Well-Lived, Well-Read

“Then let me strengthen you” (Wheatley 304).

This novel will forever change how I view not only life, but the world itself. It poses a question that lingers long after the final page: Can loving others truly help heal past trauma?

Daindreth’s Assassin by Elisabeth Wheatley is a fantasy romance novel that explores this very idea. The story follows Amira, a sorceress cursed to live as an assassin, and Daindreth, an archduke burdened by a hidden curse of his own. Through an unexpected twist of fate, their paths intertwine, forcing them to confront dark magic, external enemies, and the wounds they carry within themselves.

Both Amira and Daindreth enter the story marked by profound trauma long before they meet one another. Wheatley tells their story in a way that kept me eager to turn each page. The characters are written with remarkable depth; just when I thought I fully understood one of them, a new layer was revealed, deepening my investment in their journey. Their struggles feel achingly human- rooted in fear, guilt, and self-doubt – and made them incredibly easy to relate to. The internal conflicts they face mirror many of the same inner demons I grapple with in my own life.

Trauma affects everyone differently. For some, it reshapes personality; for others, it alters behavior. But can love – both given and received – truly be enough to strengthen us? Daindreth’s Assassin challenges readers to wrestle with this question and to apply the lessons learned by Amira and Daindreth to their own lives. It certainly challenged me. The novel encouraged me to accept strength from others, even when the walls built by trauma felt heavy enough to crush me into weakness.