Aug 28 2021

He Had No Choice Weekend Writing Warriors

Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…a fun way to sample new books and find new authors! (Also welcome to the Sunday Snippet visitors!)

May be edited a bit from published version.

Taking excerpts now from my new release, TRATUS, a scifi romance novel.

From the beginning of the novel:

Tratus always questioned his own sanity when he voluntarily walked into a Khagrish lab complex. Of course he was following Briator, the Alpha of his Tzibir pack and therefore really had no choice. The Alpha’s decrees were not to be challenged and Briator had gambled the lives of his entire pack on the alliance he’d made with the alien scientists who created them.

Watching his Alpha greet Dr. Ghazhing, the Chief Scientist, like an old friend, turned his stomach but Tratus was good at maintaining a stoic expression and giving away nothing of his true feelings. How could Briator disregard the years of experiments, torture and death the Tzibir had been subjected to, along with the other two Badari packs, to make common cause with the Khagrish now?

Not for the first time, Tratus wished they’d made an alliance with Jill Garrison the day she freed them from the original lab. Life would be very different. Briator had assumed the human and her mate Aydarr would fail in their rebellion and quickly be recaptured so he refused to ally with them. Instead of proving him right, the other Badari were doing a creditable job of destroying labs, freeing human prisoners and remaining out of the reach of the Khagrish. All of which added up to victory in Tratus’s mind. Those other Badari were free…and he was still tethered to their masters.

TRATUS: A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL (SECTORS NEW ALLIES SERIES BOOK 14) by Veronica Scott

Until one day she’s chosen for an experiment of another sort – given to a pack of alien supersoldiers as a prospective breeder.

Tratus, senior enforcer of the Tzibir pack, never expected to find his mate, much less to meet her among the human prison population of the labs. But there she is and there’s no denying the instincts. Despite his Alpha’s objections, Tratus manages to convince the alien scientists to give Katrin to him and he vows to protect her. Deeply unhappy with the way his leader runs the pack as he disobeys all their goddess’s commandments and refuses to ally with other Badari packs to fight the scientists who created them, Tratus plots a revolt.

Despite herself Katrin is drawn to the giant humanoid warrior with alien predator DNA who treats her so respectfully. His scales and other differences from human males only make him more attractive in his own way. But the Alpha distrusts her and Tratus, and time is running out for them both…Can Tratus defeat the Alpha leading his pack to inevitable doom? Can he and Katrin survive the consequences and find their way to claiming each other as true mates or must he let her go?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay

Here’s the LINK for my book trailer on Tiktok (you don’t have to be a TT member to see it).

Aug 25 2021

New Releases in #SciFi #Fantasy and Paranormal Romance for Wednesday AUG 25

I have a new scifi romance release of my own to report this week! The latest Badari Warriors book, TRATUS…can be read as a standalone…

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).

**********************************************************************************************

TRATUS: A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL (SECTORS NEW ALLIES SERIES BOOK 14) by Veronica Scott

Katrin Rodgerr, ex-Space Navy, was perfectly happy as Third Officer on a tramp freighter in the Outer Sectors, until the day she and everyone on board the ship were kidnapped by alien scientists to become subjects of gruesome experiments. Far away from home or help, Katrin does her best to bolster the other prisoners’ morale and look for a way to escape. Until one day she’s chosen for an experiment of another sort – given to a pack of alien supersoldiers as a prospective breeder. Tratus, senior enforcer of the Tzibir pack, never expected to find his mate, much less to meet her among the human prison population of the labs. But there she is and there’s no denying the instincts. Despite his Alpha’s objections, Tratus manages to convince the alien scientists to give Katrin to him and he vows to protect her. Deeply unhappy with the way his leader runs the pack as he disobeys all their goddess’s commandments and refuses to ally with other Badari packs to fight the scientists who created them, Tratus plots a revolt. Despite herself Katrin is drawn to the giant humanoid warrior with alien predator DNA who treats her so respectfully. His scales and other differences from human males only make him more attractive in his own way. But the Alpha distrusts her and Tratus, and time is running out for them both…Can Tratus defeat the Alpha leading his pack to inevitable doom? Can he and Katrin survive the consequences and find their way to claiming each other as true mates or must he let her go?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay

LILY AND THE LION (ALIEN ABDUCTION BOOK 12) by Honey Phillips

VS Note: Always a pleasure to report a new one from Honey!

Lily has never been lucky – not with jobs, not with money, and certainly not with men. Her bad luck continues when she is first abducted by aliens, then shoved into an escape pod and abandoned on a jungle planet. The enormous, and admittedly gorgeous, alien who finds her seems as much beast as man. And yet she can’t help thinking there’s more behind those intense blue eyes than just animal lust. Has her luck finally changed? Leotra va Situni is bored. He has wealth, he has power, and he has countless females chasing his tail wherever he goes. When a strange, but stunningly attractive, female appears on his hunting trip, he assumes it’s yet another attempt to lure him into mating. But the infuriating female doesn’t seem to recognize his charms, treating him more like a pet than an important – and obviously irresistible – male. Is it a clever trap? Or does she really not know who he is? As Leotra sets out to find answers from the mysterious female, she is equally determined to keep him at arms length. He begins to wonder who is the hunter and who is the hunted in their seductive little game. And when the truth comes out, who will be the lucky winner? Amazon KU

WEDDED TO THE WATER DRAGON (PLANET PROTECTORS BOOK 3) by Juniper Kerry

Look, I was just trying to get out of the palace when I said I would marry one of the notorious Tullekk Brothers. He’s super handsome, don’t get me wrong, but I don’t know him at all, and his reputation is pretty dark. Still, when I saw a chance to get away from my first husband, I jumped. That’s always been my downfall; I’m a jumper. I jumped at the chance to leave my home planet to get married to a rich alien. That didn’t work out so well. Now I’ve jumped again, and I’m not sure this is going to work out much better. There are pros, of course. I’m living in a magnificent castle on the edge of a waterfall. It’s gorgeous all the time. And my husband is a snack, I don’t mind saying it. But I’m also living on a rural little planet far from everyone I know, and my cute-butted husband is super mysterious and close-mouthed, which is hard for me since, as you probably guessed, I’m a talker.
Oh also, I almost forgot. Someone here seems to be out to get me. So far, I’ve been pushed off the roof of the castle, my bed’s been lit on fire, and I’m pretty sure someone tried to drop a statue on my head. Long story short, I had no idea what I’d gotten into when I agreed to marry this guy.

Amazon KU

MAXIMUS: BOOK 15 IN THE GALAXY GLADIATORS ALIEN ABDUCTION SERIES by Alana Khan

Raine –What sucks more than waking up in an alien auction house to be sold as a sex slave? Being roofied with a powerful aphrodisiac. Maximus satisfies my raging needs, but when we discover our predicament is permanent, I’m desperate to sever our bond. Except I’m not sure I want our connection to end. Have I fallen in love with this honorable brute? Maximus – My attempt to help the little human out of her drug-induced sexual hunger went from bad to worse when it triggered my mate-bond. I thought our link was only a product of chemistry and biology. My feelings for this beautiful, feisty female couldn’t be real, could they? I know one thing: without her I will die.

Amazon KU

HER ALIEN REBEL (VOXERAN MATES BOOK 7) by Presley Hall

With the arrival of a ship from Vox, we’ll finally have a chance to escape Nuthora. Unfortunately, the blue-skinned alien rebel who comes to rescue us is the most frustrating man I’ve ever met. From our very first meeting when he pulls a knife on me, to the pointed barbs we trade back and forth, I think it’s safe to say we don’t like each other very much. But that doesn’t explain why he suddenly kisses me in the middle of an argument… or why I kiss him back. It doesn’t matter, though. There’s no time to try to untangle the confusing mess of emotions he elicits in me. With the freedom of our people on the line, we have to put aside our differences and work together. Getting off Nuthora means undertaking a dangerous mission, and it will require all of our wits and skills to pull it off. I’ll have to rely on Ren, and he’ll have to rely on me. As long as we don’t kill each other first. Amazon KU

EMBER (THE DRAGAO BOOK 1) by Jenika Snow

VS Note: Listed in Erotica.

This was the only home I’d ever known, the only one humans had. Alev was a world of heat, inhospitable terrain, dangerous lands, and the fearsome Dragao… dragon-shifting males. I’d never seen one in person. Until now. And he said I was his fated female and born to be his and his alone. Azar was monstrous in size, had horns that curled back from his temples, claws tipping his massive hands, and sharp fangs that he said he’d use to give me his mating mark. And apparently I was the only female to wake his inner beast. Azar may treat me as if I was his greatest treasure, but he also refused to let me go. He kept me in his mountain cavern, giving me gentle touches and pleasures I didn’t even pretend to hate. Fear should have been the only thing I felt when I looked at him, but when he stared at me as if I would give him the world—and heirs—it was hard not to fall for my big dragon-shifting mate. Amazon KU

REN (WARRIORS OF SANGRIN BOOK 11) by Nancey Cummings and Starr Huntress

Emry thought she was done with alien Romeos who made promises and then ditched you, but their paths continued to cross. What’s a girl to do when the same guy keeps turning up like a bad penny?
Steal his ship. The wrong thing for the right reason. Four years ago, Ren made the mistake of choosing duty above his mate, a fragile human female unsuited for his toxic planet. He sent her away and has searched for her ever since. Now fate has brought them back together. She might have stolen his ship and abandoned him, but he won’t let her get away a second time.

