ZelAn MM Romance Fairytale Retelling

The walled off tower in the wood, home to an immortal sorcerer, has stood for centuries, with bodies frequently found outside of it, sucked of their very souls. But the rapunzel, the lettuce, that grows around the tower’s base is said to be the source of the sorcerer’s immortality, often tempting thieves to steal it.

When the most recent pair is caught, a man and woman who long to wed, the sorcerer spares them, recognizing that the woman is pregnant. He gives them a choice: die there or take the lettuce and live under his conditions.

The woman is to eat the lettuce and only her until the child is born. Then only the child will eat the lettuce that will continue to be sent to their home. When the child reaches adulthood, she will be given to the sorcerer as his bride, at which point she will stay with him for one month to determine her worth before they wed.

With no other choice, the thieves agree—only for their babe to be born a boy.

They keep this a secret, even from their guild master, Lothar, who sent them for the lettuce, and teach their son, named for the very rapunzel they coveted, to pretend to be a girl. But Zel will be no bride. He will use his month in the tower to discover the true source of the sorcerer’s immortality, so he might slay his would-be bridegroom and claim the tower’s treasures for the guild.

What Zel does not know is that the sorcerer, Ulrich, has plans of his own, and their journeys of secrets, seduction, and identity might lead to revelations they least expect.

Each book set in the GriMM fairytale world can be read as a standalone and contains its own Happily Ever After story. Though you’ll definitely want to read each one, as the tales are connected to each other in multiple magical ways.