Books like 'A Kingdom This Cursed and Empty'
Readers who enjoyed A Kingdom This Cursed and Empty by Stacia Stark also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical fantasy romance supernatural high fantasy europe scandinavia fae humor medieval
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The Winter of the Witch by Katherine Arden
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 50 ratingsFollowing their adventures in The Bear and the Nightingale and The Girl in the Tower, Vasya and Morozko return in this stunning conclusion to the bestselling Winternight Trilogy, battling enemies mortal and magical to save both Russias, the seen and the unseen. Now Moscow has been struck by disaster. Its people are searching for answers—and for someone to blame... -
A Wish Upon the Stars by T.J. Klune
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsNearly a year ago, blinded by grief and betrayal, Sam of Wilds made a desperate decision to follow the Great White into the Dark Woods. Now, he emerges to a world changed. The City of Lockes is a prison. The King has been locked away in the dungeons. The Kingdom of Verania has fallen, and the Dark wizard Myrin sits on the throne... -
Memories of Prophecies by Davis Ashura
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThe memories of the past may be forgotten, but prophecies linger.Cinder Shade and his fellow cadets have survived a brutal mission in the vast wilds of the Dagger Mountains. Laying to rest many of their brother warriors, they return to the Third Directorate, battered, bruised, and weary of soul.But the world turns, and new challenges press... -
Son of the Shadows by Juliet Marillier
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 40 ratingsAfter years of comparative peace, darkness has fallen upon Ulster. Trouble is brewing and even those in the heart of the forest are not safe. Niamh, elder daughter of Sorcha, is required to make a strategic marriage, while her sister Liadan, who has the gift of Sight and her mother’s talent for healing, finds herself drawn into the shadowy world of the Painted Man and his warrior band... -
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The King's Traitor by Jeff Wheeler
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 39 ratingsAgainst all odds, Owen Kiskaddon grew from frightened boy to confident youth to trusted officer in the court of Kingfountain—and watched its regent, Severn Argentine, grow ever more ruthless and power-mad. Robbed of his beloved protector, his noble mentor, and his true love, Owen has anticipated the day when the king he fears and reviles, yet loyally serves, will be toppled...Categorized as:
epic myths paranormal retellings sword-sorcery action-adventure alternate-history arthurian -
Glow of the Everflame by Penn Cole
Rated: 4.55 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsAn unexpected gift offers the power to change everything—but keeping it could cost Diem her life. The threat of war has arrived at Diem’s doorstep, along with a new discovery that could save her people. To use it, she must survive the next thirty days by forming a devil’s bargain with the people she hates most: the royal family of House Corbois... -
Disciple of War by Michael G. Manning
Rated: 4.52 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWar looms on the horizon but Selene’s training as a wizard must begin, even though her age makes success nearly unattainable. Will searches for a solution, but their only hope may be a dangerous bargain with the king.The fate of two nations lies on Will’s shoulders and the future is paved with violence. With few options, he needs the aid of uncertain allies and dubious friends... -
Secrets and Spellcraft by Michael G. Manning
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsNow a student at Wurthaven, Will is confronted with the truth of the present. The powerful magic embodied by wizards like his grandfather is but a distant memory, while the practice of the current day is timid and uninspired, and yet he needs the knowledge still preserved and managed by the college... -
The Reckoning by Vanessa Nelson
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMissing girls. A plea for help she can’t ignore. An ancient enemy with plans of his own. Nine-year-old girls are missing from across the lands. Yvonne has promised to find them, and she always keeps her promises. Even when she doesn’t know where to start looking. There’s more trouble around. Mercenaries are disappearing... -
Den of Wolves by Juliet Marillier
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsThe “powerful and emotionally-charged” fantasy series from the author of the Sevenwaters novels continues, as Blackthorn and Grim face haunting secrets and old adversaries... Feather bright and feather fine, None shall harm this child of mine... Healer Blackthorn knows all too well the rules of her bond to the fey: seek no vengeance, help any who ask, do only good... -
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier
Rated: 4.24 of 5 stars · 56 ratingsA magnificent saga set in the Celtic twilight of 10th century Ireland, when myth was law and magic was a power of nature, brilliantly brought to life: the legendary story of an evil stepmother opposed by a seventh child.The keep at Sevenwaters is a strange, remote place, guarded by silent men who slip through the woodlands clothed in grey, and keep their weapons sharp... -
Revelations by Lindsay Buroker
