His throne was stolen from him.

The Bandit Queen will help reclaim it—

With the condition that he wed her.

Elspeth has performed her greatest heist yet: stealing the Sacred Prince from the capital just as a release of dark magic turned its citizens against him. That was the easy part. Now she has to safely deliver the reluctant refugee across the province to her camp where he believes the Bandit King will bargain with his army to help Otello reclaim his stolen throne. Except, she is the Bandit King, and that bargain is a marriage arrangement.

Otello's life was turned upside-down in a single moment. Now he's forced to ally himself with the woman who betrayed him with a kiss if he wants to survive, let alone have a chance at seizing back the seat of his empire from the necromancer who wants his blood. As does everything else, it seems, from vampires to gysts. All that is, except the one the magic in his veins has imprinted on, the right hand of the Bandit King who he knows better than to trust with anything, let alone his heart.

He is prophesied to save the Empire. She is destined to destroy him.