Shield of Sparrows (Shield of Sparrows, #1)

by Devney Perry

The Guardian. A man rumored to be more vicious and deadly than any creature crafted by the gods.

Is this the love interest??? Eeeek

“Not her.” Margot blinked. “Excuse me?” “Her.” The Guardian’s eyes flicked in my direction, and the whole room followed his gaze. To me. “Prince Zavier will marry her,” he declared. “Tonight. As the bride prize for killing your marroweels.”

WHO IS THE LOVE INTEREST

“I’ve made so many mistakes as your father. I’m sorry. Your mother would be so disappointed in me.”

Evangeline crashed into his chest. “Papa!”

My theory now is that the guardian is actually the prince????? Idk im confused

What would I do if my life was my own? What would I do if I could break away from this marriage to Zavier? If the key to saving my people didn’t rest on my shoulders? Who would I become if I wasn’t at the mercy of men? An adventurer? A voyager? A writer? An artist who traveled the realm and never cared that her fingertips were stained with charcoal or paint?

This is heartbreaking

My face was sticky and hot. I raised a hand, touching my cheek, and my fingertips came away coated in putrid green. Blood. The same green blood of the marroweel that had tried to kill me in the Krisenth. The same green I’d seen from a grizzur weeks ago.

Okay so i think someone is breeding monsters and making then evil, hence the green blood??? Also why evie sad "sick monters"

“Odessa, wait.” It wasn’t his order that made me stop. It was my name. I was always Cross or Sparrow or my queen. But rarely Odessa. I’d never loved my name more.

“You asked for my name,” he said. “You told me I had to earn it.” He nodded. “Ransom. My name is Ransom.”

Aw hell no wgt kind of name is ransom bruh

Guardian, it had taken no effort to adopt his name in my mind. It was like there’d always been this empty space, a hole, and I’d been waiting all this time to fill it with a name. Ransom. I couldn’t imagine it being anything else.

Idk this pulled me out of the book

It wasn’t that he’d chosen Jocelyn. It was that he hadn’t chosen me. Why was I never the first choice? Why was I always the consolation prize? With Father. With Margot. With my tutors. And now with Zavier. What was wrong with me that I wasn’t enough?

He was a crown prince. A king. And I was a silly princess who was expected to give him heirs and stand at his side. The rules were different for women. I doubted Zavier would be willing to let me shatter my vows, even for the Guardian. Ransom wasn’t mine. He wouldn’t be mine. “I have to let go.” “Of what?” “You,” I whispered. “You are not mine to keep.” He breathed, shifting so close his chest brushed against my back. “What if I was yours?”

You are not a prin—” A prince. “It’s you.” I swayed, my balance faltering as the truth crashed, shattering everything I’d known for months into pieces of jagged glass. “You are the crown prince. It was all a ruse.”

I KNEW IT

“Why would you make me suffer losing you?” I swiped at the tears that tumbled down my cheeks. “Why not let me stay believing I was Zavier’s wife?” Ransom closed the gap between us in a single stride, his hands framing my face, fingertips diving into my hair. His eyes changed as they searched mine. Not silver. Not hazel. Not even emerald green. They turned gold. The same gold I saw each morning in my mirror. “You are mine, Odessa.” It was a growl, more animal than human. And the shiver that cascaded down my spine might as well have been my own blades, cleaving me in two. Mine.

“When I am nothing but dust and ash, Turah will endure. I do not need a crown. And I have made peace with my destiny. But before I step into my grave, my choice is you.”

Except I was frozen in place, eyes glued to that book on the table. It had flipped over when Ransom had tossed it, showing the other side. There was an intricate etching on the cover. A winged emblem. The same emblem on the pendant I wore around my neck.

YOU FOOL. YOU HAVE THE CURE IDIOT

A growl came from Ransom’s throat before he was free, casting those soldiers aside like they were nothing. Then his heat was at my back, a snarl in his voice as his father’s grip only tightened. “I will kill you. I swear it.” Ramsey’s nostrils flared. “I see the way you look at her.” “She is my life,” Ransom said. “She will be your death. As your mother will be mine.” “Father. Please.” Ransom put a hand on Ramsey’s arm. “Let her go.”

Hot tears dripped to the dirt at my boots. “I love you.” “Yes, you do. Don’t forget.” “Never.” “Neither will I.” His throat bobbed as he swallowed. “I will find you. Here, or in the shades.”

Sobbing

There should have been a monster’s lifeless body in the courtyard. There should have been a winged beast with my sword in its chest. Instead, I’d pulled my sword from this woman’s body. A woman with red hair, the spiraling curls a mix of orange and strawberry and copper. Odessa’s hair.

WHATTTTTT

“Where are you going?” Cathlin called. I kept walking. “To find my wife.”

These cliffhangers are going to kill me