Our world is dying.
Every century, the High Fae venture past the magical veil in search of a shifter to compete as the champion in the trials of their Inner Kingdom. Only a shifter who completes the trials can unlock the healing powers of The Heart of Valdor, a magical stone that has the power to save our world. For five hundred years, no shifter has been victorious or returned alive. The dark magic of the wilt is steadily growing, devouring our world piece by piece with each passing day. The fate of all fae, shifters, and humans is at stake.
And somehow... this task has fallen to me.
Skylar Cathal is a twenty-two-year-old half-human, half-shifter with a curious mind and knack for bending the rules. Gilen Warrick, Skylarâs childhood friend and the next Alpha of the Solace pack, wants more than just her friendshipâ but fate has a will of its own.
When Skylar is marked as the shifter champion, she must overcome her darkest fears to leave her home and those she loves behind. Daxton Aegaeon, High Fae Prince of Silver Meadows, has sworn to protect Skylar as his ward, but only she can protect her heart.
Our world is dying.
Every century, the High Fae venture past the magical veil in search of a shifter to compete as the champion in the trials of their Inner Kingdom. Only a shifter who completes the trials can unlock the healing powers of The Heart of Valdor, a magical stone that has the power to save our world. For five hundred years, no shifter has been victorious or returned alive. The dark magic of the wilt is steadily growing, devouring our world piece by piece with each passing day. The fate of all fae, shifters, and humans is at stake.
And somehow... this task has fallen to me.
Skylar Cathal is a twenty-two-year-old half-human, half-shifter with a curious mind and knack for bending the rules. Gilen Warrick, Skylarâs childhood friend and the next Alpha of the Solace pack, wants more than just her friendshipâ but fate has a will of its own.
When Skylar is marked as the shifter champion, she must overcome her darkest fears to leave her home and those she loves behind. Daxton Aegaeon, High Fae Prince of Silver Meadows, has sworn to protect Skylar as his ward, but only she can protect her heart.
Chapter One
Â
Â
Sitting on the crystalized shores of the green sand beach, I stretched out my long limbs and basked in the warming sun. My golden-brown hair draped over my shoulder, waving in the breeze skittering over the open ocean.
 If anyone were to ask themselves, âWhere is Skylar?â The answer would be here with a book or two as my only companions. The Solace Shifter Pack didnât have the most extensive library, but new collections ventured in from the southern human kingdom often enough to keep me intrigued.
Today's waves were calm and relaxing, gently rolling and shifting the olivine sand along the isolated alcove. The tall cliffs surrounding this secluded beach were the remnants of an ancient volcano's caldera.
I loved my hideaway and the solitude it often brought me when I needed a break from my shifter pack life. Donât get me wrong, I care deeply for my people and would do anything to defend them. I wouldnât hesitate to die protecting my peopleâwe all would. That was the shifter charm for ya, right there. And even though I wasnât a full-blooded shifter, they were my pack.
A splash caught my attention, and out along the outer corner of the caldera, I could see a group of young shifters diving off the cliff side. I smiled, closed one of my favorite romance books, and sat up to watch the daring teens test their bravery among their friends. This was an old tradition among the Solace packâa test of their nerves and to see who among them was aware of their animal awakening within.
As shifters, we shared the spirit of an animal that gifted us with heightened abilities and allowed us to change into another form at will. In our early teenage years, tied with puberty, our animal presence awakened, and we became aware of their presence. It wasnât until early adulthood, however, that we manifested the ability and harnessed enough control over our magic to shift into our animal form, which was unique to each individual shifter.
âIâm surprised you havenât joined them already,â a familiar voice called out behind me.
 I couldnât help the girlish grin from spreading across my face or the blushing in my cheeks, no matter how hard I tried to stop it. I could feel his power pulsing and vibrating over my skin, delicately caressing my senses with the mere sound of him.
âGilen.â I fixed my gaze on the teens jumping into the open water. I wouldnât be the first to turn and look, happily continuing to play the dance of dominance with him.
