Enter Shadowbone Academy where the shadows come alive, the professors are dark gods, and humans fight for immortality.

When I get locked in my local library overnight, I look on the bright side: I'm surrounded by smutty books, my backpack is full of snacks, and a cushion fort is calling my name. What I don't account for is the four powerful, breathtakingly beautiful, and lethally dangerous shadow warriors who crash my impromptu slumber party.

Professors from Shadowbone Academy, an elite war college in the shadow realm where students train to become ruthless shadow warriors, they're here for me. Unfortunately, my strengths include stubbing my big toe, dreaming about book boyfriends, and enjoying chocolate like my life depends on it. I'm not cut out for fighting shadow monsters, but enrollment isn't negotiable, and I'm not ready to die just yet.

To make matters worse? Yeah, I'm pretty sure these four professors are my fated mates no matter how they try to deny it. I swear, someone is definitely having a laugh, and it's not just me.

Let the fun times begin.

A Curse so Cruel is a fun but dark(ish) why choose fantasy romance novel, and the first book in the Fated Mates of Shadowbone Academy series. It features a clumsy, relatable heroine, and her droolworthy, reluctant mates who will do anything to possess her.

This series is connected to the Game of Psychos series, but can easily be read as a standalone series. For a full list of content warnings, please visit the author's website.

Published
August 29, 2025
Where to find this book
External links open a book search at the selected retailer. Availability may vary.
Fated Mates of Shadowbone Academy

The series

Full series details →
Risingshadow

Anticipation distribution

How anonymous reader anticipation is distributed across the 1–10 scale.

100
90
81
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
Risingshadow

Be the first reviewer

Sign in and write the first reader review.

Risingshadow

Readers Also Enjoyed