Circe goes YA in this unapologetically feminist retelling of the Medusa myth steeped in Indian mythology,a YA epic fantasy addition to the Rick Riordan Presents imprint. All heroesmonstersand villains have beginnings. This is mine. Sixteen-year-old Manisha is no stranger to monsters–she’s been running from them for yearsfrom beasts who roam the jungle to the King’s armywho forced her peoplethe nagato scatter to the ends of the earth. You might think that the kingdom’s famed holy temples atop the floating mountainswhere Manisha is now a priestesswould be safe–but you would be wrong. Seventeen-year-old Pratyush is a famed slayer of monstersone of the King’s most prized warriors and a frequent visitor to the floating temples. For every monster the slayer killsyears are added to his life. You might think such a powerful warrior could do whatever he wantsbut true power lies with the King. Tired after years of fightingPratyush wants nothing more than a peacefulrespectable life. When Pratyush and Manisha meeteach sees in the other the possibility to chart a new path. Unfortunatelythe kingdom’s powerful have other plans. A temple visitor sexually assaults Manisha and pushes her off the mountain into a pit of vipers. A month laterthe King sends Pratyush off to kill one last monster (a powerful nagin who has been turning men to stone) before he’ll consider granting his freedom. Except Manisha doesn’t diedespite the hundreds of snake bites covering her body and the venom running through her veins. She rises from the pit more powerful than ever beforewith heightened sensesarmor-like skinand blood that can turn people to stone. And Pratyush doesn’t know itbut the \