A Crowned and Grinning Skull

Lord of the Rings meets Castlevania in this epic dark fantasy series-starter that is also perfect for fans of The Stormlight Archive, Night of the Living Dead, and Fourth Wing.

Tyler Bardin, a shy, introverted 20-year-old knight and heir to the throne, and his younger brother Nick Bardin, a charismatic, mischievous 18-year-old battlemage who is second in line to inherit, are living a happy, sheltered life as princes in their father the king’s castle, fooling around with girls while ignoring the rumors that the nobles deem them unfit to become king and to lead the human army against the Darkness, the evil magical power which rules the undead. Then a usurper from a rival noble house launches a coup, murders their father, kidnaps their sister, and sends demons, soldiers, assassins, and zombies after Tyler and Nick to kill them and end their royal line. As their father’s army turns against them and their allies betray them, Tyler and Nick frantically try to escape from the Citadel, the castle in which they grew up and where their father ruled, but if they can make it past the usurper’s initial attacks, that’s only the beginning of the many problems they face. To make matters even worse, as Tyler and Nick flee, they learn that Tyler has the mind curse called the Death Tongue, which on Earth would be Autism, and Nick has the mind curse called the Soft Eye, which on Earth would be ADHD, facts which their father hid and which they fear led the nobles to view them as weak and unworthy. To reclaim their thrones, they’ll need to prove they have the strength everyone thought they lacked… but first they’ll need to survive.
Will Tyler and Nick escape from the Citadel and make it out alive?

This novel is Own Voices. The author has Autism and ADHD. This is a series starter, not a standalone novel.
Content warnings: Horror. Hazing. Bullying. People being triggered and having meltdowns. Zombies. Being trapped in a burning building. Death.