From internet sensation Lindsay Straube comes the first book in the sexy, biting Split or Swallow series, featuring dangerous basilisks, competitive seduction, and a love triangle that could destroy kingdoms.
Twenty-year-old Temperance Verus has never been kissed. But that’s what the basilisk is for.
But with tensions rising between the basilisks and the humans, Tem is suddenly torn in two directions.
Along with thirteen other contestants, Tem must train with a basilisk to learn the power of seduction and win the prince’s hand in marriage. When Tem is matched with Caspen, the Serpent King, she realizes she might actually stand a chance.
As her bond with Caspen deepens, so does her connection with the prince. And when she uncovers a terrible secret about the royal family, Tem finds herself caught between two worlds . . . neither of which she can survive without.
“Mother,” Tem said tentatively as her mother resealed the vials. “What will it be like?”
She’d never asked her mother about her own time in the caves. But her mother had been just like Tem, born in the same year as a prince, and she had participated in the same training. The current king hadn’t chosen Tem’s mother as his wife, but Tem often wondered what her life would have been like if he had.
Her mother sighed deeply, and for the first time that evening, her brow softened.
She looked like she was remembering something significant.
“It will be…transformative. You will take the first step to becoming a woman.” “I thought I was one already.”
“Not nearly, my dear. You have barely begun to live. You cannot possibly fathom the journey you are about to embark on.” Her mother tugged Tem’s dress down, stepping back to look at her fully. “Now remember, this is but the first of many nights. Do not offend him, or else he may not allow you to come back.”
“How would I offend him?”
“Kora willing, you won’t. But knowing you, you’ll find a way.” Tem sighed. Her mom wasn’t exactly wrong.
“You must remember to be polite,” her mother continued. “And to defer to him completely. You are the student, and he is the teacher. This is not the time for your headstrong nonsense. You will do as he says and try to learn something.”
Tem nodded, although her stomach had turned into a tangled mess. She was no good at following instructions—she never had been. Why would she be good at this most important, fundamental thing?
“I’m hopeless, Mother,” she whispered, her eyes on the ground.
“No, my dear,” her mother said kindly, placing her palms on Tem’s shoulders. “No girl is hopeless.”
Her words were of no comfort to Tem. She craved specificity from her mother—she wanted to hear that she, herself, wasn’t hopeless. But that was not what she expected, and it was not what her mother provided. There would be no specificity; there would be no coddling for Tem tonight or any night. There was only the task at hand and her willingness to complete it.
“It is nearly time,” her mother said. “Come.”
Tem nodded, following her mother out the front door and along the cobblestone path to the street. She could see Vera ahead of her, following her own mother out of
their cottage. By the time they reached the edge of the trees, Tem was last in the line of fourteen girls and their mothers.
They walked as if in a trance, nobody speaking as they followed the long dirt path into the woods. It was a chilly night—one of the first nights of autumn. Tem tried to calm herself down, but it was no use. Her thighs were oily and her head was light; she felt as if she might be sick. She was seriously considering turning around and sprinting home when suddenly the wall loomed in front of them.
Tem had never been beyond it. She knew there were doors at various points along it but had never gone through one. They weren’t even locked—locks were unnecessary when the mirrored exterior was protection enough. But the thought of running into a basilisk in its true form—and risk being turned to stone by its deadly gaze—was plenty of motivation to stay within the wall.
Tem said a silent prayer to Kora as they passed through the door.
The Kiss of the Basilisk by Lindsay Straube is published by Arcadia in Hardback, Audio and Ebook.
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LINDSAY STRAUBE
Lindsay Straube is a writer living in Portland, Oregon. She drinks tequila with lemon and watches TV with subtitles on. On any given Tuesday, you can find her at the movies.
You can learn more about Lindsay Straube here.
