In the fifth novel of the thrilling Bridge Kingdom series, a princess promised in marriage falls for the wrong brother, and their forbidden love threatens to destroy a fragile peace between kingdoms—from the New York Times bestselling author of A Fate Inked in Blood.
A commander who bled to defend her people, Ahnna is haunted by two beliefs: The first is that she failed to protect Ithicana from invasion. And the second is that saving her homeland means leaving it behind forever.
The Maridrinians left Ithicana in ruins and its people impoverished. So when the wealthy kingdom of Harendell claims Ahnna as a bride for its crown prince, she is prepared to do whatever it takes to gain influence as the future queen—and to control the gold that comes with the throne.
Yet Ahnna swiftly discovers that beneath the beautiful surface of Harendell’s court is a dark underbelly of schemes, duplicity, and the pursuit of power. The only individual who holds himself above the politics is not her future husband but his infuriating half brother, James. And as she begins to question whether Harendell is the ally it claims to be, Ahnna finds herself drawn into a forbidden attraction to the wrong prince.
As deadly plots tighten around her, Ahnna must decide whether saving her people will be achieved as a bride . . . or as a blade.
Don’t miss any of Danielle L. Jensen's Bridge Kingdom series: THE BRIDGE KINGDOM • THE TRAITOR QUEEN • THE INADEQUATE HEIR • THE ENDLESS WAR • THE TWISTED THRONE (April 8, 2025)
Release date:
April 8, 2025
Publisher:
Del Rey
Print pages:
512
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All her life, Ahnna Kertell had held authority in Ithicana. Princess. Commander. Regent. All positions that she’d used in defense of her homeland.
Today, she gave up all her authority, though her goal remained the same: do whatever it took to protect the people of Ithicana.
Ostensibly, her abdication was necessary to fulfill the terms of the Fifteen-Year Treaty—to become a bride of peace for the crown prince of Harendell. An alliance her mother had signed all those long years ago. A vow that Ahnna had reaffirmed to King Edward of Harendell in order to gain his support in the war against the Maridrinians.
And not once in her life had Ahnna Kertell broken her word.
Sitting on a rocky ledge on the highest point of Northwatch, Ahnna surveyed the island holding the mouth of the northern end of Ithicana’s famed bridge, watching the traffic in the market below her.
She’d never much liked this island.
Southwatch, the island she’d lived on and protected for nearly a third of her life, was green and lush, the buildings blending into the landscape much as they did throughout the rest of Ithicana, making the whole of it seem alive and nearly sentient at times.
Northwatch looked like nothing more than a huge block of rock that some giant or god had cast into the sea. Three times the size of Southwatch, it was covered with warehouses and silos and feedlots, the mouth of the bridge contained by an enormous fortress, the perimeter of the island bristling with stone fortifications that held Ithicana’s famed shipbreakers. Three large piers jutted into the sea, and with several ships in port, the merchant crews were busy unloading cattle that would be run through the bridge and sold in the Southwatch market.
Even from her lofty perch, the smell of the animals filled Ahnna’s nose, their calls of distress over the rough passage across the strait loud as they ran through chutes into large pens. Already, a dozen prospective buyers gathered around to inspect the stock. It would be only a matter of minutes before the jarring racket of a Harendellian-style auction took over the island as they bid for the remaining stock that Aren hadn’t purchased to feed the people.
That, more than the landscape, was why Ahnna didn’t like Northwatch: because it didn’t feel like Ithicana at all.
A boot scraped against rock, and Ahnna instinctively reached for the knife at her waist before relaxing at the sight of her twin brother.
Aren lowered himself onto the rock next to her and dangled his legs off the edge. “You’re jumpy.”
Ahnna shrugged. “No Ithicanian worth his salt makes that much noise climbing a cliff—I assumed you were a Maridrinian rat we’d neglected to exterminate.”
Aren’s jaw tightened. Rather than calling her out for the comment, he gestured to the ships below. “The Amaridian vessel was full of fortified wine. The captain invited me to sample his wares, and he was generous with his pours.”
“Since when can’t you hold your drink?” Her tone was more acidic than she’d intended, and Ahnna winced. She and Aren had been flinging jabs at each other since before they’d learned to speak, but though she loved her brother dearly, her jabs no longer held affection. “I’m sorry.”
Silence stretched between them, and then Aren shook his head and sighed. “You don’t have to go, Ahnna. The Harendellians are practical—they’ll be more than willing to accept beneficial trade terms in lieu of you as a bride. I’ll negotiate a deal with Edward. You can be back in command of Southwatch within a fortnight.”
