Kingdom of the Cursed (Kingdom of the Wicked, #2)

by Kerri Maniscalco

Against my better judgment, I let myself become curious about what held enough value or importance for him to permanently mark his body with it. I wanted to crack his soul open and read him like a book, discovering the deepest secrets and stories of how he came to be.

He was as forbidden as the fruit offered to Eve, but somehow even more tempting.

“You look like a beautiful cataclysm.”

I almost considered it sweet—the kind of chaste embrace two courting lovers stole when their chaperone wasn’t looking—until he slowly raised my arms above my head, pinning me to the wall by my wrists. He took my bottom lip between his teeth and bit down gently. Then I remembered: he was no angel. And I was suddenly all too willing to be damned.

I wondered at death, at the ones we lost and how their loss stole something vital from us in return.

I will not appear weak for you to maintain strength.”

“The stars incline us; they do not bind us.”

I did not believe true love was ever supposed to steal from a person’s life, only enhance it.

Vengeance is poison, a slow death of self. Seek justice. Seek truth. But if you choose revenge over all else, you will lose more than your soul.”

Some truths you must find on your own.

“A true act of courage does not come without the risk of a great cost.”