First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

• Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page.
• Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first.
• Finally… reveal the book!

Hello, hello! I hope you’ve all had a brilliant week so far. The book I’ve picked this week is a new adult fantasy by one of my auto-buy authors. She has a penchant for historical, Shakespearean re-tellings and this one is no different. Inspired by Antony and Cleopatra this books is filled with a fiery collision of power plays, spilled blood, and romance amidst a set of deadly games.

“A living thing, when faced with a break or injury, is compelled to heal itself. A cut will clot with blood, trapping in a persons qi. A bone will smooth over, knitting new threads at every split. And San-Ers buildings, when an inconvenience is identified, will rush to mend the sore, pinpointing every fracture and hurling remedies with vigour.”

Well I’m definitely intrigued! I’m sure you’ve already guessed what this one is, but just in case…

Every year, thousands in the kingdom of Talin will flock to its capital twin cities, San-Er, where the palace hosts a set of games. For those confident enough in their ability to jump between bodies, competitors across San-Er fight to the death to win unimaginable riches.

Princess Calla Tuoleimi lurks in hiding. Five years ago, a massacre killed her parents and left the palace of Er empty…and she was the one who did it. Before King Kasa’s forces in San can catch her, she plans to finish the job and bring down the monarchy. Her reclusive uncle always greets the victor of the games, so if she wins, she gets her opportunity at last to kill him.

Enter Anton Makusa, an exiled aristocrat. His childhood love has lain in a coma since they were both ousted from the palace, and he’s deep in debt trying to keep her alive. Thankfully, he’s one of the best jumpers in the kingdom, flitting from body to body at will. His last chance at saving her is entering the games and winning.

Calla finds both an unexpected alliance with Anton and help from King Kasa’s adopted son, August, who wants to mend Talin’s ills. But the three of them have very different goals, even as Calla and Anton’s partnership spirals into something all-consuming. Before the games close, Calla must decide what she’s playing for—her lover or her kingdom.