The Purpose of Miss Shepley

A red-haired orphan with a mysterious tattoo strives to secure her future through marriage, but as she stumbles through the dance of courtship, she begins to question who she truly is - and who she wants to be.

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It is the fourth day of Bloomsmonth, year 526 by the Common Reckoning, and away in the war-tattered Barony of Ewert, Edith Shepley is dressing for a ball she doesn't wish to attend. Embarrassingly, the young heiress looks nothing at all like her well-bred Folk mother. With her red hair, freckles, and worrisome tattoo, Edith plainly takes after her father - and who he was, no one living knows. Edith looks like a Wrym, and that's all anyone will say about that.

Nevertheless, Edith is a well-bred Folk lady - everyone made sure of it - and now that she is sixteen years old, it is time to fulfill the purpose of all gentlefolk: to marry well and produce an heir. The diligent Edith obediently considers suitor after suitor, some sweet, some baffling, some detestable. But the more she sees of society, the more she questions if she really is Folk, after all - and if she even wants to be.

Book One of The Unfinished Wyrm ~ Wattys 2017 "The Storysmiths" winner

Content Warning: Infrequent violence and graphic descriptions