56 pages • 1-hour read
Jennifer L. ArmentroutA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Meet the key characters, with insights into their roles, motivations, and relationships—spoiler-free.
Princess Seraphena is a 17-year-old royal in Lasania, born with a mark designating her as the Maiden. She possesses a secret, forbidden healing ability and spends much of her time training in combat with the Royal Guard. She feels isolated from her family and burdened by her duty to seduce and assassinate the Primal of Death to stop an agricultural curse called the Rot.
Destined Partner of Nyktos
Daughter of Queen Calliaphe
Daughter of King Lamont
Stepdaughter of King Ernald
Stepsister of Prince Tavius
Stepsister of Princess Ezmeria
Combat Student of Sir Braylon Holland
Former Charge of Odetta
Nyktos is the Primal of Death who rules over the Shadowlands. Often going by the name Ash, he is over two centuries old and maintains a cold, distant exterior. He oversees the afterlife domains and secretly provides refuge in his city of Lethe to those fleeing other divine courts.
Prince Tavius is the heir to the throne of Lasania and Princess Seraphena's stepbrother. He exhibits cruelty and apathy toward the common people suffering from the agricultural crisis. He actively despises his stepsister and uses his political position to intimidate and physically threaten her.
Stepbrother of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Brother of Princess Ezmeria
Son of King Ernald
Stepson of Queen Calliaphe
Commander of Sir Braylon Holland
Kolis is the Primal of Life who ascends the Chosen during special rites. He possesses golden hair and skin that shines too brightly to look at directly. He holds immense power over the divine domains and conducts mysterious experiments on his subjects behind closed doors.
Twin Brother of Eythos
Mysteriously Interested in Princess Seraphena Mierel
Sir Braylon is a member of the Royal Guard in Lasania. He serves as Princess Seraphena's mentor in the art of combat and provides her with guidance and herbal remedies. He actively encourages her to keep her healing abilities hidden from the rest of the court and the gods.
Combat Mentor to Princess Seraphena Mierel
Subordinate to Prince Tavius
Nektas is a large draken, a dragon-like shapeshifter who serves as one of Nyktos's primary protectors. He possesses gray-and-black scales in his dragon form and red eyes in his god form. He heavily distrusts outsiders who enter the Shadowlands and is vocal about his opinions on security.
Protector of Nyktos
Father of Jadis
Wary Ally of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Princess Ezmeria is Princess Seraphena's stepsister in the Lasanian royal family. Unlike her brother Tavius, she is compassionate and shows genuine care for the suffering citizens of the kingdom. She provides Princess Seraphena with a rare sense of familial support and loyalty.
Stepsister of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Sister of Prince Tavius
Daughter of King Ernald
Stepdaughter of Queen Calliaphe
Romantic Interest of Lady Marisol Faber
Queen Calliaphe is the Queen of Lasania and Princess Seraphena's mother. She maintains a cold and distant relationship with her daughter, often expressing harsh disappointment. She prioritizes the kingdom's political appearances and opulent traditions over the well-being of the starving population.
Mother of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Widow of King Lamont
Wife of King Ernald
Stepmother of Prince Tavius
Stepmother of Princess Ezmeria
Eythos is the former Primal of Life and Nyktos's father. He made the ancient deal with Lasania's King Roderick centuries ago to stop the agricultural curse, setting the political and personal events of the story in motion long after his passing.
King Ernald is the current King of Lasania and Princess Seraphena's stepfather. He takes a patient, sometimes overly passive approach to addressing the kingdom's spreading Rot, preferring to wait for systemic solutions rather than act aggressively to feed his people.
Husband of Queen Calliaphe
Stepfather of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Father of Prince Tavius
Father of Princess Ezmeria
Odetta is Princess Seraphena's aging nursemaid. She acts as one of the few supportive figures in her early life, offering cryptic warnings about the consequences of using hidden healing abilities on humans and advising caution.
Former Nursemaid of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Lady Marisol is a noble companion to Princess Ezmeria. She actively participates in providing aid and funds to the impoverished citizens of the kingdom, often putting herself in dangerous situations during public riots to help others.
Romantic Interest of Princess Ezmeria
Aios is a goddess residing in the House of Haides. She assists in arranging food, clothing, and comfort for residents, and she helps explain the political structures and expectations of the Shadowlands to newcomers.
Servant to Nyktos
Attendant to Princess Seraphena Mierel
Ector is a god loyal to Nyktos. He acts as a guard in the House of Haides and assists in managing external threats, maintaining strict security protocols around the palace and its ruler.
Subordinate to Nyktos
Guard of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Bele is a goddess operating in the Shadowlands. She helps coordinate operations regarding the safety of refugees and regularly reports to Nyktos on dangerous political movements in other divine courts.
Subordinate to Nyktos
Acquaintance of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Jadis is a young draken who resides in the House of Haides. She is the daughter of Nektas and often rests near Nyktos and his guests, showing an immediate comfort around newcomers that contrasts with her father's wariness.
Daughter of Nektas
Protected by Nyktos
Cressa is a goddess responsible for carrying out targeted murders in the mortal world. She operates alongside other divine assassins to track down specific individuals at the behest of powerful forces.
Accomplice of Madis
Accomplice of Taric
Enemy of Princess Seraphena Mierel
Taric is a dangerous god operating in the mortal world. He works to interrogate and eliminate targets, using his specific abilities to physically overpower and mentally invade his victims.
Accomplice of Cressa
Accomplice of Madis
Enemy of Princess Seraphena Mierel
King Lamont is the deceased former King of Lasania and Princess Seraphena's father. He died shortly after his daughter's birth, leaving a complicated legacy and a grieving widow behind.
Former Husband of Queen Calliaphe
Father of Princess Seraphena Mierel