A REALLY big week for books – over 100 to mention today! – so buckle up and happy reading!
As always, I recommend sampling before you buy! I have not read most of the new releases listed (although I always end up one-clicking a bunch as I prepare these posts LOL).
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THE MONSTER’S CARESS: A SEVEN KINGDOMS TALE 8 (THE SEVEN KINGDOMS) by S E Smith
CIA agent Asahi Tanaka grew up hearing tales from his grandfather about a mysterious realm where magic and monsters are real. His quest for answers takes him back to Yachats, Oregon, his childhood home. His personal investigation of a series of disappearances leads to a break in the case, and he finds himself in a strange but eerily familiar world.
Nali, Empress of the Monsters, will do anything to protect the creatures under her care. When one of her fabled Sea Stags washes ashore grievously injured, she knows that the last of the alien organisms that came to her world has made it to her kingdom. Her search for the alien leads to an unexpected discovery—another visitor, this one from Earth! A perilous journey to find the malevolent alien takes Nali and Asahi across the Isle of the Monsters, leading them to a discovery that changes their perceptions and makes them reexamine their place in the universe. Will the magic that sparks between these two warriors from different worlds be enough to destroy the threat, or will one have to be sacrificed to save not only the Seven Kingdoms but Earth as well?
JOAN AND THE JUGGERNAUT (ALIEN ABDUCTION BOOK 10) by Honey Phillips
An unstoppable alien warrior. A stubborn human. A desperate escape. Varga’s life has been as hard as the armor which covers his skin, but he has never let it stop him. He has powered his way through every obstacle – until a favor for a friend sends him straight into the path of a stubborn, beautiful female, and everything changes. After finally freeing herself from her domineering ex-husband, Joan is ready to start a new life on her own terms. Instead, she is kidnapped by aliens and sold into servitude on a mining planet at the far end of the galaxy. When a terrifyingly attractive alien appears with promises to rescue her, she isn’t foolish enough to refuse. But the massive, scarred warrior wants more than her freedom – he wants her heart. As Varga and Joan lead a ragtag group on a dangerous journey to freedom, can they also escape the ties of the past and find a new future – together?
RECKLESS (ALIEN WARRIOR ACADEMY BOOK 3) by Miranda Bridges
My instructor hates me. If I could use my hacking expertise to fly through the academy’s courses I would, but that doesn’t work in hand-to-hand combat. And this guy? He’s determined to turn me into a soldier. Except I’m more suited to being a nerd than a killer. I’m not here to learn those skills, only enhance my knowledge of alien technology, and it doesn’t include the Lokarian anatomy. But then I’m getting tutored privately, (because that’s how much I suck) and it’s giving me an upfront view of the male’s body as he kicks my Georgia peach two ways from Sunday. And if that’s not enough, I’m being denied the opportunity to decode the enemy’s secrets. So I do what I do best: steal it. I am a hacker after all. Duh. Will I be able to uncover the threat in time to save the academy, while simultaneously resisting my instructor’s lingering touches and smoldering looks? Or will I find myself being phished, but instead of a security breach it’ll be a full-on death trap?
RUTHLESS (ALIEN WARRIOR ACADEMY BOOK 4) by Kyra Snow
I’m an assassin who’s finally met my match. If only he wasn’t such a jerk. All I want is to be part of the elite taskforce that will defeat our enemy once and for all. The problem? Daryx is the one overseeing the training for the mission.
Some days I’m not sure if I want to stab or kiss him, especially when the silver fox tells me how much he believes in me. That does something to a girl’s ego. Now we’re fighting to bring down our enemy, but my feelings are getting in the way. Can I do my job if it means sacrificing him? Or will we both perish because my heart chooses him over logic?
RESCUED BY HER ALIEN MATE (WARRIORS OF THE D’TALI BOOK 1) by Ava York and Starr Huntress
I thought being kidnapped by four-armed blue apes was as weird as life was going to get. Boy, was I wrong… We’ve crashed, our captors have fled, and now we’ve been rounded up by a group of tall, horned men. With scales. Who don’t understand a word we say. So why does my heart flutter when their leader touches me? When his eyes flash silver, something deep inside me answers. But if I lose my heart, how can I keep myself and the other women safe?
ALIEN ENFORCER’S TARGET (COSMIC SWAT BOOK 2) by Liz Paffel
Ava – That crazy television show Naked and Afraid? It’s a cakewalk compared to the sick game my alien abductors have planned for me–one that humans apparently never survive. I spent so much time hiking after my mom and sister disappeared from Earth that I became a wilderness survival expert. I know how to keep myself alive in any situation… except on this hostile planet, everything, even the water, is trying to eat me. My captors gave me a coach to help me prepare. He’s huge, scary, and sexy as hell. Turns out he’s an undercover alien cop with a mission. One that includes his crazy idea that I’m the key to solving a crime…that involves my missing family. Khryz – My human target doesn’t know what’s coming for her, but I do. As an elite Cosmic S.W.A.T member, I took an unbreakable oath to protect human life. Human females are precious. The one I’m undercover to protect is worth more than the riches of all the wealthy slime who come to watch the game she needs to survive. I won’t let her die. She could be the missing piece that allows me back into the prison planet I need to destroy. And if her touch means what I think it does… she could just be my fated mate. I’m ready to fight anything that gets in between us. Even one of my own. Let the games begin.
LEGEND BEYOND THE STARS (DARKON WARRIORS BOOK 1) by S E Gilchrist
VS Note: I believe this is a rerelease?
A race on the edge of extinction. The women who can save them. And an enemy determined to destroy them all.
Seeking redemption from a mission gone terribly wrong, Captain Alana Knight volunteers for a dangerous operation to transport colonists to a new earth-like planet. But on board the alien traders’ spaceship, she learns of a galactic war raging for power. A power that can be transformed into a terrible weapon. When the colonists are betrayed, Alana’s mission is re-defined. Nothing will stop her from keeping those in her care safe and finding a passage home.
Commander Tarak El Rajan is humanoid, male and a warrior determined to preserve the honour of the Darkon people. A rendezvous with devious traders, leads to an unexpected payload consisting of females from an unknown planet. In particular, one who stirs long forgotten emotions in his heart. But with strict orders to transport all females to the planet Isla for research purposes, any deviation means treason. In a world of uncertainty, where the wrong decision could mean the death of an entire race, the last thing either of these two soldiers expects or needs is to fall in love.
AXALL: VAXXLIAN MAIL ORDER BRIDES #44 (INTERGALACTIC DATING AGENCY) by Sue Mercury
After awakening from cryosleep, Rachel struggles to find her place in a strange new world. Earth isn’t the way she remembers it. Not even close. For starters, humans have made contact with real live aliens. Before she can wrap her head around all the changes, a bossy Vaxxlian warrior shows up in her bedroom claiming to be her mate. She tries to send him away, but the alien in question is as stubborn as he is tall. He also looks infuriatingly good without his clothes on… Axall has never believed in fate or love at first sight. That is, until he meets Rachel–the petite human female with soulful blue eyes and dark, wavy hair who stirs up his protective side. One glance and he’s completely smitten with the headstrong woman who incites his most primal desires. He’s determined to capture her heart and take her back to planet New Vaxx. Despite Rachel’s assertion that they aren’t compatible, Axall keeps trying to woo her, and if he doesn’t stop making those sexy growling noises, she just might lose her resolve. But no. It would never work–she has responsibilities on Earth she can’t abandon, even if she is starting to fall for the hunky green-eyed alien with the heart of gold.
THE ALIEN’S CHALLENGE (DRIXONIAN WARRIORS BOOK 6) by Ella Maven
He’s all fang and no bite… until I push him too far. Tabitha: It’s not like I’m a stranger to one-night stands, but I’ve never had a drunken make-out session with a horned, blue-skinned alien only for him to leave me with the female equivalent of blue balls. The jerk. Xavy’s all talk but no bite. Is it so bad I want the bite? Well, turns out I might get more than I bargained for since I passed out in a hiding spot only to wake up miles in the air on an aircraft. And guess who’s in the pilot seat? The very last alien I want to see…Xavy: Everything about Tabitha tempts me. Her soft curves and her big smile and loud voice full of laughter. But it terrifies me how badly I want to do things to her that are dishonorable to a Drixonian warrior, so I have to reject her. When I find her as a stowaway on my important mission, I have no choice but to return her to camp. That is, until our return trip doesn’t go quite as expected. Now I’m the only thing keeping her safe, and it’s not so easy to avoid her now. Especially when I find that she likes my rough touch as much as I like giving it to her.
SCARRED: BRAXTHARIAN WARRIORS # by Nikki Landis
Valtus: Damaged. Broken. Scarred. A Braxtharian Warrior built for one purpose: Conquering the galaxies and bringing honor to Vindar. The Braxthar Legion’s Elite Force has been my only salvation. Conscripted into service after I disgraced my family, I live with the guilt and trauma of my past. Undying loyalty. Total obedience. Swift justice. The creed of the Braxtharian Warrior. But when I find a human female taken against her will, My protective instincts rise to the surface and I’ll do whatever it takes to seek justice. Kacie is mine to protect. But my heart knows she’s more.
I can’t be the mate she needs. I don’t deserve her.
Kacie: I’ve been taken prisoner by alien slavers. It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. When I signed up for the Interstellar Space Program, All I wanted was a chance to prove Earth was ready to join the Galactic Assembly.
When I’m rescued by a sexy warrior and saved from a terrible fate, I know I have to trust the silver alien with brooding eyes and a thirst for vengeance. My heart aches for his suffering. His scars run deeper than his damaged skin. But my champion doesn’t think he deserves a chance at love. He’s wrong. If we both want to survive, we’ll have to trust one another and confront our deepest pain. I’m not giving up. I’ll fight for Valtus. He may be scarred but he’s not broken. I’ll just have to prove it.
THE VEILED WAR: A QUIRKY STEAMPUNK FANTASY SERIES (THE VIPER AND THE URCHIN BOOK 8) by Celine Jeanjean
Rory and Longinus have their hands full. Adelma is in a bad way, and it will take a lot of work to bring her back to herself. On top of which, Longinus has to prepare for a blind date. The premium matchmaking service he joined assures him that she’s his soulmate. The pressure in selecting the right outfit is, therefore, immense. Distracted and occupied, it takes Rory and Longinus a while to realise that a number of worrying changes are slowly happening in Damsport. On top of which the Marchioness refuses to see anyone, and Lady Martha is nowhere to be found. What is happening in the Mansion? And who or what is behind the odd changes taking place in the city? Rory and Longinus are about to face some challenging times—and not just because Longinus is determined to make avocado shirts the next hot fashion item.
PRIMORDIAL EARTH BOOK 2 by Baleigh Higgins
VS Note: Not a romance…
This is their world, and we are the prey. An outlaw in a savage world, Rogue barely survives her first encounter with the prehistoric creatures outside the walls of Prime City. After a mysterious stranger saves her life, she’s reunited with her long lost mother. Hoping for a fresh start, she joins the Exiles, a group of survivors who live off the land. But not all welcome her with open arms. The fight for freedom has just begun…Eager to free her former people from the rule of a tyrant, she seeks assistance from members of the council. Little does she know that each have their own agenda, and not all look toward a peaceful resolution. Can she prevail, or will she fall victim to the ravages of war?
EXPOSED by H L Day
VS Note: Dystopian, from late AUG
Sometimes salvation comes from the most unlikely hero. When Tate Gillespie is marked for death for a crime he didn’t commit, his life crumbles. In a world where ‘justice’ is meted out by a relentless military force, he’s going to need more than a mythical guardian angel. His life down to seconds, he’s saved by the mysterious X, a knife-wielding man he’s never even met before. But who is X? Is he the man who threatens and kills without a second thought? Or the strangely gentle man who only seems to act that way around Tate?
X is a shadow. A wraith. A man who flits through the city virtually unseen. He’s got no time for people when knives are far more reliable. X does have one weakness though—the man he’s been keeping safe for years who doesn’t even know it. He’d burn the whole world to keep him alive. But what he won’t do is stake his claim. Tate’s not his and he needs to remember that, no matter how close they might become. With the military in hot pursuit, they’re going to need to rely on X’s skills to keep them both alive. Tate’s feelings are growing with every hour they spend together, but X is a tough nut to crack. Can two people from very different backgrounds really find common ground? Or will one of the many perils they face throughout their long journey drive them apart? It’s all about survival. Not love. Isn’t it?
