Can’t Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted at Wishful Endings, to bring light to the books we are excited to read. Usually, they’re upcoming releases. It’s based on Waiting on Wednesday, created by the fabulous Jill at Breaking the Spine.
Title: Serpent & Dove
Author: Shelby Mahurin
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy Romance
Release Date: September 3, 2019
Summary:
For her sixteenth birthday, Louise le Blanc’s mother gave her three things: a sacrificial altar, a ritual knife, and a wicked scar.Lou’s death would have ended the ancient war between the Church and witches, but Lou refuses to become a martyr. Forsaking her coven, she escapes to the gloomy city of Cesarine and hides her magic as a thief in the criminal underworld. But life in Cesarine has its own dangers. Huntsmen roam the city revered as holy men. Witches burn without trial. And the Archbishop, the Church’s austere patriarch, revels in violence.
As a huntsman, Reid Diggory lives by one verse: thou shalt not suffer a witch to live.
He’s devoted his entire life to eradicating the occult and making his surrogate father, the Archbishop, proud. Finally given the chance to capture a witch of his own, Reid is devastated when a foul-mouthed thief thwarts him—and doubly devastated when she too disappears. Hell-bent on bringing her to justice, Reid vows she won’t escape again. But when Lou tricks him into public scandal trying to avoid capture, the two are forced into an impossible situation—marriage.
Marriage to a huntsman could provide real protection from the witches—if Lou can convince Reid she isn’t one herself. The secret proves difficult to keep as Lou begins practicing magic in secret within the heart of the Church, determined to prepare for her mother’s inevitable return. As time passes, however, Lou discovers yet another danger lurking: her own growing feelings for her husband. But Reid is still dangerous. He’s just as likely to tie her to the stake as defend her if he learns her true identity. With enemies closing in—and more than her own life at stake—Lou must decide who she can trust before it’s too late…and she’s not the only one with a secret.
I actually came across this novel on my Twitter feed after Shelby announced the book cover, and I was FLOORED. I read the synopsis and was immediately taken with the idea of a forced marriage between enemy races. There are hints of morally grey villains, and it definitely sounds like a book that I’d spend my whole wallet on. EpicReads describes the novel as a mix of French folklore and witchy history, and that alone had my eyes set on it! It also helps that the cover is absolutely gorgeous.
What are the releases you’re looking forward to? Let me know in the comments below! 