Beloved Daughter by Ellis Brightwell
In 589 AD in the kingdom of Kent, seventeen-year-old Ardelle flees men who accuse her of wielding lightning to murder a wealthy thane. The king’s daughter, Myrah, imprisons Ardelle and forces her to swear an oath of obedience. Secure in her father’s seaside sanctuary, Myrah comes to know Ardelle not as another one of those wicked “sisters in red” who steal children from their mothers, but as one who steals Myrah’s heart against her will.
With it, Ardelle steals a kingdom.
Their tempestuous relationship must weather the birth of Ardelle’s daughter, the intrigues of Frankish usurpers, and a black plague that sweeps across the land. For the crime of winning her freedom, Ardelle comes face to face with the dark boatman in the realm of the dead who demands a blood-price lest he take from her everyone she loves.
It may be best for Ardelle to submit to him and leave Myrah behind.
About the author, Ellis Brightwell:
Ellis Brightwell writes fantasy, high and low, out of an appreciation for the imaginary extravagances that lie hidden beneath the veneer of this mundane, ordinary world.