The Prince I Must Kill

She came to the palace to kill a prince. She did not expect to find his name tangled with the ashes of her ruined home. Mara Corven survived Emberfell by becoming a weapon. Now, under a false name and with a blade hidden beneath her sleeve, she has one mission: infiltrate the Winter Palace and kill Crown Prince Oren Haldren before he claims the throne. He is the heir to the power that destroyed her village, fed the capital with stolen warmth, and turned human lives into numbers on a ledger.
But the man she finds inside the white halls of the palace is not the monster she expected. Oren is dangerous, guarded, and bound to a crown already sinking its cold into his bones. He is also burdened by guilt, surrounded by enemies, and fighting a losing battle against a kingdom built on sacrifice. The closer Mara gets to her target, the more her mission begins to fracture. Every secret she uncovers drags her deeper into a court of winter magic, political cruelty, and quiet betrayals.
Every moment beside him makes the final strike harder. Because this is no longer only a revenge story. It is a story of a killer and a prince trapped on opposite sides of a dying kingdom. Of forbidden desire in a palace that survives on blood. Of a love that should never be touched, and a choice that could cost everything. Perfect for readers who love dark fantasy romance, assassin heroine x prince, enemies to lovers, forbidden love, royal intrigue, slow-burn tension, tragic romantasy, and emotionally intense standalone fantasy.
She was sent to end his life. Instead, she may be the one thing that can destroy his heart first. And when the crown, the kingdom, and revenge all demand blood. who will she choose?