Trial of the Sun Queen

Lor has spent twelve years as a captive of the Aurora King, and she wants two things: to get out, and to make him pay for every one of those years. A sudden release puts her in the hands of his rival, the Sun King, who is choosing a queen.

The choosing takes the form of the Sun Queen Trials. Ten women, called Tributes, compete in a deadly contest, and only one will win the Sun King's heart. Lor enters as the odd one out. She is not a citizen of his court, and she has no idea why she was freed at all.

The other Tributes want her gone, and they are willing to see her dead to manage it. If Lor wins the king's heart, she earns her freedom and her chance at revenge. If she loses, she dies, or she goes back to the Aurora King, who is now angry as well as cruel.

This is a fantasy romance with fae magic, a dark prince and an enemies-to-lovers thread. It is built around a series of high-stakes trials, so the pace stays brisk and the danger comes from rivals as much as from the contest. The tone is dark and romantic, with a heroine driven by vengeance.