Cursed Soul

Born of wood, cloth, and a substantial dose of magic, Velsa is a Fanarlem, a beautiful artificial girl. Raised to be a concubine, she has seen her friends at the House of Perfumed Ribbons sold off to be the pets of wealthy men. Now her own dreaded day has come. Grau Thanneau is a kind and handsome sorcerer who expects to own a spectacular piece of spellwork - he doesn't realize that everything he has been told about Fanarlem is a lie.

Velsa is Grau's wife and a free woman - thanks to a lie. And the High Sorcerer's Palace is no place for keeping a secret, with its bustling social life of parties and balls. The beautiful princess with coveted magic, the doll girl heiress, the Peacock General and the blood-sucking gentleman from another realm - are they friends or enemies? Velsa is torn between her old role as a concubine and her place in a strange new world.

Following a fierce battle, Grau's life hangs in the balance. Velsa seeks healing and refuge in the land of Laionesse, only to learn that Grau's injuries may be beyond help - unless Velsa and her friends can beg a favor from the great necromancer Dormongara, who lives alone in a castle on a mountain and is notoriously unkind to visitors. Indeed, the steep price he demands will have unexpected consequences, bringing an old nemesis back into Velsa's life along with a notorious gang of bandits.