The Shadow Bride

This closing installment of a two-book story takes place in the world of Shelby Mahurin's Serpent & Dove series, which has been a New York Times bestseller. Célie died while trying to protect the people she loves, among them Michal, the vampire king who would not let her go. She wakes changed: sunlight is now forbidden to her, she can hear her friends' heartbeats, and she hungers for their blood, because Michal has bound her to vampire existence.

Célie is not the only one who has come back from death. Her sister Filippa has returned, diminished, and other revenants are climbing out of their graves, bent on revenge. The balance between the living and the dead has collapsed, and a far older darkness has stirred and set its sights on Célie, intending to make her his bride. To save their world, Célie and Michal must put aside the heated attraction between them and repair the veil.

The story leans into enemies-to-lovers tension. Célie once tried to drive a stake through Michal's heart, and now she must lean on the one man she despises to find her way through her new, shadowed life. Forced proximity on the journey, close quarters, and secrets they can barely keep hidden keep the pull between them alive, while Célie also learns to use her magic and fight her growing thirst.

Readers who enjoy Sarah J. Maas's blend of romance, dark fantasy and supernatural danger will find much to like here.