Book Description
The gods will tear the world asunder if their treaty isn't honored. To do so, there must be a marriage of dryad and gargoyle bloodlines.
Cybele
I hate the thought that my future is decided for me, but this is what I was raised to do. To be. A broodmare for a block of rocks. I suppose it isn't much better for him, either. The treaty between my forest homeland and the gargoyle clan needs to be renewed or we will no longer be protected. It's not about what we want, and it doesn't matter if the husband they've picked for me wants to devour me with his kisses.
Basalt
I’ve never wanted any of this. Not being the presumptive heir to my father. Not being tied in marriage to a fragile dryad. She looks as though she would crumple at a light touch. When her hand is tied to mine, I can barely feel it.
The curse of the gargoyle - stone skin, never feeling. It matters not when you mate with another gargoyle, your rough touch is welcomed, almost required for satisfaction. But now I was about to be bound to a dryad as delicate as a spring flower.
Can a real passion bloom from the arranged marriage between a gentle flower and a heart of stone or are they destined to disappoint the gods?
My Review
Cybele was raised knowing that she would marry a gargoyle that she would only meet for the first time on the day of her wedding. She was a Dryad and her people needed to make arrangements for one of them to marry a gargoyle each generation in order to be protected. She had no idea what to expect for this marriage, she only hoped that the gargoyle she was stuck with would at least be pleasant to her and whatever offspring they had.
Basalt would one day rule after his father was gone and so he was chosen to marry a dryad to make sure that their two people were protected and had a treaty between them. He's not sure how this marriage will work since he's so much bigger than she is. But he's determined that it will. Things change once they meet at the alter. He's smitten with her almost right away and there are other changes in him when they touch.
Basalt isn't sure what's going on or how he can feel her delicate touch on his skin. She's so much more lively than he was expecting and he really likes it. Basalt may seem like a stoic, stone faced gargoyle but when he's around Cybele, he finds himself more at ease and happy. It doesn't take long after the marriage ceremony for them to get to know each other better and find that they really do have much more in common than they thought they would. I found this fun, quick read to be funny as well as passionate. They were so cute together.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.
Disclosure: I was given an e-ARC of this book via Booksprout but all opinions and thoughts are my own.