Twenty-year-old Viola Serrain was meant to join the Scholars’ Guild, living a quiet life surrounded by books and ancient texts. But her ruthless mother—the Academy’s formidable Commander—has decreed otherwise. Viola must now train alongside hundreds of other cadets vying to become the elite protectors of Celestara: phoenix riders.
But when you’re smaller and weaker than everyone else, survival is a daily struggle. Phoenixes don’t bond with fragile riders—they burn them alive.
With fewer phoenixes than cadets, some would kill Viola to increase their odds. Others would end her life simply for being her mother’s daughter—including Zayden Riloris, the cunning and dangerous squad leader of the Riders’ Wing.
Viola must rely on her wits and instincts to endure her trials and see the next sunrise. But as the war beyond the academy’s walls intensifies, rumors swirl of failing magical barriers and a threat far greater than anyone imagined. Worse, Viola begins to suspect the leadership is hiding a devastating secret that could change everything.
Allies, rivals, and forbidden attractions blur the lines of trust in a place where survival isn’t guaranteed—because in Emberfall Academy, there are only two outcomes: rise or perish.
