In the kingdom of Ara, the divine is not a blessing but a biological sentence. For the Valtain, marked by their colorless skin and white hair, holiness is inextricably tied to a fleeting existence, making every hour spent in ritual a theft from a life already destined to be brief. This tension between sacred duty and the primal urge to live creates a suffocating environment for Rosira, a young woman who views the walls of her temple not as a sanctuary, but as a gilded cage.
As the political landscape of Ara fractures under the weight of civil unrest, the internal struggle for personal agency mirrors the external collapse of the monarchy. The ascent of King Araich, a ruler attempting to distance himself from his father's legacy, provides the catalyst for a collision between the ecclesiastical and the secular. In a world where time is the most valuable currency, the onset of war forces a reckoning: stay within the safety of a dying tradition or risk a short, violent life in pursuit of genuine autonomy.
The world of Ara is defined by the intersection of harsh political realities and a unique religious caste system. The Valtain are central to the realm's spiritual identity, yet they are physically fragile, suffering from a condition that ensures they never see old age. This creates a society that venerates the Valtain while simultaneously infantilizing them, keeping them sequestered in the Church for "protection." The atmosphere is one of stagnant tradition being violently disrupted by the practicalities of a civil war. Broadbent establishes a setting where the stakes are immediately high, not just because of the looming battles, but because the protagonists are fighting against the inherent limitations of their own bodies and social stations.
The narrative centers on the dual arcs of Rosira and Araich as they navigate the transition from being symbols to being individuals. Rosira’s development is rooted in her rejection of the "martyr" identity; she is less interested in saving her people through prayer and more interested in saving herself from a life unlived. Her dynamic with Araich begins not with a grand alliance, but with the shared realization that they are both pawns of larger institutional forces. Araich’s struggle is one of legitimacy—trying to hold a fracturing country together while realizing that the traditional pillars of power, including the Church, may be more of a hindrance than a help.
A Palace Fractured utilizes and subverts several high-fantasy mainstays:
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Bloodshed, political maneuvering, and the brutal cost of survival define the landscapes of modern romantic fantasy, where high-stakes conflicts extend far beyond matters of the heart. Fantasy author Carissa Broadbent has built a wide readership in this competitive genre by subjecting her protagonists to the grim realities of power, legacy, and systemic violence. She is widely recognized for The Serpent and the Wings of Night, an epic vampire tournament novel that launched her best-selling Crowns of Nyaxia universe.
Her expansive catalog blends high-tension epic fantasy plots with intense romantic arcs, establishing her as a prominent voice in contemporary speculative fiction across both independent and traditional publishing spaces.
Based in Rhode Island, where she lives with her husband, her son, a perpetually skeptical cat, and a badly behaved rabbit, Carissa Broadbent began writing dark, mercilessly grim stories around the age of nine. This early preoccupation with dark fiction eventually matured into a disciplined approach to epic fantasy world-building. Before transitioning into writing as a full-time profession, she worked in the healthcare industry. That professional background provided her with a nuanced understanding of human vulnerability, physical trauma, and psychological resilience—elements that deeply inform her character development and thematic depth.
Broadbent initially published her work independently, entering the literary landscape with self-published releases such as her 2017 novel A Palace Fractured. She steadily cultivated a dedicated fanbase in the indie fantasy community as her self-publishing earnings grew from covering routine utility bills to generating consistent four-figure paychecks. Her breakthrough reached a broader digital audience through platforms like BookTok, where readers praised her intricate world-building, high-stakes political intrigue, and morally complex characters. This grassroots momentum culminated in major commercial success and substantial reader demand.
Her rapid commercial ascent caught the attention of legacy publishers, leading to major deals with traditional houses including Tor Publishing Group and Pan Macmillan. In July 2023, Bramble, a romance-focused imprint of Tor, acquired her body of work to publish original installments in the Crowns of Nyaxia series alongside new traditional editions of her backlist titles. Now a #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author, Broadbent's transition from self-publishing to traditional publishing is frequently highlighted in industry publications such as Publishers Weekly as a prime example of independent success driving major publishing partnerships.
Broadbent’s writing style is distinguished by its refusal to sanitize the harsh realities of war, oppression, and physical trauma. Influenced by the lyrical prose and nuanced exploration of femininity found in the works of Madeline Miller, her narratives focus on the psychological toll of conflict and the structural pressures placed upon women in patriarchal or authoritarian societies. Rather than relying on simple tropes, her work emphasizes complex emotional realism, where characters must grapple with moral compromises, trauma, and the heavy burden of survival in hostile environments.
Thematically, her stories delve into the psychological motivations behind both human and non-human behavior, examining why individuals seek authority and how legacy dictates personal agency. A recurring concept throughout her work is that love can be a dangerous vulnerability in worlds designed for cruelty and state-sanctioned violence. While her novels incorporate a substantial romantic thread, critics and readers frequently observe that her epic fantasy plots—complete with intricate magic systems and grim geopolitical maneuvering—are robust enough to carry the narrative independently of the romantic relationships.
Her character design consistently features resilient, complex female leads forced to navigate oppressive power structures. These protagonists are rarely unblemished heroes; instead, they are pragmatic survivors who use strategy, combat skills, and political cunning to protect their communities and claim their personal autonomy. By pairing intricate magical mechanics with intense character dynamics, Broadbent creates stories where emotional stakes and mortal danger remain inextricably linked.
The Valtain Preludes