âSkylar,â he whispered, saying my name slowly and announcing each letter syllable in an inquisitive tone, moving to stand behind me.
The warmth of his body seeped into my own, and I couldnât help leaning back into him. I tilted my head up and flashed him a large, playful grin with far too many of my teeth showing. âAnd how are you doing today?â I asked, knowing exactly why he had come. âI see you found me in my hideout.â
âIt wasnât had to guess where you were.â His warm honey-colored hazel eyes softened as a smirk teased the corner of his mouth, complimenting his comely expression. âWhy didnât you show up for training today?â
âOh, did the alpha call us?â I asked, trying to avoid getting into trouble. âI had no idea. Iâm sorry. I guess I didnât hear it. Human interference, yet again.â
Gilen sighed heavily and ran a hand through his luscious dark golden scuffled hair. âCome on, Sky. Donât play the pretty, clueless damsel role with me⌠It's beneath you. I know you're smarter than that.â
âWhatever do you mean?â I exaggerated with a heavy sigh, flinging my arms outward and folding them over my chest as I slumped back into the sand. âWait,â I said, arching my brow and turning to give him a playful half smile. âDid you just call me pretty?â I added a playful wink just to seal everything in.
Gilen rolled his thick shoulders and sank down next to me in the green sand. âYou're telling me you didnât hear our alphaâs call? Again?â His hardened rule-following stare bore into mine, and I had to bite my lip to stop from confessing the truth.
âSky, come on. Itâs me. Tell me why you didnât come to training today." He paused, furrowing his brow. âAre the others picking on you again?â
âNo,â I snapped. âThat hasnât happened in a long time.â I absently rubbed my arms, recalling the taunting and bullying I took from the other shifters our age when we were kidsâŚall because I was half-human. My station in the pack improved when my animalâs presence emerged, but I still was far from a favorite.
âWhat is it then?âÂ
Oh no. I was cornered.
The truth was that I had heard the alphaâs command earlier today, but I chose to ignore it. That was the secret I was deathly afraid to tell Gilen. It was the fact that I could ignore our alphaâs command, not that I simply didnât hear it. Even though Gilen was one of my closest friends, no one besides my family knew about this special ability. I was afraid of what others would think if they knew.
Well, first, I know they would be pissed off that I had lied to them all these years. Blaming my human side was an all too easily convincing lie, but after that, I had no idea. Would they be scared? Would they call me a freak and shun me like some of the members of our pack? Would our alpha see it as a threat to our safety and force me to leave? I think that last question scared me the most, but it also gave me a thrill imagining what other kind of life I could have outside the pack.
Just to add some trouble, over the past few weeks, my animal has been sending random pulses of strong magic through me, making me extremely anxious. All my senses were on high alert, but I had no fucking clue what it was. All I knew was that it was giving me the worst headaches in the world, and I needed space. That was why I ignored the alphaâs call and came here to my green sand beach today.
âI donât know what to tell you,â I said as I rolled over onto my stomach to break his piercing gaze. âI didnât hear the alphaâs call. Must be my human side running interference again.â
âRight.â Gilen huffed in annoyance, shaking his head.
I could hear the disappointment in his voice as guilt ripped through my heart. Gilen and I had grown up together. From day one, we were inseparable friends, and I trusted him. If I were to open up and be my true self with anyone, I believed it could be him.
Gilen knew I was hiding something. But he would never push me to tell him, and that was one of the biggest downfalls in our friendship. He didnât challenge me and expected me to fall in line with formalities and the pecking order of the pack. The difference was that I liked to push those set rules he loved and create my own.
The problem wasnât him, though; it was me. I knew that I was different.
A piercing scream erupted from the cliffs as one of the young girls in a group of teenage shifters leaped into the ocean.
