Guardians & Monsters Series by Mariah Montoya, Grace Pearce

In a utopian society ruled by the Twelve Guardians, twenty-three-year-old Saskia has been taught to never question those who protect her city, Xantera, from the Monster who prowls beyond the Wall—even when they demand living sacrifices in exchange for this protection. She eats the food they provide her, works the Healing Center shifts they’ve designated for her, and lives with the partner they’ve assigned her... moreIn a utopian society ruled by the Twelve Guardians, twenty-three-year-old Saskia has been taught to never question those who protect her city, Xantera, from the Monster who prowls beyond the Wall—even when they demand living sacrifices in exchange for this protection. She eats the food they provide her, works the Healing Center shifts they’ve designated for her, and lives with the partner they’ve assigned her. But when Saskia finds a strange necklace left behind by a mysterious patient in her Healing unit, she begins to hear a voice in her head that could change everything. Smooth, deadly, and masculine, the voice teases and tempts her, igniting embers in the emptiest part of her heart and challenging the beliefs that have been instilled there. Before long, she begins to suspect the necklace has connected her mind to the Monster who prowls outside the Wall—a Monster who is nothing like she expected. And he wants her to let him in. less

In the utopian society of Xantera, nothing is a utopia beneath the surface. Twenty-three-year-old Saskia would do anything to tear down the Wall to liberate her people, but now it's too late. She failed to get the key. Failed to open the door. Failed to destroy the Guardians before she fell. But when Saskia finally comes face-to-face with the very Monster she's always been taught to fear, everything changes... moreIn the utopian society of Xantera, nothing is a utopia beneath the surface. Twenty-three-year-old Saskia would do anything to tear down the Wall to liberate her people, but now it's too late. She failed to get the key. Failed to open the door. Failed to destroy the Guardians before she fell. But when Saskia finally comes face-to-face with the very Monster she's always been taught to fear, everything changes. Not only is life outside the Wall the opposite of all she's ever known, but a centuries-old force is at work, slowly waking up after years of dormancy. Together, Saskia and Lucan must face the truth that even the Guardians themselves could have never guessed—a truth that could save Xantera after all. .. Or destroy it. less