Yolanthe Cinderfire has spent years hiding in plain sight-a rebel's daughter working as a maid in her own aunt's manor. Her invisibility shatters the day she saves a stranger from a bear and discovers he's Prince Imran, heir to the empire that destroyed her country. When the young man she secretly loves is arrested and sentenced to death for rebellion, Hawa, a mysterious woman from her mother's past, offers her one chance to save him: impersonate her noble cousin and steal the Imperial Seal to forge freedom papers.
There's just one problem. Yolanthe can identify deadly plants but can't navigate court politics. She knows how to survive in the wilderness, not lethal gossip. She has weeks to transform from invisible maid to polished courtier, or her love will die. Under Hawa's brutal tutelage, she learns combat, lock-picking, etiquette, and deception. But as a dying emperor clings to power and factions maneuver for the throne, she discovers that Prince Imran is far more perceptive than any prince should be.
Worse, the deeper she digs into her mission, the more she uncovers about her mother's past-and a heritage that could shake the empire to its foundations. Forget the pumpkin carriage. This Cinderella's midnight brings daggers, deception, and a throne built on lies.
Yolanthe Cinderfire has spent years hiding in plain sight-a rebel's daughter working as a maid in her own aunt's manor. Her invisibility shatters the day she saves a stranger from a bear and discovers he's Prince Imran, heir to the empire that destroyed her country. When the young man she secretly loves is arrested and sentenced to death for rebellion, Hawa, a mysterious woman from her mother's past, offers her one chance to save him: impersonate her noble cousin and steal the Imperial Seal to forge freedom papers.
There's just one problem. Yolanthe can identify deadly plants but can't navigate court politics. She knows how to survive in the wilderness, not lethal gossip. She has weeks to transform from invisible maid to polished courtier, or her love will die. Under Hawa's brutal tutelage, she learns combat, lock-picking, etiquette, and deception. But as a dying emperor clings to power and factions maneuver for the throne, she discovers that Prince Imran is far more perceptive than any prince should be.
Worse, the deeper she digs into her mission, the more she uncovers about her mother's past-and a heritage that could shake the empire to its foundations. Forget the pumpkin carriage. This Cinderella's midnight brings daggers, deception, and a throne built on lies.
