The First Forge Book I of The Lore
She draws doors that don't exist. He guards secrets that could save her. Together, they ignite a magic that refuses to be forgotten.
Catherine Bell has spent her whole life hiding the truth. She sees things others can't—doors that lead nowhere, memories that belong to strangers, a hidden world pulsing beneath the ordinary one. When her carefully constructed reality shatters at a Denver folk festival, she collides with Michael Stone: a bearded, broken guardian of an ancient sanctuary called The Lore, dying of a curse that turns dwarves to stone, and the only man who has ever looked at her like she isn't crazy.
Michael is a Lore-Keeper without a purpose, a guardian of a forge that won't wake, a protector with no one left to protect. Until Catherine. Until her drawings match the door he's guarded for years. Until her touch reminds him what it means to be alive instead of fading. Until her very existence proves that the old magic isn't dead—it's just been waiting for someone brave enough to remember it.
But their forbidden connection has awakened something terrible. The Archivist, a monster who erases magical beings from existence, has hunted the Rememberers to extinction. Now he wants Catherine. He wants the seven forges she holds the key to awakening. And he wants Michael dead before they can complete what destiny started seventeen years ago—the night Catherine's father disappeared and left her the power to save or destroy the world.
In a war between memory and forgetting, between isolation and connection, between stone and fire, Catherine and Michael must choose: hide in safety and let the magic die, or risk everything to build a bridge between worlds—and between hearts—that not even death can break.
Perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas's Crescent City, Rebecca Yarros's Fourth Wing, and Jennifer L. Armentrout's From Blood and Ash, The First Forge brings you an enthralling blend of urban fantasy romance and young adult fantasy romance series that delivers:
- Fated mates and soulmates romance with a slow-burn intensity that ignites into an unbreakable bond
- Grumpy sunshine dynamic between a dying guardian desperate to protect and a fierce heroine desperate to be seen
- Found family that chooses each other when blood family fails
- Secret worlds and hidden magic lurking in plain sight
- A protective hero who would burn the world to keep her safe
- A strong heroine whose power comes from refusing to forget what the world wants erased
- An engaging narrative akin to the best billionaire romance novels, exploring themes of love, sacrifice, and magic
- Dark BDSM romance with HEA elements as Catherine navigates her complicated feelings
- Seven book series potential following seven guardians, seven forges, and seven love stories that will reshape reality.
Some doors only open for those brave enough to remember. Step through. The Lore is waiting.
The First Forge is the first book in The Lore series, a complete story with a happily-for-now ending and a series arc that continues in Book Two: The Alchemist's Shadow.
Sneak Peek: Click here to read chapter one.