Amazon Kobo

MY EVERYTHING: AN F/F OMEGAVERSE SCIFI ROMANCE (THE ALPHA GOD BOOK 6) by Lexa Luthor

Kal loses the Spirit of Kalatas and returns to her former self as Sumner. Not only does Sumner confront old memories, but also vulnerability, risk, as well as a rare opportunity to truly be herself with Charlie. The dangers of outer space weigh on Charlie, who will protect her mate on their mission to secure an alliance with Serrato Corps. Without the Spirit of Kalatas between them, Charlie finds she’s falling deeper for Sumner and slipping back into her selfish need to keep Sumner all to herself.
Will Sumner and Charlie’s mission off world succeed, or is this the break the Sworne needed to capture Kander with Kal gone? Hearts, callings, and passions will be tested by the Celestial Fates.

Amazon Kobo

TIMCUR (WARRIORS OF THE GOLDEN MERIDIAN BOOK 3) by Ava York and Starr Huntress

She’s everything he ever wanted in a mate. But this is the worst possible time…Timcur has devoted his life to duty, honor and the war against the Suhlik. Now that he and his crew have been framed as outlaws, his world has fallen down around him. Brilliant, beautiful Nora is more than he’d ever dreamed of. But with every hand turned against them, how can he keep her safe? And why does it feel like she has secrets of her own? She can’t be matched to a criminal, can she? Nora only wanted to keep her family safe. The deal was simple. She’d agree to the match, long enough for the crew of the Golden Meridian to be captured, and her family would be taken care of for life. But the longer she spends with Timcur, the less certain she is about the situation. She’s trained as a reporter. She knows to ask questions. These just weren’t the questions she ever expected. Why does her heart insist on seeing Timcur as a hero, instead of a villian? Why does the thought of his capture make her sick to her stomach? And how can the touch of his hand do things to her body she’s never dreamed of? Amazon KU

DEVIL IN THE DEVICE by Lora Beth Johnson

VS Note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note. I went back and put the first book on my TBR list.

Zhade’s power might be going to his head. Newly on the throne, he’s still getting used to wearing Maret’s face, but he can’t deny that the influence it affords him has its perks. So when the magic of Eerensed starts to turn deadly, Zhade must master the Crown if he’s going to save his people, and Tsurina’s destructive plans for Eerensed aren’t going to make that easy. Worse, he’s starting to see her point. Andra is underground. Assumed dead by the people of Eerensed, she must stay hidden in the city’s depths if she’s going to live long enough to build the rocket that will finally save the colonists from this dying planet. But when Andra hears voices urging her to destroy everything, she starts to dig deeper into her subconcious. What she discovers leads her to question whether she’s destined to be a savior after all. Battling the dangerous forces buried within their minds, Andra and Zhade will have to find a way to work together before two power-hungry leaders and a deadly swarm of rogue technology destroy humanity for good.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

FINDING MOGHA (BEFORE THE FALL BOOK 2) by Kyndra Hatch

VS Note: The re-release of her story from Pets in Space 5.

Can the sound of a voice ignite a soul-deep passion in a sworn enemy? Dani Myers is on the run and running out of time. Her discovery of a young Korthan Hellhound in a lab sends her on a desperate mission. The pup isn’t some obscure test animal; it is a sentient mogha that can speak. The last thing she needs as she tries to save the creature is to have her ship shot out from under her. K’vyn doesn’t hate all humans, just the ones that won’t cease terraforming Korthan worlds. Their disregard for life has driven his people to the brink of all-out war. When a human supply freighter shows up in Korthan territory near the beloved mogha home world, he is duty bound to rid the galaxy of another human ship. A distress call as the ship crashes creates an unexpected soul-deep pull inside him. Dani’s decision to smuggle the mogha called C’hase back to his home world might not have been her smartest move, but she felt she had no choice when …(more blurb on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Kobo

CLAIMED BY THE WARLORD (ASH PLANET WARRIORS BOOK 2) by V K Ludwig

As Warlord of the largest tribe on Solgad, my obligations are many. With a new strain of ice fever running rampant among the freeraiders, the team of healers supplied by the Empire is a welcome relief. Until one of them arrives at Noja with her body begging to be bred, the scent of her heat a dangerous temptation. I save her from a group of rutting Jal’zar warriors, only to lock her in a room with the deadliest of them: me. I carry a terrible curse. Every female I touch dies. No matter how much I long for this woman, I can’t let my instincts put Jessica at risk. As a father, neither can I afford to open my soul to what will only end in heartbreak and loss. I am a male doomed to remain alone.
Unable to afford love because no female had ever survived it. Neither will she. Amazon KU

A ROSE OF STEEL: A STEAMPUNK BEAUTY AND THE BEAST RE-TELLING (THE MECHANICAL KINGDOMS QUARTET BOOK 1) by Katherine Mcdonald

Surviving an assassination attempt, Dr Asami Thorne is saved by a mysterious “beast”—a former soldier left disfigured by the very government trying to kill her. Escaping to the underground beneath the great clockwork city of Petragrad, Asami refuses to spend the rest of her life in the abandoned railroads. She works alongside Beast to uncover the truth behind the experiments that destroyed his life and threaten hers. But untold horrors await the both of them, and Asami risks far more than losing her life when she finds herself falling for her mysterious saviour. Amazon KU

IGNITE (INFERNO FORCE OF THE DREXIAN WARRIORS BOOK 1) by Tana Stone

Now that everyone on Earth knows about the Drexians—and their need for human mates—women have been falling all over themselves to volunteer. But not me. Oh, I’m eager to go to the holographic space station where human brides are taken for their fantasy weddings and honeymoons. But I’m there to work, not fall in love. If the captain of the ship will let me do my job.
The last thing I need is some cocky alien who questions my abilities. Even if he is a hot Drexian warrior who looks at me like I’m a snack. Kalex may be acting captain of the new Love Boat being built on the outskirts of the galaxy, but that doesn’t mean he calls the shots. At least not when it comes to the design of the space station. That’s my job. A job he makes more difficult at every turn.
When things start to go wrong on the station, Kalex and I are forced to work together to save the station. But as tempers fly and sparks ignite, can we save the Boat and ourselves from the deadly Kronock plot? Amazon KU

AFTER THE DRAGONS by Cynthia Zhang

Dragons were fire and terror to the Western world, but in the East they brought life-giving rain.Now, no longer hailed as gods and struggling in the overheated pollution of Beijing, only the Eastern dragons survive. As drought plagues the aquatic creatures, a mysterious disease-shaolong, or “burnt lung”-afflicts the city’s human inhabitants. Jaded college student Xiang Kaifei scours Beijing streets for abandoned dragons, distracting himself from his diagnosis. Elijah Ahmed, a biracial American medical researcher, is drawn to Beijing by the memory of his grandmother and her death by shaolong. Interest in Beijing’s dragons leads Kai and Eli into an unlikely partnership. With the resources of Kai’s dragon rescue and Eli’s immunology research, can the pair find a cure for shaolong and safety for the dragons? Eli and Kai must confront old ghosts and hard truths if there is any hope for themselves or the dragons they love.

Amazon Kobo

MARKED FOR THE ALIEN PRINCE by Kate Stevens

When Izzie ditched her maid uniform for a ballgown, she never expected to catch the attention of an alien prince…All I want is to return to Earth. After an alien abduction gone wrong, I was adopted by a noble Yazdi family, but now they treat me as little more than a servant. I’m so tired of saving up credits to take a ship home. At this rate, it will take years. When the King throws a ball to find a bride for his youngest son, I might as well attend and pretend to be normal for a night. It’s not like a human will catch the prince’s attention, right? When I bump into Keveh outside the ball, the dreamy, bronze-skinned prince is actually interested in me. But I can’t put my heart at risk, not when I can’t stay on Yazd. These aliens aren’t my family and this world isn’t my home. But with Keveh in my arms, do I really want to leave? Amazon KU

THE SECOND REBEL (THE FIRST SUSTER TRILOGY BOOK 2) by Linden A Lewis

VS note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note. I have a feeling maybe it’s better to read book one first. I have to say I have a lot of others ahead of it on my TBR list.

