The 200-Year Bride Swap
She’s a princess. She’s a weapon. She’s the illegitimate daughter no one was supposed to need.
For millenia, peace between supernatural kingdoms has been maintained by a brutal tradition: the Bride Swap. An elven princess for a foreign king. Ten years of marriage to buy one hundred and ninety years of fragile silence.
This year, the elves must give a bride to the werewolves.
Princess Alicia Sunblade was never meant to be the chosen one. Wild, sharp-tongued, and dangerously gifted by both the goddess of war and the goddess of love, she lives in quiet exile from a father who rules with manipulation and fear. But when her king threatens the one person she loves most, Alicia is forced into an arranged marriage with Alpha Rocco Silvermane — the powerful, feared King of Wolfsreach.
Elves and werewolves are natural enemies. Their borders bleed tension. Their histories drip with blood.
Rocco is everything Alicia was raised to despise: dominant, ruthless, physically overwhelming — and politically untouchable. Yet he has his own kingdom to protect, his own factions to appease, and his own reasons for accepting the swap.
Two rulers. Two unwilling sacrifices. One treaty balanced on a knife’s edge.
But Alicia isn’t a lamb being led to slaughter. She is a strategist. A seductress blessed by divine persuasion. A warrior hiding behind silk and ceremony. If her father thinks he’s sending her away to be controlled, he may have just delivered his greatest weapon straight into enemy hands.
Because if Alicia is going to be traded… She won’t just survive the wolves. She might just make their king kneel.
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Chapter: Chapter 10 - A gift from a goddess(Alicia)As the days blur into weeks, I throw myself headlong into training. Because what else is there to do when your life’s been handed to you on a silver platter by the gods?I throw myself into hand-to-hand combat, the kind where rules are just a suggestion; modern warfare with enough firearms to make any gun enthusiast blush; and then the classics: bows and arrows, daggers, and my personal favorite, the sword. A girl’s gotta have a hobby, right? And all this just to appease Athena’s blessing.But the real challenge? That’s Aphrodite’s gift. I’m still not sure whether to thank her or curse her for it. About three months after I turned 18 and was just getting used to my gift from Athena, this extra marking appeared out of nowhere, signaling my second Elven blessing. Naturally, I freaked out and did what any sensible person would do. I told Darren. His blessing is from Marvi, one of those lesser gods who specializes in keeping secrets, so I figured he was the safest bet.Darren, be
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Chapter: Chapter 9 - Angus and Luka(Alicia)I’m in my apartment warming up an uninspiring mac and cheese when the thought hits me. Someone in my family must marry a woman from another species too. That’s how the exchange works. You give one away, you gain one.And just like that, my curiosity is piqued. Which of my half-brothers are being compelled to offer up the chance to find true love by binding themselves to a stranger for ten years…?Surely, it wouldn’t be crown prince Daniel who’s currently betrothed to one of councilman Galewing’s daughters. If I had to place a bet on it, it would be one of the twins… but which one? Archer, being a minute or so older than Angus, is the official ‘spare’ and therefore too precious to have tied to an inter-species marriage. Which means it must be Angus.Whipping out my new phone I type off a quick text message to him. R U IN IT TOO? THIS 200-YR SWAP?My phone pings about ten minutes later, as I’m licking the cheese sauce off a spoon. It’s a series of emojis, from the full-on cryin
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Chapter: Chapter 8 - I’ve created a monster(Alicia)I frown. What was he on about? I just wanted to go on with my anonymous little life among the humans. That’s what I want, what I’ve always wanted.He leans forward eagerly, a glint in his eyes.“Alicia. You are a stunningly beautiful Elven princess who had been doubly blessed by the gods. No one, not even your perfect sister, is that lucky. You are the best warrior that no one knows about or will see coming, and the key to every sensual or fertility dream in this realm. That’s more than one weapon in your arsenal. And handing that over to the enemy, to the one group of supernaturals most hated by the father who had always shunned you... Isn’t that an opportunity?”I stare at him as if he’s lost his mind.“You could be hung for less! Shh! And besides, how exactly do you weaponize that?”He scoffs at me, rolling his eyes and shaking his head. “Sometimes I can’t believe that you were blessed by both the goddesses of love and of war. Think, Alicia! You have a tactical war brain l
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Chapter: Chapter 7 - Do you want the hunky Alpha King?(Alicia)Wtf? Bride swap? I vaguely remember something about the 200-year bride swap being taught as part of our history lessons. I wrack my brains trying to remember exactly what it was about while I wrestle the Long Island Iced Tea back out of Darren’s clutches. He was looking at me like I’m a simpleton he needs to educate.A memory flashes from the back of my mind, the kind you dredge up on quiz night, that you didn’t even know you know, yet somehow you know. The 200-year bride swap. It was this archaic idea to foster harmony and tolerance between the supernatural species. A princess from each kingdom, or if one wasn’t available then a very high-ranking official’s daughter, had to marry the King or other high-ranking official from another species. They needed to stay married for at least 10 years to ensure peace-treaties stay in place for the next 190 years.Which was a complete farce, because what is truly to guarantee peace after the 10 years are up? Or, if the couple managed to
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Chapter: Chapter 6 - Who am I going to marry?(Alicia)“What did you say?” My voice was quiet. The kind of quiet that you’d be wise to pay attention to.“I said you can’t ruin that dress with a slit. It needs to fully cover you!” She replied, a defiant look in her eyes. But she didn’t tell me what I wanted to hear.I turn to the human girl with the dressing pins. “Excuse me, dear. Would you mind giving us a moment of privacy?” I ask politely, and she nods and leave the room.I carefully step off the dais, a feat given the absurd tightness of this dress. Then I kind-of shuffle as best I could towards stick-insect Chiara, stopping a few feet away from her in a non-threatening gesture. Then my hand whipped out at lightning speed, clutching around her throat. Surprised, her eyes pop wide behind the black-rimmed glasses that she surely doesn’t need.“Who am I going to marry?” I ask in that same quiet tone of voice.She squeaked, and I relaxed my grip enough for her to form words.“The… The king of Wolfsreach,” she managed, and my mind
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
Chapter: Chapter 5 - What did you say?(Alicia)The call from the woman named Chiara comes as I’m once again reduced to eating cereal. I ignore it, along with her next four calls and messages. I’m busy with training, and some part of my brain really wants to ignore the previous day and all its implications.The woman is pushy and clearly a bit miffed that I’ve been ignoring her. Womp-womp.She drones on about dress fittings and flower choices like she’s planning a human wedding. Am I getting married to a human? I only half-listens as she mentions how she’s got this schedule that she’s sharing with my email account and that I ‘better not miss any of the appointments’. But I’m fully awake when she ends the call with ‘Oh, and the King asked me to mention that Luka sends his regards’.A white-hot fury makes me almost sling my phone against the wall, but I rein that anger in quickly. Not here. Not now.Feeling like a naughty schoolgirl who’d been hauled to heel by a schoolmaster, I check my emails. Yes, there are all the neatly
Last Updated: 2026-02-24
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