Feyre wakes from a nightmare, feeling sick as she recalls her death at the hands of the evil faerie queen Amarantha Under the Mountain. Her death, however, broke Amarantha’s curse on Tamlin, allowing him to kill the queen and free Prythian from her rule. Feyre is resurrected by the seven High Lords of Prythian as a High Fae, and in gratitude, Rhysand, High Lord of the Night Court, made a bargain with her: Feyre must spend one week a month with him for the rest of her life, symbolized by a tattoo on her arm. Despite her victory, Feyre feels broken inside, torn between her love for Tamlin and the deal with Rhysand.
Two weeks before her wedding to Tamlin, Feyre feels trapped in his manor. She longs to join him in hunting the remaining beasts unleashed by Amarantha, but Tamlin refuses, claiming it's too dangerous. Feyre spends her time planning the wedding with Ianthe, one of Tamlin’s friends and a High Priestess, but she feels disconnected from the process. Feyre learns that after their marriage, she will never be the High Lady of the Spring Court; instead, she’ll bear children and manage social expectations.
Lucien, Tamlin’s friend and lieutenant, invites Feyre to inspect a nearby village. Feyre confronts him about his lies regarding a previous attack, feeling increasingly sheltered. At the village, the villagers decline help when they see Feyre, telling Lucien that "the debt is paid." Lucien explains that during Amarantha’s rule, lesser faeries were imprisoned and forced to eat each other, and Feyre, as a reminder of the past, stirs painful memories.
As the wedding guests arrive, Feyre plays her part, but she’s haunted by memories of her trials Under the Mountain. During the ceremony, Feyre feels unworthy of the wedding, thinking about her past and the blood on her hands. As she walks down the aisle, she’s reminded of the crowds that once watched her near-death, and she retreats from a concerned Tamlin when thunder strikes and Rhysand appears.
Rhysand demands that Feyre honor the bargain she made to spend one week a month with him for the rest of her life. Tamlin protests but cannot refuse, as breaking a faerie bargain is taboo. Rhys takes Feyre to the Night Court, which surprises her with its warmth and beauty, scented with jasmine and under a starry sky. Rhys taunts Feyre about her marriage but reassures her that she is not a prisoner. Despite his words, Feyre remains irritated by Rhys’s arrogance.
In her room, Feyre cries, regretting her hesitation to marry Tamlin. Over breakfast, Rhys explains the bond between them, which allows him to hear her thoughts when she is most vulnerable. He rescued Feyre from marrying Tamlin because he sensed her doubts. Rhys also offers to teach her to read, as her illiteracy almost led to her death Under the Mountain.
Feyre resists Rhys’s offer of tutoring, but he insists. During her first reading lesson, Feyre struggles but eventually reads a note from Rhys, which enrages her and makes her vulnerable. Rhys takes advantage of this to enter her mind, but Feyre manages to force him out. Rhys argues that Feyre needs a purpose beyond being Tamlin’s consort and suggests that she could find a more meaningful role at the Night Court. He leaves her to practice mental shielding.
Rhys takes Feyre to the top of a tower, where he shows her a map of Prythian and Hybern. He warns her that the wall separating the mortal and faerie realms may soon come down, and the King of Hybern has been planning an assault for years. Rhys urges Feyre to find out where Tamlin’s loyalties lie and offers to teach her how to harness her newfound powers. Feyre hesitates, but Rhys gives her a choice: stay with Tamlin and remain a trophy or claim her power and play a vital role in the war.
The next day, Feyre overhears Rhys and Morrigan discussing an attack on a temple. Rhys leaves to meet with his trusted warriors, Cassian and Azriel. On her last day at the Night Court, Rhys reminds Feyre of her desire to stop the wedding and insists he is not her enemy. Feyre agrees to consider his offer and returns to Tamlin’s court.
Reunited with Tamlin, Feyre is eager to be intimate, but Tamlin insists on knowing about her time away. Feyre feels interrogated, but she tells Tamlin and Lucien everything. She asks their opinion about her powers, and Lucien warns that other High Lords would kill her to reclaim their power. Tamlin forbids Feyre from training with Rhys, hoping to protect her from the dangers of battle.
A week after Feyre’s arrival in the Spring Court, the Tithing ritual takes place, where the High Lord’s subjects must offer payment for protection. A water-wraith pleads with Tamlin for forgiveness, as their lake is dry, but Tamlin refuses to break tradition. Feyre, angered, storms out and gives the wraith her jewelry to help them pay. Tamlin reprimands her for undermining the court, although Lucien agrees with Feyre. As Feyre’s power begins to manifest, she unintentionally enters Lucien’s mind, urging him to defy Tamlin, but the moment passes.