Astrid has reclaimed her name and her voice, and now seeks to bring down the Sisterhood from within. Throwing herself into the lioness’ den, Astrid must confront and challenge the Aunts who run the Gean religious institution, but she quickly discovers that the business of politics is far deadlier than she ever expected. Meanwhile, on an outlaw colony station deep in space, Hiro val Akira seeks to bring a dangerous ally into the rebellion. Whispers of a digital woman fuel Hiro’s search, but they are not the only person looking for this link to the mysterious race of Synthetics. Lito sol Lucious continues to grow into his role as a lead revolutionary and is tasked with rescuing an Aster operative from deep within an Icarii prison. With danger around every corner, Lito, his partner Ofiera, and the newly freed operative must flee in order to keep dangerous secrets out of enemy hands. Back on Venus, Lito’s sister Lucinia must carry on after her brother’s disappearance and accusation of treason by Icarii authorities. Despite being under the thumb of Souji val Akira, Lucinia manages to keep her nose clean…that is until an Aster revolutionary shows up with news about her brother’s fate, and an opportunity to join the fight.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HSS (WARIORS OF GR’MLAKIN BOOK 2) by Zeta Star

Without Hss – I can’t pronounce it, okay? – I’d have no hope of getting out of this arena. His sleek, pettable pecks almost make up for his bad attitude. Almost. I’ve just had my worst month ever. First, my fiancé jilts me. Next, I’m abducted by aliens and sold into a gladiatorial arena. Luckily, I tie a mean surgical knot, so they’ve put me to work stitching up the wounded. And when seven feet of sculpted, feline male drops onto my `operating’ mat, everything changes. He vows he’s going to take me off the planet with him. I’ll be happy for him take me any way he can. The thing with Hss is he never keeps his head down, and he pisses everyone off. So there’s a list of enemies longer than his… ahem… chasing us. Between monsters, assassins, and angry robots, our exit window is closing. I don’t know how we will escape, but when Hss puts his arms around me, I know I don’t want to escape him.

Amazon KU

ALIEN SKIN MARKET (SOLD TO THE RAKSHA BOOK 2) by Lizzy Bequin

Who’s going to save my skin? My FBI training never prepared me for this. First I was abducted. Then I was locked in a cage. Now I’m standing on a stage, exposed and sweating, while a crowd of terrifying aliens bid for my ownership. And the ones who end up claiming me may be the scariest of all. These guys are like nothing I’ve seen before. Purple skin, retractable claws, and a serious aversion to shirts. Their bodies bulge with muscles, and their growls penetrate deep into my bones. Yesterday I was an Earth girl with a badge and a gun. Now I’m just a little human plaything for the aliens to share. I belong to them now. I belong to the Raksha…She was supposed to be a mission, nothing more. Our orders were simple. Scour the stars. Find a human. Bring it safely back to Rak. We had nearly given up hope. Then we found her. We Raksha are a jealous species. But when it comes to the human female, we must learn how to share. Her safety is too critical to be entrusted to a single warrior. Her needs run too deep for a single male to satisfy. And her stubbornness requires more discipline than a single hand can provide. She was supposed to be a mission, but soon she will be so much more.
Soon she will be our mate. Amazon KU

ANSARILAND by J Alan Veerkamp

VS Note: I put it on my TBR list.

Corporations control every sector of society from law enforcement to automated manufacturing. The economic and social divides are chasms. Jobs are scarce for an undocumented slug like Arad Ansari, and life on Earth’s Grey District A-5 colony is even harder. With no other options, he plies his youthful looks to hustle enough money to stay fed even without a roof over his head. So when Captain Torrins of the Midas Ascending offers him employment as his personal cabin boy, Arad takes the opportunity despite his reservations. Because what other choice does a desperate, poverty-stricken man with no prospects have? When corporate military forces demand payment for Torrin’s and the crew’s sins, Arad is left alone and adrift in unknown space. After years of smothering on the crowded streets of Grey District, a ship of his own should be an unexpected windfall, but it doesn’t take long to discover what—or rather, who—were originally being smuggled on board. More than human, more than an animal, Roku is a blend of both, a marvel of genetics and highly illegal. His past is a mystery, even to himself, a story told only through his nightmares. Despite a dubious introduction, an unspoken bond forms between him and Arad while they try to repair the ship before supplies run dry or corporate forces track them down. Time is not on their side. Overcoming their pasts and learning to trust one another are the keys to Arad and Roku’s survival, and they have to succeed to find their place together in the universe.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

ROGAR (LUNAR UPRISING BOOK 2) by Cyndi Friberg

Thrilled by the prospect of a new job, Marisol doesn’t even make it to the moon before her shuttle is attacked by the Morax. A terrifying explosion shatters reality then she wakes up in the arms of Rogar, one of the lunar raiders. Marisol is determined to stay focused on work, so why can’t she stop thinking, and dreaming, about her handsome rescuer. Rogar is furious when a shuttle flies right into the middle of one of his missions. Then he realizes his mate, Marisol is onboard. Shaken by the near disaster, he refuses to let her out of his sight. He wants to give her time to explore her new environment before he tells her they are mates, but escalating danger and their intense attraction mock his good intentions at every turn. Amazon KU

NANNY FOR THE ALIEN PRIMAL (MATES OF THE PRECURSORS BOOK 1) by Athena Storm

One day I get a knock on my door. It’s the Drokan King. Turns out that the two orphaned kids my best friend left behind when she died are royalty. He says I need to bring them to the Palace. And I need to come be their nanny. He’ll pay me handsomely and ensure I live a life of privilege and comfort. But there’s something more. I see a glint a hunger on his handsome alien face. A stiffening of his muscular, ripped body. I can tell he wants me to be around him. That he sees me as his.
I can hear his thoughts. He thinks I’m his fated mate. I can sense his desire. It’s thick. Strong.
I can almost touch it. Taste it. Am I going to give in? Be a human in this alien’s court. Care for his children and tend his home? I will…but he can’t call me a maid or a nanny. He has to call me…
A Wife. (I’ll also accept “Mother”) Amazon KU

LIGHT CHASER by Peter F Hamilton and Gareth L Powell

VS note: Not a romance although apparently there are romantic elements, but an intriguing scifi release of note. Put it on my TBR after reading the sample.

Amahle is a Light Chaser – one of a number of explorers, who travel the universe alone (except for their onboard AI), trading trinkets for life stories. But when she listens to the stories sent down through the ages she hears the same voice talking directly to her from different times and on different worlds. She comes to understand that something terrible is happening, and only she is in a position to do anything about it. And it will cost everything to put it right.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

FOXHUNT by Rem Wigmore

In a lush solarpunk future, plants have stripped most of the poison from the air and bounty hunters keep resource hoarders in check. Orfeus only wants to be a travelling singer, famed and adored. She has her share of secrets, but she’s no energy criminal, so why does a bounty hunter want her dead? Not just any bounty hunter but the Wolf, most fearsome of all the Order of the Vengeful Wild. Orfeus will call in every favor she has to find out, seeking answers while clinging to her pride and fending off the hunters of the Wild. But she isn’t the only one at risk: every misstep endangers the enemies she turns into allies, and the allies she brings into danger. There are worse monsters than the Wolf hiding in this new green world.

Amazon Kobo

ANDROMEDA’S PIRATE (HEROES OF ANDROMEDA BOOK 2) by Debra Jess

VS Note: Great to have a new book from her!

Darvik Hart is Andromeda Galaxy’s most notorious pirate. Kelra Shade’s reputation for capturing pirates is nonpareil. So why would Kelra offer Darvik a treasure beyond imagination to bring her on board his ship? After a lifetime of dedicated service to Mantic Corporation’s private navy, Kelra believes she’s earned the right to hunt for the alien that killed her parents. Manitac’s refusal, however, forces Kelra to turn to the only pirate who’s eluded her because his strategic skills are a perfect match with her own. Darvik refuses to risk his crew’s freedom with another head-to-head battle with the sexy pirate hunter who’s haunted his dreams. Yet he cannot turn down Kelra’s challenge, or the treasure she offers, to help her get revenge on the creature who killed her family. As they plunge headlong together on a reckless crusade, the lines between hunter and prey become blurred, and a passion ignites between the two of them that threatens to derail their mission as they set the nebula on fire.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

TWENTY-FIVE TO LIFE by R W W Greene

VS note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note…sounded different.

Julie Riley is two years too young to get out from under her mother’s thumb, and what does it matter? She’s over-educated, under-employed, and kept mostly numb by her pharma emplant. Her best friend, who she’s mostly been interacting with via virtual reality for the past decade, is part of the colony mission to Proxima Centauri. Plus, the world is coming to an end. So, there’s that. When Julie’s mother decides it’s time to let go of the family home in a failing suburb and move to the city to be closer to work and her new beau, Julie decides to take matters into her own hands. She runs, illegally, hoping to find and hide with the Volksgeist, a loose-knit culture of tramps, hoboes, senior citizens, artists, and never-do-wells who have elected to ride out the end of the world in their campers and converted vans, constantly on the move over the back roads of America.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

BOND OF DESTINY: A DEMONICA NOVELLA by Larissa Ione

Sold into slavery mere hours after his birth to werewolf parents, Tracker spent decades in service to cruel underworlders. Then the fallen angel Harvester transferred his ownership to a human woman who gave him as much freedom as the unbreakable bond would allow. Still, thanks to his traumatic past, he’s afraid to trust, let alone feel love. But when an acquaintance shows up at his door, injured and in need of help, he finds himself longing for a connection. For someone to touch. For someone to care. Stacey Markham has had it bad for Tracker since the day her best friend, Jillian, was forced to hold his unbreakable slave bond. At first, the fact that he’s a werewolf seemed weird to Stacey, but hey, her best friend was married to one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, so weird is definitely a matter of perspective. Stacey knows the depths of Tracker’s trauma, and she longs to help him even as he helps her, but breaking through his walls isn’t easy. And it only gets harder when the only blood family he has, the pack that gave him away, lays claim to him…and everything he loves.

