseller Delilah S. Dawson

‘Block off an entire day – you’re not going to want to put Damsel down’ – New York Times bestseller Beth Revis

A price must be paid…

Elodie never dreamed of a lavish palace or a handsome prince. Growing up in the famine-stricken realm of Inophe, her deepest wish was to help her people survive each winter. So when a representative from a rich, reclusive kingdom offers her family enough wealth to save Inophe in exchange for Elodie’s hand in marriage, she accepts without hesitation. Swept away to the glistening kingdom of Aurea, Elodie is quickly taken in by the beauty of the realm – and of her betrothed, Prince Henry.

But as Elodie undertakes the rituals to become an Aurean princess, doubts prick at her mind as cracks in the kingdom’s perfect veneer begin to show: a young woman who appears and vanishes from the castle tower, a parade of torches weaving through the mountains, markings left behind in a mysterious \”V\”. Too late, she discovers that Aurea’s prosperity has been purchased at a heavy cost – each harvest season, the kingdom sacrifices its princesses to a bloodthirsty dragon.

And Elodie is next.

This ancient arrangement has persisted for centuries, leading hundreds of women to their deaths. But the women who came before Elodie did not go quietly. Their blood pulses with power and memory, and their experiences hold the key to Elodie’s survival. Forced to fight for her life, this damsel must use her wits to defeat a dragon, uncover Aurea’s past, and save not only herself, but the future of her new kingdom.

Format: Paperback
Pages: 368
Imprint: Gollancz UK
Publication date: 18/04/2023