**From the *New York Times* bestselling author Carissa Broadbent, comes *The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King,* the gutting second installment of the Crowns of Nyaxia series, full of heartbreak, redemption, blood intrigue and heart-pounding action.** *Love is a sacrifice at the altar of power.* In the wake of the Kejari, everything Oraya once thought to be true has been destroyed. A prisoner in her own kingdom, grieving the only family she ever had, and reeling from a gutting betrayal, she no longer even knows the truth of her own blood. She’s left only with one certainty: she cannot trust anyone, least of all Raihn. Raihn’s own nobles are none too eager to accept a Turned king, especially one who was once a slave. And the House of Blood digs their claws into the kingdom, threatening to tear it apart from the inside. When Raihn offers Oraya a secret alliance, taking the deal is her only chance at reclaiming her kingdom–and gaining her vengeance against the lover who betrayed her. But to do so, she’ll need to harness a devastating ancient power, intertwined with her father’s greatest secrets. But with enemies closing in on all sides, nothing is as it seems. As she unravels her past and faces her future, Oraya finds herself forced to choose between the bloody reality of seizing power—and the devastating love that could be her downfall. **Crowns of Nyaxia Reading Order:** *The Serpent & the Wings of Night* The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King The Songbird & the Heart of Stone Crowns of Nyaxia Standalones *Six Scorched Roses (short novel)* Slaying the Vampire Conqueror