ABOVE THE STORM: SILVERSTAR MATES (INTERGALACTIC DATING AGENCY) by Lea Kirk
Love can be as elusive as stardust. After thirty-five years married to a controlling husband, Robyn Martin Donahue now has her freedom, friends, and a job she adores. And there’s still room in her heart for a special someone. Where in the galaxy can she find a man who will love and respect her, not try to rule her? By law, a monarch cannot govern alone. Recently widowed Kyzel Raptorclaw, the remaining sovereign of his clan, is on the hunt for a new mate. This time he wants more than just an ally; he wants love. But breaking with his peoples’ ancient mating tradition comes at a personal price—one his new mate may not accept. Can Kyzel convince Robyn they are better together, or will their happily ever after crash and burn before it has a chance to soar?
WHELON (DRAGONS OF PREOR BOOK 12) by Celia Kyle and Anne Hale
Local news celebrity Sasha Dane and her mother are fixated on one goal—leverage their media presence to make life supremely difficult for the invading Preor. They want the aliens gone from Earth and for their unnatural hold on human females to end. Permanently. That’s how Sasha found herself at Preor Choosing Station Tau attending a Preor Choosing. Her job? Gather as much dirt as possible. If only that had gone according to plan…Preor Healing Master Whelon never liked the human “cattle calls.” Where hordes of human females threw themselves at the attending Preor in hopes the Knowing would blossom. Nevertheless, he finds himself drawn to Choosing, pulled by an inexplicable force to attend. And that’s when it happened…The Knowing. Desire. Want. Need. Hope…Now, both Sasha and Whelon realize fate has a cruel streak. Sasha must contend with the differences between what she thought to be true—the Preor are an evil, women-stealing, vicious peoples—and reality… That the Preor cherish and love their mates and care for all human beings. Meanwhile, Whelon must realize that his fated mate has obstacles only she can fight.
LAYERS OF FORCE (STAR KINGDOM BOOK 8) by Lindsay Buroker
VS Note: Not a romance
Even though Professor Casmir Dabrowski has been fighting for months to help the kingdom and humanity as a whole, few people in positions of power have appreciated his unorthodox methods. Now he’s a captive of the king and being taken back to his home world without his friends or the crushers he relies upon to protect him. The king believes Casmir is responsible for the prince’s death and plans to have him publicly executed. But bigger troubles are brewing for the Star Kingdom, and Casmir may once again be needed to find a creative solution to save his people—and reshape the entire future of the Twelve Systems. First, he’s got to escape and survive. No easy feat for a man stripped of his allies and marked as a rebel and a traitor.
FIRE’S MATE (CHARYBDIS STATION BOOK 2) by C W Gray
Fire may be a deadly Crellic Element, but he much prefers napping and snacking to murdering armies. After centuries of being used as a weapon, he’s finally able to live peacefully on Charybdis Station. While he’s content to spend his days visiting his friends and raiding their homes for food, he longs for one more thing. A mate to call his own.
A trip to the nearby planet of Burnished Outpost gives him far more than he planned on.
Quigley lives in a narrow-minded clan in the deep desert of Burnished Outpost. His days are spent hunting for survival, guarding his family from the rest of the clan, and hiding a secret that could get him killed. When everything goes wrong and he finds himself on run, all he can hope for is to live long enough to get his family to safety. When the most amazing being he has ever seen swoops in to save the day, Quigley knows he’s found his mate.
The two men may be fated mates, but the differences between them are striking. Can Quigley adjust to a new life on Charybdis Station and can Fire find his place in his brand new family?
BOUND BY THE ALIEN REBEL (ZUNATORIAN WARRIORS BOOK 4) by Gabby Dark
My hunter is nearly eight feet tall, hard as granite, and has a deadly reputation. They call him Xaixek.
Once I see him, I know he’s not like the others. When he touches me, I know all my secrets will be laid bare to him. His telepathic gift allows him to perceive my most intimate thoughts and there’s nothing I can do about it…but run.
When I abandoned my post, I thought I could start over on another colony. After all, I’ve been alone before. I’m done with overbearing men. They are the bane of my existence. But Xaixek is not a man. Xaixek is a Zunatorian alien warrior assassin. He’s become a rebel of sorts. Unlike most of his brethren, he prefers to do his dirty work alone.
His king has sent him on a mission to hunt and capture me. And in return, he would be cleared of all of his debts and forgiven for his crimes. But this mission is personal to Xaixek. He would’ve sought revenge anyway. I’m hunted because I’m a suspect in his uncle’s murder. His uncle won me at a breeding auction and I was assigned to become his mate. I’ve escaped fate many times over, but now I am caught and bound by a relentless rebel. Xaixek promises to make me pay for what I have done. And he does—I pay his price in flesh. I never anticipated that I would crave every single touch. If Xaixek punishes me as thoroughly as he pleasures me, I’m in trouble. I will never escape this fate.
TARON: VIRILIAN MAIL ORDER MATES by Ella Blake
Amelia Ward works security for the organization that matches human women to Virilian males. Escorting female matches to their transport ships is steady, routine work until an assignment goes terribly wrong. She awakens in deep space, having been switched with the woman she was assigned to protect. She frantically tells the only other person on the ship what happened, but Taron, the gorgeous Virilian male piloting the shuttle, doesn’t believe one word of her story.
Ex-raider and Virilian exile, Taron Bando, essentially operates a galactic taxi. He’s seen some major drama on the job, but none to rival Amelia’s raving about a kidnapping and demand to be immediately returned to Earth. He thinks her act is an elaborate play at cold feet until his vessel is fired upon by an unmarked sniper ship. He and Amelia survive in an escape pod, but become stranded on a jungle alien planet where he finds himself powerfully attracted to the beautiful, headstrong human. As they work together to survive, and find a way off the planet, these two total opposites powerfully attract in ways they never expected. Friction turns to desires neither can deny. But will they—and their passion—survive the quest to find the woman who was kidnapped and the truth about Taron’s past?
MY BOYFRIEND IS AN ALIEN (90’S NOSTALGIA FATED MATES BOOK 1) by Athena Storm
I thought I was a modern woman. But then one day I’m attacked. My rescuer is a huge, scaled, alpha male caveman alien. He wears a holodisguise when he’s not saving the human race. And when Axul the Vakutan warrior lays eyes on me, he says I’m his fated mate. If you ask me, I can totally feel the love tonight. Truly. Madly. Deeply. I mean have you seen the type of guys that try to hit on you in the 1990s? It’s all achy-breaky mullets and Hammer pants. Please.
I may not have his muscles (oh boy, those muscles!) but I may know a thing or two that can help him. Like how to parallel park. Use the yellow pages. And call collect. He has to succeed. To save Earth. And our love. After all. He’s my wonderwall.
CHARMED BY THE COXIAN GODS (ALIERN MASTERS BOOK 6) by Alyx X
I’ve always been on my own. Parents gone, planet dead. I’ve saved myself my whole life to sell myself to TERRA and those darn Alien’s. Well, until I get myself into a bit of trouble and then I’m stuck hiding on this rock dancing for those Alien’s while they make a pitstop from picking up their human cargo. That’s when these two golden skin space gods came wandering into my club. One look from their golden eyes and my thighs are all tingly, turns out that happens to be their superpower. A superpower that they want to use on me. Not that I have any interest in joining their “Harem.” What kind of Alien’s are they anyway? The kind that will do anything in their power to take the human with them, even if it means defying the laws of their kind. Turns out I’m forbidden, and just looking at me could get them all killed.
UNBROKEN TREASURE (DRIFTING TREASURES SERIES BOOK 3) by Layla Stone
Seso spent five years in a mansion from hell. Escaping from that black hell was luck, escaping from the caves underneath, would take all his will power and the kindness from a Demon he can’t see. Mei’s lived in the caves for years seeing dead bodies dropped from the trash shoots over and over again. But this time, the body is alive and determined to escape the caves. Considering he can’t see in the dark, like her, she doubts he will make it far. Not to mention the spaceship sized spiders that lurk on the walls and other creatures that live under the water. The safest thing would be to convince him to stay with her, but freedom sounds so much better.
FAST FORWARD (TIME CAPTIVE BOOK 3) by Heather Long
“In one and the same fire, clay grows hard and wax melts.” – Francis Bacon Valda is finally free, but her secrets have revealed new puzzles. Hatch and Dirk have been taken. Worse, Oz seems to have abandoned them. Now, with Andreas at her side, she will wage a war she never wanted to fight against an organization she knows nothing about to save the men she loves. The answer everyone wants is housed within her mind. Now, if only Valda knew what the question is. No matter what, she will do whatever it takes to save them. They didn’t give up on her. She will be damned if she will lose them now.
THE ART OF SAVING THE WORLD by Corinne Duyvis
VS Note: Not a romance but sounded interesting.
When Hazel Stanczak was born, an interdimensional rift tore open near her family’s home, which prompted immediate government attention. They soon learned that if Hazel strayed too far, the rift would become volatile and fling things from other dimensions onto their front lawn—or it could swallow up their whole town. As a result, Hazel has never left her small Pennsylvania town, and the government agents garrisoned on her lawn make sure it stays that way. On her sixteenth birthday, though, the rift spins completely out of control. Hazel comes face-to-face with a surprise: a second Hazel. Then another. And another. Three other Hazels from three different dimensions! Now, for the first time, Hazel has to step into the world to learn about her connection to the rift—and how to close it. But is Hazel—even more than one of her—really capable of saving the world?
THE DOORS OF EDEN by Adrian Tchaikovsky
VS Note: From mid AUG, not a romance but a release of note.
They thought we were safe. They were wrong. Four years ago, two girls went looking for monsters on Bodmin Moor. Only one came back. Lee thought she’d lost Mal, but now she’s miraculously returned. But what happened that day on the moors? And where has she been all this time? Mal’s reappearance hasn’t gone unnoticed by MI5 officers either, and Lee isn’t the only one with questions. Julian Sabreur is investigating an attack on top physicist Kay Amal Khan. This leads Julian to clash with agents of an unknown power – and they may or may not be human. His only clue is grainy footage, showing a woman who supposedly died on Bodmin Moor. Dr Khan’s research was theoretical; then she found cracks between our world and parallel Earths. Now these cracks are widening, revealing extraordinary creatures. And as the doors crash open, anything could come through.
SYNNR’S SPARK (ZULIR WARRIOR MATES BOOK 3) by Kate Rudolph
Raised by a Synnr father and human mother, but 100% human, Grace has a foot in two worlds and belongs in neither. A Synnr Match would give her the wings she desperately wants, so why has a human man caught her eye? She’s caught between Zac, a human rescued from enemy Apsyns and their evil experiments, and Crowze, an aristocratic Synnr soldier built for seduction. There’s no way she can choose between them. So why not choose both?
Lost in space and time…Zac’s supposed to be in grad school, not outer space. He’s determined to carve out a life for himself, but he never imagined a three way romance between himself, an alien soldier, and a human woman with the heart of a Synnr warrior. He’ll do what it takes to keep them…Grace caught his eye through her resilience as a Synnr spy, Zac did it through his will to survive the horrors thrown at him by the Apsyns. Crowze is determined to convince them to take a chance on building something together. But can two humans and a Zulir make a Match?
HEART OF VENGEANCE by Eileen Troemel
Death from the skies! Nogads invaded and killed everyone she loved. Londa fought but too late to save her offspring. Now all she wants is to kill Nogads. Jeffa and his squad of warriors follow the landing of the Nogads in an attempt to protect the people. Approaching the summer shelter of a homesteader, they discover one small female has killed seven of the large Nogads invaders. Jeffa feels the tug of a mate but knows she’s been through too much and he needs to be patient. Will Londa’s need fir revenge prevent her from finding love again?
