I unironically love how in your story that Viarra’s problems are actual problems of being a royal and not a “arranged marriage” or “I’m bored of politics”
I mean she mentions how she will likely need to marry to secure an alliance, but it’s not like that’s even close to her top 100 priorities.
She plays politics like a game, including erasing a Polis’ debt by conquering it, she might be bored of a specific politician, but she isn’t someone who is going to say “I’m bored of talking about taxation and raising money for orphans I’m going to go play with the children to show that I’m a likable character.”
Her problems have to deal with multiple assassination attempts, wars, raids, rebellious members of her government, the gods themselves, the fact the woman she loves (and owns legally, romantically, sexually and possibly spiritually) dies and comes back in defiance to death.
These are actual conflicts and actual stakes that I find delicious and enjoyable to read. The romance is a good and enjoyable one to read, but at the same time the world and conflict doesn’t exist to push the romance angle.
I just want to say magnificent. Just magnificent
Thank you for saying all that! I always appreciate your feedback. And, yeah, the story is about building an empire, not romancing a throne. Topics like troop deployments, trade agreements, and political rivalries are way more important than who's dating whom.
