[In progress] [15k] [Fantasy/Romantasy] Bride of the North.
Hello! First time poster here. I've been working on this first step in a larger overall project, and have reached a point where I want to get a little feedback before continuing. I'd really appreciate any reads and feedback. Thanks in advance! Blurb below:
In the radiant south, Lady Ilse of Grünthal was raised among silk, sunlight, and certainty.
In the shadowed north, she is sent as tribute.
Commanded by the king to wed the feared Wolf Count of Bergheim, Ilse is torn from everything she knows and delivered into a land of dark forests, ancient magic, and whispered horrors. The stories say Nachtwild is a place of monsters—where werewolves rule, blood feeds the land, and the night itself has teeth.
At first, every shadow feels like a threat.
But the truth is far more dangerous.
The wolf lord who should claim her offers distance instead of dominance. The beasts she fears show loyalty, warmth… even kindness. And as Ilse begins to see beyond the fear she was raised to believe, she finds herself caught between two worlds—one that shines with cruel certainty, and one that hides its humanity in the dark.
Yet something older stirs beyond the forest’s edge.
When a nightmare breaks through the borders of Nachtwild and spills blood into its heart, Ilse must decide what she truly believes—before the fragile peace around her is torn apart.
Because in the north, survival is not about fearing the monsters.
It’s about learning which ones are worth trusting.