The Truth-Tellers Bargain

She cannot lie. He refuses to kneel. Alethea has never been free. Born an Oracle with the power to speak undeniable truth, she has spent her life trapped in a gilded cage — her gift wielded by her mother, the ruthless Queen of Lenorea, to silence dissent and tighten her grip on the throne. When Alethea speaks a prophecy that threatens the crown itself, escape becomes her only chance at survival. But freedom has a price. Fleeing the palace, she falls right into the hands of Nakir Hasan, the cursed and exiled heir leading the rebellion against Lenorea's rule. He expects a loyal weapon of the queen — another tool of the throne. Instead he finds a young woman desperate to escape the very power she was forced to serve. So they strike a bargain. Alethea will help him reclaim the crown. In return, Nakir will grant her the freedom she was never allowed. Yet as war looms and prophecy begins tightening its grip on the future, their uneasy alliance shifts into something far more dangerous — and their unlikely pull to each other grows stronger with every step toward war. Because the closer Alethea gets to freedom, the harder it becomes to walk away from the man who promised it. And when prophecy demands its price, she may have to choose between the future of a kingdom and the freedom she has fought her entire life to claim. Because the greatest threat to their bargain may not be the prophecy Alethea spoke . . . but the freedom she seeks, and what — or who — it will cost her to claim it. Perfect for readers who love: enemies-to-lovers tension morally gray rebel leaders dangerous bargains found family prophecy and fate slow-burn romantasy epic fantasy rebellions The Truth-Teller's Bargain is the first book in The Oracle's Duet, set in the sweeping romantasy world of The Songs of Senmarria.