Alessandra has been in love before, and it's not a mistake she plans to make again. When the first boy she fell for unceremoniously broke her heart, she murdered him and covered up the crime. Now she collects lovers and leaves behind a string of broken hearts of her own. But she has higher ambitions. While her father works to make an advantageous marriage for her demure older sister, Alessandra schemes to woo the mysterious Shadow King the enigmatic young leader who commands a host of shadows and won't let anyone touch him. Undaunted and politically savvy, Alessandra plans to win his hand, assassinate him, and then take the throne for herself. But the Shadow King is as cunning as she, and in him, she may have met her match. Though she never makes her dark-hearted heroine too truly villainous, Levenseller (Warrior of the Wild, 2019) deftly examines a woman's choices in a world that, while more progressive than ours, still finds ways to constrain. A viciously satisfying romance featuring two well-matched opponents.--Maggie Reagan Copyright 2020 Booklist