Impossible Things by Kate Johnson

Are they Cursed as well as Chosen?

Ishtaer is a mystery. A blind slave, beaten and broken by her sadistic mistress, with no memory of a time before her enslavement.

Kael Vapensigsson is one of the elite Chosen - a Warlord whose strength comes from the gods themselves. But despite all his power and prestige, he is plagued by a prophecy that threatens to destroy everything he loves. When Kael summons Ishtaer to his room and discovers the marks of the Chosen on her body, including the revered mark of the Warrior, both Warlord and slave seem to have met their match.

But as their lives become increasingly entangled and endangered, Ishtaer is forced to test whether the Chosen ever have the ability to choose their own fate.

I struggled to get into Impossible Things at first - it was based in a world I didn't understand and it just didn't click in those first few chapters for me but as I stuck with it, things became clearer.  I must admit after starting to read this a couple of months ago, I stopped a few chapters in and read a handful of other books before returning to my kindle and realising I hadn't finished this.  It hadn't captured me early on, but as I continued to read I found myself more and more drawn into the story.  By about half way, I was totally and utterly immersed.

Johnson's writing is fantastic and allows you to see the scenery in your mind as you read.  ChocLit books are usually jam-packed with romance, almost from the very first page, but this book is different.  You always have half an eye on the romance, waiting for it to happen, but it doesn't until quite late on in the book.  The focus of this book really is friendship and family, the struggle against who you really are and who you are perceived to be, and it is packed full of action and mystery.