This book really is a classic Alessa case of ‘I want a thing!’ and then I proceeded to make it everyone’s problem. I wanted a beast who stays a beast. I wanted gothic horror vibes with a crumbling château that feels alive. I wanted a heroine who doesn’t need saving — she needs someone to finally see her. (I didn’t want Hermes to randomly turn up like the Easter Egg he is, but he did anyway because he’s Hermes).
And I wanted a monster with a knot and a spur. Obviously.
Delphi and Tenebrys have been living in my head for over a year now, and letting them loose into the world feels like watching your weird feral children finally leave home to go and hiss at people. I’m emotional. I’m exhausted. I’ve been refreshing my Amazon dashboard like a completely normal person because I haven’t had a release since last October, and the launch nerves never really go away.
For those of you who followed along on Ream while I was writing this — thank you. Your screaming in the comments kept me going through every “why did I think I could write this” spiral. You already know these two, and their messed-up family of shifter monsters have my whole ass heart.
For everyone else: you’re about to meet a beast king who hasn’t been touched in thirty years, a witch who’s been hiding her magic her whole life, and a found family of cursed shifters who would burn kingdoms for each other. There’s fae drama. There’s a cat with wings. There are spicy scenes that I’ve been told are “a lot” (complimentary).
What you’re getting into:
- Beauty and the Beast retelling — dark, gothic, the beast stays a beast
- Monster hero with fur, fangs, horns, a tail, a spur, and a knot 👀
- Enemies to lovers / forced proximity / fated mates
- Heroine discovering she’s way more powerful than she knew
- “Touch them and I will end you” energy on both sides.
- Found family who would absolutely help hide (or eat) a body for you.
- Spice level: Hotter than normal Alessa books. Put your pearls on and get ready to clutch them.
Content note: Again…this one is darker than my usual. There’s violence, trauma, complicated parental relationships, and some genuinely gross bits. Full trigger warnings are in the back of the book for those who want specifics.
If you read it and love it, please consider leaving a review or rating on Amazon—it genuinely helps more than you know, not just for the Zon to show it to new readers, but also to let me know you want me to write another one (or six) in this world. It’s a passion project, so I really need to know if you want more, before I will add it to my ‘To be written’ pile.
Thank you for being here. Thank you for reading my weird little monster romances. I couldn’t do this without you.
Happy reading, and may your beast kings be devoted and your châteaux be haunted.
Alessa xx
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