A Prayer for Broken Things

by Sophia Indiana

she was never meant to survive him.
he was never meant to let her go.

The Dagger chose me. Bound me. Changed me.
Now it hums with power I can’t control, dragging me into a world of blood-soaked curses and gods who never grant mercy. My coven keeps secrets, my mother is gone, and the shadows are no longer empty.

Because he is there. The monster who circles me like prey, the man who feels more like destiny with every step I take toward him. His touch is danger. His presence, obsession.
And still I burn for him.

So I pray.
Not for freedom—because there was never a choice.
Not for love—because love was never enough.
I pray only that when Fate comes for me, I will have the strength to meet it.

The first book of the Severed Fate Saga is not just a love story—it is a reckoning. A Prayer for Broken Things weaves together curses and crowns, shadows and flame, and a bond so consuming it cannot help but destroy what it touches. This is love written in ruin, and ruin carved into prophecy.

541 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 11, 2025

Reviews

[Charity Bushman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was chosen as an ARC reader for this book and devoured it in 2 days. If you are into fated mates, curses, witches,demons. This is the book for you. Sophia's writing style is on point and she knows how to keep you guessing and you will never see what is coming next. There is plot, spice, and can't wait till she finishes book 2.

[Kristin Montez · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ — A Prayer For Broken Things by Sophia Indiana

This book was absolutely stunning — haunting, emotional, and beautifully written. 🖤✨ While it’s categorized as a dark romantasy, it didn’t feel like one in the typical sense. It was soft yet devastating, filled with so much emotion, healing, and love that it transcended the genre entirely. As someone who rarely reads fantasy, this was my first real step into it — and I’m so glad it was with this story.

Serena and Shadow’s love story was everything. Raw, real, and heartbreakingly tender. The slow burn between them was almost painful at times — in that beautiful, ache-in-your-chest way that only the best love stories can deliver. The way their connection came full circle across lifetimes left me speechless. 🌙

The dual POV was one of my favorite aspects of this book. Getting both Serena and Shadow’s perspectives made the story so much more impactful and emotionally layered. Hearing Shadow’s side — his thoughts, his pain, his love — made my heart ache in the best way. His words were poetic, soulful, and fit the tone of the story perfectly. It added such depth and meaning that I couldn’t imagine the book without it.

If you love stories filled with:
💫 Fated mates
🖤 The mysterious shadow man
🔥 Enemies to lovers
🌒 Soulmates across lifetimes
💔 Redemption, healing, and love that defies time

Then A Prayer for Broken Things will completely captivate you. Sophia Indiana’s writing is both lyrical and immersive, and the emotion she pours into her characters feels so genuine. I truly can’t wait for the second book — my heart needs more of Serena and Shadow’s story. 🕯️✨

Final thoughts: this one shattered me in the best way — a breathtaking tale of love, loss, and the kind of connection that transcends time itself. 💔✨

[Desiree Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg okay where do I begin ?! I loved the detail and the mysterious/magical vibes of it. Omg the shadow daddy 🥵 it was a slow burn but it was worth it ! I loved the plot line and Serena the fix she was a bad ass !! Simon was great to with banter and remarks lol. The twists tho and THE END was not expecting it !! Highly recommend this book !!

[Randi Zodrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am honored to be chosen as an arc reader Sophia’s debut book. Let’s just say Selena is a badass I loved her character. Shadow daddy is 🥵🔥. This story is very beautiful and it is a slow burn but it’s so worth the wait. The descriptions in this book is absolutely beautiful. The twist and turns I never expected. I highly recommend this book it is so amazing. Check your trigger warnings. The playlist for this book is absolutely amazing.

[Brea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five unhinged, feral, holy-shit stars. Listen, the beginning lulls you into thinking you’re settling in for a slow burn and then the middle hits like a magical freight train and the ending? RUDE. Absolutely feral cliffhanger behavior. The writing is rich and razor sharp, lyrical without being bloated, and every chapter peels back another layer of a world that feels ancient, dangerous, and meticulously built. The magic system is woven seamlessly into reality, the lore runs deep, and the plot does not coast for a single second—every time I thought I had it figured out, the author twisted the knife and proved me wrong. This is not a soft fantasy romance. This is prophecy, ruin, millennia-spanning pain, and stakes so high they made my eye twitch. The structure is tight, the pacing escalates beautifully, and the emotional beats land with brutal precision. Serena and Shadow are chaos incarnate, but it’s the craftsmanship—the immersive worldbuilding, the relentless plot progression, the bold refusal to give us an easy happily-ever-after—that makes this unforgettable. I am wrecked. I am obsessed. And I need book two immediately.

