The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski

Winning what you want may cost you everything you love.

As a general's daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin's eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him--with unexpected consequences. It's not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

Set in a richly imagined new world, The Winner's Curse is a story of deadly games where everything is at stake, and the gamble is whether you will keep your head or lose your heart.

The Kronos Chronicles, which includes The Cabinet of Wonders and The Celestial Globe, are written by Marie Rutkoski. Her debut novel, The Cabinet of Wonders, was designated an Indie Next Great Read and a Bank Street Best Children's Novel of the Year, among other accolades. Being the oldest of four children, Rutkoski grew up in Bolingbrook, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago). She studied under Pulitzer Prize winner James Alan McPherson at the University of Iowa, where she took Writers' Workshop programs. She resided in Moscow and Prague after graduating.

After she received her Ph.D., she was ecstatic. She held dual appointments as a lecturer at Harvard University in English and American Literature and Language, as well as History and Literature. Rutkoski is currently a professor of Renaissance Theatre, Children's Literature, and Creative Writing at Brooklyn College. She currently resides in New York City.