Teaser Tuesday: The Ring and The Crown by Melissa de la Cruz {64}

Title: The Ring and The Crown
Author: Melissa de la Cruz
Release date: April 1, 2014
Pages: 384

Princess Marie-Victoria, heir to the Lily Throne, and Aelwyn Myrddn, bastard daughter of the Mage of England, grew up together. But who will rule, and who will serve? 

Quiet and gentle, Marie has never lived up to the ambitions of her mother, Queen Eleanor the Second, Supreme Ruler of the Franco-British Empire. With the help of her Head Merlin, Emrys, Eleanor has maintained her stranglehold on the world's only source of magic. She rules the most powerful empire the world has ever seen. 

But even with the aid of Emrys' magic, Eleanor's extended lifespan is nearing its end. The princess must marry and produce an heir or the Empire will be vulnerable to its greatest enemy, Prussia. The two kingdoms must unite to end the war, and the only solution is a match between Marie and Prince Leopold VII, heir to the Prussian throne. But Marie has always loved Gill, her childhood friend and soldier of the Queen's Guard. 

Together, Marie and Aelwyn, a powerful magician in her own right, come up with a plan. Aelwyn will take on Marie's face, allowing the princess to escape with Gill and live the quiet life she's always wanted. And Aelwyn will get what she's always dreamed of--the chance to rule. But the court intrigue and hunger for power in Lenoran England run deeper than anyone could imagine. In the end, there is only rule that matters in Eleanor's court: trust no one.

My teaser, from pp. 94-95 in the ARC:

Marie rolled her eyes. Leo was only playing a role, nothing more. He had never shown much interest in her when they were young, and he was only pretending to now for the sake of the treaty. Her sense of despair deepened at the thought of spending the rest of her life with such a man. Even friendship seemed out of reach. They would slowly grow to hate one another, she could tell--if they didn't already.

"What did you say to him?" her friend asked, alarmed.

"Only the truth," Marie sighed. "And he didn't like hearing it."

Happy release day to The Ring and The Crown! I've been so excited to read this one for so long, and it's so preeeetty! I'm not very far, but it's interesting so far!

I'll be visiting around and visiting back, so leave me links to your teasers! :) Happy Tuesday!