Grae slid the ring onto my finger and pulled my face to his. We could barely contain our smiles long enough to kiss. Joy rushed through me like I’d never known. Here in this golden tree, with the river rushing below me, and the sounds of my kingdom finally at peace, I knew I didn’t have to dig any deeper to find who I was or where I wanted to be. Grae’s arm threaded around me and pulled me tighter against him.
My eyes fell to the rushing turquoise water—the same river that flowed down from the mountains of Taigos and over the gold mines of Sevelde, the life force of Olmdere, the history of war and prosperity carved through the land. The fight was only beginning, but I finally knew what I was fighting for—for all of us, those who struggled to be all the things they felt inside, those who didn’t yet know how to carve their own path. I knew then that my reign would be like this river, forging ahead, finding my own way until everything flowed into the stillness and beauty of the lake at my back. The Golden Court would rise like a river after a rainstorm and all our enemies will be washed away.
Dramatis Personae
People
Calla Marriel: Gold Wolf, twin to Briar, child of the late King and Queen of Olmdere Briar Marriel: Gold Wolf, twin to Calla, Crown Princess, child of the late King and Queen of Olmdere Grae Claudius: Silver Wolf, Crown Prince of Damrienn
Nero Claudius: Silver Wolf, King of Damrienn
Maez Claudius: Silver Wolf, cousin to Grae and niece to the king, one of Grae’s royal guard Sadie Rauxtide: Silver Wolf, sister to Hector, one of Grae’s royal guard Hector Rauxtide: Silver Wolf, brother to Sadie, one of Grae’s royal guard Ora: human, leader of Galen den’ Mora musical troupe
Navin: human, part of Galen den’ Mora
Mina: human, twin to Malou, part of Galen den’ Mora
Malou: human, twin to Mina, part of Galen den’ Mora Sawyn: sorceress who killed the king and queen of Olmdere and now controls the kingdom Rooks: soldiers of Sawyn’s army
Ingrid Engdahl: queen of the Ice Wolves
Luo Yassine: king of the Onyx Wolves, older brother to Taidei Taidei Yassine: prince of the Onyx Wolves, younger brother to Luo
Courts
Olmdere （capital: Olmdere City）： home to humans and the Gold Wolf pack Damrienn （capital: Highwick）： home to humans and the Silver Wolf pack Taigos （capital: Taigoska）： home to humans and the Ice Wolf pack Valta （capital: Rikesh）： home to humans and the Onyx Wolf pack
Acknowledgments
Thank you to all my amazing queer readers and our allies for embracing （and excitedly demanding?） more types of queer fantasy stories. I hope you feel seen and welcomed into the world of high fantasy!
Thank you to my Mountaineers for celebrating my books both online and out in the world. You are the most amazing group of readers, and I’m honored to share these stories with you! The best mountains to climb are fictional ones xx.
Thank you to all of my family for supporting and encouraging me to pursue the career of my dreams. To my husband and children: I adore the life we’ve built together and love you endlessly.
Thank you to all of my amazing patrons for making this novel possible! I love creating worlds with you! A very special thank you to my fae and royal fae patrons: Jaime, Linda, Nicole, Leslie, Marissa, Traci, Amy, Ciara, Drea, Hannah, Kelly, Maggie, Mandy, Mariah, Sarah, Shanda, and Virginia. Your support means so much to me! I can’t wait to take you on more fantasy adventures!
To my writer friends: thank you for lifting me up through the writing of this book and on my author journey. I am so grateful to have you in my corner cheering me on, guiding me, and helping me find my own way!
Thank you to my book wifey, Kate, for all of your support and for the amazing job you do formatting my gorgeous novellas, designing merch, and keeping the A.K. shop running! Thank you to Sabrina for keeping Team A.K. going. I so appreciate all of the work you do!
Thank you to my amazing agent, Jessica Watterson at SDLA, for championing my stories and for supporting me through this wild journey of publishing. I love working with you and look forward to many more bookish adventures in the future!
Thank you to the whole Harper Voyager team all over the world. It has been a pleasure working with you all on this new series. Thank you to my amazing team for championing this book and supporting diverse stories. A big thank you to my editor, David Pomerico, and to Natasha Bardon, for helping make this story the best it can be!
Lastly, thank you to my fur babies, Ziggy, Bruno, and Timmy, for saving me in the anxious moments of getting this book out into the world.
Announcement
We hope you enjoyed the first installment of The Golden Court trilogy. Want more romance and magic? Turn the page for a sneak peek at the fifth and final book in the Five Crowns of Okrith series . . .