SHAPERS OF WORLDS by Various
VS Note: Not romances but a great lineup of scifi authors…
Within these pages lie eighteen stories, from eighteen worlds shaped by some of today’s best writers of science fiction and fantasy, all guests on the Aurora Award-winning podcast The Worldshapers during its first year. There are original stories from Tanya Huff, Seanan McGuire, David Weber, L.E. Modesitt, Jr., John C. Wright, D.J. Butler, Christopher Ruocchio, Shelley Adina, and Edward Willett, plus fiction by John Scalzi, David Brin, Julie Czerneda, Joe Haldeman, Gareth L. Powell, Dr. Charles E. Gannon, Fonda Lee, Derek Kunsken, and Thoraiya Dyer. Some are international bestsellers. Among them are winners and nominees for the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, Aurora, Sunburst, Aurealis, Ditmar, British Science Fiction Association, and Dragon Awards. Some have been writing for decades, others are at the beginning of their careers. All have honed their craft to razor-sharpness.
A teenage girl finds something strange in the middle of the Canadian prairie. An exobiologist tries to liberate a giant alien enslaved on its homeworld by humans. The music of the spheres becomes literal for an Earth ship far from home. A superhero league interviews for new members. Strangers share a drink on a world where giant starships fall. Two boys, one a werewolf, one a mage, get more than they bargained for when they volunteer to fight an evil Empire. A man with amnesia accepts a most unusual offer. A young woman finds unexpected allies as she tries to win a flying-machine race in steampunk London.
ROMAN: THE BOUNDARYLANDS OMEGAVERSE by Callie Rhodes
No woman willingly travels to the Boundarylands. It’s where they are—the Alphas. They keep to themselves in the wilderness, and beta civilization knows to keep its distance. Especially beta women…for fear they may not be a beta after all. Unfortunately, Phoebe never had a choice, not when the family business is smuggling black market goods to the alphas who live deep within the borders. She knows enough to keep her distance, but when a heated deal goes wrong, Phoebe finds herself offered up as a sacrifice—her freedom for her family’s lives. Now, she’s trapped with a creature who views her as nothing more than another possession…so why does his feral nature call to her in ways she’s powerless to control?
ECHOES OF TIME (ECHOES OF TIME TRAVEL SERIES BOOK 1) by Rylee Swann
Alien. Assassin. Time Traveler. Shawn Paros, a flawed and dangerous time-traveling alien, is living his life out on earth as a hired assassin. Cold, calculated, and emotionless, he makes for the perfect career criminal. But nothing could prepare him for Rayna Newman, the one person who can tear down all of his defenses. Rayna breathes life into his pointless world, and now, he’ll do whatever it takes to hold on to her. Even honoring her most absurd request: to work for the United States government and stop his criminal ways. There’s only one problem. The government wants him dead.
X MY HEART by Linda Mooney
For the past four years, the war against the invaders has raged on, with seemingly no end in sight. Cities and towns have been razed, with the majority of the population killed or forced into hiding. The military branches—what’s left of them—are joining forces against the enemy. The aliens. Lieutenant Gretchen Twoey and her squad are quickly losing hope. Supplies are limited, soldiers are becoming even more so, but the alien mechanoids are never ending. Despite the military’s best efforts, nothing is being learned of the extraterrestrials. The mechs they do manage to kill disintegrate before they can even be studied. If the tides don’t turn soon, the world will be defeated. When Sergeant Leif Stoddard and his men are reassigned to the 181st with Gretchen, things seem to finally be going in their favor. They were set to marry four years ago, but then the first Medusa struck and they were both called to arms, and it’s been an uphill battle since. Finally, they can be together…or will the war tear them apart yet again, once and for all?
The world has a choice—lie low, stay invisible, and hope the aliens leave, or stage one last battle where the winner takes all.
SIGN HERE FOR HORNS (VANDALAR CONCUBINES BOOK 1) by V K Ludwig
I accidentally bought myself an alien concubine. Thirty-one, recently divorced, and behind on the mortgage for my farm, I scrape my last savings together and buy myself a farmhand. That big, horned alien I end up with? He’s a Vandalar saikh, a male concubine, and he wants to plow more than just my fields. Guess I should have read the fine print of the purchase contract better because the trader refuses to take him back. Now I’m stuck with weed-infested fields, red letters from the bank, and a guy who says he studied one million ways to please a female. (His words, it’s not like I’m going to count…)
SONG OF THE DEPTHS by Bonnie L Price
To the Creshe Empire, I’m just a number. I’ve spent the past five years in isolation and under study. With my home razed by a Syldrari attack, my mind damaged, and nothing but white walls and a viewing window around me, I dedicated myself to two things: training my body, and reading any book they allowed me to have. The Empire wants me to serve, to use the inhuman power the Incident stirred within me. Technically, they asked, but it wasn’t much of a choice. It never is. Serve, or… I refused to be a mindless slave. My life was taken from me once. Never again. With the Empire moving forward with their xenophobic plans, they needed someone capable of killing Syldrari—and I was just that. A tool they could use, a tool they thought they could manipulate. Needing me was their first mistake. They gave me leverage, I named my terms. Now, after five years, my life can begin.
BACK THAT SASS UP (ENEMIES TO MATES BOOK 2) by Celeste King
Hot girl matched with Kaleth killer. Let’s get ready to rumble. It’s hard being an attractive girl in a male dominated field. So when a government agent knocks on my door saying they need my help to save the galaxy, I immediately think I’m being punked. Then, a horned, muscled, 8-feet tall alien warrior bursts through my door and I know my life has taken a turn into the Twilight Zone. People are telling me this alien caveman is my fated mate. He’s so over the top. Probably the last living being in the galaxy to not realize wrestling is fake. And taking him out to social events makes 2020 look like a picnic. Still, I think I like the big lug. See, it’s how he looks at me. He just wants to love me. Get me barefoot and pregnant with his alien babies. Usually they send genetic matches on a thirty day vacation to get to know each other. For us, they gave us a mission instead. To work together to save the Earth from annihilation.
Geez. Talk about a high pressure date.
LOVE NEVER DIES by Pelaam
VS Note: From late AUG
Brother and sister team Midnight and Aurora Pendragon have a successful airship business taking clients on trips to be photographed with their pet pterodactyl. The last thing they expect is to have one such trip hijacked by the dashing adventurer Voltaire Crevin and his right-hand man Trevilian Hawke. While his sister and Voltaire repeatedly lock horns, Midnight finds himself increasingly drawn to Trevilian. Finally, Voltaire explains they are trying to prevent a weapon of mass destruction from falling into the hands of a ruthless, secret organization, the S.O.R. With Midnight’s help, they take the airship down into an extinct volcano to find that not only does Atlantis still exist, but the weapon is in the hands of the few remaining Atlanteans. But if Voltaire had believed the S.O.R. were ruthless, it’s nothing compared to that of the Atlanteans who seek to return to the surface and rule the world using their ultimate weapon: The Leviathan. Midnight’s feelings for Trevilian deepen as they seek a way to stop the Atlanteans and escape from Atlantis. Danger comes in many ways and takes many forms, each more deadly than the last. Can Midnight and Trevilian survive long enough to know whether love never dies?
HER ALIEN HUSBAND (PALLASAN CHRONICLES BOOK 1) by Juniper Kerry
Freddie loves her bar. Although not too many aliens were happy about a human owning a business on the Pallasan trading post, she’s starting to win them over. But now, a criminal mastermind has taken control of her sector. He’s got everyone in his pocket… except for Freddie. He wants her off his turf, and he’s found a way to make it happen: a new law that requires that all businesses in his sector be owned by an ‘established’ alien species. Freddie is about to lose her bar, and she doesn’t know what to do. Vander doesn’t drink much. In fact, he hates the feeling of losing control. But he’s been hanging around Freddie’s bar lately, trying to get close to her. Something inside him whispers that she’s important. So when he sees an opportunity to get closer, he jumps at the chance. Of course, marrying the woman he desires doesn’t necessarily mean he gets to keep her.
ASSASSIN’S OMEGA by Ana B Starr
Valentina and Leo are rare. Not only are they twins, but human Omegas as well. When a galactic crime lord collecting a debt discovers them, the siblings find themselves enslaved and forced to work under the watchful eye of their alien master. Their abilities as Omegas are exploited for profit until they find an unlikely rescuer in a strange Alpha, who claims Valentina is his mate. Cyprias is an assassin tasked with a kill on the space station Ondu. With undisputed skill and a high body count, he expected this assignment to be an easy one. But he finds this hunk of metal in space harbors more than just a job. Hidden away in a seedy club is his Omega, and he will stop at nothing to protect her.
TREASURED BY THE DRAGON (STONEFIRE BRITISH DRAGONS BOOK 13) by Jessie Donovan
If someone had told Dawn Chadwick that she’d be attending a play put on by children on a dragon-shifter’s land a year ago, she would’ve said they were mad. However, her daughter Daisy has slowly worn Dawn down about her prejudices and she ends up volunteering to help with the play. She’s to assist a recluse dragonman with the special effects. What she didn’t count on was her daughter’s meddling.
Blake Whitby prefers working in a lab to being around people. He’s a rare white dragon with a black spot, and the attention from a young age has made him hide from others. However, he’s always had a weakness for children and agrees to help them with their play. What he didn’t count on was meeting a beautiful human with a sense of humor and a heart-warming smile. His dragon wants her, but Blake holds back. At least until two kids make holding back impossible.
While Dawn agrees to the mate-claim frenzy with Blake, there’s no guarantee their pairing will work. And when Dawn’s family threatens her happiness, Blake has to stand by his mate and fight for the family he never knew he wanted.
FROST FAE (DARK FAE KINGS BOOK 2) by Meg Xuemei X
The three Fae kings insist I’m their fated mate, and they’re terrible at sharing. I know I should turn my back on them before they ruin me. They’re too ruthless, feral, possessive, and well, too hot for me to feel safe. A girl would have a better chance of swimming with sharks than walking among the predatory Fae, let alone tangling with them between the sheets. But did I adhere to my own advice? And now my unbridled lust complicates everything, leading me straight into the Dawn Queen’s trap. To claim the kings for herself, she thrusts me into the Wild Hunt—a deadly game no one has ever escaped.
DUSK AVENGER (FLIRTING WITH MONSTERS BOOK 3) by Eva Chase
The Company of Light had already made my shit list before they kidnapped one of my monstrous lovers. Now? I’m ready to send the whole lot of them up in flames. Especially when it turns out they may have damaged my demon sweetheart beyond repair. Trouble is, those flames aren’t playing nice. After its taste of freedom, my inner fire seems intent on having a full-on scorch party, and that includes burning me up while I’m burning down the baddies. If I’m going to get a handle on the dangerous power within me, I need to understand where it—and I—came from. But finding the answers I’m searching for could be worse than staying in the dark. My enemies are multiplying by the minute, and the worst of them… might be standing right beside me.
THE COTTAGE OF CURIOUSITIES by Celia Anderson
VS Note: Magical realism…
Tucked away amongst the winding, cobbled streets of Pengelly in Cornwall, the old stone cottage on Memory Lane is full of secrets. Brimming with trinkets and treasures, there are thousands of stories hidden within its walls. Fifty-four-year-old Grace Clarke arrives in Pengelly determined to uncover the secrets of her past. Standing outside the little cottage, she feels sure that the answers she craves lie inside. The truth about her mysterious long-lost mother and the even more mysterious gifts she was born with.
ENCHANTED HUNT (MIDNIGHT HUNTERS BOOK 8) by L L Raand
Sylvan forms an alliance with the neighboring Snowcrest wolf pack after an attack on Snowcrest by creatures from beyond the veil, and sends a cadre of warriors to aid in training the Snowcrest soldiers to defend against the next attack. Trent, one of Sylvan’s lieutenants, understands her duty, but can’t deny the primal call of another Were, even if Zora is the Alpha of the Snowcrest Pack and any relationship between them risks inter-Pack war. When Sylvan receives an unexpected summons—couched in the form of an invitation to parlay—from Cecelia, Queen of Faerie, she decides to cross into Faerie despite Drake’s misgivings and against the advice of her war council. The Timberwolf stronghold has never been breached, but this time the enemy is shielded by dark magic and no one is safe.
