She hides from the world. He’s the monster who refuses to let her vanish.
Rose has spent her life running. From hunger, from pain, from anyone who dared to care for her. Once a street thief, then a reluctant priestess, then a prize in a gladiator’s arena, she’s learned that safety only comes from silence. From disappearing into dreams and a false reality that has always kept her safe.
Until Gunnar finds her.
The troll warrior with eyes like storm clouds and hands that could shatter stone. The moment he sees her, he knows she’s his, and that claiming her will take more than brute strength. It will take patience. Trust. The slow, dangerous surrender of her heart.
But the realm is changing. Humans are flooding into the troll kingdom, and the king has declared bridal games—a brutal contest to bind humans and trolls in marriage. Rose is fragile, untrained, and has no wish to compete. Gunnar can’t bear to see her offered to another.
So he enters the games himself. To fight for her. To prove his worth. Even if it means pretending he could ever want anyone but her.
Because monsters may not dream, but for Rose, Gunnar will tear apart the waking world itself.
The series
Beneath the surface of familiar fairy tales lies a shadowed world, steeped in forgotten bargains and the echoes of ancient magic. In this richly woven fantasy series, Emma Hamm reimagines the folklore we think we know—giving voice to the monsters beneath and the mortals who dare to love them.
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The story unfolds in an underworld shaped by both beauty and ruin, where creatures born of myth and curse guard their secrets fiercely. At its heart is a romance that defies kingdoms and curses, told with lyrical prose and an atmospheric pull that lingers long after the final page. There’s a haunting stillness to the world Hamm creates—a place where every whispered promise might come true, and every truth demands a price.
What sets this series apart is not just the allure of forbidden love or the pull of an ancient realm hidden below. It’s the depth of emotion stitched into every encounter, the way each character wrestles with their own darkness, and the slow-burning tension that simmers beneath every exchanged glance and shattered illusion.
Dark fantasy lovers will feel at home in this series’ ethereal gloom, where gothic romance and slow-burn intrigue collide in unexpected ways. It’s not about heroes and villains—it’s about choices, sacrifice, and the power of desire to reshape even the most cursed of fates.
If you're drawn to reimagined folklore, atmospheric world-building, and morally complex characters tangled in dangerous enchantments, this is a descent worth taking. Just be warned—the deeper you go, the harder it is to come back.
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