âCome on nowâŚthatâs not how it's done,â I scolded, making Gilen laugh. âYou canât expect the boys to give you any respect if you squeal like a pig while jumping off the edge. Theyâll assume thatâs what your animal is, and then no one will ever respect you.â
âOh, really?â Gilen asked. His carefree laughter set me at ease for the moment. âDo you even remember what sounds came out of your mouth the first time you jumped?â
âI sure as hell didnât squeal.â I kicked some sand at Gilen, but he reacted in time to block it from hitting his face. Darn, those quick shifter reflexes, it was hard to get anything past him.
He casually brushed the sand off his shoulders and gave me a gentle smile that had me curling my toes. âCare to test out your memory and show me what you can do?â
âIs that a challenge?â A faint growl sounded at the back of my throat. Shifters were competitive by nature, and my instinct was always to win.
âYou bet your lazy ass itâs a challenge.â My eyes grew wide with excitement. This was a new twist to how these situations typically went. âHow else am I going to assess your potential for our pack? You need to start showing up to the group sessions. I canât keep training you privately and playing catch-up.â Gilen arose from the sand and grabbed the bottom of his tan tunic, pulling it over his head before dropping it onto the beach, readying himself for a sparring match.
As shifters, we grew accustomed to nudity at an early age, but I couldnât help the warmth in my middle from spreading whenever I looked at Gilen. Strong muscular arms framed a chiseled chest and stomach that could only come from years of training and fighting to protect our people and lands. I couldnât stop myself from admiring his physique for a moment longer, but I quickly adverted my gaze when Gilenâs half smile hinted that he caught me lingering longer than I probably should have.
âCome on, Sky,â he taunted in a sing-song voice.
 After surviving through our teenage years, he filled his tall frame with a taut muscular build. His thick, dark blond hair swayed loosely around his face, brushing against dark brows that framed honey-hazel eyes. His tanned skin was kissed by the weathering sun, defining his high cheekbones and remarkably unscathed facial features. He was the epitome of handsome, a golden boy, and the constant trail of willing females buying for their chance to become his mate only grew with each passing year.
âChallenge accepted,â I answered as I jumped up from the sand and tried to wrestle him to the ground. âItâll be fun showing you what a real female can do.â
Gilen was stronger than me, but I was faster.
I jumped at him and tried to wrap my legs around his torso, but he anticipated my move and threw me back against the ground. I recovered, spinning around to strike at him with a punch, which he dodged, but wasnât quite fast enough to evade my kick that followed. I collided with his shin, and he back up a step, giving me a small opening that I wouldnât let go to waste. We continued back and forth, exchanging blows, testing each other's weak points, and pushing one another until both of us had sweat dripping from our brows. I cursed under my breath as a coy smile curved at the side of Gilenâs mouthâthe bastard was toying with me.
âIf you only came to our lesson todayâŚâ
Weâll see about that.
I lunged for him at a blistering speed I knew he would have difficulty matching. I made a connection with my fist on his jaw, but sadly, that was only the bait to lure me in. Gilen took the hitâ losing the battle only to earn his victory in the war. He followed the momentum of my punch, moving backward as he ducked under me and grabbed my wrist, bending it behind my back and twisting my arm.
Ouch. âDammit,â I cursed. With one move, he could dislocate my arm from its socket. I was stubborn⌠But I also had enough sense to know when to bow out. âI yield,â I said as I hung my head and gritted my teeth. I did not like to lose.
âGood⌠Now, next time come to the training session.â His dark brow arched with a cunning half-smirk that made me want to turn around and punch him in his smug, handsome face. My animal sent a pulsing wave of power agreeing with me, even though I knew it was pointless.
Losing was one thing, but I refused to be a sore loser.
Gilen released me, and I moved away, stripping off my now sweat-soaked loose shirt and pants. My black undergarments were all I kept on my body, enjoying the sea breeze on this warm, late summer day. The winds suddenly shifted, lifting my hair off my shoulders, and gently cooling my neck. It encircled my nearly six-foot frame before dancing off in the other direction, where Gilen stood in the shallow rolling waves.