THE FORGOTTEN KINGDOM: A NOVEL (THE LOST QUEEN BOOK 2) by Signe Pike
VS note: Arthurian fantasy…
AD 573. Imprisoned in her chamber, Languoreth awaits news in torment. Her husband and son have ridden off to wage war against her brother, Lailoken. She doesn’t yet know that her young daughter, Angharad, who was training with Lailoken to become a Wisdom Keeper, has been lost in the chaos. As one of the bloodiest battles of early medieval Scottish history scatters its survivors to the wind, Lailoken and his men must flee to exile in the mountains of the Lowlands, while nine-year-old Angharad must summon all Lailoken has taught her and follow her own destiny through the mysterious, mystical land of the Picts.
In the aftermath of the battle, old political alliances unravel, opening the way for the ambitious adherents of the new religion: Christianity. Lailoken is half-mad with battle sickness, and Languoreth must hide her allegiance to the Old Way to survive her marriage to the next Christian king of Strathclyde. Worst yet, the new King of the Angles is bent on expanding his kingdom at any cost. Now the exiled Lailoken, with the help of a young warrior named Artur, may be the only man who can bring the Christians and the pagans together to defeat the encroaching Angles. But to do so, he must claim the role that will forever transform him. He must become the man known to history as “Myrddin.”
Bitter rivalries are ignited, lost loves are found, new loves are born, and old enemies come face-to-face with their reckoning in this compellingly fresh look at one of the most enduring legends of all time.
RESTORING THE BROKEN (ROGUE DRAGONS BOOK 3) by Emilia Hartley
Nobody with any sense goes looking for true love in a bar, but then nobody has ever accused Erik Beck of having any sense, either. Maybe that’s why Erik spends his evenings tossing back enough alcohol to numb the monstrous dragon he inherited from his twin—the twin he starved of life when he was still in his mother’s womb. Maybe that’s why Erik spends his nights pleasuring women who will be gone in the morning. Maybe that’s why, despite both his dragons’ instincts, he doesn’t pay any attention to the bartender with kind eyes who keeps his glass filled.
Bree Halstead just knows she and Erik are meant for each other. Someday soon, he’ll tire of taking a different woman home every night and he’ll see her—really see her—and realize how perfect they are together. Her coworkers say not to get involved with the patrons, but Erik is different. Bree is sure of it. Or at least, she’s sure of it until one night when Erik seems sick, and she follows him into a bathroom to help him out. What she finds is an Erik who is totally different from who she has imagined him to be. And after he bites her, her opinion of him isn’t the only thing that changes. As a new world opens before Bree, her daydreams fall away, but the reality that remains is beyond anything she could have imagined. Bree is more convinced than ever that Erik is her destiny. Now all she has to do is get Erik to see that.
CROWN OF DARKNESS (DARK COURT RISING BOOK 2) by Bec McMaster
Thiago and Iskvien survived a dangerous curse, but will they survive the coming war? True love will face the ultimate challenge when a dark goddess rises, secrets threaten to tear them apart, and a queen will stop at nothing to gain revenge.
PIRANESI by Susanna Clarke
Piranesi’s house is no ordinary building: its rooms are infinite, its corridors endless, its walls are lined with thousands upon thousands of statues, each one different from all the others. Within the labyrinth of halls an ocean is imprisoned; waves thunder up staircases, rooms are flooded in an instant. But Piranesi is not afraid; he understands the tides as he understands the pattern of the labyrinth itself. He lives to explore the house.
There is one other person in the house-a man called The Other, who visits Piranesi twice a week and asks for help with research into A Great and Secret Knowledge. But as Piranesi explores, evidence emerges of another person, and a terrible truth begins to unravel, revealing a world beyond the one Piranesi has always known.
SPOOKY BUSINESS (THE SPECTRAL FILES BOOK 3) by S E Harmon
Being insatiably curious is a good way to end up dead. Rain Christiansen, cold case detective and reluctant medium, is very aware of that fact. But when infamous serial killer Thomas Kane wants to meet, there’s no way Rain can say no. He also can’t refuse Kane’s offer—find his missing wife, Delilah, and he’ll reveal the location of his victim’s bodies.
Rain has never turned down a good quid pro quo, and he doesn’t intend to start. The hunt for Kane’s wife leads to yet another cold case, three copycat murders, and an investigation where nothing is as it seems. Soon, Rain is dealing with a ghost unlike any he’s ever dealt with before…a ghost capable of doing things he shouldn’t be able to do. How can Rain control something he doesn’t even understand? And what will he do when the unknown threatens the safety of the most important person in his life? Rain is starting to realize that he can only battle the supernatural with the supernatural, and that is spooky business indeed.
WOLF’S CALL (WOLVES NEXT DOOR BOOK 2) by Auryn Hadley
My five boyfriends – yes, five – are being much too patient with me. That’s pissing a few people off. It seems that when living with a pack of wolves, there are certain expectations for the alpha’s mate – and I suck at this. A few months ago, I had no idea shifters even existed! I just wanted a safe home, and this is it, although it’s not at all what I imagined. When an ex-girlfriend decides to make my life a living hell, pack rules say that if I want to keep my place, I need to win my own fights. That’s not easy when she’s young, fit, beautiful, and a wolf. I’m not. But with the help of a few friends, a little medical advice, and a whole lot of pent up sexual frustration, one thing is going very, very well. Five boyfriends really are better than one. I just have to balance them with my child and these new pack responsibilities. Because, this was my second chance. I’d intended to learn how to be strong, but I was thinking more about having my own opinions and less about dominance challenges! I should be focusing on the bully picking on my daughter at school. The pack’s children are being singled out by some kid, and that is a problem – but this woman will not leave me alone! So if I want to be strong, I need to stop letting others push me around. It’s time for the claws to come out.
PRINCESS LOST (FIRE AND ICE HYBRIDS BOOK 1) by Serenity Rayne
Dreams are a funny thing: sometimes, they’re just for fun. Sometimes they give us a hint into our future, and sometimes those dreams show you who you are fated to be with. My blonde mate haunts my dreams every night for twenty years. It’s not until I show my best friend, Ladon, my dream, that I find out who my mate is.
Our destiny will soon be decided. Will I be able to hold it together for forty-eight hours or will her presence send me over the brink? I have to make it to the mating ceremony without burning the kingdom to the ground.
PLAYING WITH HELLFIRE (SIN DEMONS BOOK 1) by Mila Young and Harper A Brooks
When my warlock foster father trades me to demons for his outstanding debts, I find myself in Hell on Earth. I’m thrust into a supernatural underground crime ring I can’t get out of, eternally bound in a contract I never made. Three hot-as-hell demons stand in between me and my freedom. A tattooed, brutish Hellhound shifter. An incubus with the power to bend wills on command. And the heir to Lucifer’s throne—the original sin demon, Pride, himself. I have to find a way out of the deal before they devour me, body and soul. But I’m no angel. There’s something inside me, something that craves the chaotic darkness these demons possess. Escaping may mean giving in to Hell’s more sinful temptations. But playing with fire only hurts if you get burned.
THE MOONLIT WORLD (WORLD SHAPERS BOOK 3) by Edward Willett
Fresh from their adventures in a world inspired by Jules Verne, Shawna Keys and Karl Yatsar find themselves in a world that mirrors much darker tales. Beneath a full moon that hangs motionless in the sky, they’re forced to flee terrifying creatures that can only be vampires…only to run straight into a pack of werewolves. As the lycanthropes and undead battle, Karl is spirited away to the castle of the vampire queen. Meanwhile, Shawna finds short-lived refuge in a fortified village, where she learns that something has gone horribly wrong with the world in which she finds herself. Once, werewolves, vampires, and humans lived there harmoniously. Now every group is set against every other, and entire villages are being mysteriously emptied of people. Somehow, Karl and Shawna must reunite, discover the mysteries of the Shaping of this strange world, and escape it for the next, without being sucked dry, devoured, or—worst of all—turned into creatures of the night themselves. Beneath the frozen, gibbous moon, allies, enemies, surprises, adventures, and unsettling revelations await.
THE HELLION: MALUS DOMESTICA #3 by S A Hunt
Robin Martine has destroyed witches all across the country, but since her confrontation with the demon Andras, Robin has had to deal with her toughest adversary yet: herself. While coming to grips with new abilities, she and her boyfriend Kenway make their way to the deserts of rural Texas, where new opportunities await. Something lurks in this isolated town of Keystone Hills: a dangerous gang ruled by a husband who wields an iron fist over his wife and daughter. Robin vows to protect these Latina women from harm, but may be underestimating how powerful Santiago Valenzuela is… and how his shapeshifting powers may pose a threat to everyone Robin holds dear.
DEMON KISSED (DARKEST FLAMES BOOK 1) by Katie May and Ann Denton
I fucked up. Honestly, how was I supposed to know that a love spell was actually a summoning spell…and that it would actually work? Now, I have five demons at my beck and call, their sole purpose to fulfill my heart’s deepest desire – which is to make William Washington fall head-over-heels in love with me. Their solution? Insert themselves in every aspect of my life in order to make William jealous. As my fake boyfriend? Check. As my sexy new teachers? Check. As the psychotic, sexy stalker who follows me around? Check. Their goal is to make William fall in love with me. And my goal is to not fall in love with them in the process.
GHOST WALK (HAUNTED SOULS BOOK 9) by Pandora Pine
Ghost Detective Jude Byrne is enjoying a night out with friends and family on one of Salem’s famed ghost walks. It’s all fun and games until the last stop of the tour when he comes face to grave with Salem’s resident vampire, Kingston Gamble. The vampire tomb has several safeguards, including a grave cage, meant to keep him resting in peace. Psychic Copeland Forbes senses a presence he’s never felt before in the old boneyard. Rattled by the experience, he rushes his family home, only to dream about the bloodsucker. Convinced the century-old creature of the night is waking up, Cope is anxious and on high alert. When Kingston somehow escapes his fortified grave, it’s up to Jude and Cope to find the vampire. Along the way, they meet up with an old friend, Luca Pennington, who knows a thing or two about being Salem’s resident vampire. Can Jude and Cope stop the vampire and the evil plan surrounding him, or will they become the newest attractions on Salem’s ghost walk?
ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE (RAZING HELL BOOK 4) by Cate Corvin
He stole those who meant everything to me. I will hunt him down. I will lead him into the light. Into everlasting fire and torment. With Satan’s escape the Circles are in chaos, ravaged by the Dragon’s emergence. The Sword of Light was shattered. Lucifer and Vyra are gone. But this isn’t the end. Not all of the demons in Dis are happy over the loss of their king. Assassins lurk in the shadows, and they’re determined to ensure the Seventh Circle loses both of its princesses. With the help of a long-lost archangel who takes Tascius under his wing and Azazel’s dark arts, we’ll fend off the traitors and search to the end of the world to find our missing family. And when we do…all Hell will break loose.
REMINGTON (NEW HOPE SHIFTERS BOOK 3) by Elisa Leigh
Violet Spencer is a hot mess. At least that’s how she feels after making a spur of the moment decision that has consequences she isn’t prepared for. Trying to get out of her head, she takes a hike out in the forest. Everything goes from bad to worse in the course of a few hours and what started out as a good day turns bad. With daylight dimming, she doesn’t know how she’ll make it out alive.
There was nothing left for Remington Walker in his old pack. No mate for him to grow old with, no future he is willing to accept. Remington follows his brothers and cousins out of town, in hopes of finding their mates. He was content, for the most part, settling down with his small pack in Berkely Springs. When Jameson, then Jackson meets their mates, he’s happy for them, but he still doesn’t think he’ll find his. Until one day that all changes. He scents his mate’s blood, too much blood, in the forest near his home. His bear takes over, racing to get to her in time What happens when he makes a choice neither of them can take back in hopes to save the woman he’s fated to love? Will she accept him and his bear or will she leave with the broken pieces of his heart?
