Lord Cassia has returned after disappear three years ago in the midst of war... and the kingdom will never be the same. He has been tortured, beaten, and held captive by the enemy kingdom....a kingdom that belongs to the new queen. Queen Jehan has married King Rayan and with their marriage comes a peace treaty between the two kingdoms and yet upon Cassia’s return things start to test this peace. Cassia only wants to return to his family, to his brother and his friends, to live a peaceful life after enduring three painful years of imprisonment and seeing his friends die. However after an assassination attempt against the King and Queen’s new born son and new strange events threaten the royals, Cassia takes it upon himself to figure out who is behind this and why they are targeting them. He is joined by a beautiful and lively historian who he meet on his way home.... since she stole his horse. Soon Cassia and Lena (the historian) are steeped in dark royal family secrets, a mystery that keeps opening doors to more questions, and a secret that could shatter the peace between the two kingdoms. This was a wonderful read! I enjoyed the twist and turns in the mystery and the ultimate reveal by the end. Having Cassia be the main protagonist was great, you could see how he is still recovering and how he struggles with his new freedom. This was a thrilling read with a great mystery at the heart of it.

*Thanks Netgalley and Clarion Books (formerly HMH Children's Books), Clarion Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*