Reckless by Lauren Roberts

Here is a summary with spoilers of Reckless

The first book in the series, Powerless, introduces Paedyn, an Ordinary who has been faking a Psychic ability to avoid detection and execution. Opposite her is Kai, the prince of Ilya and the king’s Enforcer—a ruthless assassin tasked with hunting down Ordinaries. The two form an unlikely bond when Paedyn is selected to participate in the Purging Trials, a series of deadly competitions. Paedyn emerges victorious, but her triumph is short-lived; her true identity is revealed. While attempting to flee, she is ambushed by the king. In self-defense, she kills him, only to learn moments before his death that Kai was responsible for assassinating her father years earlier.

Kai witnesses his father’s death at Paedyn’s hands but allows her to escape. Meanwhile, his older brother, Kitt, ascends the throne. As king, Kitt grows increasingly paranoid, both about Paedyn’s betrayal and the pressures of his new role.

Now tasked with finding and killing Paedyn—despite his lingering feelings for her—Kai sets out on his mission. Paedyn flees to Dor, a neighboring kingdom where no one possesses supernatural abilities. In Dor, the absence of oppressive violence disrupts the power dynamics she has always known. Paedyn earns a living as an underground fighter, but Kai eventually tracks her down. He insists on fighting her in the ring, and when he fails to defeat her, he exposes her identity to the crowd. This forces Paedyn to ally with Kai temporarily to escape. However, when she later attempts to flee, Kai captures her and takes her back to his men.

The next day, Kai and his group begin their journey across the desert to return to Ilya, but they are intercepted by Paedyn’s friends, Lenny, Leena, and Finn—former resistance members from Powerless. The group leads Paedyn and Kai to a community of refugees called Partials, who are the offspring of Elites and Ordinaries and possess only limited abilities. The Partials plan to trade Kai’s life for Paedyn’s freedom, but before they can act, they are ambushed by Rafael, the leader of the fighting ring where Paedyn once worked.

Kai and Paedyn are chained together and thrown into a cell. Forced into another uneasy alliance, they work together to escape. During their flight through the sewers, rising water nearly drowns them. After saving each other’s lives, they share a vulnerable moment and almost confess their feelings. However, Kai uses Paedyn’s distraction to bind her to him with chains once more, deciding to take her back to Ilya via the Sanctuary of Souls—a desolate, bandit-ridden region.

During their journey, they agree to spend one last moment free from their duties. They share a romantic interlude in a secluded grove and begin to read Paedyn’s father’s journal, which she took from her childhood home. The journal reveals the king’s propaganda: he spread lies about the Ordinaries to justify genocide and consolidate his power. The revelations spur Kai to return to Ilya and investigate the truth, and Paedyn chooses to accompany him.

By the end of the story, Kai and Paedyn return to Ilya together, their relationship now openly romantic and united by their shared goal of uncovering the truth. However, in a final twist, Kitt proposes marriage to Paedyn in a bid to consolidate his own power, leaving their future uncertain.

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