Amazon

YOU MAY BE WRITE: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL: MY SO-CALLED MYSTICAL MIDLIFE BOOK 2 by Robyn Peterman

Once upon a time there was a paranormal romance author who caught her husband in a compromising position. One divorce later, she’s free and ready to start her new life at forty-two. Right? Wrong. Divorced idiot ex: Check. Saved idiot ex from getting murdered by his new nasty gal pal: Check. Idiot ex accused me of trying to kill him: Umm check. Still seeing my fictional characters: Check. Teeny tiny crush on my lawyer: Check check. Town under siege by dark forces: Of course
Crazy enough to try and stop it: You bet. With the darkness on the horizon, I need to clear my name and get to work. Forming a Goodness Army is on the top of the list. Shockingly, my army consists of my wacky tabacky smoking aunt, my high school counselor who can shift into a house cat, the town gossip who turns invisible after downing five beers and a few fabulous others with nefarious talents. And of course, a cast of fictional characters…who I created and definitely have an opinion on how I should proceed. What could possibly go wrong? I’m going on pure gut instinct at this point, and I can’t wait to see how the plot turns out. I may be wrong. I may be write. Either way, I’ll just keep turning the pages until I find my happily ever after.

Amazon KU

VEIL OF STARS (THE WILD HUNT BOOK 17) by Yasmine Galenorn

The Dragonni have established their theme park, but they may not have time to spin out their web, because Echidna calls out Typhon and the Father and Mother of All Dragons prepare to go to war.Ember and the Wild Hunt are there to witness the battle, but when Echidna and Typhon rise against each other, the resulting shockwave sends Ember, Angel, and Raven into the realm of Caer Arianrhod–the Castle of the Silver Wheel. Now, they must hurry to find their way back home before the Star Hounds of Arianrhod hunt them down and destroy them.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

SPELL ON FIRE: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL (GRIMORES OF A MIDDLE-AGED WITCH BOOK 2) by Renee George

Of course, every rule has an exception, and in this case, it’s me. My grimoire has revealed a new element I have to learn, and I am walking the ditch between the two paths. I’m going to need the help of a grouchy gnome, a cuddly imp, a fiery ifrit, and a hottie druid to keep me from burning down my life and everything around it. My new reality is nature’s cruel midlife trick. Surviving Earth magic without blowing up my entire world has been hard enough. If I don’t master Fire, I’ll go down in flames. Literally.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MRS. MORRIS AND THE VAMPIRE (A SALEM B2B MYSTERY BOOK 5) by Traci Wilton

Charlene’s bed and breakfast is fully booked with guests wanting to experience Salem’s wildest holiday—especially the annual Witch Ball, held at the historic Hawthorne Hotel. At the dance, actual witch and winery owner Brandy Flint has her back up over her daughter Serenity’s new beau—it’s bad enough he’s a decade older, he also claims to be a vampire from Romania. As for Charlene, with handsome ghost Dr. Jack Strathmore haunting her B&B, she has developed an open mind regarding the supernatural. But her mind is blown when the clock strikes midnight, the lights flare and dim, and the vampire vanishes—leaving behind only his cape and a wooden stake with a thick red substance on the sharp tip. The next morning, a naked man washes up on the shore with a hole punched through his chest, and Detective Sam Holden has a homicide on his hands. Now Charlene and Jack must put their heads together to find out who staged the trick to stake a vampire.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MIST RISING (MIST AND MIRRORS BOOK 1) by Eve Langlais

The mist is rising so lock your doors and stay inside, for the monsters have returned. On a dark and ominous night, at the edge of the Abyss, Agathe rescues a baby from a monster that should have been extinct. Gravely injured in the process, the elderly Agathe is rewarded by having her youth restored. But that’s only the start of the strangeness. The child she saves is far from ordinary. Belle has a unique and wondrous magic that must not fall into the wrong hands. Like those of the King.
Everyone knows the monarch steals those they called the Blessed—those with the purple eyes. Supposedly, they are the only thing standing between the Kingdom and the rising mist. As far as Agathe is concerned, they’re victims of the King’s lust for power. What is the King really doing with the Blessed and their magic? To discover the truth, Agathe must insert herself into the court of the enemy. Unfortunately, things are worse than they seem. Can Agathe embrace destiny and not only save herself but also the Kingdom?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MASTER OF HOUNDS: BOOK 2 by R A Steffan

One man cannot take on an empire. Or rather, he can try—but it should come as no surprise when he’s crushed by the vast powers arrayed against him. Caius Oppita knows this, but after what he’s seen, it suits him better to go down fighting than to crawl on his hands and knees. The empire he’s served faithfully since he was a boy now wants him dead, and the lover he thought he could trust has betrayed him in the worst possible way. Maybe Caius can’t win the fight he’s about to undertake, but he’ll damn well drag the imperial family’s corruption into the light of day if it kills him. And if the battle takes him to the same underbelly of the capital where his former lover fled after ripping Caius’ world apart? Well, it won’t be the first time this hardened general has engaged in combat on two fronts. Not all enemies are what they seem. Sometimes the course of a war can turn on the smallest thing. Amazon KU

THE HELLBEAST KING by Stephanie Hudson

It all started with that night. The night I made my biggest mistake. The night I entered their world.
The day I snuck into the infamous Devil’s Ring Fight Club. I had followed my cousin Amelia, who turned out not to be quite as innocent as I first believed. In fact, it turned out she didn’t live in the same world as I did… Not at all. I knew this the moment I entered his kingdom. My world changed the moment he found me. He gave me a warning that night. He told me if he ever found me again then next time, he wouldn’t be so quick in letting me escape him. His little Red Riding Hood.
It was a threat I took seriously as it was only my dreams that took me back to that place. That took me back to him. That was until they came for me. The Hell Hounds that infiltrated my peaceful world and started the hunt. And there was only one man I knew that had the power to stop them. And my price to pay, was the promise he made me. That if he ever found me in his demonic fight club again… He was keeping me. Meaning I only had two choices left, to become the hunted or to make a deal with Hell’s greatest Hunter…The HellBeast King…Jared Cerberus. Amazon KU

GHOSTS AND PINK CANDLES (A WITCH’S COVE MYSTERY BOOK 14) by Vella Day

It was a present from my mom. She’d found the ring that her mom had asked her to pass down to me tucked away in a closet. The stone was a match to my pink pendant. Dare I hope it was magical, too? Turns out it was, because when I tried it on, I saw them—them being about ten ghosts floating around in my aunt’s restaurant. Oh, my. Naturally, I couldn’t wait to find out what was going on. It wasn’t that I hadn’t seen ghosts before, just not so many at one time. Note: I took off the ring right away. Even I was a little scared. Eventually, a friend of my grandmother’s appeared—as in she was a ghost— to ask me if I could find Nana’s missing friend. Sure, no problem. It’s what I did, being an amateur sleuth, and all. Armed with her name, I set out to pick the brains of the gossip queens, but what I found out made seeing ghosts a piece of cake. Thankfully my wonderful boyfriend and my talking pick iguana familiar will help me figure it out. Stop on by the Tiki Hut Grill to get the latest update on this very bizarre case. Amazon KU

HELLSTORM (HELLHOUND SHIFTERS BOOK 2) by Richard Amos

Life really loves to pull the rug out from under you. Who would have thought things would take this weird turn? There was me thinking everything would be by the book. Do my job as a Protector, keep Midgrove City safe. Be a good hellhound shifter. How wrong I was! There are so many pieces to this puzzle, with nowhere to slot them in. But I’ve got to keep on. Somewhere in the shadows is the truth. I just need to find the light to blast it out. There’s a storm coming…What happened to the fun, carefree days of gaming and bingeing my favourite Sci-Fi TV show? Ha! Like a hellhound’s life is ever carefree! Dream on, Draven! Amazon KU

MASTER OF TOMES (THE TOMES OF KALERIA BOOK 3) by Honor Raconteur

Mei’s checklist for the next year is simple. On the surface, at least. Travel into the past to get the necessary instructions – check. Travel back into the present to defeat Odom, Zaffi, and Kovel Below – check. Actually defeat Odom, Zaffi, and Kovel Below – well…that’s a work in progress. Mei Li and her team of experts have no time to catch their breath before the next wave of magical problems hit them. Saving the world will take stamina, patience, magic, and time. And a little help from dragons.
And by a little, she means a lot. Mei Li is ready for the world-ending disasters to be over, please and thank you. Amazon KU

THE GAMBLER GRIMOIRE (WICKLOW COLLEGE OF ARCANE ARTS BOOK 1) by BR Kingsolver

When Savanna Robinson showed up at Wicklow College to assume her new teaching position, she was somewhat curious about the abrupt departure of her predecessor. Then she discovered he had been murdered. No one knew who killed him, or why, but everyone had their theories and suspects. Even the police—arcane and mundane—didn’t seem very eager to investigate too deeply. But Savanna discovered a possible connection with the murder of a broker of rare arcane books. Were there really spells that could change your luck? When her own life is threatened, and the murders begin to pile up, she knows she can’t leave the mystery unsolved. Amazon KU

SEA GLASS (THE GLASS SERIES BOOK TWO) by Maria V Snyder

VS Note: A re-release

Opal Cowan, glass magician-in-training, has discovered a terrifying and powerful new ability: she can steal the power of other magicians. And that makes her too dangerous to be set free. Ordered to house arrest by the Council, Opal defies them to search for Ulrick, the man she thinks she loves. But as she travels through the Moon Clan’s lands, she begins to hear disturbing rumors that Ulrick’s desire for blood magic has eclipsed any sense of reason—and perhaps even his passion for her.
Deep in hostile territory, without proof or allies, Opal isn’t sure whom to trust. And everywhere she turns, people want to control her powers for their own deadly gain. Opal must make the choices to secure her own future, even as the path she treads becomes more dangerous than she could have ever imagined.

