A Shadow in the Ember Armentrout Jennifer L. (2022)

Seraphena Mierel is born beneath the veil of the Primals, and her future is decided before she can choose it. Selected to honor a desperate bargain made by her ancestor to save his people, she must leave her former life behind and offer herself as Consort to the Primal of Death. Yet her true destiny is Lasania’s most closely guarded secret. She is not a protected Maiden but an assassin with one purpose: make the Primal of Death fall in love, become his weakness, and then kill him. If she fails, her kingdom will slowly perish under the Rot. Sera has always known herself as Chosen, Consort, Assassin, Weapon, and a blood-soaked specter. Then the Primal’s unexpected words and actions begin to drive away the darkness within her, while his seductive touch awakens a passion she has never allowed herself to feel. But Sera has never had a choice. Her life is forfeit either way, forever marked by Life and Death.