Kingdom of Walls

Keep her inside. Keep her alive. Blake Suttone has a stomach full of grief and no food. A decade of famine has taken its toll on the splintered kingdom, but it is the merchants who suffer most. A wall stands between the hungry and the food, and the kingdom's defenders stand guard atop it. Desperate times lead to desperate acts, and Blake will do whatever is necessary to ensure her family survives. But a growing attachment to a certain commander was never part of the plan. Now the man protecting the walls seems determined to guard her too. Commander Harlan Wright was raised on a diet of training and discipline. His mind is calloused and his heart closed. These are not faults in a defender but assets. Harlan's path is clear, until he meets a merchant girl who pulls him in a dangerous new direction. Blake might be a fighter, but she is fighting a losing battle. As the walls continue to go up, Harlan must choose between head and heart, duty, and love.

Half merchant. Half noble. Wholly aggrieved. Lyndal Suttone is done watching the merchants suffer. So when an opportunity to help them presents itself, she grabs hold of it with both hands. Now she must leave her family behind and step into a world she has no idea how to navigate. With her eyes fixed firmly on the prize, she is going to need someone to watch her back. Astin Fletcher has resigned himself to a life he was never supposed to live. His only purpose is to keep the king alive, a job that is becoming increasingly hard. The merchants are rising, and so is Astin's pulse whenever Lyndal walks in the room. The middle Suttone sister has entered his territory, turning his purpose on its head. She has no idea what she is stepping into, and now it falls on him to safeguard her.