Ash Princess

> "*In a land without a Queen, the Princess must rise.*"
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***Ash Princess*** is the first book of the *Ash Princess Trilogy*, written by Laura Sebastian, featuring sixteen year old Theodosia Eirene Houzzara.

## Synopsis

Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Fire Queen, was slayed before her eyes. On that day, the Kaiser took Theodosia's family, her land, and her name. Theo was crowned Ash Princess--a title of shame to bear in her new life as a prisoner.

For ten years Theo has been a captive in her own palace. She's endured the relentless abuse and ridicule of the Kaiser and his court. She is powerless, surviving in her new world only by burying the girl she was deep inside.

Then, one night, the Kaiser forces her to do the unthinkable. With blood on her hands and all hope of reclaiming her throne lost, she realizes that surviving is no longer enough. But she does have a weapon: her mind is sharper than any sword. And power isn't always won on the battlefield.

For ten years, the Ash Princess has seen her land pillaged and her people enslaved. That all ends here.

## Description

Theodosia was six when her country was invaded and her mother, the Queen of Peace, was murdered before her eyes. Ten years later, Theo has learned to survive under the relentless abuse of the Kaiser and his court as the ridiculed Ash Princess. When the Kaiser forces her to execute her last hope of rescue, Theo can't ignore her feelings and memories any longer. She vows revenge, throwing herself into a plot to seduce and murder the Kaiser's warrior son with the help of a group of magically gifted and volatile rebels. But Theo doesn't expect to develop feelings for the Prinz Søren. Forced to make impossible choices and unable to trust even those who are on her side, Theodosia will have to decide how far she is willing to go to save her people and how much of herself she's willing to sacrifice to become Queen. From author Laura Sebastian comes *Ash Princess*, a nail-biting YA fantasy debut full of daring and vengeance.

## Plot summary

As the story opens, Theodosia Eirene Houzzara, or Thora, as she is now called, is summoned into the Kaiser's throne room. Ampelio, the last of and closest of Theo's mother's guards and ringleader of the Astrean resistance has finally been caught, but he refuses to speak to anyone except for Theo. Speaking in the forbidden Astrean tongue, Ampelio passes on to her the leadership of Astrea, and encourages her when the Kaiser orders her to kill him. At a banquet that night, Theo recognizes one of the serving boys as Blaise, her childhood friend from the Astrean palace. Blaise gives Theo a clandestine message to meet secretly that night.

Blaise attempts to take Theo away from the palace, but Theo realizes that although she has longed for this day, she cannot leave without attempting a fight to regain the throne. She persuades a reluctant Blaise to allow her to stay for another month, using this time to gain information that may be helpful to the Astrean rebellion.

\*work in progress\*

## Characters

* Theodosia Eirene Houzzara : The rightful queen of Astrea who has been kept as a trophy by the Kaiser. Known as her alter-ego ‘Thora’.
* Crescentia : The Theyn’s daughter and Theodosia‘s best friend.
* Søren : The Kaiser’s son, the Prinz. One of Theodosia’s love interests.
* Blaise : Theodosia’s childhood friend and love interest, also an untrained Earth Guardian.
* Artemisia : Theodosia’s cousin and friend, daughter of Dragonsbane, also an untrained Water Guardian.
* Heron : A friend of Blaise and Artemisa and an untrained Air Guardian.
* The Kaiser : The ruler of the kalovaxians and all of its conquered countries.
* The Theyn: a Kalovaxian soldier and the Kaiser's best friend. Theodosia’s mother’s killer.
* Erik : Søren’s best friend, crewmate and his half-brother.
* Elpis: thirteen year old Astrean rebel servant who worked with Theodosia.
* Ampelio: Theodosia's father and the Fire Guardian.
* Dragonsbane : Artemisia‘s mother and Queen Eirene’s twin. A famous unidentified pirate.