James has always been selfish, arrogant, and unserious. Even when he's tried to do better, he's feared the folly and mixed motivations that lurk within his heart. So when the princess Aurelia-whom he tormented as a youth-enlists his help traveling a hard road to her homeland, he agrees more out of compulsion than compassion. Little does James know his reluctant decision to give aid to the princess will change his life forever.

When Princess Aurelia stumbles upon Lord James in the enchanted Black Forest of Ravenia, she sees in him the desperate chance she needs to escape a cruel father and a cursed engagement to a wicked man. Placing her hope in James, though, comes with its own entanglements-not the least of which is her traitorous heart. As their road turns dark and dangerous, she must not only hope in him, but also trust him with her deepest secrets.

As James and Aurelia struggle for survival, they grow closer with each challenge and find their assumptions about each other giving way to affection, a terrifying and futile affection. Because there is a curse laid on Aurelia, a curse that could mean James's death for loving her. Unless he can do the impossible and free her from what cannot be broken.