Later, Feyre’s attendant, Alis, braids her hair and reassures her that the wraith will remember her kindness. That evening, Feyre and Tamlin apologize to each other. Tamlin gives Feyre a painting kit, a reminder of her past life. Feyre asks to be freed from confinement and guards, but Tamlin’s power surges in anger, shattering his study. Feyre realizes she has created a shield around herself, an unknown power. Tamlin apologizes, and Feyre reluctantly forgives him. Tamlin reduces her guards and allows her more freedom, though he continues to disappear without explanation.
One morning, Rhys arrives to take Feyre to the Night Court, and despite Tamlin’s objections, Feyre leaves with him. She tries to talk to Tamlin about the war, but he refuses to discuss it. Rhys offers to end Feyre’s bargain with Tamlin, but Feyre insists on going with him. Rhys takes her to the Night Court, where he worries about her mental bond with Tamlin, which has only been active during arguments. Feyre continues to refuse Rhys’s training offers, fearing it might hurt her relationship with Tamlin.
When Rhys returns after a week, he encourages Feyre to embrace her future, but she pushes him away. Eventually, she returns to Tamlin, who vows to end the bargain. Feyre spends her time reading and training her mental shielding while Tamlin and Lucien deal with a nameless threat. Later, Feyre becomes triggered by Lucien’s red hair, reminding her of Amarantha’s red hair, and her powers begin to grow. She asks to join them on their mission, but Tamlin locks her in the manor. Feyre escapes with Mor’s help, and they winnow to the Night Court.
At the Night Court, Feyre is offered sanctuary, and she begins to understand her growing powers—darkness, wind, and ice. Rhys prepares to leave on business and offers to train her, but she hesitates. Feyre asks to come along, and they visit Velaris, the hidden City of Starlight. Feyre is struck by the city’s beauty and the peace the people enjoy despite the rest of Prythian’s struggles. Rhys introduces Feyre to his Inner Circle: Cassian, Azriel, and Amren. Feyre connects with Mor, and they bond over shared hardships. Rhys reveals that the King of Hybern plans to resurrect Jurian, a key figure tied to dark magic.
Rhys takes Feyre to the ancient Prison to speak with the Bone Carver. There, Feyre learns that the King of Hybern is gathering parts of the Cauldron to break the wall between the mortal and faerie realms. The Bone Carver also shares that Feyre may be able to wield the Book of Breathings to negate the Cauldron’s power. Feyre, tasked with retrieving the mortal half of the book, agrees, despite the dangers.
Rhys and Feyre later visit the Weaver’s cottage to retrieve an item lost by Rhys, but the Weaver traps Feyre inside. She narrowly escapes using fire and winnows back to Velaris. Feyre passes Rhys’s test, but expresses her desire to be trained in combat by Cassian. Rhys challenges her to break through his mental shields, which she does, accidentally learning of Rhys’s painful past and his rejection of Ianthe.
Feyre and Rhys travel to her family estate in the mortal realm, where she reveals her Fae nature to her sisters, Elain and Nesta, and the mortal queens. The queens remain distrustful, and Feyre agrees to become an emissary to the mortal realm in exchange for their cooperation. Feyre is frustrated by her strained relationship with Tamlin, but she continues her training.
Feyre struggles with combat, but her new powers surge when she’s captured by an Attor, a dangerous faerie, sent by the King of Hybern. Rhys intervenes, learning that the Attor’s mission is a message from Hybern. Feyre, angered, retaliates with her newfound abilities. She later accompanies Rhys and the Inner Circle to the Summer Court, where she meets Tarquin, the High Lord, and is introduced to the Summer Court’s fragile politics.
In the Summer Court, Feyre uses the Summer Lord’s powers to manipulate water. Rhys, concerned about their alliance with Tamlin, hints at the political ramifications. Feyre searches for the Book of Breathings but struggles to sense it. She is given a necklace by Tarquin as a gift, and he later asks her to become his emissary to the mortal realm, but she refuses. Despite the kindness of Tarquin, Feyre’s loyalty to Rhys remains.
The following night, Feyre, Rhys, and Amren infiltrate an ancient temple where they find the Fae half of the Book of Breathings. After retrieving the book, Feyre nearly drowns in the flooded temple, but she’s saved by water wraiths and winnows back to Velaris. Amren begins decoding the book, and they discuss the resurrection of Jurian, a figure tied to Hybern’s plans.
Feyre’s relationship with Rhys deepens, but there’s still tension as she navigates her feelings for him, especially after a confrontation with Tamlin. Rhys continues to support Feyre in honing her skills, even as they uncover more secrets about the King of Hybern’s plans and their own pasts. Feyre trains in combat with Cassian, and her emotional and physical growth continues to unfold in unpredictable ways.
In the Illyrian war camp, where she gains new insights into Rhys’s traumatic past, her powers grow, and she feels a new passion for painting. As tensions mount, Feyre’s relationship with Rhys evolves, leading her to explore her emotions, while also preparing for an impending war with the King of Hybern.
