By Dust & Duty (The Forgotten Heirs, #1)

A HEARTBROKEN WOMAN.
A DEAD, COLD WORLD.
A BOND STRONG ENOUGH TO TEAR THROUGH REALITY ITSELF.
On a desolate, waterless world, Ereta--an anxious, self-doubting 28-year-old Runner--begins experiencing strange, impossible phenomena.
Rather than face the truth (i.e., that she might be losing her mind), she does what she does best.
She runs...
... straight into mortal peril.
Rescued from the brink by her friend Leelin and a weirdly knowledgeable, red-eyed stranger, Ereta is electrified by her brush with death. Newly determined to shake off old fears, she throws herself into games, parties, even a friend's bed... but no distraction drowns out the constant pull of something bigger just beyond her grasp.
Something (someone?) is waiting for her.
When her unrelenting duty returns her to the brink of death, she makes a desperate choice to step through a tear in the world.
On the other side, she finds something impossible: a soul-deep belonging she's only ever known in dreams.
But her world isn't done with her yet.
When the people she loves are threatened by old enemies, will she stand and fight? Or risk everything on the unknown fate that beckons to her from beyond the tear?
About the Series
ROMANTASY FOR NERDS (and the people who love them!)
The Forgotten Heirs is a four-book dystopian-to-fantasy friends-to-lovers romance series spanning multiple realms, featuring mental illness representation, late 20s MCs, multiple POVs, an uncertain endgame romance, and a fresh twist on fated mates where souls have their own personalities and ambitions.
Mysterious, endearing, and lightly steampunk, this series is filled with layered worldbuilding and hidden clues that reward the keen-eyed reader. Enjoy it at face value, or dissect every red herring and plot thread... either way, it will keep you theorizing long after you've turned the last page.
Our journey begins with a lost woman on a barren, frozen desert planet. But stick with her and her friends, and you may just find yourself caught in an epic, mind-bending romance that spans worlds and time, defying every expectation along the way...
Set against variably grim settings and featuring a fast-paced series of otherworldly adventures, a cast of optimistic, upbeat, funny, and resilient characters shines bright. Great for fans of sprawling, twisty fantasy ensemble cast epics like THRONE OF GLASS, THE ASHEN SERIES, and the WITCH WALKER series.

K.C. Phillips is a reclusive, mysterious, and eccentric author who deeply resents society and fears the opinions of the general public.
(She's definitely not a regular person with a corporate job, a husband, and a house filled with cuddly pets...because that wouldn't be nearly intriguing enough).