VESSELLESS

A princess connected to the spirit realm teams up with the half-spirit of her kingdom’s former ruler—the man whose throne her father stole a decade ago.

Nizzara’s betrothal looms on the horizon. Though there hasn’t been an official announcement, her father, the king of Zarr, has made it clear that he’ll find her a suitor by spring. However, should she win the King’s Duel, a deadly tournament, she’ll be granted a gift of her choosing and she plans to ask for an exemption from her father’s betrothal law. Nizzara’s preparation for the tournament isn’t going well, given her resistance to using the full power of her vessel, a ring that acts as a conduit for a spirit’s power, and her resistance to killing in battle. This presents an opportunity for Zarr’s former king, Dagen. He is now a half-spirit, not quite dead and not quite alive. Nil, the god of death, presents him with a chance to regain his throne. To reclaim Zarr, Dagen will have to bring Nil a pure soul, which currently resides in Nizzara. This soul has the power to vanquish her villainous father and release Dagen back to the land of the living. The one catch: Nizzara has to offer the soul willingly. So Dagen goes back to his former castle, seeking to infiltrate Nizzara’s memories, win her trust, and help her win the tournament. Extensive worldbuilding is more hindrance than help here, as the plot bogs down in constructing a foundation for the magical system and explaining the political intricacies of Zarr and the surrounding kingdoms. This extensive detailing never coheres into an understandable fictional universe. The growing attraction between the main characters and the forward momentum of the story suffer for it, and the author’s attempts to enliven the slog with occasional lustful moments don’t improve matters.

A muddled and meandering fantasy romance debut.