For a split second, a dazzling, contented smile warms his face, his lips parted to reveal the delicate tips of two pointed canines. I’m unable to move, stunned by his striking beauty. Most fae males are gorgeous in their seelie forms, but this one, with that breathtaking smile…

Raven shifter Prince Franco is every social-climbing debutante’s dream. He’s handsome, heir to the Lunar Court throne, and deliciously single. Every young woman wants to bed him, wed him, or steal a moment of his time. Except, of course, for Ember Montgomery. I suppress a groan at the suggestion of yet another scheme to marry Imogen to fae royalty. Prince Franco is the brother and heir of Queen Nyxia, the Unseelie Queen of Lunar, and he is just as unlikely to fall for Imogen’s nonexistent charms as every other royal she’s tried to woo. She releases an irritated huff. “We have errands to run first thing this morning. If we don’t get to Sonsbury Square before…” She trails off as if realizing I’m not worth explaining to. Instead, she uses the same weapon she battles me with time and time again. Her words come out slow, her tone laced with a sinister chill. “Do not argue with me. Just obey.” There’s a certain music about being alone. One I rarely get to hear outside of a single hour each morning. It’s my peaceful respite before the sun rises, before anyone seeks to fill my day with a cacophony of demands. After dawn, I’ll have to climb down from my rooftop hiding place and return to my chores and obligations. But for now, at least, I hear it. The subtle song of a sleeping city. It was a valiant effort,” I hear him call overhead before he soars over the buildings and out of sight.His silvery blue eyes meet mine and the expression dissolves in an instant, leaving a scowl in its place. I feel cold at the sudden shift, as if a cloud has covered the sun. That’s when an even more chilling realization dawns on me. We learn the only reason Ember is still with her stepfamily is due to a bargain that Maddie Coleman manipulated Ember into following her father’s death. She has to remain under the roof of her stepmother and obey her every command. If she doesn’t, she risks death and physical ailment. She’ll only be released from the bargain the moment she becomes nineteen and can claim her inheritance. Something that the Colemans have no access to after being cut out of her father’s will, following the time when Ember’s father saw Maddie strike Ember following one of her performances where she got more attention than Clara or Imogen. Ember plans on running away to the Star Court to become a musician as she always dreamed of the moment she turns nineteen, which is in two weeks’ time from the start of the book.

BUT, all that said, this was still so very, very good. Do you like the fake relationship trope? Seducing a prince? Roguish rakes with a heart of gold? A slow burn romance with a bit of steam? Then you will LOVE this book. Then perhaps you should play with us instead,” says the first. She floats in a spiral higher overhead. “Come fly.” Half-fae Ember craves freedom from her conniving stepfamily. As if they weren't enough to deal with, a chance encounter with the arrogant Prince Franco leaves her humiliated and in a fiery rage. Nothing could convince her the prince is anything but a rake. But when the opportunity to evade her scheming stepmother falls into her lap, she'll pay the price-even if it means impersonating the prince's newest flame... I clench my jaw, my body still trembling in the wake of my momentary agony. It’s a struggle to keep my voice even as I say, “I’ll be down as soon as I’m cleaned up and dressed.”PDF / EPUB File Name: Heart_of_the_Raven_Prince_-_Tessonja_Odette.pdf, Heart_of_the_Raven_Prince_-_Tessonja_Odette.epub Elizabeth Hoyt has a slightly different writing style in that she doesn't seem to reveal all of her character's insecurities, vulnerabilities and motivations right away. Most authors have a tendency to let the reader in on these things up front, and then the story centers around them making peace with those things and finding healing if the pain is deep. With Edward and Anna, Ms. Hoyt leaves the reader with the sense that there are mysterious things lurking beneath the surface that can't be seen, but she takes her time, revealing them one-by-one when the situation seems ripe for it. This does give the story a more languid feel which may not work well for readers who prefer a faster pace, but I thought that it was an interesting approach. The story also has a very angsty quality to it, I think, in large part, because of Edward's intensity. I found a certain beauty to it though, an emotional depth that was somehow different from other stories I've read. Edward and Anna have both suffered emotional pain in their lives, yet both seem to be fairly comfortable in their own skin and not harboring major neuroses. Once again, I thought this was a unique blend which made the characters very complex and multi-dimensional. This takes place in the same world as the Fair Isle Trilogy, and AFTER those books. It also comes AFTER The Curse of the Wolf King (the same series as this book). This book has a main character (the prince) that was a secondary but significant character in the Fair Isle Trilogy (books 2&3). The characters are also discussing the main characters and plot details from The Curse of the Wolf King, which are spoilers for those that also want to read that book.