The deadly struggle for Jumaral’s throne reaches its brutal conclusion in this dark fantasy sequel to My Keen Knife, a Shakespeare-inspired tale of power, betrayal, and bloodlines. Be bloody, bold, and resolute. Adelina Malves prepares for her coronation as queen of Jumaral. With most people convinced that her rule is goddess-blessed after a “flood” killed everyone else in the line of succession, Adelina steels herself against the ghosts crowding her mind and the spot of blood she can’t clean off her hands. Be lion-mettled, proud, and take no care who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are. Jasibin is trapped in the Beyond with Ostrea, tasked with driving his brother and Adelina insane as he searches for Calixto, the missing prince who could topple Adelina’s reign before it really begins. Sebastião, beware Marques, beware the Maid of Lis. Seba is haunted by the voice of his mother, the apparition of the king he murdered, and a new prophecy—one that reveals how he will die. As his sanity hangs by a thread, he must find a way to live long enough to be crowned king. In this epic conclusion to Ana Davis’s stunning Macbeth retelling, three teenagers fight to save their country—even if they have different ideas of what the country truly needs.