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsPower that’s growing ever more impossible to hide… Captain Telryn “Trip” Yert is on the most important mission of his life. Accompanied by Captain Kaika, the sentient soulblade Jaxi, and Rysha Ravenwood—the noble-born scholar and officer he definitely shouldn’t be developing feelings for—he must find a way to close a portal that’s allowing more and more dragons into the world... -
Origins by Lindsay Buroker
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsAre you still human if your father was a dragon? Even though Captain Trip always knew he was a little odd, he’s still shocked by the revelation that the elder gold dragon, Agarrenon Shivar, sired him. It’s time, however, to accept reality and learn to use his power, even if it alienates him from his magic-fearing friends—and the woman he’s come to care about... -
Little Thieves by Margaret Owen
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOnce upon a time, there was a horrible girl... Vanja Schmidt knows that no gift is freely given, not even a mother's love--and she's on the hook for one hell of a debt. Vanja, the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune, was Princess Gisele's dutiful servant up until a year ago... -
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The Ciphers of Muirwood by Jeff Wheeler
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsFrom the moment she was banished by her father, the king, Princess Maia journeyed to seek sanctuary at Muirwood Abbey, the epicenter of magic and good in the land. Now safe for the first time since her cruel abandonment, Maia must foster uneasy friendships with other girls training to be Ciphers: women who learn to read and engrave tomes of ancient power, despite the laws forbidding them to do so... -
Dragonwitch by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsA New Tale Is Added to this Christy Award-Winning Fantasy Saga!Submissive to her father's will, Lady Leta of Aiven travels far to meet a prospective husband she neither knows nor loves--Lord Alistair, future king of the North Country. But within the walls of Gaheris Castle, all is not right. Vicious night terrors plague Lord Alistair to the brink of insanity. Whispers rise from the family crypt... -
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 74 ratingsMiryem is the daughter and granddaughter of moneylenders, but her father's inability to collect his debts has left his family on the edge of poverty--until Miryem takes matters into her own hands. Hardening her heart, the young woman sets out to claim what is owed and soon gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold... -
Black Coven by E. William Brown
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsSurviving Ragnarok is challenge no matter what powers you have, and new problems keep cropping up. Demanding witches, genocidal monsters, divine feuds and local politics will all keep Daniel on his toes. But his enemies have made one crucial mistake. They've given an engineer who understands the nature of magic time to build things.. -
Penric’s Mission by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 31 ratingsIn his 30th year, Penric fell in love with light.Learned Penric, a sorcerer and divine of the Bastard's Order, travels across the sea to sunlit Cedonia on his first covert diplomatic mission, to attempt to secure the services of a disaffected Cedonian general for the Duke of Adria. However, nothing is as it seems... -
Court Duel by Sherwood Smith
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 22 ratingsThe evil king is dead, the war is over, and Meliara -- barefoot countess and reluctant heroine -- has been swept up into a different kind of battle in the dance halls and drawing rooms of the royal palace. Physical warfare is easy compared to the genteel skirmishes of the royal court... -
Unraveled by Lindsay Buroker
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA mission to a foreign land has left Captain Trip Yert with a responsibility he never anticipated: watching over two dozen magical stasis chambers containing half-dragon young, including eight that are half-human. As bewildering as he finds it, all of them are related to him... -
Bonded Fate by Beck Michaels
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 23 ratingsThe stakes are higher, new questions will surface, and more blood will spill in the thrilling sequel of the Guardians of the Maiden fantasy series.Reeling from Cassiel's confession, Dyna struggles to understand what the Blood Bond means for them both, all the while trying to stay one step ahead of a newfound enemy... -
The Prisoner of Limnos by Lois McMaster Bujold
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsIn this sequel novella to “Mira’s Last Dance”, Temple sorcerer Penric and the widow Nikys have reached safety in the duchy of Orbas when a secret letter from a friend brings frightening news: Nikys’s mother has been taken hostage by her brother’s enemies at the Cedonian imperial court, and confined in a precarious island sanctuary... -
Dragon on Top by G.A. Aiken
Rated: 4.32 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsTry a little dragon tenderness. I am Glheanna the Decimator. I am a warrior. A soldier. I know no fear. No pain. No mercy. I do, however, know acute embarrassment! How could I not after getting dumped by a bastard dragon in front of my own troops? So I tuck tail and return to my cave, drowning my sorrows in ale—as is my family’s way... -
