The Wolf and The Crown of Blood by Elizabeth May

Here is a summary with spoilers for The Wolf and The Crown of Blood by Elizabeth May

Three hundred years before the story begins, a devastating war raged between humans and the gods. To end the conflict, Amalthea Devaliant sacrificed herself by binding her blood with that of Alexios, the God of Storms, creating the magical barrier known as the Shroud. The peace agreement, called the Accords, required regular blood tithes to maintain the barrier. The Devaliant family became Anchors, members of the royal bloodline who were ritually killed and resurrected every fourteen days to strengthen the Shroud. While humans gradually forgot the horrors of the war, the immortal gods remembered every detail.

Two years before the main events, Bryony Devaliant, the youngest princess and one of the last surviving Anchors, encounters Evander, the God of Light, known among humans as the Wolf. She witnesses him executing a human who violated the Accords. Rather than begging for mercy, Bryony calmly negotiates the terms of her own potential death, earning Evander's respect. Their brief interaction leaves a lasting impression on both of them, especially because Bryony doesn’t flinch at the Wolf, but rather faces him full-on.

Years later, Bryony's life is thrown into chaos when the Head Oracle announces that Alexios has revoked her divine Claim because the people worship Bryony instead of paying proper tithes. Soon after, Bryony chooses to become Marked and is effectively sentenced to death. Refusing to accept her fate, she exploits a loophole in the Accords by stabbing herself on temple grounds as a valid blood offering. When her uncle, Emperor Idris, attempts to control the situation, Bryony publicly reveals her mark during an arranged marriage ceremony, ruining the match and protecting her older sister, Theodora, from being drawn into the conflict. Her match is furious at the whole scenario as well, feeling as though he was played by the whole family.

Soon afterward, Evander, the Wolf, appears in Bryony's room and offers her a rare Turpori dagger capable of harming gods. He encourages her to strike him, allowing her to release years of anger and frustration. After learning about her loophole tithe, Evander determines she is technically not an oathbreaker and erases her memory of the encounter to spare her execution.

At the same time, Evander is investigating a growing fleshtrade in which humans consume divine body parts to temporarily gain godlike abilities. Alexios orders Evander to kill Bryony, but before he can act, Bryony is betrayed by Idris, who stabs and abandons her on Duehavn Ridge. She briefly dies before being revived by Amara, a winged demigoddess, who carries her through the Shroud into the realm of the gods.

In Scillari, Evander discovers Bryony is alive and restores the memories he erased, though it takes days for her to heal. He heals her wounds and agrees to train her while giving her a three-day head start before he resumes hunting her. Though he acts and seems hostile toward her, Evander is slightly enamored by Bryony. He wants his guards to give her everything she might need: clothes, food, a nice room, and to make sure she is properly trained. He even shows her his personal library, a room he has never shown anyone. During her stay, Bryony learns about Evander's true identity, his lost Turpori culture, and the immense grief he carries from the ancient war, something she was taught very differently about. Amara trains Bryony relentlessly, forcing her to confront years of suppressed fear and anger. For the first time, Bryony begins to see violence not as something done to her, but as something she can control. Bryony is still trying to find her missing sister, which is what has started this whole mess. Evander keeps telling her that her sister is misplaced, not missing. So Bryony asks for a game with a bet: if she wins, she gets to have communication with her sister. He agrees, and after a sneaky trick, she wins and gets to start writing to her sister. Though Evander also gets to sleep in the same bed as her.

As Evander continues serving as one of Alexios' elite Enforcers, he uncovers evidence of murdered demigods and deeper conspiracies connected to the fleshtrade and the mysterious codename Rhosyn. Meanwhile, Bryony and Evander grow increasingly close. He teaches her to trust him, and she becomes one of the few people willing to challenge his self-destructive tendencies. When Bryony recovers memories of Idris' betrayal, Evander takes her back to the ridge where it happened. There, they finally acknowledge their feelings and share their first kiss, though both initially try to deny the depth of their connection.

Their relationship intensifies during Aethertide, a rare celestial event that strongly affects Scillarian males. Evander tries to distance himself during this time and has others talk to Bryony for him. Even after their shared kiss, he refuses to talk to her and says they need to distance themselves. Despite Evander's attempts to isolate himself, Bryony hears a voice that night and decides to venture out with her friends, who tell her to put certain symbols on herself. When Evander finds her, he is furious because the symbols basically mean she is open for anything sexually, including an orgy and being shared with anyone. Evander makes Bryony feel good that night but holds himself back fully. He tries to find another girl to satisfy himself, but all he can think about is Bryony.

However, their happiness is short-lived when Bastien, Evander's brother and the God of Shadows, arrives searching for Bryony under Alexios' orders. To protect her, Evander pretends she means nothing to him. Bryony overhears his cruel deception and leaves heartbroken, not knowing it was a lie. She plays another game with Evander that involves a bet, where she reveals she overheard their conversation. She wins their bet and demands that, for her win, she gets to leave. Before that, she demands that she gets to dominate him in the bedroom, which she does, and Evander readily agrees to. Before departing, she discovers a memorial tree marking every person Evander lost during the war and learns the true scale of the suffering endured by both gods and humans.

Bryony returns to the human realm to rescue Theodora, but Idris, her uncle, captures both sisters. Amara alerts Evander, who finally rebels against Alexios and attacks Hellevig Palace. During the confrontation, Bryony kills Idris herself. She does so by brutally torturing him, and Evander watches the whole time in admiration. Afterward, she and Evander openly choose each other. In a sacred Scillarian ritual, Bryony touches Evander's wings and they exchange blood, forming a permanent soulbond that extends her lifespan and marks her as his Chosen.

Their victory is interrupted when Bastien reveals the horrific torture he endured during the war at human hands. Alexios then arrives and imprisons Evander. Bryony negotiates for his freedom by agreeing to undergo three deadly tests, though she has terms before she undergoes them. She survives a living thorn maze, though she barely makes it back to Evander alive. He tries to heal her as best as he can considering he is also in chains. Next, Bryony reaches the realm of Severin, the God of Death, who ultimately spares her after learning she was trained by his estranged Chosen, Amara. At the same time, Evander proves his worth by defeating fifty demigod challengers in an arena battle.

For the final trial, Bryony secretly enters the arena herself and defeats nine opponents before facing Alexios. He offers her the same choice Amalthea faced centuries earlier: sacrifice herself for the person she loves. Bryony drives a blade into her own heart. Instead of dying permanently, she is resurrected by the realm itself and transformed into a demigoddess with white and gold wings. Using a crystal seal, she frees Evander from Alexios' control and restores his full power. Evander retaliates against Alexios but ultimately chooses peace, agreeing to share part of the burden of maintaining the Shroud in exchange for open travel between realms. The story ends with Bryony and Evander flying together toward their future. A single red rose blooms among the dead in the tower's garden.