Maybe Cinderella wasn't locked away for her punishment... but for our protection. Aldessa has always lived to serve–whether caring for her ailing stepsister or scrubbing floors in the royal Keep. But when a voice begins whispering in her head, offering forbidden knowledge that could save Ysabeau’s life, she breaks the one rule her mother left her: never listen to the beast. The magic works. Her stepsister lives. But dark magic must be fed. Now the other servants whisper of a monster stalking the kingdom, and Aldessa wakes with memories she can’t trust and evidence she can’t explain. As violent attacks plague the village and she’s drawn deeper into the royal court–and closer to the charming Lord Aidan Kaldonna- she must master her dangerous gift before it masters her. In this kingdom where magic has only just returned and mistrust runs deep, Aldessa must decide whether she will stop serving others in the cinders and instead rise from the ashes. Some wishes deserve to be broken.