Amazon Kobo

THE CAUTIOUS OMEGA (THREE HEARTS COLLECTION BOOK 3) by Susi Hawke

Can two alphas get one cautious omega to trust their love? Kai, an omega doula, lives his life on his own terms. He’s free with his body, his mind, and his spirit. The only thing he keeps in tight lock-down is his heart, everything else is open game. The world is a beautiful place and he has so much love to share, the last thing he wants are labels and commitments. Those are messy, and Kai’s too cautious for that nonsense. Scott is an alpha who’s freshly out of the military and wants nothing more than to get to know his ten-year-old son, Matty. Something he’s never really had a chance to do. But to do that, he needs a job, a house—a life. He absolutely does not need another fling that lands him in more trouble. And yet… he’s undeniably drawn toward not one, but two men. Scott can’t deny that his British landlord, Julian, is the kind of alpha he’d love to dominate in bed. And Julian’s strange hippy friend Kai, with his uninhibited invitations and kisses makes everything seem so… easy. Though Scott does occasionally wonder if that’s because Kai might be sneaking something extra into his “special” brownies. A no-strings attached agreement between the three seems ideal since none of them have any interest in settling down into a traditional alpha/omega relationship. But… what if the answer to all their desires isn’t one man… but two? What if their union is exactly what they need to heal their souls and build a family together… not just for them, but Matty, too? Amazon KU

BLOOD MAGIC (DARK WITCH CHRONICLES BOOK 1) by Jessica Wayne

I’m in love with a man I can’t have. Close friends with the mate of my ex-lover, and best friends with a witch who has died and come back to life more times than should be possible. But even in all the craziness that has become my life, I’ve always known who I was, where I stood, and what I stood for.
Until now. When helping those I’ve come to care for comes at the cost of losing myself, my entire world tilts and I begin to wonder if perhaps I’ve had it wrong all along. The dark magic calls to me.
Whispering promises of happiness, of love in my ear all while it begs me to destroy those I once held dear. Including the vampire I’m forbidden to love. And what’s even more frightening than the dark magic ravaging through me, is my acceptance of the monster I’m slowly becoming. Amazon KU

JUDGED BY THE VAMPIRES (HOUSE OF DURAND BOOK 8) by Erin Bedford

Piper has enough masters in her life. She sure as hell didn’t need to add a whole Vampire Council to the mix.Unfortunately, Piper doesn’t have much choice in the matter. With the leader of the Vampire Hunter’s Guild has a vice grip on her life, there isn’t much else for her to do but go along with his plan. Even if that plan involves taking out the head of the whole vampire organization.With Durands still wanted for murder, Piper has to find a way to clear their names and finally be free to live their own lives. If she can stay alive long enough to succeed.

Amazon

CURSING UP A STORM (WITCHES MURDER CLUB BOOK ONE) by Samantha Silver

Weather witch Storm Bancroft has never been afraid of ruffling a few feathers, even if it means occasionally being pecked at. So, the local mayor trying to kill her after she exposes him as an embezzler in the local paper? All in a day’s work. But when the mayor in question is found stabbed to death the next morning, Storm quickly realizes she’s suspect number one, and that’s a problem.
Knowing she has to do some investigating before she ends up doing hard time instead, Storm rounds up a rag-tag group of other local witches who all have something to gain from the murder being solved, and voila—the Witches Murder Club is born. With the help of her new friends, and her snarky cat familiar, Storm sets about clearing her name. But Storm has her own secrets, and as she delves deeper into the investigation, she also finds herself digging into her own past. Is this a blizzard Storm is going to be able to weather, or is she about to get snowed in? Amazon KU

MIDLIFE DRAGON BROTHERS (MIDLIFE SHIFTERS BOOK 11) by J L Wilder

I knew going back home would be trouble. Triple the trouble. When the Walker brothers find out my son belongs to one of them, it could tear them apart. It could ruin our clan. I’ve been suppressing my dragon, living among humans. But my son needs a home, and my sister needs my help. As soon as I see them again my dragon is ignited. Three burly mountain dragons that are impossible to resist.
How can I teach my son to control his dragon, If I can’t even control my own? Amazon KU

SHIFTING MOON (THE SHIFTER CHRONICLES BOOK 10) by M D Grimm

VS Note: A re-release.

After a year together, wolf shifter Derek Williams and vet Brian O’Donogue decide to marry. All Brian wants is to be legally part of Derek’s family, after his own disowned him for being gay. As far as Derek is concerned, he already belongs to his mate, heart, body, and soul. But their plans are put on hold when Derek discovers an injured young shifter, Tommy, one night while running as a wolf. When they learn the truth behind Tommy’s presence in Washington, they are quickly drawn into a war that has waged in the shadows for decades. Brian, Derek, and their allies must fight against the Knights and their leader, Arcas, to prevent them from attaining an ancient scroll, one piece of a weapon that can destroy all shifters. When worlds collide, no one will be spared.

Amazon Kobo

BLUEBEARD AND THE OUTLAW (A VILLAIN’S EVER AFTER) by Tara Grayce

Robin of the Greenwood spends her days robbing from the rich to feed the poor. With her knowledge of the fae paths, she eludes all attempts to capture her. But she and her merry band of brothers never seem to get anywhere. The more she steals, the more the evil Duke Guy “Bluebeard” taxes the villagers. When Robin discovers that Duke Guy plans to marry yet again, she conceives a plan for a final, big score. As Guy’s wife, she will have access to his wealth. The lord is notorious for killing his wives shortly after he marries them, but Robin has no plans to be dead wife number four. The only problem is that Duke Guy is devastatingly handsome, brooding, and nothing at all what she expected. If she isn’t careful, she might just find that he steals her heart before she can rob his riches. Amazon KU

THE DIVISION OF CHAOS (THE BOOKS OF THE CUARI BOOK 2) by Marie Andreas

She risked everything to defend her kingdom and friends, struggling to channel chaotic Power to defeat a demonspawn king. They won that fight, but the war was only beginning. Now, one by one, the neighboring kingdoms are falling silent, under attack from monsters that shouldn’t exist and from within their own people. The cuari who protect and guide this world have suddenly vanished, and the chaotic plane—the source of all magic—is failing. Jenna is in the body of a Guardian, channeling the voice of a long-lost god, and tasked with averting the coming apocalypse, but this time, magic and destiny might not save the day.

Amazon

MISSING IN MILAN (BOOK 4 OF THE NIGHT FLYER SERIES) by Edale Lane

VS Note: Historical fantasy, “sweet F/F romance…”

Vanishing thieves, disappearing athletes, and an inventor who is nowhere to be found; can the Night Flyer solve a mystery that seems impossible? While Florentina puzzles over the missing people, Maddie’s ex-lover turns up in Milan, claiming she is not there to cause trouble while doing little else.The Night Flyer must use every resource available, including a memory from her childhood to discover how the thieves escape, who abducted the Calcio players, and whatever happened to the inventor. Could they all be connected? Death awaits as Florentina descends into the depths of an ingenious plot; can she thwart a mysterious criminal, or will he deal her the final blow? Amazon KU

ROGUE WOLF (SWAT BOOK 12) by Paige Tyler

There’s a wicked attraction between Special Wolf Alpha Team (SWAT) werewolf Trey Duncan and medical examiner Samantha Mills, but Trey’s never worked up the nerve to ask her out until now. But the trouble with wolves is that they’re never far from danger, and this time Trey is going up against a monster the likes of which his Dallas SWAT team has never seen… It’s going to take everything Trey and Samantha have to crack the case and protect each other.

Amazon Kobo

THE BONE SCROLL (ELEMENTAL LEGACIES BOOK 5) by Elizabeth Hunter

Finding it could cost them everything. Wielding it could mean their end. It’s a secret lost in time, a myth among immortals, a relic of such power that vampires around the world have quietly harbored the hope that it doesn’t really exist. It’s a mystery that Tenzin and Ben cannot resist. But to obtain the Bone Scroll, they’ll need leverage over the most powerful and mercurial vampire in the known world. Saba, oldest of immortals and mother of the vampire race, has returned to her homeland in the highlands of Ethiopia, searching for the scroll with a cadre of elders. In order to outsmart them, Ben and Tenzin will need to walk a literal and figurative edge through a maze of vampire loyalties, shadowy motivations, and ancient secrets. If Saba wanted them gone, she could command the earth to swallow them whole. But the mother of vampires is playing her own game, and both Ben and Tenzin are no more than pawns. Can they outsmart and outmaneuver the most primeval beings in their race to find the Bone Scroll before it lands in the possession of those who care only for their own selfish gain?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MATING FEVER by Susan Hayes

Tiger Trap – A snowy night, a mountain chalet, and two thieves after the same prize…Wolf Under Cover – Secret identities, hidden agendas, and a wolf who will do anything to protect his unexpected mate. Carnage – An assignment from the Devil, a half-angel on the run, and a bounty hunting hell hound who is about to meet his match. **This collection includes previously some published content.

