A Shadow in the Ember (Flesh and Fire, #1)

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I clasped my hands together to stop their ceaseless trembling as I breathed in deeply. I held that breath and stared at my reflection in the mirror propped against the wall. I had no reason to be nervous. I exhaled slowly. “I will not disappoint you.”

Breathe in, slow and steady. Hold until you feel your heart slow. Breathe out. Hold.

“You may not be Chosen, but you were born into this realm, shrouded in the veil of the Primals. A Maiden as the Fates promised. And you shall leave this realm touched by life and death,”

And when he’d granted King Roderick’s request, this was the price the Primal of Death had requested: the firstborn daughter of the Mierel bloodline as his Consort. The Primal had to come.

There was no way he could know that in the two hundred years it had taken for me to be born, the knowledge of how to kill a Primal had been obtained. Love. They had one fatal weakness that made them vulnerable enough to be killed, and that was love. Make him fall in love, become his weakness, and end him. That was my destiny.

but none of that explained the bizarre feeling I had that I shouldn’t be walking away from him.

I’d never thought about having children. As the Maiden, it wasn’t even a desire that could take shape as I grew and got older. It was never part of the plan

If I had a child, or if any descendant of mine had been harmed, I would burn through both realms just so I could flay the skin from the body of the one who’d hurt them.

apprehension and…something stronger through me. Something that felt like finally, like that same sense of rightness I’d felt before. Obviously, something was very wrong with me. Because that didn’t make sense.

“You may feel terror, but you’re not terrified. And there is a kingdom’s worth of difference between the two.”

“But every cause has an effect. There are always consequences for every action, even if they don’t impact me directly.”

“What does liessa mean?” The god didn’t answer for what felt like a small eternity. “It has different meanings to different people.” The eather pulsed in his eyes, swirling once more through the silver. “But all of them mean something beautiful and powerful.”

“Men with careless fists should be more mindful of where they step.”

the childish hope was a powerful one.

They simply lived and expected to either be left alone or loved. That was all.

“There’s nothing daring about speaking the truth,” I retorted.

“I am known as the Asher,” he said, and I shuddered. Is it short for something? I’d asked when he told me his name. It is short for many things. “The One who is Blessed. I am the Guardian of Souls and the Primal God of Common Men and Endings.” His voice traveled through the Great Hall, and absolute silence answered. I could barely force air through my lungs. “I am Nyktos, ruler of the Shadowlands, the Primal of Death.”

“But no matter how powerful any one being is, there are always some who want more power. Where what they have is not enough.”

learned a while ago that if you can’t deal with something, you find a way to do so,” I said. “You have to.”

Mortals tended to destroy things they’d never seen before or were afraid of.

“One of the bravest things to do is to accept the aid of others.”

It is far easier to be lied to than it is to acknowledge that you have been lied to.”

“I may be prone to impulsivity as Sir Holland would say quite frequently, but I also have a rather practical mind.”

That’s what you do. Deal with whatever is thrown your way.”

“Death always finds you, one way or another.”

“It’s not fair to either of you,” Penellaphe stated softly. “But life, fate, or love rarely is, is it?”

“You are the heir to the lands and seas, skies and realms. A Queen instead of a King. You are the Primal of Life.”