Suddenly, Gilenâs entire body stiffen. His eyes darkened and locked onto my gaze as I threw my clothes on the sand next to his. The intensity of his stare made my hands tremble, and my body shake. Danger. My animal stirred inside my chest, acutely aware of him, but she didnât encourage me to run away.
I closed my amber-colored eyes and lifted my chin, detecting a faint change in the air from Gilenâs scent. My eyes snapped to meet his as my breath caught in my chest.
I swallowed nervously. âGilen?â
Bravely or stupidlyâI was not quite sure which one yetâI stepped toward him to try and help, but it seemed to do the opposite. His nostrils flared, and his fists clenched so hard at his side that his knuckles turned white.
âSkylarâŚBack. The. Fuck. Up. Now!â Gilen was visibly shaking, but he remained frozen where he stood. His eyes looked more feral than human right now, and I could feel his power, his magic, rising around him.
Oh, no. His animal was trying to break free. Questions danced inside my mind. What caused this sudden change? Why was Gilen holding back? Why was his animal trying to break free now?
âGilen. Come back. Come back to meâŚâ I donât know where my commanding voice came from. Some spark inside of me was pushing my instincts into overdrive. It wasnât the time for his animal to emergeânot yet.Â
Gilen shook his head and forced himself to turn away from me. His blond hair fell in front of his face as his shoulders hunched forward. Every muscle in his body flexed, trying to fight the urge to shift.
âGilen!â I didnât yell, but my voice deepened. My power pulsed, begging to break free. Without thinking, I moved in front of Gilen and flung my arms around his neck. I pulled him in close and pushed my body up against his. I could feel his resistance as I tightened my hold on him. He was a solid wall of muscle, and I was naively asking him to soften and bend to my hold. If his animal broke free right now, he would be in grave danger. There was no full moon. No one was here to guide him through his first shift. Gilen could lose himself forever to his animal form.
Desperation pulled at me, and I released my own power from its internal cage. âDo not shift. Release him.â My words thrummed with my animal's magic, my eyes glowing. But I had no choice. I would not lose him.
Gilen turned his head and inhaled a deep breath against the nape of my neck, sending chills of excitement down each vertebra of my spine into my toes. He was marking my scent, putting the smell and feel of my power into memory. Strong arms wrapped around my waist as he picked me up and held me closer to him. He rubbed his nose along my collarbone, and his lips hovered over my skin, daring to make contact.
Deep, slow breaths countered my own racing heart. Gilen slowly released me back onto the shore, his hands moving down my lower back, his touch lighter, but still a burning presence. A low growl emerged from deep within his chest that made the hairs on my neck stand at attention. Gilenâs scent surrounded my senses, causing my stomach to flip.
I dared to pull myself away and release my arms from around his shoulders, allowing my hands to trace the bulging muscles on his biceps and shoulders. I couldnât bring myself to pull away from him just yet, though⌠I didnât have the courage to look at him. What would he think of me now that he felt a taste of the true power I have tried to keep hidden?
âLook at me.â Gilenâs voice was deep and raspy. Almost like the claws of his animal had scrapped at his insides, trying to break free. I hesitatedâŚafraid of how he would react or what he would say. âNow.â
My head turned, and my eyes snapped open to meet his.
Fire.
I knew he would see the fire glowing in my eyes from the well of magic I kept caged inside my soul. My amber eyes were rare, even among the High Fae and human races. When I allowed my power to break through the surface, my eyes danced to the freedom of the ignited blaze contained within.
Neither one of us movedâŚor uttered a sound. It felt like days, even months, in those few seconds together on the shifting sand. Gilenâs right hand reached up to cup the nape of my neck. His fingers laced through my long, wild hair, gently pulling it to his nose as his cheek brushed against mine. He inhaled a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment before snapping them open once more.
The fire, the hunger, I saw lingering in his golden depths took my breath away. Gilen had never looked at me like that before.
