New Release | Fated to be Monsters by J. Von Tobel #romantasy #newrelease #wrpbks #bookboost #mustread
- N. N. Light
- 5 days ago
- 4 min read
Title: Fated to be Monsters
Author: J. Von Tobel
Genre: Romantasy
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Anca was born to hunt, but not all monsters are beasts.
The Hunting Households are failing. Her people are starving. And the callous Queen Astasia reigns in luxury.
Anca’s only chance to usurp the cycle of tyranny arrives with an unthinkable task: hunt a rampaging beast alongside Eugen, a feared former hunter. She discovers that Eugen despises the queen and the hunters, like Anca, who exiled him. Yet as the hunt falters, their mutual hate turns to desire.
But Eugen has more secrets than Anca can imagine. With their prey close, and the fate of their land in the balance, she must choose between what duty demands and what her heart craves.
Excerpt:
Eugen tried to stand, but his wounds brought him back down with a wince. Every muscle pulled tight, like they were trying to tie themselves into knots. He took a deep breath and tried to think of something calming. Anca’s eyes flashed in his mind.
“Believe me, Doia. I’m on your side,” he said. “Do you think I like being treated like this? My name is a curse. My bloodline is a stain. I thought if I could beat a Nobil at their own game, prove that I am better than the best of you, it would pull the wool from your eyes.”
It was a petty thought. His wound seemed so obvious now. Eugen lived his life assuming things of the Nobils as they assumed things about him. He never questioned it. Astasia’s lies were sweet like honey.
“And what does the Queen gain by showing me up?” Anca asked.
“Keller has hated her family for years. A friendly Household on top would let her bully the Nobils into obedience, given enough time.”
“I’ll remind you that it was the Queen’s wine and pleasantries that occupied Bire and Stancu,” Anca snapped. “The queen chose to weaken us. After everything we’ve done. Flame, they requested my mother lead the charge against your kin. Are we so inconvenient to your little schemes?”
“Her schemes. And please,” Eugen gingerly sat forward on his stool. “I don’t give a damn about what your family did to mine. Last I checked, aren’t you the most feared enforcer of the queen’s will after me? You say you aren’t your parents. Prove it.”
That pissed her off. Anca’s predatory cool vanished with a snarl of her teeth. Good, he thought. He wanted her to be plain with him.
“I could have let you die tonight and hunted that damn thing on my own. Magic or not, I can kill you. I still might.”
“I don’t doubt it. You’re twice the hunter I could be and that’s why you should trust me. I need you more than you need me. Even if you spare me, I’d still be the same hated beast that they say I am. You’d still be House Sulia. Still Brave. Still Proud.”
Eugen stumbled from his stool and kneeled before her. It wasn’t intentional, but he didn’t correct himself. It would take a vow of loyalty to gain their trust again.
Anca’s breath caught as he did. He growled against the ache as his bruised knees crashed into the dirt. His eyes settled on the ground in front of her, like when he had vowed to serve Astasia and the throne. No matter the cost.
“I blinked. I lost myself in a way that I swore to never do again. You brought me back, Nobil Sulia. I’ve never done that before. When I find myself ablaze, I can’t be stopped unless I run out of steam. Everything is murder. All I see is red, but I saw you.”
His voice cracked and Eugen looked up at her. He wanted to be trusted. He had to hope that she understood that need.
“Stay back from her,” Marin growled.
“I didn’t have my calming herbs with me. For so long, it was the only way I could live in my skin. I don’t know how or why, but you helped me pull it back. There’s something special connecting us. Let’s show those bastards and that brat on the throne what it looks like when we move beyond these grudges. I’m tired of keeping us rich at the cost of the innocent. I’m tired of being told what my fate is. I’m tired of being hated.”
Craita and Marin watched them knowing that the slightest move would send them down a path that they could not turn from. Anca watched him with unreadable eyes. There was contempt, but something muted her raw ferocity. Eugen thought he saw a flash of amusement before she rolled her eyes and stood.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
Author Biography:
With a preponderance towards Dungeons & Dragons, sexy vampires, and Lovecraftian nightmares, it isn't surprising he ended up writing romantasy. A Chicagoan for ten years, J is an active member of the Chicago North Romance Writers and the Chicago Writers Association.
He is the author of the Faltering Flame Series, including Curse of Flame, a dark fantasy, and Fated to be Monsters, a romantasy about monster hunters. He hopes to write more in this series and to create new, exciting stories in the coming years.
Social Media Links
@jvontobelwrites on Instagram, Bluesky, Threads, X (not active), and TikTok