Amazon Kobo

I, VOLCANO by Eule Grey

According to ancient rhymes, the islanders of Ansar and Skarle are children of the volcano, born of fire and destined to be lovers. After the eruption, the prophecies are forgotten as all are forced to flee. Nobody cares about silly nursery rhymes now, certainly not Jalob. When shy medic Jalob Baleine heads to war, it isn’t for romance. She only wants to help refugees who have no home or allies. Because they are kin. Jalob was born under the same glowering volcano, on an idyllic island surrounded by dolphins. Like the refugees, she fled the lava and secretly cherishes the old ways. She falls asleep, ignoring the pull of tides, and dreams of a loving touch. Who doesn’t? And sure, maybe Jalob hasn’t felt whole for years, but war isn’t the time for fantasies. She keeps to herself and hopes someone else will sort the war out. One woman can’t heal the world. After all, she has enough to do, what with tending the sick and her supervisor, Susan, always on her back. Then Jalob meets stroppy violinist, Corail Esplash. After an explosive introduction, they’re forced to spend time together. Stress makes them long for a reprise, and a fragile line dances between love and hate. ..(more on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Kobo

HOCUS POKE US (HAUNTED HOUSE REHAB BOOK 2) by Rae Stapleton

There’s nothing I love more than a good, solid ride down the pole, but things get too hot to handle at the old firehall when we take on the new ghost hunters’ headquarters and find a skeleton in the locker. It seems a ghost of the past has come to rattle Neighborly Nate’s bones. And just when the Monster Mansion is ready for our final magic touch, our party planner performs the ultimate vanishing trick. Unfortunately, she reappears ‘dead as a dummy’. Is the murderous magician up to his old tricks? If my paranormal-investigative-boy-toy and I want to get rid of these ghosts, we’re going to have to dig deep. But with all this digging, my own scandalous past is on the verge of being uncovered. The truth will take all four of us home to the Dru mansion, but will my memories set us free or lock me up. (VS Note: More details about the RH members on ebook seller page…)

Amazon

TIGER QUEEN (SABRE WOODS ACADEMY BOOK 3) by Laura Greenwood

The Shifter Court is a mess, and there’s only one way I can fix it. The more time passes, the more obvious it becomes that I need to take the throne and become the Shifter Queen, even if it means unseating my mother. But with Magnus and my friends by my side, it might be possible. I hope it isn’t too late to make a difference to the shifters the crown has failed.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

DEFY THE DEAD (THE NECROMANCER COUNCIL BOOK 3) by Laura Greenwood

The Necromancer Council is in trouble, and it’s going to take Cissy everything she has to save it. With Brendon on the run having taken another member of the Council hostage, the clock is ticking for them to get everything under control. Can Cissy and the rest of the Council fix things before it’s too late?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

XORA: BOOK ONE: TAROTVERSE by C M Hano

In a world of magic, a halfling is being marched toward the palace. She comes to train for the Queen’s Guard, with the only intention of finding her place in the world that hates her very existence. When the first day ends in a fight, she is given a choice, Convergence or imprisonment. A charming young woman, appearing to be just like Serena, gives her a third option. Train with the master and be free from judgment and restraint. Amazon KU

KINGLY BITTEN (BLOOD ALLIANCE BOOK 5) by Lexi C Foss

Calina – I have thirty-six hours to live. Thirty-six hours to find a solution. Thirty-six hours to kill them all. My friends. My family. My subjects. It’s a cruel fate, one my maker subjected me to over a century ago when she placed me in this hell. I learned then that freedom is a falsehood. Escape doesn’t exist. I’m a ticking time bomb, slated to erupt. Until he appears from above. A vampire. A walking god with icy blue eyes. He claims to be our salvation, but I see him for who he really is–the devil in disguise.
Jace – I don’t want to be king, but I’ll become one if it means I can have her–the gorgeous ice queen I found waiting for me inside Lilith’s labs. She feigns indifference, claiming I do nothing for her, but I see the embers stirring in her stunning hazel eyes. Only there’s more to her than a pretty little face.
She’s neither vampire nor lycan. An immortal without a classification. A secret I must now contain in a world collapsing in chaos. Welcome to the new beginning. My name’s King Jace. Allow me to be your guide. Amazon KU

BURDEN FALLS by Kat Ellis

VS Note: Horror but a release of note…

The town of Burden Falls drips with superstition, from rumors of its cursed waterfall to Dead-Eyed Sadie, the disturbing specter who haunts it. Ava Thorn grew up right beside the falls, and since a horrific accident killed her parents a year ago, she’s been plagued by nightmares in which Sadie comes calling—nightmares so chilling, Ava feels as if she’ll never wake up. But when someone close to Ava is brutally murdered and she’s the primary suspect, she begins to wonder if the stories might be more than legends—and if the ghost haunting her dreams might be terrifyingly real. Whatever secrets Burden Falls is hiding, there’s a killer on the loose . . . with a vendetta against the Thorns.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

AMETHYST (WARRIORS OF ESTIO BOOK 2) by Emery C F Bryant

VS Note: According to reviews, ends on a cliffhanger.

Maia Jeffries, out of work, is forced to move back to her family home and into a world she never sees coming. She didn’t expect this—to feel her heart beat again or the flood of desire in her veins. This man, the one with eyes the color of amethyst and hair the color of midnight…it’s his fault. He’s done this to her. And she wants more. Zaiyren is different. There’s so much more to him than a stranger trespassing on her grandmother’s land. He’s literally from another world. Despite that, their attraction grows, but danger grows along with it. Zaiyren is dangerous in ways even he didn’t know, and loving him could prove fatal. Unfortunately for Maia, her heart already belongs to him.

Amazon KU

ART OF THE HUNT by Tami Lund

Artemis, Goddess of the Hunt, is bored. She’s tired of hanging out at the Gods of Thunder Motorcycle Club, tired of partying with her bestie, tired of everything feeling so very meaningless.
She needs action. She needs to go back to saving the world. So she hops onto her Harley and rides off into the sunset. She ends up in Chicago, where she helps very, very sexy Detective Hunter James crack a case—not that he’s particularly thrilled by her interference, as he calls it. That’s okay, he’ll come around. But when he does, will she be able to handle it? Because Hunter reminds her an awful lot of Orion, her one true love, and she swore two thousand years ago that she’d never go down that road again. Not even if he is Orion reincarnated. Amazon KU

HOT DIRE WOLF NIGHTS by C D Gorri

Phoenix Tala is taking a break from his new home on the border of Blue Valley where his Pack and MC have recently settled down. With his Dire Wolf feeling out of sorts and anxious, he figures a road trip is in order. Tracey Donner is tired of her upper-crust parents disapproval. After a shopping trip gets nasty, she takes off for the one place she ever felt happy as a child. Maccon City, New Jersey.
She is ready for some serious changes in her life. But until then a girl could have a little fun, couldn’t she? Of course, she never expected to run into that fun. Literally. A spontaneous moonlight skinny dip turns into something else when she swims into a midnight bather with more muscles than she knew it possible for one man to have. She is willing to dive into a vacation fling with the bad boy biker, but Phoenix has forever on his mind. Can he convince the luscious normal to be his mate?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

TEMPTATION ENCHANTMENT – EDEN’S DRAGON BOOK 4 (MAGIC NEW MEXICO NOVELLA) by Evelyn Lederman

She can tempt any man, except for him. Men have died to possess Nour, even those who came to kill her. For centuries, dragon shifter Nour has used the gift she inherited from Eden’s Dragon. Everything changes when she materializes in Magic, New Mexico. Will her enchantment finally end?
Jaguar shifter Elon possesses psychic powers he refused to use. Against his better judgement, he aids his cousin and enters a parallel dimension. Sometimes there are no choices when it comes to protecting his newly discovered mate.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MEDIUM TO WELL (HAUNTED HOLLYWOOD HEREAFTERS BOOK 1) by Edie Montreux

Ash Barrett is a scientist. He believes in facts. But even he has to admit something supernatural is happening in his apartment. The ghost of his dead fiancé wants something from him. Ash needs reinforcements to figure out what. Kenny Nguyen, late-night talk show host of Medium to Well, is in the business of helping people finish theirs–of the unfinished and spirit variety. He’s seen it all, but Ash’s deceased love has the most outrageous request Kenny’s heard in a while. He’d say no, except Ash is gorgeous, kind, and willing to do anything to lay his fiancé’s spirit to rest. If Kenny accepts a ghostly indecent proposal, could Ash still want a relationship after? And for a man who believes in science, can Ash trust what he can’t see and take a chance at love? Amazon KU

THE FIRE WITCH: A ZVI JAYDEN NOVEL by Sasha Marshall

A brutal murder by a reserved vampire brings a new case to Zvi Jayden. Perplexed as to why her friend met such a tragic end, she will stop at nothing to find the rogue vampire. An array of supernatural beings converge at The Bar to find the killer and other hidden truths. Killian Kavanaugh, king of the vampires is after the killer and Zvi’s heart. Zvi will not only have to battle a killer vampire but fight her feelings and Killian’s advances. Will Zvi catch the killer before it’s too late? Amazon KU