God help her, but there was a part of her soul that desperately wanted to take the offer. The part that was terrified to leave. But allowing it to make decisions would make her a coward. “No. Not only did I give my word, but I already gave them concessions in order to gain their assistance with Maridrina.”
“It’s not breaking your word if the Harendellians agree to a change of terms. All they care about is the perception they’re coming out ahead in the transaction, and there are things I can offer that don’t cost us money. Besides, it’s Mother’s word, not yours.”
Ahnna’s eyes fixed on the last cow being prodded off the ship. The handlers poked it in the haunches with sticks to get it to move while the animal lowed, head swaying back and forth, disoriented. It started down the gangway, and Ahnna’s heart lurched as it slipped and fell, sliding down the slick surface. It struck out with its feet, the boards on the sides of the gangway pulling loose.
She rose to her feet despite knowing there was nothing to be done if the cow went into the water. It thrashed about, hind legs sliding over open air, and Ahnna sucked in a breath. But then the cow righted itself. Calling loudly, it trotted down the chute to join the rest of its herd, little knowing that it had escaped one death only to be delivered into the hands of another. “My word matters to me,” she said. “When I met with Edward to secure his aid in liberating Northwatch, I recommitted to my intention to wed William as part of the deal. I’m not putting Ithicana at risk for the sake of my feelings.”
Given Aren had done just that, twice, she might as well have stuck a knife in his back and twisted.
Instantly regretting her words, Ahnna watched her brother rise to pace back and forth along the ledge, his temper fraying. It always did when they were together, and she knew it was her doing. Knew that she needed to stop punishing him. Except her anger, always simmering in her core, refused to concede.
Aren rounded on her. “This is because of Lara, isn’t it? You intend to make me choose between my wife and my sister.”
It was about Lara. And it wasn’t.
Once the traitor queen, but now the queen of legend. Slayer of Ithicana’s enemies, liberator of the people, chosen of the kingdom’s guardians, and soon-to-be mother of its heir. Many had forgotten that Lara had caused the death of thousands of Ithicanians.
Ahnna had not.
“I’m not asking you to choose anything,” she answered. “I’m going to Harendell. End of discussion, Your Grace.”
She tried to step past him to reach the path leading down the steep incline to the market below, but Aren blocked her way. “This is madness,” he snarled. “Harendell is not like Ithicana. They’ll force you to give up everything you love, make you wear gowns and corsets, and imprison you in parlors to do needlework all day. You’ll go from being the commander of Southwatch to being a Harendellian prince’s—”
“Wife?” she interrupted, because if he finished the statement the way he no doubt intended, she’d have to hit him. And because she didn’t want him to put voice to everything she’d be giving up. “What I’ll be is the future queen of Harendell.”
“Which, given it means a life of teatime and embroidery, is the last thing you want.” Aren lifted his hands to rub his temples, then met her gaze. “I know you don’t want to go, Ahnna. Ithicana is everything to you.”
She didn’t want to go. Yet neither could she bear to stay. “It’s because Ithicana is everything to me that I’m going. Ithicana is weak, Aren. More than that, we’re broke. Maridrina has nothing to export, and Valcotta is funneling everything it can into Maridrina. The only revenue we have is the tolls paid by Harendell and Amarid, and they are half what they were before the invasion. We need gold, and lots of it, to rebuild what was lost and keep our people fed while we do it.” She gestured to the cattle. “How many of those cows did you buy to be butchered and distributed to your people?”
“Fifty head,” he muttered.
“And how did you pay for them?” When he didn’t answer, she added, “How did you pay for the shipment of grain you bought yesterday? The barrels of nails? The lumber? The wool?”
Silence.
“How much do you owe Harendellian and Amaridian merchants, Aren? How in debt are we to the north? How long can you keep buying on credit until they realize our credit is no good?”
More silence.
“As soon as they realize you can’t pay, they’ll know just how weak Ithicana is. And the weak are always the greatest targets. It will be pirates first, but how long until one of the northern nations takes a page from Silas’s book and goes after the bridge itself? Would you like me to remind you how it goes for Ithicana when we lose the bridge?”
“I don’t need you to explain the stakes.”
“Don’t you?” She glared at him. “Even once we’ve overcome this hurdle, too many people know their way past our defenses for our shores to ever be fully protected again. I can do more to defend Ithicana as queen of Harendell than I ever could as commander of Southwatch.”
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