Welcome to the dark and secretive world of Ashthorn Ward, the kingdom’s most brutal military academy—where weapons aren’t forged of steel, but of people.

Nineteen-year-old Lory has spent her life surviving Dunai’s alleys with blades, wits, and an iron will. Now, caught and conscripted, she must endure Ashthorn, where rivals are lethal, failure is fatal, and obedience comes at the cost of herself.

But Lory is not like the others. When the Ward uncovers a dangerous secret in her blood, she’s offered an impossible deal: survive their trials, and she’ll serve the crown as a weapon honed for war. Fail—and she won’t leave Ashthorn alive.

Overseeing her transformation is Captain Khayrivven Falcrest. Cold, ruthless, and utterly untouchable, he’s the last person she should trust—and the only one who seems to see the person beneath the monster the Ward wants her to become.

As war rises beyond the border and rebellion festers in the shadows, Lory must navigate Ashthorn’s deadly games—and her forbidden gift—before both claim her.

Enemies. Rivals. Lovers.

At Ashthorn Ward, trust is a weapon, love is a liability, and the only way out is through blood.

Bright Burns the Flame is the first installment in a darkly romantic fantasyscape, perfect for fans of slow-burn enemies-to-lovers romance, morally gray heroes who fall first and hard, heroines who fight for their own power, and magical academies filled with secrets and danger.

Perfect for fans of Fourth Wing, Quicksilver, and A Court of Mist and Fury.