THE WITCH AND THE STAG (THE MCKINLEY WOMEN BOOK 1) by Victoria Rogers

As a solitary witch, Maddy McKinley’s job is to ensure her community is safe from paranormal harm. When a routine neighborhood exorcism goes wrong, Maddy finds herself haunted by a poltergeist that has been hounding her family for generations. With the help of the hunky godling across the street, Maddy must learn to set aside her family traditions and work with another before the poltergeist destroys her.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

KISSED BY SHADOWLIGHT (SUPERNATURAL INSTITUDE BOOK 4) by Krista Street

Avery – I fell into the clutches of those hunting me. Now, I’m enslaved in chains and at their mercy. But I’m not the woman I used to be. My weaknesses have been stripped away, unveiling a strength and defiance I never knew myself capable of. And I’ll be damned if I’m going down without a fight. Because my mate is coming for me. With him by my side, we will be unstoppable, and I am a storm cloud of rage ready to be unleashed. Wyatt – I can’t think. Can’t breathe. Can’t exist…without her. I failed to protect Avery, and now she’s imprisoned by them. Still, I won’t give up. I will bite and claw my way to her, and when I do I will unleash my wolf on any who dared harm her. Because failure isn’t an option. Not when a realm is at stake and my mate’s life is on the line. I can only hope that I’m not too late. Amazon KU

SILVER GUARDIAN (HOLY SHIELD ANGELS ROMANCE) by Strawberry Chase

It’s a typical Las Vegas love story. Girl meets guy. Guy saves girl. The only problem, this guy’s an Angel. And a police officer. I can’t believe such a thing is real. How are there Angels, or rather Angel-cops, especially in Las Vegas? And I’m not exactly a good girl. The whole reason Diego had to intervene was to save me from my drug dealer ex-boyfriend and his sketchy boss. But there is something about him that pulls me in, like my feelings for him are out of my control. I have to get used to his shining silvery eyes and the fact that his wings are one of the most sensitive parts of his body. But he needs me for something else – the Las Vegas Police Department is searching for my ex and his boss, and I’m the only connection they have. And Diego won’t risk me. But what he doesn’t know is the drug boss is really a demon, one who now has a vendetta against Diego, and he will use anything to get back at the Angel-cop shutting down his drug empire. Including me. Amazon KU

DEMON’S PLAYGROUND (BORN OF HELLFIRE BOOK 2) by Ezrabet Bishop and Gina Kincade

Hotter than Hell and eager for sin…Morgan is having a bad year, even for a succubus. Her adorable dog has transformed into the Devil himself, and she can’t catch a date without someone dropping dead in her wake. Now a hot shifter detective is on Morgan’s trail, and things are about to get dicey. Even a trip for a cut and curl can’t ease her spirits. After she rescues a dog in distress, her luck might finally be turning around. Sometimes the one you save saves you right back, and maybe that sexy investigator will turn out to be exactly what she needs as well. But someone from Morgan’s past has a score to settle, and her hot new boyfriend may just end up on the menu. All that glitters could be murderous…Detective Liam Grayson is a werewolf on a mission. A murderer is stalking the city streets, and all signs point to one very gorgeous lady with a string of one-night stands and a growing pile of bodies. Watching her with her blind rescue dog tugs on his heartstrings, and he finds himself falling for his chief suspect, hook, line, and sinker. A true mate is hard to find and when his animal speaks, he’s learned to listen. But can Liam keep his head long enough to solve the murders, or will he be next in the killer’s sights?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

DRAGON EVER AFTER (HERE BE DRAGONS BOOK 1) by Louisa Masters

After half a century of chaos, my retirement from leading the Community of Species Government has been bliss. No more hellhounds playing pranks. No more snippy demons demanding my attention. No more cajoling money from the wealthy to support the community. Just peace while I avoid my overbearing father and try to work out what my next steps will be. Although… maybe three years of peace is enough. It might even be starting to get… boring. In fact, an adolescent dragon crash-landing on my landlord’s shed is just the kind of excitement I need—especially when he brings his species leader to my door. Brandt. Wing leader of all dragons, suave, sexy, and… slightly unhinged. It doesn’t take much for him to convince me to give up my solitude and spend some time getting to know him. It’s hard to care about the future when I’ve got a dragon of my own to “play” with. Naked dragon rides for the win, right? But Brandt’s the leader of his people, on call for them all the time, and I’ve left that part of my life behind me. Plus my father insists I should fulfil my duty to the family by getting a nine-to-five job and “marrying well.” That’s not what I want, but riding herd on a group of beings who fly, breathe fire, and could literally crush me beneath their feet would be a huge challenge, especially since Brandt’s kind of loose with rules. It all comes down to how much I want my very own dragon ever after. Amazon KU

FOREVER KISSES by Angela Knight

Forever Kiss: Valerie is haunted by dreams of a man she knows only as Cowboy, her seductive lover. But Cowboy is real. And he’s a vampire. Cade is the only one who can protect Valerie from Ridgemont, his Sire, and he’s determined to do just that — even if he must kidnap her to keep her safe. Caught in a web of fear and passion, Valerie and Cade must learn to trust one another, even as Ridgemont stalks their every move. Their only hope of survival is the Forever Kiss. Beth’s Kiss: Beth’s world comes crashing down when she’s kidnapped by Joaquin, a deadly immortal who means to use her in a plot to kill a pair of handsome vamps. Morgan and Garret are determined to avenge themselves against Joaquin, who murdered the woman they loved. When they rescue Beth they must complete her transformation, saving her from the vampire virus raging through her system. But if Beth is to have a future with her two vampires, they must settle accounts with the ancient, powerful killer and his army of mercenaries. Author’s Note: Forever Kiss was first published in 2004 and has been revised extensively, including added scenes and updated tech.

Amazon Kobo

MUDROOM MYSTIC (MAGICAL RENOVAYION SERIES BOOK 7) by Amy Boyles

It’s the annual garden gnome contest and all of Peachwood is a flutter with excitement. Especially Malene, who intends to win this year’s golden gnome award. But plenty of others in town want to win, too, and when Malene’s main competition throws a monkey wrench in her plans for victory, she comes up with her own plan to win. That plan might include sabotage. All Clementine wants to do is stay out of the contest, but when she gets dragged in kicking and screaming, she has no choice but to play nice. Everything is going great until a murder takes place. Now, it’s up to Clem and the gang to solve the mystery before they wind up the next victims of the Peachwood killer. Can they do it?

Amazon KU

PANTHER’S TASK: TEXAS RANCH WOLF PACK WORLD: PANTHER CLOWDER BOOK 2 by Lynn Nodima

Be careful what you wish for…Good advice eighteen-year-old Adrian doesn’t take. When his best friend mates a dragon shifter and moves to another realm, Adrian feels a little lost. When his younger sister is named heir to the queen, he wonders what his future holds for him. All he wants is some adventure. Then a human girl follows him into the woods asking for the impossible.

Amazon

DRAGON SHIFTER’S DESIRE (THE BOND OF BROTHERS BOOK 6) by Harmony Raines

Larisa has spent her life trying to prove her dad’s innocence. When a new discovery gives her the breakthrough she needs, there’s an unexpected twist. She’s the mate of a dragon shifter. Ivan has seen each of his brothers find their mates. He’s helped them overcome struggles to find true love. Now it’s his turn. One problem. For Ivan and Larisa to find their happy ending they need to travel to the fae realm, where dragon shifters are explicitly not welcome. But instead of finding answers they are faced with more questions.Questions that can only be resolved if they visit to the mysterious dragon isle, Cairnnor, ruled by a tyrannical dragon lord. Can they help overthrow him and finally learn the truth about their pasts? Amazon KU

A TOUCH OF BRIMSTONE (MAGIC OF THE DAMNED BOOK 1) by McKenzie Hunter

Fresh off a breakup and an eviction, I started my day like any other: a book in one hand, a coffee in the other, and faking that can-do attitude inspirational memes are made of. I was ready to take on the world—and I did. Unfortunately, it was the Underworld. One freak accident later, I’m standing face to face with the sexy-as-sin and dangerously powerful Prince of the Underworld. He has a few burning questions for me—like how a mere human unlocked the door to the Underworld’s prison and released its prisoners. I’d sure as hell like to know, too, because I have no freaking clue. Now, instead of a forgettable bookstore clerk, I’m newly famous for doing the impossible. The wrong people want to thank me, and the rest want me dead. Spoiler alert: The Dark Prince definitely doesn’t want to thank me. I’ll do anything to get my life back to normal and he’ll do anything to recapture the escapees. We make a deal: He’ll keep my enemies at bay, and I’ll find a way to return the prisoners. What could possibly go wrong? Amazon KU

FREEING FAE (LOST IN FAE BOOK 3) by M Sinclair

My name is Maize. Poisonous to the touch. The bastard child of one very dead Dark Fae King. A refugee of a war that freed me from my three-year imprisonment. Captured by one of the monsters that haunted my nightmares each night. I may have been free, but I would never forget the torture I’d gone through at the hands of my father’s guard. It seemed they hadn’t forgotten either. Except now it wasn’t just me at risk—no, it was the Horde and everyone I’d come to love. Individuals I would protect, even if it meant sacrificing myself. Hopefully, they would forgive me for what I had to do to free Fae. Amazon KU