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Starflower by Anne Elisabeth Stengl
Rated: 4.49 of 5 stars · 15 ratingsThe Black Dogs are on the hunt, but who is their prey?When a cursed dragon-witch kidnaps fairest Lady Gleamdren, the Bard Eanrin sets boldly forth on a rescue mission...and a race against his rival for Gleamdren's favor. Intent upon his quest, the last thing the immortal Faerie needs is to become mixed up with the troubles of an insignificant mortal... -
I Destroyed the Elf Prince's Harem by Jocelynn Drake
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsWho hasn't wanted to disappear into their favorite book? Live in the world of their favorite characters?Well, when this author fell off a bridge thanks to flipping a magic coin, I woke up in the one place I didn't want to be—my own unfinished novel.Now I'm trying to untangle this twisted plot, put the hero back on track to finding his brother's killer, and getting his happily ever after... -
Shards of Time by Lynn Flewelling
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsAcclaimed author Lynn Flewelling brings her beloved Nightrunners series to a close—at least for now—with a thrilling novel of murder, mystery, and magic. The governor of the sacred island of Korous and his mistress have been killed inside a locked and guarded room... -
Frostbite by Adrienne Woods
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 32 ratingsLosing Lucian McKenzie, the Prince of her heart and discovering her true identity has made Elena Watkins' life almost unbearable. However, new trials will test the 17 year-old's strength and push her to limits she didn’t think were possible.Only a mysterious offer from Blake Leaf, the Rubicon and a dragon predestined for evil, reveals there may be a light at the end of Elena’s dark tunnel... -
The Assassin and the Healer by Sarah J. Maas
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsMeet the Assassin: beautiful, defiant, destined for greatness. Celaena Sardothien has challenged her master. Now she must pay the price. Her journey to the Red Desert will be an arduous one, but it may change the fate of her cursed world forever.. -
The Well of Shades by Juliet Marillier
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 29 ratingsJuliet Marillier continues the epic fantasy begun with" The Dark Mirror, " which" Interzone" called: "A fascinating evocation of life in Pictish England and an emotional roller coaster of a story." King Bridei is a man with a mission. His wish to unite his kingdom seems almost within his grasp but there are forces working to undo his dream... -
First of Tomes by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.54 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsApparently, time-travel spells have a sense of humor and don’t take direction well. Mei Li could’ve done with knowing that beforehand, and fully blames Shunlei for not forewarning her.Instead of going back a few years to rescue the missing tomes, Mei Li finds herself thousands of years in the past, with the original events she needs to learn about still ten years into the future... -
The White Song by Phil Tucker
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe White Song is the final installment in a gripping new epic fantasy series.The hour of reckoning is at hand. The skies darken with the forces of the enemy while the hopes of the armies of the light dwindle to but a candle flame. Morals, compunctions, oaths - all must be set aside, every sacrifice made, every advantage and ally sought if there is to be any chance for survival... -
I Went on an Adventure and All I Got Was This Barbarian Orc by Jennifer Cody
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsBerklak:Being a half-orc is fun most of the time. Most people think I’m all orc, and that usually slicks things up so I can glide in and out of town without much fuss. Most of the time things go really smoothly for me... -
Heir to Sevenwaters by Juliet Marillier
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 35 ratingsA brand new novel in the beloved world of Sevenwaters, a fantasy series that should appeal to "Lord of the Rings" fans (VOYA). The chieftains of Sevenwaters have long been custodians of a vast and mysterious forest. Human and Otherworld dwellers have existed there side by side, sharing a wary trust... -
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The Other Merlin by Robyn Schneider
Rated: 4.28 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsWelcome to the great kingdom of Camelot. Prince Arthur’s a depressed botanist who would rather marry a library than a princess, Lancelot’s been demoted to castle guard after a terrible misunderstanding, and nothing is going according to plan...Categorized as:
humor medieval myths paranormal retellings sword-sorcery action-adventure adaptations -
The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 74 ratingsHere is the magical legend of King Arthur, vividly retold through the eyes and lives of the women who wielded power from behind the throne. A spellbinding novel, an extraordinary literary achievement, THE MISTS OF AVALON will stay with you for a long time to come... -
Fearless by Cornelia Funke
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsWith the fatal fairy moth on his chest giving only a few months to live, Jocob Reckless tries, the blood of a Northern Djinn, then a mythical crossbow that can kill thousands, or heal one, when shot through the heart. But famed Goyl assassin treasure hunter is also searching for the prized crossbow. Jacob must find it first--and somehow convince Fox to do whatever it takes to save him... -
