When during an errand at the age of 17, she meets Valten, the Duke of Hagenheim’s son, who is also the boy she’s been secretly in love for a long time, and when she learns that he will soon throw a party, she knows she must attend. Gisella used to be happy as a child, but after her father died, her stepmother has literally made her life a living hell, going as far as pushing her to become the house’s servant. Here we have another evil stepmother story. But what can he do when she is promised to someone else? Sophie finds here her chance to escape while Gave falls hard in love with her. She wants to escape, but at the last minute, Gabe arrives from Hagenheim Castle with a crazy story: Sophie is engaged to his older brother, so she is his future wife. In the third Melanie Dickerson Hagenheim book, we meet Sophie, who hates her stepmother and her jealousy.

The book is a medieval retelling of The Beauty and the Beast. But the more she learns about him, the more she realizes that there is more to him than meets the eye. He is scarred both by physique and by emotion. Annabel wanted to enter the church, but the said debt, which culminated into her rich merchant father’s death, forced her to work for Lord Ranulf as a servant. But does he feel the same for her? And how does him being engaged to someone else come into play>Īnnabel has always led a sheltered life – albeit she was rather neglected by her parents – until they got into debt.

At the same time, she also begins feeling something strange for Hamlin, something that is new to her: love. Her first test comes when Lord Hamlin is injured. Worse, just the sight of him makes her very uncomfortable. Still, she must get over it and become useful at the castle since failure is not an option, not since it would mean being shipped back home where she’d have to marry a merchant her mother chose for her, someone she doesn’t want. She is also a bit squeamish since the sight of blood makes her queasy. After all, a girl of her means doesn’t often get such opportunities in life. When she is appointed as a Healer’s apprentice at Hagenheim Castle, she is surprised but also elated.

The Piper’s Pursuit, (Hagenheimr #10), 2019

A Spy's Devotion by Melanie Dickerson