House of Thorns

When poet and translator Noor Ashraf accepts a residency at the Maze Estate upriver, she expects donor dinners and dusty pamphlets—not a living labyrinth that listens, and a patient, antler-crowned Warden who keeps its rules. The hedge blooms once a year. It can bless. It can bite. And this season, everyone wants to "improve" it with shortcuts and glow.

Noor can read the old rites. She hears what the place is saying beneath the brochures: don't force a path—ask for one. Each dusk she brings bread, salt, and words to the Heart of the maze. Each night the Warden keeps his vow: "I don't enter unless invited." As pressure rises—permits, sponsors, lights—desire unfurls slow and certain, consent-sure and praise-soft. To save the maze and the people who walk it, Noor must claim a Keeper's binding, speak truths at the stone, and ask—cleanly—for what she truly wants.

House of Thorns is a cozy-spice romantasy about labyrinths, language, and monsters who worship. Expect: a protective guardian MMC, an artsy/clever heroine, rule-of-three rituals, jar lanterns, found community, and a Bloom Night that feels like a village wedding under the stars. Standalone HEA. Book Two in Fables After Dark—perfect for readers of gentle dominance, consent-forward intimacy (non-explicit), folklore vibes, and small-estate politics where rope, tea, and good signage might just save the day.