Crown of Vengeance: In the shadow of vengeance, we met as enemies (Thorns of Destiny Series, #1)

The city of Valyros does not know dawn. Its bell tower hangs mute above streets scarred by siege, its people trapped inside a night that never ends. In the silence, hatred sharpens. Betrayal grows teeth. And vengeance waits. Prince Ithriel has lived for nothing else. His family was consumed by fire, his house betrayed from within. Grief became his armor; fury became his weapon. Every step he takes, every oath he breathes, is bound to one vow-to hunt the traitor who lit the flame and burn his legacy to ash. But fate does not yield to vows. In the alleys and battlefields of Valyros moves Kaelis, an assassin raised to be both beautiful and lethal, his smile as disarming as his blade. To his master, he is a weapon honed on silence and obedience. To Ithriel, he is the enemy whose dagger has hovered too close to his heart. When their paths collide, steel clashes with steel-and something far more dangerous awakens. In the heartbeat between strike and counterstrike, hatred twists into recognition. The bond that flares is not chosen, not asked for, and not merciful. It is a chain hammered into their marrow, cursed and unbreakable. Ithriel tells himself he will never falter. Kaelis tells himself he is nothing but a blade. Yet with each clash of swords, each word hurled in fury, each silence that lasts too long, their resolve frays. Vengeance begins to taste like temptation. Every hesitation before the killing blow feels like betrayal-and every stolen glance feels like survival. Enemies are not meant to linger on each other‘s breath. Rivals are not meant to remember the cut of each other‘s voice. And yet, across siege walls and bloodied streets, Ithriel and Kaelis cannot escape the bond that ties them closer. Meanwhile, Valyros itself conspires to destroy them. The council whispers treachery. Symbols of a forbidden creed-the hand with the eye-resurface in alleys and banners, as if an old cult stirs in shadow. Allies prove faithless; enemies prove too loyal. And at the center of it all, Ithriel must decide whether to cling to vengeance, or to the assassin whose loyalty is poison-and whose touch feels like salvation. Crown of Vengeance is the first book of Thorns of Destiny, a dark romantasy trilogy where: A prince‘s oath of blood collides with an assassin‘s contract. Enemies-to-lovers burns slow, fierce, and inevitable. War and politics sharpen every kiss into a weapon. Desire is forbidden, but chains are forged all the same. This is not a gentle romance. It is a tale of vengeance and longing, curses and crowns, and a love sharp enough to wound. If you crave slow-burn MM romance, enemies-to-lovers tension, and dark fantasy rich with betrayal and blood, step into Crown of Vengeance. Once the bond strikes, neither prince nor assassin will ever walk free.