Amarrah Brewer is desperate and grief-stricken. For ages, the town of Bitterburn has sent tribute to the Keep at the End of the World, but a harsh winter leaves them unable to pay the toll that keeps the Beast at bay. Amarrah volunteers to brave what no one has before--to end the threat or die trying. The Beast of Bitterburn has lost all hope. One way or another, Njål has been a prisoner for his entire life. Monstrous evil has left him trapped and lonely, and he believes that will never change. There is only darkness in his endless exile, never light. Never warmth. Until she arrives. It's a tale as old as time... where Beauty goes to confront the Beast and falls in love instead.
Trude Burgess has eyes for only one person. Her entire life, she never loved anyone other than Viggo Calder. She watched as he courted the perfect lady, wooed and won her. And then...he lost that ideal love. Trude married him anyway...because his little girl needed a mother. And she would do anything to prove that her love is enough to make up for that tragic loss. Viggo Calder has never truly seen her. Though he married for convenience, his heart remains icy and untouched. He made the sacrifice for his daughter, but he spends his nights drinking and mourning. As a friend, Trude was perfect, patient and endlessly generous; as his partner, she seems sensitive and difficult. If only he could be with his beloved first wife again... When a magic mirror is involved, they must both take care with their wishes...