The next morning, Rhys is feverish from the poison in the arrows. Feyre sets a trap to catch a Suriel, a creature who cannot lie. The Suriel tells Feyre that she can cure Rhys with her blood and reveals that Rhys is Feyre’s mate, a sacred bond between faeries. Feyre, angry that Rhys didn’t tell her, forces blood into his mouth, healing him. Rhys admits he feared she only wanted him as a distraction due to her marriage to Tamlin and regrets not being honest.
Feyre takes Rhys back to the war camp, where she leaves him in the snow, seeking space from him. She asks Mor to take her to a remote cabin, where she spends time alone reflecting and painting. After several days, Mor returns and encourages Feyre to listen to Rhys’s reasons for keeping their mate bond a secret. Feyre agrees, deciding that being part of Rhys’s family is worth the pain.
For the next few days, Feyre continues painting and resting, contemplating her future with Rhys. On the fifth day, Rhys arrives, and they reconcile. Rhys explains the significance of Feyre offering him food, marking a special moment in their bond. He recounts his tortured past under Amarantha, his attempts to kill her, and the years spent as her consort. Rhys reveals that he knew Feyre was his mate after Amarantha’s death, but he needed her to love him freely, which is why he stayed away. Feyre serves him the meal, signaling their emotional connection and the beginning of their deeper bond.
Feyre and Rhys confess their love and become sexually intimate. They discuss having an official mating ritual led by a priestess but decide against it for now. Rhys warns that they must meet the mortal queens in three days at her family’s estate. He expresses concern that Feyre might get pregnant during the upcoming war, so Feyre promises to take precautions.
In Velaris, they meet Azriel, Amren, Cassian, and Mor, all vowing to protect Feyre. After dinner, they fly to meet the queens.
At Feyre’s family estate, Rhys and his Inner Circle meet with the queens, but three of the five queens refuse to attend. They demand the orb from the Hewn City as proof of Rhys’s good intentions. Mor reveals the orb, which shows Velaris, convincing the queens to consider an alliance. The eldest queen reads Rhys’s personal plea, but the queens remain skeptical. Nesta demands the Book of Breathings, but the eldest queen refuses. As tensions rise, the younger queen leaves behind a lead box containing the other half of the book and a note warning them not to trust the other queens. Rhys offers Elain and Nesta sanctuary in Velaris.
Amren begins translating the book, and Rhys and Mor return the orb to the Hewn City. As the legions prepare for battle, Feyre and Cassian stroll through Velaris but are soon attacked by Hybern soldiers using enchanted stone gauntlets to nullify Cassian’s magic. Feyre’s powers surge, and she defends the city with her magic, turning attackers to ice and summoning water wolves. The battle shifts in their favor, but Feyre chases the Attor, a Hybern soldier, into the air.
Feyre strikes the Attor down and, together with Rhys, surveys the battlefield. After restoring Velaris’s wards, they plan to go after the Cauldron in Hybern. Feyre moves into Rhys’s room, where he gifts her a star sapphire ring, a symbol of their bond.
Feyre and her group winnow to Hybern’s castle, which is crumbling. They enter the castle and reach the Cauldron’s chamber, where Feyre feels its immense power. She joins the two halves of the Book of Breathings, but its energy overwhelms her. As Feyre attempts the negation spell, Jurian appears, distracting them while the king nullifies their powers. The king reveals Tamlin and Lucien, who have made a deal with him: Tamlin will surrender Feyre in exchange for the king using the Spring Court as a base.
Tamlin begs Feyre to return, but she refuses. Feyre regains control of her power and agrees to go with Tamlin, under the condition that the others are freed. She winnows away from Tamlin’s grasp, and Rhys strikes him. The king summons the mortal queens, who drag Elain and Nesta, bound and gagged. The king tests an immortality spell on Elain and Nesta, turning them both into immortal High Fae. Feyre tries to unleash her magic, but it is once again suppressed by the Cauldron.
As the queens prepare to be remade, Feyre feigns allegiance to Tamlin, asking the king to break her mating bond with Rhys. The king complies, though Rhys protests. Feyre then feigns betrayal to Tamlin, and the group escapes. The king, enraged, demands Feyre return the Book of Breathings, but she no longer has it.
Back at the Night Court, Rhys and his Inner Circle regroup. Rhys reveals Feyre’s plan, which was to spy on Tamlin and the king. Feyre is now both a spy and the High Lady of the Night Court, secretly married to Rhys by a priestess. Rhys vows revenge on Hybern, the queens, and the Spring Court.
At the Spring Court, Feyre keeps up the ruse that she chose Tamlin, but Lucien is suspicious. Feyre plans to secretly sabotage Tamlin’s efforts while Lucien is distracted by his bond with Elain. Feyre ascends the Spring Court manor, determined to destroy Tamlin from within.
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