ROMANCING THE HOLIDAYS: A FIRST COAST ROMANCE WRITERS HOLIDAY ANTHOLOGY by Various
VS Note: Includes a mix of story types incl PNR
A dozen ways to fall in love at the holidays…Come celebrate the holidays with these dozen unique romances, ranging from sweet to steamy and all ending with a happily-ever-after. This anthology of short stories, written by multi-award-winning authors, including New York Times best-selling author, Alyssa Day, will transport you from Labor Day and Halloween antics to Christmas and Valentine romantics. Its stories will whisk you away into contemporary, historical, and paranormal worlds where love prevails. So, savor the authors featured in this enchanting book and bet your heart on some romantic cheer while you enjoy these twelve ways to fall in love.
BURNING ASH (FORGOTTEN BROTHERHOOD BOOK 3) by N J Walters
No one is more surprised than Asher, one of the oldest vampires on Earth, that he’s attracted to vamp hunter Jo Radcliffe. She’s smart, a talented slayer, and she’s gorgeous. Something about her pulls at him, like no one ever has before. For a man, whose name strikes fear in everyone—this is something new and intriguing. And quite possibly deadly, if she discovers his secret.
Jo has two things in common with the handsome Asher—they are both slayers and someone is messing with them in a very-much-trying-to-kill-them way. She’s not so happy about joining forces with a dude she doesn’t know. But he’s sexy as hell and really good at his job as one of the Forgotten Brotherhood, whose business it is to execute misbehaving paranormals. She knows she’s bait in a larger plot to harm Asher and the Brotherhood. And there is nothing he won’t do, no line he won’t cross, to keep her safe—which may be the weakness that destroys them both.
WITCHING FOR JOY: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL (PREMONITION POINTE BOOK 3) by Deanna Chase
Joy Lansing is at a crossroads. Her kids have all flown the nest and just when she thought she was going to spend her golden years with her husband of thirty years, she finds herself single again and looking to rebuilt a life she no longer recognizes. Lucky for Joy she has her two besties and her coven by her side. Because she’s going to need them when she lands a television role and finds herself hexed by a jealous co-star. Finding yourself a minor TV star at the age of forty-eight is more than a little overwhelming. But when it comes with bad press and a hot celebrity determined to date her, Joy is in way in over her head. She’s going to need all her magic to navigate this one before her new career is over before it starts.
OOLONG FAREWELL: A TEA AND TAROT COZY MYSTERY by Kirsten Weiss
When all the neighbors want you dead…Abigail Beanblossom is finally getting into the groove of her new Tea and Tarot room. But in Abigail’s mind, when things are going right, that’s exactly when they’re about to go wrong. She never could have guessed, however, the mother who abandoned her as a child would suddenly return, looking for tea and sympathy. Now, all Abigail wants is to escape. So, when her grandfather’s friend, Archer, asks Abigail and her partner Hyperion to investigate the murder of his neighbor, the two amateur sleuths leap at the opportunity. Abigail suspects Archer’s fears of arrest are a tempest in a teapot. The victim’s been renting out his mansion for noisy events and bringing the entire neighborhood to a boil. And the old money and nouveau-riche suspects are as plentiful as they are quirky. But when Archer becomes suspect #1, Abigail and Hyperion must steep themselves in the fraught world of upper-crust homeowners associations and Instagram stars. Because this cockeyed killer is just getting started.
ANCIENT HEARTS: A TIME TRAVEL FANTASY ROMANCE (KINGDOM OF SAND AND STARS BOOK 1) by Candace Osmond
Young archaeologist, Andie Godfrey must conquer her addiction and accept the opportunity to uncover the Egyptian cave where her father and boyfriend were last seen two years ago. But, the pain of the past is hard to forget when you’re thrown at its feet. Using her father’s secret research, Andie pieces together a clandestine conspiracy, centuries old, that will shatter the world’s idea of ancient Egypt. But before she can solve her father’s cryptic puzzle, Andie’s betrayed by the leader of the expedition, and finds herself left for dead at the bottom of a pit where she accidentally activates a portal carved in stone. Unsure whether she’s dead or thrown back in the midst of time, Andie discovers an advanced civilization unlike anything she’s ever known and is soon faced with a ruler among Gods; a man from her own past who once ruled her heart.
GONE IN THE PINK OF AN EYE (A WITCH’S COVE MYSTERY BOOK 6) by Vella Day
Hi, I’m Glinda Goodall, part time waitress and part time sleuth. Oh yeah, I’m a witch with a talking pink iguana who thinks he’s a detective. A few weeks ago, my seventeen-year old cousin moved in with me (long story). Her passion? Taking photos. She’s a witch too, but she refuses to acknowledge it–until she starts to hear voices in her head. When the dead man turns out to be her photo teacher, I have to help her find out who killed him. This obsession to learn his identity forces Rihanna to embrace her witch side, which leads to seances, ghost sightings, and a whole host of paranormal explorations–and I end up wearing something other than pink. Not a pretty sight. Please stop by The Pink Iguana Sleuth agency if you need anything. Either Jaxson or I will be there–and Iggy, of course.
NEVER CRY WOLF: HOWLS ROMANCE (SENTINEL BROTHERHOOD SERIES BOOK 3) by Marianne Morea
A Hard Choice – Luke Laval must face the truth. Someone he trusted purposely enabled the massacre of his kind, and the upheaval of his shifter world. The knowledge hardened him, compelling him to retaliate, even if it means losing everything he loves. Forced to choose, he and what remains of the Sentinel Brotherhood, strike an unlikely alliance in the final siege to preserve and protect what remains of their shadowed domain. No matter the cost. Stand and Fight, or Run – Gabrielle Sancier never imagined herself at the center of any battle, let alone a paranormal war. A twist of fate brought her the man of her dreams, but also the truth about herself and her abilities. Abilities needed to help win this war. Except, there’s no fairytale ending when the man she loves goes missing, and she realizes she’s carrying his baby. Both stand center stage of this conflict. Will they survive? Or will their world and their love be lost before either has a chance?
DRACULA’S CHILD by J S Barnes
It has been some years since Jonathan and Mina Harker survived their ordeal in Transylvania and, vanquishing Count Dracula, returned to England to try and live ordinary lives. But shadows linger long in this world of blood feud and superstition – and, the older their son Quincey gets, the deeper the shadows that lengthen at the heart of the Harkers’ marriage. Jonathan has turned back to drink; Mina finds herself isolated inside the confines of her own family; Quincey himself struggles to live up to a family of such high renown. And when a gathering of old friends leads to unexpected tragedy, the very particular wounds in the heart of the Harkers’ marriage are about to be exposed…There is darkness both within the marriage and without – for new evil is arising on the Continent. A naturalist is bringing a new species of bat back to London; two English gentlemen, on their separate tours of the Continent, find a strange quixotic love for each other, and stumble into a calamity far worse than either has imagined; and the vestiges of something forgotten long ago is finally beginning to stir.
MIND GAMES (THE WITCHES OF WHEELER PARK BOOK 4) by Christine Pope
Jeremy Wilcox hasn’t had a ping on his orphan witch–hunting computer system for two, tomb-quiet months. Until he learns of a woman with a gift for disguises — and an uncanny ability to beat the house. Sloane Kennedy lives by one cardinal rule: Never stop moving. It’s the only way she knows to survive. It’s not exactly cheating — after all, tuning into and out of people’s heads is a survival mechanism. So is the spider sense that tells her the cute guy at Twin Arrows casino is watching her. When said cute guy rescues her from an unknown assailant, it turns out he knows way more about her than he should. Like that she’s adopted…and a few things she didn’t. She’s a witch, and somewhere, she has family. As Sloane learns more about her heritage, her relationship with Jeremy grows from shy kisses into a longing for something more. Roots, a home, love. But reconnecting with her birth family is no dream. It’s a nightmare that could rip her from Jeremy’s arms…and sweep her up in a mad plan to control all witches. Everywhere.
THE LEFT HANDED BOOKSELLERS OF LONDON by Garth Nix
In a slightly alternate London in 1983, Susan Arkshaw is looking for her father, a man she has never met. Crime boss Frank Thringley might be able to help her, but Susan doesn’t get time to ask Frank any questions before he is turned to dust by the prick of a silver hatpin in the hands of the outrageously attractive Merlin. Merlin is a young left-handed bookseller (one of the fighting ones), who with the right-handed booksellers (the intellectual ones), are an extended family of magical beings who police the mythic and legendary Old World when it intrudes on the modern world, in addition to running several bookshops. Susan’s search for her father begins with her mother’s possibly misremembered or misspelt surnames, a reading room ticket, and a silver cigarette case engraved with something that might be a coat of arms. Merlin has a quest of his own, to find the Old World entity who used ordinary criminals to kill his mother. As he and his sister, the right-handed bookseller Vivien, tread in the path of a botched or covered-up police investigation from years past, they find this quest strangely overlaps with Susan’s. Who or what was her father? Susan, Merlin, and Vivien must find out, as the Old World erupts dangerously into the New.
BLOOD HUNT (VAMPIRE HUNTRESS CHRONICLES BOOK 1) by Jessica Wayne
Detective Rainey Astor walks a dangerous line between the human and supernatural worlds. As a vampire hunter, she’s a formidable opponent, having killed hundreds of their kind. Yet, when her latest foray into the supernatural world goes terribly wrong, she finds herself rescued by the very creature she’s vowed to kill.
Elijah Hawthorne is unlike any vampire Rainey has ever met. His sexy as hell exterior hides a tortured soul seeking redemption. Rainey knows she should avoid him at all costs, but fate has other plans. Together, they’re forced down a twisted path of ancient revenge and tainted love. With Elijah guarding her back, Rainey must protect her heart, because giving in could mean a death sentence for them both. But if they don’t discover the hidden identity of their enemy before the clock runs out, she’s as good as dead anyway.
AZURE DRAGONS (SUPERNATURAL SHIFTER ACADEMY BOOK 2) by G Bailey
Wolf, Siren, Dragon, Witch and Vampire shifters in one academy? Make that two academies and then there is a big problem. Our magical boarding school is in danger and its students are being hunted. With the humans blaming the supernaturals and the supernaturals blaming the humans, no one knows who is doing this. But everyone knows they are no longer safe. With a trip to Boston suddenly coming up, my five “friends” becoming more than I ever imagined they would be to me. Supernatural Shifter Academy is no longer a safe place. For my heart…and my life. Someone wants us dead and the secrets we have found out buried with us. But I won’t let that happen.
TIED AND LACED (THE FAMILY NOVAK BOOK 6) by Susi Hawke
A Team A.L.P.H.A. and Alphabits spin-off series – Long-time widower Don Francis Novak watched gratefully as each of his sons were blessed with a true mate. He’d never been so fortunate as to scent a fated mate. No, his had been an arranged marriage. And he’d never regretted it. How could he? The union had brought him a best friend and six wonderful boys.
The last thing he expected to find at a party for his newest grandchild was a mate. A fated mate. A literal sex kitten, who smells like sin and tastes like heaven… and just adores satin and lace. Don Novak has always been a man to know what he wants and takes it. But does he dare grab this second chance at love? His gut says yes, and his bear agrees. Dante Hernandez has always been the type to love ‘em and leave ‘em. Get out before they left him. Deep down, he’s always believed in The One. His true mate. The one person, other than his twin, he could count on. And he wouldn’t settle for anything less. But there wasn’t any problem with having fun until then, right? After so much time wasted by unknowingly dancing around each other, working the same jobs but not meeting, they don’t waste another second to dance with each other. They are two grown men who have lived long enough to know that when the fates give you a gift, you grab it with both hands and never let go. Their two worlds—STAHP and the Chicago mob—collide when the don gets word of an underground omega trafficking ring. Not only does it hit all the wrong buttons for Dante, an old nemesis of the don’s seems to be involved. Lives are at stake, and these two lovers are going to take them down—old school style.
THE CONTORTIONIST (HARROW FAIRE BOOK 1) by Kathryn Ann Kingsley
Cora Glass’s humdrum existence as a bank teller flips upside down when a long-abandoned circus mysteriously returns to life. But the entry fee to this big top show is far more than Cora bargained for. A deal struck. A soul…stuck.
As Harrow Faire shines a spotlight on Cora, she discovers there are far more secrets in that three-ring nightmare than she could possibly imagine. Trapped in the world of the fiendish and alluring man known as the Puppeteer, Cora finds herself caught in a war between him and the reclusive Mr. Harrow. Both parties will stop at nothing—even murder—to get what they want. And what they want…is her.
