Lightlark (Lightlark, #1) by Alex Aster

Lightlark by Alex Aster is a young adult fantasy novel that takes place on the enigmatic island of Lightlark, which appears every hundred years — for the Centennial competition. 6 rulers of six cursed worlds, all with different abilities and misfortune must fight to remove the fatal curses cast upon their subjects. The novel follows Isla Crown, the ruler of the Wildling realm, who must enter the competition while hiding a dangerous secret: unlike the other rulers, she has no deadly powers her realm possesses, and she needs to protect her life from these rulers.

Centennial presents the opportunity for the rulers to gain the freedom of kingdoms, but only if they are able to deceive others and betray them. As Isla competes in the competition, she struggles to untangle friends from enemies and allies from traitors, most notably with Grim, the ruler of the Nightshade realm, and Oro, the ruler of Sunling. Here, there are high stakes, moral questions, and a lot of darkness, and it will be up to Isla to figure out who she can rely on and what she has to do for her people.

From romantic story and mystery to action, Isla fights for her life in a game where betrayal is always around the corner, and there are many twists in the book.