Garden of the Cursed: 1

Product Information

When Adrius Falcrest, Marlow's old friend and scion of one of Caraza's most affluent spell-making families, asks her to help break a life-threatening curse, Marlow wants nothing to do with the boy who spurned her a year ago. But a new lead in her mother’s case makes Marlow realize that the only way to get the answers she desperately seeks is to help Adrius and return to Evergarden society—even if it means suffering through a fake love affair with him to avoid drawing suspicion from the conniving Five Families. Nothing short of genius .” —Jennifer Lynn Barnes, #1 New York Times -bestselling author of The Inheritance Games series, on Garden of the Cursed Adrius is a scion and heir to one of these families, while Marlow was allowed to be educated alongside him and the other noblesse nouveau since her mother worked as a chevalier to one of the Five Families. She was ostracized by everyone there aside from Adrius; however, their friendship existed in private, when he would appear at her apartment to bother her. A year ago, even that was ruined when he publicly wanted nothing to do with her. A few days later, Marlow’s mother disappeared and she flees to the Marshes, not seeing Adrius until a chance encounter that later leads to him asking her to break his curse. I lied,” she said, nudging his arm with her boot as he groaned in pain. “I’m not going to ask a second time.”

A fresh, fascinating magic system, an intricate blend of fantasy meets mystery, and a riveting fake dating romance— I devoured this in a single day." —Amanda Foody, New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of the All of Us Villains duology Marlow heads into the theatre and finds Corrine. Marlow asks her to come with her and they go to find Vivian, Corrine's replacement for a prima ballerina. Marlow accuses Vivian of cursing Corrine so that she could get the lead role instead of her, and Marlow breaks Corrine's curse by burning the card she stole from Flint. Thus, the fake relationship has a certain degree of tension underlying it, not just because of the unresolved feelings between the two of them but also because with it, Marlow has to return to a world that reminds her of her mother. She can’t help but feel even more out of place now. Everyone also seems suspicious, possibly having a hand either in Adrius’s curse or in her mother’s disappearance. The blade pressed into her skin, and Marlow bit down on a pathetic whimper as Bane leaned into her, his breath on her cheek as warm and wet as a summer storm. I loved the Age of Darkness trilogy and was so hyped for Katy Rose Pool’s next series since the announcement! It just sounded so fun, and the fake dating trope definitely didn’t hurt either. In Garden of the Cursed, a cursebreaker reluctantly agrees to help break the curse of the old friend who snubbed her a year ago, which turns into a fake relationship so she can investigate a lead on her mother’s disappearance.

Personalized picks at your fingertips

Garden of the Cursed is a fantastic and original fantasy with a dynamic protagonist, a unique plot, vivid world-building, and a chemistry-laden enemies-to-lovers romance!

Garden of the Cursed is one of the most original fantasy novels I’ve read in years. Masterful world-building, a deftly developed mystery, and a compelling romance round out this sharp, intelligent read.” —C. L. Herman, New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of the All of Us Villains duology You want to tell me why a midlevel ship-breaker foreman spent over two hundred pearls to curse the prima ballerina in the Monarch Ballet?” Tropes: guy falls first, friends to lovers, fake relationship, second chance, hate to, sarcastic witty banter, “court” intrigue, jealous guy, girl falls first, slow-burn fantasy romance. You sure can!” she chirped, shouldering off the wall. “You can start by telling me why you cursed the prima ballerina of the Monarch Ballet.”As Marlow works to break a curse that plagues Adrius, she learns of ties to her mother’s disappearance, and Marlow isn’t sure who she can trust. With Adrius’s life at risk, old feelings resurfacing, conflicts with friends, and a ton of political turmoil, Marlow must use all of her guile to figure out how everything connects. It’s such an interesting and layered plot, filled with intense and unexpected twists and revelations. Power, control, secrets, manipulations, political intrigue, betrayal, and more plague the characters, especially Marlow as she tries to find out more about her mother, break Adrius’s curse, and avoid the gang issues that seem tied to everything.