Odin's Child by Siri Pettersen, Paul Russell Garrett
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn epic fantasy trilogy from Norway about thousand-year-old secrets, forbidden romance, and what happens to those who make a deal with the devil comes at last to the United States! 15-year-old Hirka has always been an outsider in the world of Ym: she’s the only person without a tail, and the only one unable to access the Might, a current of power that runs through the earth... -
The Emerald Sea by Richelle Mead
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsThe dazzling conclusion to #1 New York Times bestselling author Richelle Mead's The Glittering Court series.Meet Tamsin, the Glittering Court's hard-angled emerald. Her outsized aspirations make her a fierce competitor, rising to the top of the ranks. But when the ship she boards for the New World is tragically lost at sea, she is quite literally thrown off-course... -
The Wide-Awake Princess by E.D. Baker
Rated: 4.12 of 5 stars · 25 ratingsIn this new stand-alone fairy tale, Princess Annie is the younger sister to Gwen, the princess destined to be Sleeping Beauty. When Gwennie pricks her finger and the whole castle falls asleep, only Annie is awake, and only Annie-blessed (or cursed?) with being impervious to magic-can venture out beyond the rose-covered hedge for help. She must find Gwen's true love to kiss her awake... -
East by Edith Pattou
Rated: 4.15 of 5 stars · 45 ratingsRose has always been different. Since the day she was born, it was clear she had a special fate. Her superstitious mother keeps the unusual circumstances of Rose's birth a secret, hoping to prevent her adventurous daughter from leaving home... but she can't suppress Rose's true nature forever... -
Tomes Apprentice by Honor Raconteur
Rated: 4.45 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt’s like the start of a bad joke: a Master of Tomes, his apprentice, and ninety world-saving records get lost at sea. Mei Li really wishes the joke wasn’t her life. For two years she’s been stranded in a remote village with no knowledge of where her master is or what’s going on in the world... -
Ghost in the Cowl by Jonathan Moeller
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsOverviewCaina Amalas was a nightfighter of the Ghosts, the spies and assassins of the Emperor of Nighmar, and through her boldness and cunning saved the Empire and the world from sorcerous annihilation.But the victory cost her everything.Now she is exiled and alone in the city of Istarinmul, far from her home and friends... -
Sacrifice by Tara Maya
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsReviews"I was enchanted by Initiate, drawn into a world that felt as comfortably recognizable and uniquely untried as Narnia, Hogwarts orMiddle Earth."--Casee Marie, The Girl Who Stole the Eiffel Tower"Wow. Holy smoking wow. This is one of the few books I've read that I canhonestly say was totally, 100% original.... However, as unique as it is, it was insanely easy to slip into the story.. -
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Stolen Princess by Kelly St. Clare
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsCertainty is slipping through my fingers like pirates’ gold. After escaping to our secret sanctuary, I’m haunted by the guilt of my decision. And the close call with Malice left me with more than doubt—I’m now harboring a magical fugitive. When Cosmo reveals a darkness is spreading from his wound, our crew must brave capture by our enemies to cure him... -
How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit: Bone 6 by A.J. Sherwood
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsFinal boss fight! Fight necromancer? (yes) (NO) I’m not beating up an old lady. Pretty sure the old lady could take you. Still not doing it. Time to negotiate... -
How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit: Bone 5 by A.J. Sherwood
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsYou must negotiate return of dragon wing. Penalty levied against party members. Piemu unleashed. Accept quest? (YES) (no) How is this harder than the pirates? I’m looking at the reason. Uncalled for. True, but still uncalled for... -
How I Took the King on a Bone-a-Fide Quest of Piracy, Piemu, and Profit: Bone 4 by A.J. Sherwood
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsDragon wing located on pirate ship! Board ship? (YES) (NO?!) I feel like this is a bad idea... -
A Crown This Cold and Heavy by Stacia Stark
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 11 ratingsThe unimaginable has happened,And none of our lives will ever be the same.Surrounded by enemies, I've never been further from my crown...Or closer to death.Amidst a betrayal we couldn't have anticipated, I'll do whatever it takes to find my way back to Lorian – before his fury lays waste to this continent... -
The Lost Queen by Signe Pike
Rated: 4.16 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsCompared to Outlander and The Mists of Avalon, this thrilling first novel of a debut trilogy reveals the untold story of Languoreth—a forgotten queen of sixth-century Scotland—twin sister of the man who inspired the legend of Merlin. I write because I have seen the darkness that will come. Already there are those who seek to tell a new history..
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