Spotlight & Giveaway: Dragon Cursed by Elise Kova

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Elise Kova to HJ!

Hi Elise and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Dragon Cursed!

 
Hello, lovely readers! Thanks for stopping by!
 

Please summarize the book a la Twitter style for the readers here:

Declared humanity’s savior reborn, Isola Thaz should have a legendary power to slay dragons – instead, she may be cursed to become one of the vicious beasts she’s meant to destroy.
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

Boots strike the cobblestone in the alleyway, as sharp to my ears as a dagger being pulled across a whetstone. I press my shoulder into the corner of the building and peer down the narrow squeeze that leads to the alcove where I’m frozen, holding my breath. This is going to be one of two people, and I just hope it’s—

My eyes catch on the flap of a dragon-blood red cloak, and I suck back into the shadows, praying he didn’t see.

Dragon-burned hells. I knew he was following.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• The book’s opening 6 chapters were completely rewritten from scratch about 5 days before going to print.
• The ending was also completely rewritten in editing on an impulse of, “What if __ happened?!” and it ended up sticking.
• One of my initial inspirations was asking the question, “What if Attack on Titan had dragons instead of titans?”
• Due to limitations of the world, I had to do a lot of research about the growth of plants under harsh circumstances to make sure everything the people of Vinguard ate made sense.
• When I first began working on this book I was pregnant and one of my friends gifted me a dragon mobile for the baby without knowing about my current project. That mobile inspired some of the dragons in the book as I stared at it for many a diaper change.

What first attracts your main characters to each other?

This is very different for each of them! Isola and Lucan have known each other since they were young. So their perceptions of each other at the start of the book couldn’t be more different based on the circumstances of how they already know each other.

At first, Isola doesn’t like Lucan very much. So her attraction comes from finally getting to know the real him. I think the biggest thing that wins her over is that Lucan sees her for who she really is – not just the “savior reborn” that everyone else sees her as.

As for Lucan, his attraction to her started much earlier… But to say more than that would get in the territory of spoilers!
 

Using just 5 words, how would you describe your main characters”love affair?

The first time is tricky.
 

The First Kiss…

… is a major step for both of them. Not only is it both of their first kiss because they’ve led fairly restrictive lives. But it also comes following a near-death experience and a LOT of tension leading up to it.
 

Without revealing too much, what is your favorite scene in the book?

Right around the middle of the book Isola has a moment where she really comes into her own power. Not just literally, but also mentally and emotionally. It was such a pivotal scene to write that had me cheering her on as I was typing.

A snippet:

They lunge.

And something breaks inside me—not a crack, but a collapse, like a tower finally falling under its own weight. My life was never mine after the attack at twelve. Every meal chosen. Every hour
dictated. Every order obeyed, even when my body shook and begged to stop. Stand longer. Train harder. Or suffer.

Day after day, I’ve buried my own voice, pressed it into a hollow inside my chest, an ember smothered and starved.

No. More.

My hands tremble as that ember ignites, stealing the breath from my lungs as it sweeps through me. The Creed has stolen six years of my life. They will not take my death.

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would be absolutely crucial to include?

There’s a moment where Lucan saves Isola from a near-death experience involving ancient magic. The immediate aftermath is such a key moment for their growth as a couple. Plus, it was so cinematic in my mind as I was writing it!

A snippet:

It’s then I realize that the motes of light aren’t just the haze of the Font or remnants of what I just endured. They’re real and happening right now. Etherlight flows between us like it did in the
chapter house.

“That’s it,” he murmurs. His hand still hovers, near enough to feel his warmth. “Let me lead, Isola.”

Fingertips lightly brush my cheek, though I don’t think he’s moving any hair this time. There wasn’t any reason for him to touch me at all. But he is. Lucan’s eyes drop to my mouth, and his fingertips are quick to follow. His thumb drags slowly across my lower lip, and my breath hitches. He tightens his hold at the small of my back, like he needs to be even closer.

There is no space between us. I feel everything. Every flat expanse of muscle, every divot and curve. I feel him through the thin fabric of my smallclothes, and my skin aches.

Readers should read this book …

… If they love heroines that are determined even when it seems like every odd is stacked against them.
… If a mashup of deadly dragons, a dying world, and fading magic for a dystopian-esque fantasy setting sounds like their cup of tea.
… If they love plot twists and slow-burn.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

2026 is actually a big year for me. We’re starting off strong with the release of Dragon Cursed. But then I have the rereleases of my Married to Magic stand-alone adult romantasy novels throughout the year. And the second book of my epic fantasy meets dark academia, Arcana Academy series is out in July (also adult).

Of course, throughout it all, I’m working on the second book in the Dragon Cursed dualology and the final book of the Arcana Academy trilogy.

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: I am happy to give away a hand-signed, first edition hardcover of DRAGON CURSED.

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Would you rather fight a dragon…
… armed with a crossbow and your wits?
… from the safety of a turret behind a cannon?
… with nothing but an ancient and unreliable magic?

Excerpt from Dragon Cursed:

“Why are you taking me there?” I glance in his direction.

There’s enough moonlight through the windows here for me to see him better.

“You can hardly walk.”

“I’m fine.”

Without warning, he lets me go, and I instantly sway. I’d drop to the floor if the opposite wall wasn’t so close. I barely get a hand up to support myself in time.

Our eyes lock. Lucan folds his arms. “Absolutely fine. The literal picture of ‘fine.’”

I scowl at his sarcasm. “You don’t have to help me. We’re even.”

“Even? What’re you talking about?”

“You helped me in there. I saved you in return. We can go our separate ways now.”

“We’re stuck here for the next three weeks. There are no ‘separate ways.’” He sounds about as pleased as I am. “I was wondering why you helped me get out, though, when you could’ve left me. You can tell me on the way.” Lucan wraps his arm around my waist, careful to avoid my wound, grabbing my arm with his opposite hand for additional support.

I knew the man was muscular. His shirts do little to hide it. But feeling him at my side… He’s raw strength, and a part of me I’ve never known before wants to melt into him. To surrender to the safety he offers, even if I know it has ulterior motives.

“I don’t like being indebted to anyone.” My circumstances with the vicar have made that clear enough to me. He holds my life over my head, and I can’t do anything about it. I hate that feeling of owing and never knowing when it’ll come due. Of lacking that control. “So don’t help me anymore.”

“Your stubbornness is going to get you killed.”

“My tenacity is how we survived.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

The moment you see a dragon is usually your last…

Since the dragons emerged–along with the scourge that ravaged our lands and people–there’s only one human city that remains standing: Vinguard.

But the hellfire from above is nothing compared to the threat from within. For there is no worse fate than being dragon cursed. Slowly and excruciatingly, you’ll be transformed into a mindless beast who destroys everything–and everyone–you love.

Any of us could be tainted. Any of us could be lying. Any of us could be caught and killed by the authorities.

And I’m terrified that I might be next.

There’s only one other person who might suspect my secret. He’s like my shadow, following me wherever I go. Part protector, part tormentor, fully annoying. Sometimes I think I am just one of the million unfathomable secrets he keeps hidden.

Because Lucan definitely knows something.

And if I’m dragon cursed, death might be the only mercy I get.
Book Links: Amazon | B&N | iTunes | Goodreads |
 
 

Meet the Author:

ELISE KOVA is a New York Times bestselling author. She enjoys telling stories of fantasy worlds filled with magic and deep emotions. When not writing, can be found playing video games, drawing, chatting with readers on social media, or daydreaming about her next story.
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