DEMON PRINTS (INFERNAL INHERITANCE BOOK 1) by Nazri Noor
Quilliam J. Abernathy is the Chosen of Asmodeus, destined to become demonkind’s greatest weapon against heaven and humanity. A prideful, powerful sorcerer, Quill’s magic surges with every grimoire, tome, or scroll he adds to his arcane collection. But a botched mission incurs Asmodeus’s wrath, and Quill is stripped of his sorcery, protections, even his beloved books. Oh, and a duo of deadly angels wants him dead, too. Quill must decide. Either obey Asmodeus, reclaim his magic, and embody the apocalypse… or rebel against hell. Spoiler alert: We’re doomed either way.
DRAGON SOLDIER (SUPERNATURAL CONSULTANT BOOK 5) by Mell Eight
The aftermath of the last battle has left Nickel weak in bed and grounded for the next decade. Despite being in trouble, Nickel wants to return to the battle against the enemy as soon as he can, but thoughts of Platinum, the dragon helping to nurse him back to health, keep distracting him. Platinum can’t believe how much his life has changed. He went from being a lonely fugitive on the run to part of a family in only hours. The last few days have been his happiest, especially now that he’s met Nickel. He knows it’s only temporary, though. The enemy that kept him captive for most of his life isn’t finished with him yet, but even Platinum and Nickel’s combined powers might not be enough to save them all.
THE CHRISTMAS EVE PROMISE: A TIME TRAVEL ROMANCE (BOOK 4): THE CHRISTMAS EVE SERIES by Elyse Douglas
Eve and baby Colleen are traveling to Ohio for the Christmas holidays to spend time with Eve’s parents. After a few days in Ohio, they all plan to fly to Florida in Eve’s father’s private airplane. Patrick will meet them there after he completes exams for his forensic psychology degree. Nothing goes as planned. The day Patrick is to leave for Florida, he receives a shocking telephone call from one of Eve’s cousins. Sobbing, she tells him a terrible tragedy has occurred. It stuns him and shakes him to his heart’s core. His life shattered, Patrick knows he has but one chance: he must use the time travel lantern to return to the past in order to prevent the current tragedy. But once again, the time travel lantern has a mind of its own, and Patrick is hurled back to a time where he must confront a strange, unfamiliar world and learn why the lantern transported him there. When Patrick comes face-to-face with a mysterious, beautiful woman who looks and acts like Eve, and whose name is Eve, Patrick is haunted. He recalls the promise he and Eve had made to each other on Christmas Eve the previous year—no matter what happens; no matter if they’re separated; no matter what time or place they find themselves in; no matter what obstacles they must face, they will always find each other, help each other, and love each other for all time.
VAMPIRE BOUND BOOK 3 by R A Steffan
Evil Fae are trying to take over the world. Okay, right—that’s actually old news. Unfortunately, it’s even worse than that now. Because now, they intend to use my son—and other human children with magical parents—to do their dirty work for them. The Fae realm is dying, its magic growing ever more unbalanced. And I guess by comparison, Earth looks like a nice, juicy alternative. They even have a foothold here, ever since the human world became spoils in the last war between the Fae and the demons—a war the demons lost. All I wanted was to get my son back. But now, the stakes are bigger than just the two of us. If my friends and I can’t stop the Fae, humanity will become nothing more than a race of helpless slaves, bound to a powerful race by fear and magic. I’m not alone in this fight. But every friend, every ally, every fragile new emotional connection is another weapon the Fae can use against me. If the price of finding Jace is losing everything else I care about, will I be able to live with myself afterward?
THE GIRL IN THE CLOCKWORK TOWER: A STEAMPUNK RAPUNZEL RETELLING by Lou Wilham
For Persinette—a lavender-haired, 24-year-old seer dreaming of adventure and freedom—the steam-powered kingdom of Daiwynn is home. As an Enchanted asset for MOTHER, she aids in Collecting Enchanted and sending them to MOTHER’s labor camps. But when her handler, Gothel, informs Persi that she will be going out into the field for a Collection, she decides it’s time to take a stand. Now she must fight her fears and find a way to hide her attempts to aid the Enchanted or risk being sent to the camps herself. Manu Kelii, Captain of the airship The Defiant Duchess, is 26-years-old and hasn’t seen enough excitement—thank you very much. His charismatic smile and flamboyant sense of style earned him a place amongst the Uprising, but his fickle and irresponsible nature has seen to it that their leader doesn’t trust him. Desperate to prove himself, Manu will stop at nothing to aid their mission to overthrow MOTHER and the queen of Daiwynn. So, when the Uprising Leader deposits a small unit of agents on his ship, and tasks him with working side by side with MOTHER asset Persinette to hinder the Collection effort, he finds himself in over his head. The stakes are high for this unlikely duo. They have only two options; stop MOTHER or thousands more will die—including themselves.
A VAMPIRE’S SPELL (THE ORDER OF THE BLACK OAK – VAMPIRES BOOK 1) by Marie-Claude Bourque
Son of an ancient vampire and a legendary French witch, guilt-ridden Mont-Royal Immortal Valerian St-Amand must team with a powerful New England witch to protect his city from a crazed scientist seeking immortality. But as his well-guarded heart softens for Maisie Thibodeau, their quest to eradicate true evil from the streets of Montreal destroys any hope of everlasting love.
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DAUGHTERS OF THE WILD: A NOVEL by Natalka Burian
In rural West Virginia, Joanie and her foster siblings live on a farm tending a mysterious plant called the vine. The older girls are responsible for cultivating the vine, performing sacred rituals to make it grow. After Joanie’s arranged marriage goes horribly wrong, leaving her widowed and with a baby, she plots her escape with the help of her foster brother, Cello. But before they can get away, her baby goes missing and Joanie, desperate to find him, turns to the vine, understanding it to be far more powerful than her siblings realize. She begins performing generations-old rituals to summon the vine’s power and goes on a perilous journey into the wild, pushing the boundaries of her strength and sanity to bring her son home.
HEART OF THE HIGH KING (D’VAIRE BOOK 19) by Jessamyn Kingley
High King Aleksander D’Vairedraconis prefers the comforts of home, rarely leaving his estate. While forthright by nature, his sexuality is a secret Aleksander guards—even his best friend is unaware. With the possibility of his mate showing up at his large estate in Arizona next to impossible, Aleksander focuses on family and building more wealth to allow them to flourish.
Duke Rafferty Kestledraconis is new to the Council of Sorcery and Shifters and is learning what he can about this fresh start. His life revolves around pleasing his royal father and brothers, and he rarely explores past their plot of land. Unable to refute an order given by his king, he travels with his eldest sibling to the remote D’Vaire sanctuary, where to his bewilderment, he discovers that his mate is the only High King in the dragon realm.
Aleksander and Rafferty are ill-prepared for the reality of being mates and unready to take the final step of being fully joined, but together, they slowly build something worth protecting. Circumstances soon spin out of control, testing their fortitude and straining their wills. In the end, they must cling to hope if they want to be together—it will take everything that rests in the hearts of the High Kings to honor the call of Fate.
HIS SALVATION (THE ADA CHRONICLES BOOK 1) by J R Loveless
VS Note: A re-release…
Gabriel works to keep everyone at arm’s length, his past driving him to avoid emotional entanglements. Until he is sent on a mission to save twin brothers with abilities hauntingly familiar to his own and one of them stirs feelings inside of him he’d long since buried. He tries to distance himself at every turn only his boss orders him to train Alex on how to control his ability, putting him in close quarters with the younger man. Alex and his twin brother are held prisoner by a faction hell bent on using them for their powers until a mysterious group of strangers breaks in and rescues them. He can’t seem to ignore the intense attraction he has toward their brooding and gorgeous leader, but Gabriel freezes him out at every turn. Alex is given the chance to find a crack in Gabriel’s walls when they end up on the run together, alone. Dangers surround them from every direction and the clock is ticking. When Gabriel’s ghosts become all too real, he must decide between reliving his past or saving Alex. Failure is not an option in the world they live in and Alex refuses to give up on Gabriel, intent on showing him their pasts don’t define them.
MEDIEVAL DRAGON SHIFTERS by C S Sax and Amanda Kelley
VS Note: She also writes as Cynthia Sax. These are “expanded re-releases” per the author.
It is a time of legend, a time of gallant knights, fearless ladies and mythical beings, a time when dragons rule the land. Primitive, possessive, deadly, these dragons have a secret—they’re also the human-appearing rulers of their kingdoms. Dragon-shifting warriors court their fated mates in three tales of adventure, magic and passion.
The Spare (The Black Dragon) – Taja dreams every night of a great scarred dragon. She is stunned when, one morning, her dragon-shifting lord arrives at her father’s castle, intent on claiming her forever.
Dragon Games (The Golden Dragon) – Sabine wants to wed a serious, constant lord. She is in love with a teasing, laughing dragon warrior.
Dragon Fire (The Red Dragon) – Trinia must compete against an ancient prophecy to claim her dragon warrior’s heart.
KINGDOM OF ICE AND BONE (THE FROZEN SUN SAGA BOOK 2) by Jill Criswell
Lira and Reyker have lost everything. Including each other. Lira of Stone watched her home burn and her clan fall beneath the sword of the warlord known as the Dragon. She believes the man she loves, a warrior who defected from the Dragon’s army, is dead. Alongside her exiled brother and his band of refugees, she will fight the forces that conquered her island. But the greatest danger may come from Lira herself—with the blood of banished gods running through her veins, she’s become a weapon, and no one is safe from the power of her wrath. Reyker Lagorsson thought he was done being a Dragonman. That was before he saw Lira leap from a cliff and vanish into the sea. Determined to honor her memory by protecting her people, Reyker must feign loyalty to the warlord, undermine him at every turn, and seek alliances with renegade soldiers—without succumbing to the battle-madness that threatens to possess him once more. When the Fallen Ones offer Lira a chance to defeat the Dragon, her quest leads her to a place she never expected—Iseneld, the warlord’s homeland. Her journey into the heart of the Frozen Sun will put her on a collision course with Reyker, costing both of them more than they ever imagined, and leaving her with a terrible choice: to save their countries, she must forsake everything she loves.
CUPID’S AX by K A Masters
A traumatic event in his childhood keeps Tuxtax from being able to shift into his were-griffin form. Ashamed of his looks and terrified of rejection, he spends his life in seclusion, with his sister Eleuthereia and centaur friend Rixa as his only connections to the outside world. Even though Tuxtax yearns to be with the elfin soulmate he had met before the accident, the vanth’s insecurity and self-doubt keep him from reaching out. But now Rixa needs his help. Tuxtax joins his friend on a desperate rescue mission to save the centaur’s pregnant soulmate, hoping that the quest will give him a chance to overcome his insecurities and prove himself. Their rescue mission leads him back into the land of the elves, where Tuxtax must confront his past and the fears that are holding him back. The further Tuxtax travels, the louder he hears his soulmate’s call. Can Tuxtax find the courage he needs to return to his soulmate and reclaim the man of his dreams?
CHASED IN TIME: TIME TRAVEL ROMANCE (SPELLED PORTALS AND CURSED MORTALS BOOK 2) by Rae Stapleton
She’s an old soul trapped at the dawn of the Jazz Age, in a race against time to stop her own murder. He’s a modern-day castle architect madly in love with her. They are destined for one another but are they destined for love or death?
On the cusp of Samhain, Sophia Marcil’s life is once again upended when a fortune teller reminds her of her fate. To avoid death, she must leave Ireland and return to the woman’s shop with her mysterious book of spells. But before she can hop a plane, Sophia’s charismatic soulmate gets down on one knee. When he pops the question with a ring that unknowingly holds a piece of the mysterious sapphire. It sparks the five-hundred-year-old curse, transporting her from present day to the home of her ancestors.