[Yasemin · Rating 4 out of 5]

(ARC Review)

“A haunting story of love, loss, and the quiet strength it takes to keep breathing when the world falls apart.”

This book is raw, emotional, and impossible to put down. It’s the kind of story that crawls under your skin its thrilling one moment and heartbreakingly real the next. The author perfectly balances dark suspense with deep emotion, and I was completely invested from the very first page.

The twists caught me off guard in the best way. Every time I thought I had it figured out, the story flipped and left me stunned. The chemistry, the banter, the heartbreak all felt genuine and beautifully human.

At its heart, this book is about survival and finding reasons to keep going even when you’re shattered. It doesn’t shy away from mental health struggles or emotional pain; instead, it shows the strength it takes to rise through them.

This book broke my heart and slowly put it back together, and I’ll be thinking about these characters for a long time. I can’t wait for book 2. 😩

[Kemi · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, let me say this is the first Dark Romance/Fantasy book I have ever completed.

Second, it was written by indie author Sophia Indiana.

I was so adamant about not reading Fantasy book, then I embarked on a quest showing support to indie authors. This book was so good and the bonus was the author was with me every step of the way while I read it.

Serena and Shadow...

Serena loses her mother and in that wake finds some let's say relics that we're hidden in the house. After some things transpire, Serena runs into an unexpected man...enter Shadow.

Shadow knows more about Serena than she knows about herself. He takes her on a quest for her to get answers to her questions (or does he). In the meantime, something is boiling up between the two.

This book is a slow burn...the slowest burn I have ever encountered, but it was so worth it. Go check this book out and come back and tell me how you like it.

Happy Reading!

[Heaven Harper · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why tf you made me cry like thiiiiisssss!! This book was so good like from the characters the plot thesteamyyyyyyyy everything was so good


scale 4.5

[Billee · Rating 5 out of 5]

SOBBING! I absolutely loved this book. I feel devastated by it but cannot wait to see more of Sophia's work.

[Karen Cooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

I only put this book down because I had to work otherwise I was so invested in Rena’s and Shadow’ adventure. I am excited for the next adventure by Sophia Indiana!

[Purrmom · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good debut novel. Great fantasy storyline.

[J.D. Crist · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book had everything!!
The FMC's sass and
stubbornness combined with
the MMC's tortured darkness
was perfect. It was a unique
stiry that kept the pages turning.
I was warned it was a cliffhanger
but I was not ready, especially for
all the feels and tears.
Can't wait for Book 2 !!

[dakota · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was honored to be chosen as an arc reader for this and omg it didn’t disappoint!!! Sophia is brilliant! The tension in this book was INSANE!! I can’t wait to read more of Sophia’s work!

[Felicia · Rating 5 out of 5]

oh

Ok so honestly in the begging it is slow but the middle and ending holy cow! I loved this book and she left it on a dang cliffy. I now need book 2….. please i need to know!!!!

[Kirsten Brunsman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love it gives a shadoe hunter vibe but with more spice

[Simplymetaramarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

An epic romantasy. There is slow-burn, spice, adventure, a shadow daddy, possessive mmc, badass fmc, Fate, banter, tension, the unraveling of a mystery, and a purpose neither expected. Serena, is an outsider in her greater community for she has failed to develop any magical powers. One night changes her life and a greater purpose is slowly unveiled. Both main characters grow and change. They go from strangers to adversaries to lovers but then the truth is revealed and their dynamics change.

Will Serena be able to follow through with what she is tasked with doing?

[Amy Reulet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the vibes of this book!
It's magical slow burn that just keeps burning. I loved all the characters. The MMC...Shadow daddy..yumm. The pages were turning themselves. The ending had me 😭😭😭🌹❤️. Is this the end? Or a cliffhanger? It left me wanting more. I want to know more of what happens. I want to know more about the unseelie. Refreshing read!

[Tabetha · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m not a huge fantasy reader but I loved this book. I saw the author in a live stream. I order her book after she read the first chapter out loud. I was hooked! Good book!

[Author Jessi Chaos Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is spicy, it's thrilling, it's raw and real. Edge of your seat , nail biting suspense keeps you reaching for the book, keep you up at night until you have the answers. Plot twists are done perfectly, masterfully, so unexpected you can guess all you want and still not see them coming before they smack you in the face. The banter is on point. The heart melting romance, the heart breaking losses. The absolute fear of what happens next will drag you into the lives in this story and have you begging for the next book to stay with them. It's a testament of strength when you want to give up because you don't want the pain to continue and you keep going anyway because you're not ready to die. Remember mental health is important and you're never alone, as the characters in this book learn. This is not your grandma's happy ever after. This is reality wrapped in fiction, reminding us all that we're not fighting alone, no matter how much you feel otherwise.

