From New York Times bestselling author RuNyx comes the highly anticipated prequel to Gothikana: Arkana?a tale of lush, suspenseful, dark gothic romance. A rumoured sorceress. A ruthless lord of science. A cursed castle. What could go wrong?A desperate woman, Lenore Emmeranne comes to the University of Verenmore?an elite institution of scientific learning perched high in the mountains?summoned by a mysterious offer of employment. On the run from misfortune and accusations, Lenore, who has always had a gift for healing, hopes Verenmore will provide her with a clean slate. She plans to keep her head down and blend into the shadows. But upon her arrival, she discovers it is not only the lord of the castle who is in need of help. It is Verenmore itself. Lord Draven Constantine, dean of the university, is a man of science and discipline, revered by his students. The last thing he wants is someone like Lenore disturbing his ordered world, and the secrets he must keep buried. But her presence shatters his ennui, sparks a dangerous fascination, and their descent into doom begins. Set in 1872 in a dread castle perched on a dark mountain where death and deceit stalk the unknowing, Lenore and Draven must navigate lies as they surrender to forbidden desire, and cling to life?and to each other. And so begins a gripping tale of the gothic and the grotesque. An unusual and deeply passionate story about a love that blossoms in the unlikeliest of places.