E. M. Riedl A Weave of Lies

A dark fantasy romance standalone that delivers a high-tension, enemies-to-lovers tale where one murder could cost a witch her heart-and her life. Only a madman or a desperate fool would walk uninvited into a witch's lair. So ... which one is he? The witch Semras sees her quiet life in the woods upended the day Inquisitor Estevan Velten walks into her home. He's not here to burn her at the stake, like he did to many witches before her, but to consult her on a murder. Semras' expertise with poison is requisitioned to acquit the sole suspect-a member of her coven whose guilt he doubts ... or so he claims. She'd do anything to save a coven sister, even if it means allying with an enemy. That is, if the mercurial man doesn't drive her insane first. He threatens yet defends her; he mocks yet praises her. His every word contradicts his actions, yet Semras can't help being attracted to the resolute man beneath the lies. But Estevan is as damnably seductive as he is dangerous. When she discovers he knows more than he lets on about the murder, the lies he weaves to protect his secrets may yet lead her to the pyre. Because someone killed a man and someone needs to pay for it. What's the difference between one witch or another in the eyes of the Inquisition? A Weave of Lies is the first standalone novel set in The Woven Worlds series, a dark fantasy universe on the cusp of the early modern era. The magic of witches wanes with each new generation, the bones of ancient fey lords lie long forgotten amidst ruins, and even their age-old enemy, the Inquisition, struggles to maintain its place in a world ready to judge them all to be irrelevant-yet ancient conflicts and old grudges fester too deeply for them to accept facing the end gracefully.