It’s 1920 and life for Zafira Breathour is a whirl of jazz, dancing, and parties–that is outside of the frightening visions of her death, at the hands of her father. Drinking too much of the giggle juice one night, she exposes a secret affair, and as punishment for her unhealthy obsession with the occult, she’s sent to her father’s jewelry store to work where she encounters a very bewitching jewel meant for her mother. As magic intervenes, Sophia comes face-to-face with the man who will kill her. Desperate to return to the future and reunite with her love, she must blend into her aunt’s life while she searches for the sparkle that will save her. But complications come knocking, and Sophia grapples with the idea of returning home, and losing her grandmother for the second time. Can Sophia stop the man who killed her family and return to her beloved fiancé in the 21st history? Or will she die as history suggests and just how many times has she tried before?
GHOST OF HILLCOMB HALL (DARKLY ENCHANTED ROMANCE BOOK 2) by Joshua Ian
England, 1910. Landscape designer Jonas Laurence arrives at the cheerless and fog enswathed Hillcomb Hall, home to the Earl of Stanley and his family, to renovate their crumbling gardens. With a great storm crashing all around, his time is at the mercy of the house’s odd and mysterious occupants. Captivated by the hauntingly attractive portrait of Lord Stanley’s ancestor, which constantly seems to watch and taunt him, Jonas’s dreams become weird and distressing. And his waking moments are consumed by the strange stories and weird atmosphere of the manor estate. Ghostly visits in the night leave Jonas no choice but to accept his attraction to the otherworldly spirit from the painting. But is this affaire de coeur real? Or is it all just a trick of the mind, a sinister game being played by the inhabitants of Hillcomb Hall?
TALON’S PREY (PARANORMAL WARS JUAREZ BOOK 2) by Shea Balik
VS Note: A re-release…
Gibson Martin has always loved two things, to cook and to sing. One of them he excels at, the other, well, his motto is if you don’t like it, leave. When he meets Alpha Talon Ramirez, who happens to be his mate, he’s overjoyed the man doesn’t grumble about his voice, which others compare to an animal dying. Talon Ramirez thinks his mate’s off-key singing is adorable. He especially likes the way Gibson loses himself to the music while shaking his ass and singing his heart out and cooking the best food Talon has ever tasted. Now he just needs to find a way to keep his mate safe as the rebels plan an attack against Juarez that will devastate the city. Will they be able to overcome the danger in store for them? Will Gibson’s singing get any better? Or will Talon’s men need to buy earplugs?
REBEL ACADEMY CRUSH (WICKEDLY CHARMED BOOK 2) by Rosemary A Johns
Nothing is more seductive than the forbidden……and temptation could crush this cursed academy. As both a witch and ghost in an academy for bad boy supernaturals, you would think that I’m at home amongst the monsters. But in this home, I’m a prisoner. Pleasure and fate bind me to three devastatingly hot Immortals, but our unbridled lust feeds a dangerous power inside me. Will I destroy us all if I lose control? The perilous trials of the Rebel Cup are only the beginning. The ruthless fae and elf princes are deadlier than even the academy’s tests, and their love could shatter me. When I’m sent on my first assassin mission, will my immortal lovers and I survive?
CASSADAGA NIGHTS by Jana Denardo
Santino Bellomi and his coworker, Cam, are sent to Cassadaga, Florida by the Aspida Pneuma, a group of psychics and mages. Their job is to rescue a nixie from a polluted lake and to check out the town, which is known for its psychics. New recruits to the Aspida are always welcome and where better than a spiritualist camp to hunt for them? What Santino wants most, however, is to finish the assignment quickly. He isn’t a fan of heat and humidity, and he’d looking forward to a well-earned vacation once the mission is over.
Ryan Doyle grew up in Cassadaga, where being psychic runs in the family. Ryan has never roamed far from home, though it’s hard being a geeky gay, wannabe urban fantasy author living in a small town. His job as one of the town psychics is fairly routine until he meets someone new. Ryan has never encountered anyone with a psychic shield so strong until Santino sits down for a reading. Intrigued, he asks Santino out even though Santino is as secretive as he is fun.
Santino hopes to win Ryan over both for himself and for the Aspida. And he’s hoping his skills in the kitchen will swing the balance in his favor. Ryan has almost given up on finding love, living in rural Florida. Can a seductive tourist be the answer to his dreams? Things never run smoothly for those in the Aspida. What should have been a simple rescue mission is plagued by mosquitoes, enraged ghosts, and someone or something draining residents of their life force. Ryan’s first foray into adventure may be his last.
TALOS (BLOODLINES OF FATE BOOK 1) by A G Carothers
The Age of Man has passed, and a new age is upon the Earth. An age of magic and technology ruled by the supernatural beings that once hid amongst humanity has begun. Bayne is thrust into a world he thinks he knows but quickly discovers his whole life has been built on lies. Talos, perfectly happy ruling his corner of the world, is faced with an unexpected and unwelcome change that comes with the mate chosen by Fate. Together they must discover how to live and, in the end, love one another. Fate has more in store for them than learning to love someone they should hate. Will they be open to all the possibilities Fate lays out for them? Bloodlines of Fate is a new urban fantasy series set in a world destroyed by humans and resurrected by supernatural beings. Fate has many plans for the vampires, unicorns, therianthropes, elves, and humans of this new world. While their mates may be fated, love isn’t that easy.
FAMILY AND REFLECTION (THE SLEEPLESS CITY BOOK 3) by Anne Barwell
VS note: A re-release…
When a rebel werewolf and a vampire thief fall in love, only one thing is certain—trouble. For as long as Lucas Coate can remember, werewolves have been taught to mistrust vampires. Lucas is an exception—he has close friends who are vampires. The werewolf pack in Boggslake—and their leader, Jacob Coate—have made it clear that Lucas’s association with vampires is barely tolerated, and another transgression will be his last. When Lucas finds out about the plague of werewolf deaths in the area, he wants to help even though his own life may already be in danger.
Declan has been away from Boggslake for ten years, but he isn’t surprised to learn that the internal politics of the Supernatural Council haven’t changed for the better. When a series of burglaries hit close to home soon after he arrives, Declan—a vampire and professional thief—is their prime suspect, although for once, he isn’t responsible. With the council keeping secrets, no one is safe. Time is running out, and for Lucas and Declan, everything is about to change.
SOME KIND OF MONSTER (FRIENDS WITH THE MONSTERS BOOK 2) by Albany Walker
Naughty girls need love too. A beautiful monster, that’s what I am. My packaging is just a little nicer than the creatures you hear about dwelling in your closet. With three baddies for my mates, things are definitely getting interesting. I think I’ve even convinced them not to kill each other. But I have a new purpose, someone is hurting our kind. Stealing Charmed magic in arcane rituals that leave my friends drained and dead, and I won’t allow it. It’s time for them to find out why even the Monsters fear me. I am the bad guy
ETERNAL CURSE (THE CURSED SERIES BOOK 1) by Kara Leigh Miller
After pulling the plug on her mother’s life support, seventeen-year-old Chloe Madison moves to live with relatives she hardly knows. Her new hometown in the Adirondack Mountains is barely more than a pinpoint on the map, but it’s shrouded in deadly secrets and strange family legends. Chloe is determined to keep her head down, finish high school, and get the heck out of there. Until she meets the enigmatic Trent Halstead. Something intriguing hides beneath his quiet self-assurance and hero hair. Maybe there’s something—or someone—worth sticking around for after all. But when a rash of unsolved murders leaves two of Chloe’s classmates dead, she begins to suffer from disturbing hallucinations that build to the horrifying image of Trent as a murderous vampire. With nowhere else to go, she’s stuck in a town she hates, surrounded by people she can’t trust, and she’s pretty sure she’s going to be lunch. If all that isn’t bad enough, Trent is hiding a lethal secret, besides the whole immortal bloodsucker thing. He’s the not-so-proud owner of an ancient, family curse—no Halstead will ever know true love—and he’s desperate to find a way to break the curse. Could Chloe be the key to his happiness or just another secret Trent wished he never unlocked?
TELL ME LIES (CAMDEN POINT MYSTERY) by Gail Chianese
Private investigator Lexie Smith has a mostly perfect—okay, satisfying life. A successful, if not super lucrative business with her best friend. A wonderful, loving companion named Bear—sure, he’s a little furry and he drools, but nobody’s perfect. A house on the beach and a wisecracking supernatural “intern” named Vinnie, who knows everything there is to know about crime and her nonexistent love life. Things are good, even if the cases are somewhat tame, until a dangerous assignment forces her to turn to the last man she can trust: Rafe Barandas, local police detective and the man who broke her heart years before. After a decade in New York, Rafe has returned to his small hometown, burned out on big-city politics and crime. He’s looking forward to the quiet life, until he’s thrown together with Lexie (and, unknown to him, her phantom familiar) to solve what starts out as a simple B&E but quickly escalates. Leaving Lexie the first time was a huge mistake. Now that he’s got another chance, he’s determined not to blow it, so long as the job doesn’t get in the way. As Lexie and Rafe get closer to solving one case, old hurts come back to haunt them and a new threat emerges. Can they put past lies and mistrust behind them long enough to thwart a cunning foe who seems to know every step they take and will stop at nothing, even murder? Or will one of them pay the ultimate price before they take their second shot at love?
A NEW WORLD ORDER (VOLUME 4) CODENAME: THE RIFT SERIAL by Cassandra Featherstone and Gail Jericho
Retaliation will be the name of the game, and no one will be safe. How will I juggle the most possessive, over-protective bastard in The Rift with all of my current mates and lovers? What revenge will the Coyote Den take for my betrayal? Oh, yeah… I forgot. I’m also in HEAT. Here kitty, kitty, kitty.
BATTY BLEND (A PARAMOUR BAY COZY PARANORMAL MYSTERY BOOK 13) by Kennedy Layne
Summertime is drawing to an end and taking with it the humidity, hay fever, and annoying mosquitos that couldn’t seem to quench their thirst this past season. Unfortunately, the insects aren’t the only thing biting in the quaint, coastal town of Paramour Bay, Connecticut! Raven Marigold is getting ready to host a blow-out end of summer sale to clear out her inventory at the teashop when word starts circulating that some of the furry critters escaped the local pet shop…including a rescued, hairy-legged vampire bat who is looking for his forever home. Raven and her familiar set out to discover if the missing bat is in anyway related to the mysterious visiting vampire they have yet to identify, but they soon learn that there is more to the mystery than meets the eye!
GOD OF MONSTERS (JUNIPER UNRAVELING BOOK 4) by Keri Lake
I’ve heard stories about the Alphas. Violent soldiers, bred to kill both humans and mutations, whose sole purpose was to balance our survival against the infected. Until they turned on their masters. Held as subjects of the Calico research facility, they were forced to endure the gruesome experiments that transformed them into callous savages with hearts as impenetrable as their defenses. More terrifying than the monsters that decimated our world with disease and famine. In the aftermath of Calico’s collapse, many of the Alphas fled, only to be hunted by our own Legion army. And in their absence, the balance has shifted. I thought they no longer existed. Until I met him, the god of monsters. Now I don’t believe in the stories anymore. To fall in love with the unyielding heart of an Alpha is said to be impossible. But to fall in love with a god would be a tragedy.
LOVERS: WOLVES OF ROYAL PAYNES by Kiki Burrell
Affectionately referred to as, the twins, Jagger and Huntley aren’t related, but that’s the only thing the two alphas don’t have in common. Eerily identical, if it weren’t for the scar Jagger earned saving Huntley’s life as children, no one would be able to tell them apart. Together, there isn’t a challenge they won’t face. Breaking into a hellish laboratory where enemy scientists are conducting gruesome experiments is no different. Their mission is clear, save who they can and burn the rest, but when they come upon a locked door behind a barricade that looks months old, they know that whatever is inside, isn’t like anything they’ve faced yet.
Ripped from his mother’s arms and thrown into a cell as a child, Sitka hasn’t seen a living person in years. He sees their footsteps under the door when they slide in his food, but no one has dared face the crazed nephilim who can hop shadows—not after what he did to the last two who entered his cell. Still, his life is far from peaceful. Sitka can’t stop seeing dead people. They scream at him without rest, their voices angry and loud enough to make living a normal life impossible—even if he hadn’t spent most of it locked away. When the room to his door randomly bursts open, Sitka assumes the two men are there to finally kill him.
