The Foxglove King

by Hannah Whitten · 2023

When thirteen‑year‑old Lore flees a secret cult lurking beneath Dellaire’s catacombs, she vows never to be found again. Ten years later she survives as a poison‑maker for a shadowy cartel, quietly wielding Mortem—the forbidden magic of death that lets her raise the dead. A botched deal exposes her power, and the king’s elite warrior‑monks, the Presque Mort, seize her, expecting a pyre. Instead, Sainted King August offers a perilous bargain: use her necromancy to uncover a mysterious plague that is wiping out entire border villages, or face execution. Thrown into the glittering yet treacherous court of the Citadel—a Versailles‑like realm of opulence and deceit—Lore must navigate rival princes, hostile priest‑warriors, and a web of court intrigue. With no one trustworthy, she must decide whether to harness her deadly gift to expose the conspirators behind the kingdom’s silent deaths, or become another victim of the king’s ruthless game.