Captive Hope (Chronicles of the Twelve Realms)

In the opulent halls of High Castle, reserved Lady Idra struggles to find her place as lady-in-waiting to the future High Queen. Friends are scarce, her heart aches for the craggy foothills and rustic familiarity of Taisce, and the only warmth comes from the kind, chivalrous Sir Ahmad-the high prince's most trusted knight.

Just as tender feelings begin to bloom, a vengeful mercenary from her past strikes. Idra is kidnapped and cast onto storm-lashed seas aboard a pirate ship.

Driven by desperate love, Sir Ahmad races to rescue her. On the waves, Idra meets a scarred pirate whose soul yearns for redemption. As they forge an unlikely bond born of hope and survival, he battles his unworthiness and forbidden longing-while loyalty and self-preservation pull him in opposite directions.

In a tale of revenge, danger, and unspoken vows, will Ahmad's unyielding courage, the pirate's bid for absolution, and Idra's quiet strength be enough to secure freedom? Or will one man's blinding thirst for retribution destroy them all?

Rachael Ritchey is the author of the Chronicles of the Twelve Realms, a YA fantasy fiction series set in a medieval era. Her passion for writing stems from her appreciation of history, since our world is built on stories, true and imagined. Rachael writes with teens in mind, because she wants her own kids to be proud of her work and be able to share it with their friends. She's a wife and a mom to four amazing kids. Rachael and her family live in Eastern Washington where there's plenty of inspiration to dream up exotic worlds, both real and fantastical.