Huntley and Jagger knew something unusual was behind that door, but they didn’t expect their mate. He swings at them like a wrecking ball, making them realize what they had was just one half of the equation. Sitka completes them, but Sitka’s own angelic power is his worst enemy.
When strange things start to happen around the hotel, no one wants to blame the flighty nephilim who can jump shadows and talk to ghosts, but the list of suspects is short. And Sitka wasn’t the only victim rescued from the labs. As the reclusive wolf pack learns how to live with growing numbers, they can’t forget the danger looming over all their heads. A powerful force wants them all dead.
MIRROR MAGIC (FAMILIAR KITTEN MYSTERIES BOOK 6) by Sara Bourgeois
Not everything in Coventry is as it appears to be. When you look in the mirror, what is looking back at you? Kinsley is taking her first crack at a cold case. She wants nothing more than to help Dorian figure out what happened to his father, but she’s got issues of her own. Big time issues. Not only is there a dark entity stalking her reflection, but things with Thorn aren’t all sunshine and roses either. Can she solve the murder and prepare for her upcoming nuptials? Are the people in her life who they appear to be? Or is she about to fall into a killer’s deadly snare?
A SILVER TONGUE (SPECTRA BOOK 8) by Amy Sumida
The magic of Danu has become unstable. As a realm built on magic, instability could have disastrous consequences so all of Danu is anxious to find the source of the trouble. When Amara and Everan investigate the problem, they find a far more serious matter, one that weakens Amara at the worst possible time. In the midst of her endeavors to help Danu, a Triari relic—the Silver Tongue—is stolen and Amara is called back to Earth to help defend the Triari Embassy. But that battle is not as it seems either and Amara finds herself pulled away from Danu, Earth, and the men she loves just when they need her the most and right when she’s at her weakest. Can she overcome her vulnerability and make it back to her men in time to save Danu or will a silver tongue be Spectra’s downfall?
MORRIGAN’S BLOOD (CROW’S CURSE BOOK 1) by Laura Bickle
Garnet has the blood of the legendary Morrigan – and legions of vampires and witches will go to war to possess that power. As a trauma surgeon, Garnet Conners has seen more than her fair share of blood. But when one of her patients walks off the operating table and disappears into the night, she finds herself caught in a war between legions of vampires and witches in her city. Garnet has dreamed of bloody battlefields for years – and a mysterious lover who controls a kingdom. In her waking life, Garnet is shocked to meet that man in a club. Merrel knows her from another life, a life in which she was the legendary Morrigan, goddess of death and war. Garnet rejects the notion of magical incarnations altogether. But she falls in with Sorin, a handsome warlock who’s determined to protect the former bootlegger city of Riverpointe from a secret society of vampires. Haunted by crows and faced with undeniable proof of magic, Garnet scrambles to protect her career and loved ones from magical violence.
Abducted by vampires who seek to turn her into a vampire against her will, can Garnet seize the power of the legendary Morrigan to forge her own path in her embattled city? Or will she be forced to serve as a fearsome weapon in a deadly nocturnal war?
BAG OF TRICKS by Carmen Webster Buxton
Aveline is a trained magician, but Princess Inessa, the Heiress of Mazuria, hired her to pose as a lady-in-waiting, to protect her from court intrigues and literally sniff out lies. When a wicked duke tries to force Inessa into marriage, Aveline uses a spell to hide the princess. But even magic has limits, and when Aveline stumbles over Zarek, a man whose life has been cursed by more than one tragedy, she demands his help in getting the princess back to the capital. Zarek is on his own errand, and he’s suspicious of Aveline—magicians are feared—but he does help. As he and Aveline travel Mazuria in company with the princess and his wolf-dog Burden, they come to rely on each other and to respect each other’s skills. After Zarek leaves the two women in what he thinks is a safe refuge, he learns they’re in more danger than ever. So of course he and Burden go back to save them. Now if only Aveline can bring herself to believe that Zarek wants to save her even more than he wants to save the princess—and admit to herself that what she feels for him goes way beyond gratitude.
KING’S MATE: AN ALPHA SHIFTER ROMANCE by Piper Stone
A king takes what is his, and she is mine. Her scent drew me to her, but something deeper and more powerful told me she was mine. Something that would not be denied. Something that demanded I claim her then and there. ..(more blurb on ebook seller page…)
THREE CHARMS FOR MURDER (THE CASE FILES OF HENRI DAVENPORT BOOK 5) by Honor Raconteur
It takes more than three charms to commit murder. When an old childhood friend comes to Henri asking for help in solving his parents’ murders, Henri agrees immediately. He knows this case is not going to be easy. Mr. and Mrs. Atwood’s bodies had been found magically posed to mimic a statue, and the investigator in charge ruled it a murder-suicide. Which is simply not feasible according to the Atwood children. Aware this is a high society case and all attention will be on them, the team makes their way out to the Atwoods’ vacation home. Upon arrival, Jamie and Henri are horrified to find most of the trace evidence destroyed by incompetence, the bodies unpreserved, and the case file a single page of notes. To top it all off, the local police force wants nothing more than to see them fail. Add in a string of suspicious burglaries, compromised wards, arson, and a suspect who will do anything to keep the truth under wraps, and Jamie and Henri are ready to commit murder themselves.
DEATH’S DOOR (SUPERNATURAL SECURITY FORCE BOOK 3) by Heather Hildenbrand
Gem’s life has gone from bad to worse faster than her secret demon baby can say “baby daddy.” What started as a crappy job and a possible killer to bring to justice has become a full-blown conspiracy from hell. Literally. Demons are being summoned into New Orleans and Gem is sure there’s a Nephilim behind it. Now, all she has to do is prove it. Oh yeah, and not get herself killed in the process. Too bad for Gem, everyone has secrets, including her. And when the powers-that-be find out what she’s capable of, they’ll stop at nothing to silence her once and for all.
HOT PIECE OF ASH (PARANORMAL DATING AGENCY BOOK 28) by Milly Taiden
When Valentina Lombardi jokingly asks Gerri Wilder to hook her up with a sexy man or two, she doesn’t expect for Gerri to make it happen. Boy, does she deliver. In the warm beaches of Costa Bonita, Valentina is romanced by two gorgeous men. She can’t possibly date them both at the same time, can she? It’s wrong. It’s dirty. It’s what’s gonna happen. Ash Jonz and Smoke Price need a mate to complete their triad and renew their island’s magic or their clan could be wiped out. When curvy, shy Valentina shows up, they know she’s the one. They want to keep her, mate her, and cement their marks on her. But how will she react to knowing they’re planning on sharing her. At the same time.
Fire Mountain’s in trouble. The volcano’s spewing steam that scares the islanders, and if Ash and Smoke don’t finalize their triad, the whole island could blow. That’s the least of their worries when one of their own decides they don’t want Valentina getting in their way. Alpha and beta need to find their mate before she’s sacrificed for a pirate’s treasure.
THE SOLDATI GENERAL (SOLDATI HEARTS BOOK 3) by Charlie Cochet
A powerful, yet awkward, Soldati healer. A retired Orso general. A plot to kill the king. A secret that could destroy them all. The Summer Solstice Festival has arrived in the Soldati realm, and guests from all over flood the kingdom to join the festivities. But the excitement is shadowed by rumors of an Orso plot to kill the king. Now Ezra and the Soldati council must protect Khalon’s secret—and stop a conspiracy that could destroy the Soldati and the human world they protect. As Ezra and General Segreti explore their growing affection, a dangerous game begins, but are they the pawns or the players? Can their hearts survive the final checkmate?
WANDERING QUEEN (LOST FAE BOOK 1) by May Dawson
One minute, I’m just an innocent, brave, beautiful young woman chasing down an evil vampire. The next, three sexy Fae jerks abduct me from my life of slaying vamps and saving puppies. Okay, okay. I’m not particularly innocent. The beautiful part is really dependent on the lighting. And some people say ‘brave’, some people say ‘stupid’. Whatcha gonna do? Everybody’s got haters, even the toughest Hunter in Washington, D.C. I’ve got amnesia, and my memories all begin five years ago. So I don’t remember these cocky Fae princes, with the smoldering eyes and painfully good looks. But they definitely remember me. They say I’m the true heir to the throne. But these sexy jerks are hiding some kind of secret from me. There’s trouble back in Faerieland (They hate it when I say that). Someone stole my tiara right off my head, erased my memories and shoved me through the portal to your world. And it’s time for me to find out why, with these powerful Fae males by my side—no matter how unhappy we are to be stuck together.
TROPICAL TAILS (SHIFTING SANDS RESORT COLLECTION BOOK 4) by Zoe Chant
Reunite with some of your favorite characters on a tropical escape to a luxury resort for shifters only. Meet new shifters (and one confused human) who find love and family on the mysterious island of Shifting Sands. In Her Hellhound Bodyguard, cat shifter—and cat burglar!—Christy has to navigate the Mexico City airport, find a missing shifter elder, and avoid getting killed. Hiring her mate for protection wasn’t part of her vacation itinerary…In Fake Fur, a group of clueless human furries are accidentally booked at Shifting Sands, to the amusement of the real shifters. But wolf shifter Calvin isn’t laughing when he realizes that the beautiful woman in faux fur fox ears is his mate….(more blurb on ebook seller’s page…)
A CROWN OF THORNS AND LIES (THE SHADOW WALKERS SAGA BOOK 4) by Sloane Murphy
The Shadow Realm was not what I expected. With it came so many unexpected joys, but also, the worst kind of pain.
Back in our Realm once more, new enemies make themselves known, and betrayal is around every corner. It stings the worst when it’s from the ones you thought you could trust with your life. We’ve sacrificed too much and waited too long to let anything stand in our way now. The journey isn’t over yet, but out of the shadows, light is born.
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VS Note: From my backlist: Still getting great feedback from readers about IVOKK! Have you read the latest in the Badari Warriors series (can be read as a standalone)? A fiery human chef kidnapped by alien scientists and the sexy genetically engineered soldier of the far future assigned to keep her safe, if only she’ll let him…
Proud enforcer of the Badari South Seas pack, Ivokk undertakes a secret mission back to their former home, in search of a cure for a mysterious illness affecting his soldiers, now in exile in the north. He’s ready to make any sacrifice to find the answer and help his pack brothers stay strong. He’s even willing to accept responsibility for the human woman assigned to the mission, although she’s a headstrong civilian, difficult and rumored to dislike his kind.
Sandara DiFerria was once a three star chef in the Sectors, but that was before the alien enemy kidnapped the entire adult population of her colony to use for experimentation. Rescued from the labs by the Badari, she does her part to support the rebellion now by running the vast commissary operation in Sanctuary Valley. All she asks is to be left alone until she can get back to the Sectors and pick up her old life again. Her one previous romantic brush with a Badari soldier turned out badly, ending in public humiliation. Add to that post-traumatic stress from her life before moving to the colony and she’s the last person to pick for a top secret mission. Or so she believes.
The Alpha running the pack disagrees and sends her to do the job under Ivokk’s watchful eye. Thrown together by the nature of the task they must undertake, the undeniable attraction they both feel grows. Will the dark secrets of Sandara’s hidden past create an insurmountable barrier between them? Can Ivokk and the tempestuous human chef find the answer to the Badari illness in time? Or will the elements and the enemy bring disaster?
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LINKS TO RECENT NEW RELEASES POSTS from Veronica:
“New” is generally plus or minus a week or two. I try to catch up on ones I missed in recent months. And I may mention ‘special items’.
I do NOT cover every single new release in SFR/FantasyR/PNR. I never have. That would be an impossible task for any human! I assemble my list by hand every week based on various informal inputs, and I do curate the list to some extent…
I check and verify all the buy links at the time I create the post but after that I’m not responsible.
Yeah, Wednesday again. Just thought I’d pop in and say how much I enjoy these posts
Gill
Thanks! I always appreciate feedback and encouragement for doing these posts…
Pingback: Taste of Cyn – Medieval Dragon Shifters Featured On Veronica Scott’s New Release Post
Thank you so much for featuring Medieval Dragon Shifters, Veronica! (tackle hugs) Happy release week, everyone!
Thanks for including BAG OF TRICKS!
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