E.A. Burnett

Royal gryphons almost killed her brother. Now the queen demands she train with them.

After a royal gryphon nearly kills her brother, two things become clear to nineteen-year-old Farren Blackburn: she is not the best person to care for her brother, and she despises nothing more than the vicious beast who changed him forever. Blaming herself, Farren retreats to the mountains with her hawk, Mellion, surviving by Mellion’s hunting ability and the telepathic runebond they share. But when Mellion is torn from her by the touch of a strange, fatal flower, she is forced to return home.

She finds her father’s falconry business in shambles and an unwanted letter calling her father to fulfill a decade-long Servitude to the crown. Farren does the only thing she can and takes his place. To keep her family safe, she must go to Alidonia—a place full of infuriating Enchantments, a selfish queen, and two princes who are like oil and water.

Worst is her new duty: to train with the queen’s deadly, heartless gryphons. The gryphon guard has six weeks to prepare before they are launched onto the streets—putting innocent people at risk of the gryphons’ ruthlessness. Their potent elemental magic and intricate runebonds do nothing to reassure Farren, but she has no choice in the matter—even when faced with the very beast who attacked her brother.

Of Gryphons and Runes is the first book of a New Adult epic fantasy trilogy filled with elemental magic, romance, and deep-spun mysteries. Perfect for readers who love animal-human bonds, mythical creatures, elemental and telepathic magic, lovers-to-enemies romance, and a tenacious female protagonist.

Content Warning: References to past domestic violence and child abuse; animal abuse; some violence

Steam Level: moderate, open-door