I didnât know what to do, and I donât think he knew either. This gesture of memorizing anotherâs scent was only reserved for mating among shifters. To allow anotherâs presence to mold into our memory so they were an extension of ourselves.
Gilen bent to whisper in my ear, âYour fire does not scare me, Skylar. I always knew it was there. It just needed to come out and find its match to help tame it.â
HolyâŚshit. If only he knew this was just a taste of what I fought to contain. What my animal held. Shifters respected power. It was irrefutable, undeniable, with our alpha always holding the deepest wells of it. But to reveal how much I truly hadâŚas a half-breed. Well, I wasnât brave enough to test how that theory would pan out with the our pack.
A rush of heat danced across the surface of my skin where our half-naked bodies were still entangled together. I could sense his desire rise in turn with my own, causing a deep pulsing sensation to build between the apex of my legs. The thought of being with Gilen had crossed my mind more than a few times, but this reality held little to no comparison. I shifted in his arms to press my brow to his and felt myself sink deeper into his hold.
âIâm not a helpless, dainty female that you can easily claim,â I challenged as my amber eyes snapped open to meet his. âYouâll have to fight for me.â Gilenâs lips curled into a smile, mere breaths away from my own. I huffed a laugh and easily slithered out of his grasp. If he wanted to, I knew he could keep me there, but he allowed me to slip away. âRace you to the cliffs,â I yelled as I took off at a sprint, knowing he was not far behind me.
If you, like me, are into Epic Fantasy Romance and its Young Adult various renditions, you will feel right in familiar territory from the first few pages, if not words, of this story.
Â
A feisty, unruly, extraordinary female hero/narrator, ridiculously detailed descriptions of male handsomeness, fantastical creatures (shifters, high fae, and gifted or otherwise humans) at odds, a possible love triangle, repetitive epithets ("deadly", "deathly", "meticulous") or exclamations ("Gods!", "Gods be damned" and the f word) for emphasis, and of course an intoxicating, slow burning romance. All the tropes of the genre are here. And yet...
Â
J. E. Larson is an unmistakably well-versed fan of Fantasy and all its sub-genres. A fact communicated first obviously by making her endearing hero, Skylar, an ever-curious bookworm herself, seeking escape, but also knowledge and inspiration. And then in more subtle ways, via many allusions to everything from Richelle Mead (Vampire Academy) and Stephenie Meyer (Twilight), to Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games) and E. L. James (Fifty Shades of Grey, which started out as Twilight fan fiction), even J. R. R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings) and beyond.
Â
But as soon as you make the connection and get the reference, Larson unsettles it. And so, propels her story into twists and turns that defy expectations, all the while building a relentless, inescapable suspense that hits the ground running from the first few chapters and doesn't pause till the final, jaw dropping, cascade of events.
 Â
Yes, the high fae can easily be mistaken, either for vampires or for Tolkienesque elves, but they are very much alive and flawed to be neither the immortal former nor the almost divine latter. The love triangle development is anything but predictable, and (spoiler alert!) can instead be read as a shrewd interrogation of toxic, manipulative masculinity versus a healthy, respectful relationship.
The adoring descriptions of the male body, the emphatic epithets and exclamations and the few but explicit, irresistibly juicy, and imaginative sex scenes may bring to mind Fifty Shades, but only fleetingly as they are better deployed, in a more balanced and effective way, readily interpreted as the raw, honest voice/confession of the young, spirited protagonist. And although Larson's world building (complete with a hand-drawn map of Valdor) is potentially, surprisingly, as rich and deep as Tolkien's, hers has a distinctively female point of view.Â
Â
Unsurprisingly, this is only book 1 of the Valdor series. It culminates in a thrilling cliffhanger, which leaves a lot of intriguing questions, both about this world, its history, and origins, as well as Skylar, her hybrid nature, powers, and complicated romance, unresolved. And Gods be damned, book 2, A Trial of the Heart, feels too far away!