[Willow · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the very first page to the final, I was absolutely hooked. This is not just a book, it is a visceral, all-consuming experience that wraps around you and refuses to let go.

​The author has woven a tale where passion and sadness entrapped me throughout the entire narrative. The emotional intensity is breathtaking, driving the story forward with a fierce urgency that makes it impossible to put down.

Readers looking for a gentle escape should look elsewhere. This book is a firestorm it is addictive, heartbreaking, and utterly thrilling. It will leave you breathless, nursing a profound book hangover, and desperate for more.

​Highly, highly recommended.

[La Changa's Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was emotionally devastating and addicting. So was the MMC... Broody, shadow daddy. Slow burn. Enemies to lovers. And that plot twist... I don't know if I can wait until book two comes out! 😍📖🖤

[Angala Cariou · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sophia literally paints with words. Each page is part of her masterpiece. The story is so good! It keeps you guessing to the very end. Is Shadow a force of good or is he her demise. You have to read to find out. She weaves together such an amazing tale using paranormal and mythology. You won’t read anything like it anywhere!

[Olivia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Poetic Review of A Prayer for Broken Things by A Prayer for Broken Things and Sophia Indiana

Some books do not arrive loudly.

They do not crash through the door
Demanding attention with spectacle or fire.

Instead—

They sit quietly beside your grief
Until you realize
They have been holding your hand for chapters.

A Prayer for Broken Things is that kind of story.

⸻

This is not merely a book about pain.

It is a book about what remains afterward.

After loss.
After disappointment.
After survival has become exhausting.

It asks a terrifying question softly:

How do people continue living
When life no longer resembles
What they hoped it would become?

⸻

The characters in this story
Do not feel written.

They feel weathered.

As though life has touched them too harshly
For innocence to survive intact.

And perhaps that is why they linger emotionally—

Because their brokenness is recognizable.

Not dramatic perfection.
Not polished suffering.

Real ache.

The kind people carry quietly
While still answering texts, going to work, smiling politely,
Pretending they are healing faster than they are.

⸻

Sophia Indiana writes grief
Like someone who understands
That sorrow is rarely linear.

It circles.

Returns.

Hides inside ordinary moments.

A scent.
A room.
A song.
A silence too long between conversations.

And suddenly the wound opens again.

⸻

But what makes this story powerful
Is that grief is never the only thing alive here.

Love survives too.

Fragile at first.
Terrified.
Uncertain whether opening one’s heart again
Is bravery or self-destruction.

And the relationships in this book feel meaningful
Because they are not built upon saving each other.

They are built upon seeing each other.

Fully.

Even in ruin.

Especially in ruin.

⸻

There is something deeply human
About the way these characters keep moving forward
Despite carrying invisible weight.

Not heroically.

Not flawlessly.

But honestly.

And perhaps that honesty
Is the true heartbeat of the novel.

Because survival here is not romanticized.

Sometimes surviving looks messy.

Sometimes it looks like numbness.
Or anger.
Or exhaustion.
Or simply waking up another morning
When you did not want to.

⸻

The title itself feels important.

A Prayer for Broken Things.

Not fixed things.

Not perfect things.

Broken things.

As though the novel understands
That healing does not always erase damage.

Sometimes healing means learning
That shattered things can still hold light.

⸻

And throughout the story
There is this quiet tension between despair and hope.

Not loud hope.

Not unrealistic hope.

But gentle hope.

The kind that arrives slowly
After devastation.

The kind people fight for.

⸻

What lingers after finishing this book
Is not merely sadness.

It is tenderness.

Toward others.
Toward grief.
Toward ourselves.

Because Sophia Indiana seems to understand something essential:

People are rarely ruined only by tragedy.

More often,
They are transformed by how alone they feel inside it.

And love—true love, patient love, human love—
Cannot erase suffering.

But it can sit beside it.

And sometimes that is enough
To keep someone breathing.

⸻

This book does not promise
That broken things become untouched again.

It promises something quieter.

Something perhaps more truthful.

That damaged hearts
Can still create beauty.

That grieving people
Can still be worthy of love.

And that even after loss—

There are parts of us
Still reaching toward the light.