HARLEY PRINCE OF TIGERS by Kathi S Barton

Micky had so much going on around her, it was making her head spin. Her sister was shot, her father was killed in the same incident, and the doctor had diagnosed her with terminal cancer. If it wasn’t for the Prince family, her sister, Rowan, would be a death’s door. Their shifter blood had healing properties, and that was the only thing that pulled her through. Now, Rowan was determined the Prince family would save Micky too. Marcus told Micky she wasn’t his mate, but he bet she was Harley’s. Micky was never one to hide in a corner waiting for answers. She walked right up to Harley and buried her nose in his throat. At his moan—or her own, she knew as surely as she was standing there who he was to her.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

SACRIFICE (DRAKORYAN BRIDES BOOK 1) by Ava Sinclair

Four dragon lords. One virgin sacrifice. When my village sacrifices me to the dragons, I go willingly to the Altar Rock to die. But I don’t die. I wake up in a castle built into a huge mountain. House Fra’Hir is one of many castles in the Drakoryan Empire. It is here I learn the truth — that women like me aren’t taken away to be devoured, but to be mated. My mates, four sons of a dragon knight slain in the last battle of the ShadowFell, are unique both in personality and carnal abilities. They introduce me to the world of pleasure. In their bed chambers, they prepare me with masterful skill for the final, ultimate bond that will make me truly theirs. But I am no passive mate, and the secret they keep from me threatens not only our bond, but the role I am prophesied to play in stopping a lurking danger that threatens the Drakoryan and human world alike. Amazon KU

SCARRED FOR LIFE: ADIRA’S ACCEPTANCE BOOK 1 by Evalina Creek

Addy is one of the lucky ones. After a final brutal attack by her ex-boyfriend, she is alive and finally free of him for good. Or so she hopes. Now she is left to pick up the pieces of her life and her heart, but recovery takes time and the lingering nightmares of her abusive ex are keeping the wolf shifter in the apartment next door awake at night. When he takes it upon himself to investigate the source of his agitation, he finds more than just nightmares might be plaguing this timid yet fiery little female.

Amazon KU

DRAGON MATE (THE HIDDEN KING BOOK 1) by Jen L Grey

Sometimes, survival depends on not being seen. I should know. That’s the only way I’ve survived. Getting accepted into a prestigious university was my chance at freedom; to escape and live without fear and resentment. And with no emotional attachments–or at least that was the plan. Until I see Egan. He’s sexy, mysterious, and has muscles in all the right places. He invokes feelings I don’t want or understand. The more he shows up, the harder of a time I have remembering why staying away from him was a good idea. But he brings deep, dark secrets that alter my entire world. Monsters exist. Witches cast spells. And animals may be human after all. I either embrace fate and enter a strange new world full of risks like never before or walk away. Maybe, I’m destined for heartache because sometimes, love isn’t worth what it costs to fall. Amazon KU

A CASTLE OF ASH (A TEMPEST OF SHADOWS BOOK 4) by

To prove the purity of my soul, I sacrificed everything. I lost my magic, my best friend, and tied myself to the five kings of the afterworld in unholy matrimony. Now, every day is torture at their hands. I am their final hope, a perfect weapon to wield in the ultimate war still looming ahead of us. They will push me as far as it takes, no matter what. Every day, I give a little more of myself away, and they’re snapping up each piece as though they have a right. Every day, the Darkness takes another victim, picking off people all around me until those of us who fight for light and life are outnumbered in a world we’re no longer sure is our own. The end is drawing near, but the closer it gets, the more impossible our victory seems. Even after everything I’ve sacrificed … I fear it won’t be enough. Amazon KU

KING OF DARKNESS (THE PARANORMAL NIGHT CLUB BOOK 8) by Brittany White

The Half breed bear shifter – My mother is a mundane human and my father is a bear shifter.
They had the best marriage – the kind I always wanted for myself. I had the best father. Then, it all changed. An evil destroyed all that was good inside of him As he tried to destroy my mother and me.
A vampire king stepped into my world Offering safety and love. Yet, this vampire king could not offer me a place by his side as his mate And I could never walk a step behind him, taking second place in his life. Would foolish pride destroy both? The King of Darkness – I am a vampire king who rarely gets involved in the affairs of mortals Yet there was something about this half-human, half bear shifter I couldn’t resist. Little did I know that by helping this beautiful woman I would be getting involved with the seedy shifter underworld Where drugs, alcohol, and evilness ruled. I loved her pride, strength, and her spirit as she faced her demons head on. It was these same qualities that threatened to tear us apart.
I can’t take a non-vampire as a mate – I have a legacy to continue. Yet, my love can’t take second place in my life. Can the vampire king give up his legacy for his love? Amazon KU

NIGHT’S ILLUSION (CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT) by Amanda Ashley

Giovanni Lanzoni may just be the world’s oldest male virgin. Or at least, the oldest male virgin vampire. Giovanni has clung to the vows he made a thousand years ago as a mortal priest—yet he is no longer either of those things. Others of his kind have settled down since claiming immortality, finding love, even raising children. Sensing his loneliness, Mara, Queen of the Vampires, eagerly sets out to find Giovanni the perfect mate. But only one woman, met by chance on a dark night, truly tempts him . . .Cassie Douglas has never met a man she trusts as much as Giovanni. Yet the shocking truth he reveals makes her question their deep connection. There are other urgent obstacles too. Giovanni’s sire, an ancient, dangerously powerful vampire, is awakening after centuries of slumber, with vengeance on his mind. And in the battle unfolding around them, everything is at risk—their lives, their loved ones, and a passionate eternity together.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

************************************************************************************************

VS: Next on my Badari Warriors backlist is the birth of Mateer and Mega’s baby! I figured she’d been pregnant long enough and so I was happy to write a novella about the events.

BADARI WARRIOR’S BABY: MEGAN AND MATEEER (A BADARI WARRIORS NOVELLA)

Dr. Megan Garrison, mate to the Badari Warrior pack’s senior enforcer Mateer, is perilously close to the due date of their baby when she’s kidnapped by human malcontents in Sanctuary Valley. The kidnappers threaten to harm her and intend to ransom the half human-half Badari child to the evil Khagrish scientists in return for their own lives.

Mateer and his fellow Badari launch a desperate effort to save his mate and child but the situation is made more complicated as Megan goes into labor. Can they rescue her in time to save mother and child?

A 25K word novella…

Amazon Apple Books Nook Kobo Google

****************************************************************************************************

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…

Some authors aren’t in KU but still don’t list books with Apple or other platforms. This report is very time consuming to prepare so I’ve always had to limit myself and cannot go and look up every book on all the platforms. If an author gives me their other buy links, I include them here but generally I develop the post on my own, not from author-supplied information. I curate and prepare this post individually every week to help connect readers/books/authors and I have to be very careful not to give it so much time as an activity that I don’t write my own novels! Thanks for the feedback and happy reading!

I check and verify all the buy links at the time I create the post but after that I’m not responsible.

Required Statement: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifiying purchases.

Required Statement: As an Apple Books Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Aug 21 2021

Sobek Himself Weekend Writing Warriors

May be edited a bit from published version.

NEW RELEASE!!! – TRATUS: A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL (SECTORS NEW ALLIES SERIES BOOK 14)

Details below at end of the post. This is relevant because today is the last excerpt from HEIRESS OF THE NILE. I’ll be switching to TRATUS next week.

The excerpt: OK, SO much has happened in this story since the last scene I shared, and so much more WILL happen in this book, but here’s tense moment right before Pebatma meets the General. She’s been kidnapped by her avaricious landlord (who is also a criminal)..

Pebatma had gotten her hands free and was holding the rail, trying to work up the courage to allow herself to plunge over the side into the Nile. The ship was moving so fast she couldn’t imagine how the pursuers hoped to catch up and she was afraid to remain within reach of Tepsek. Death was preferable. Only as she summoned her courage and checked the river, she saw dozens of crocodiles keeping pace with them. Being torn to pieces by the huge predators was another thing entirely than what she imagined would be a peaceful death by drowning in Mother Nile’s embrace.

As she argued with herself, she saw a flash of white in the water and realized there was a truly gigantic white crocodile in the middle of the more mundane gray and green beasts. And were they pushing the ship? She nearly lost her grip as the deck shifted beneath her feet, the ship shuddering before racing onward. Still watching the river, Pebatma did a double take as the strange crocodile regarded her with golden eyes as it swam easily, right next to the hull.

Sobek, this is Sobek himself.

Shocked, she retreated a step and then crept cautiously back to the rail.

A low pitched, almost growling voice whispered in her ear.

Don’t be afraid, little sister. It’s not often the Great One Hathor asks me for a favor so how can I deny her appeal? Hang on while I do as she requested and prevent this boat from escaping Pharaoh’s men.

The white crocodile disappeared beneath the waves. Next moment the ship heaved and rose from the water, before crashing down again in a huge spray and heading directly toward the shore…

VS: And that’s all of HEIRESS OF THE NILE for this snippet hop…available at all major ebook sellers though. Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay

****************************************************************

TRATUS: A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL (SECTORS NEW ALLIES SERIES BOOK 14)

Until one day she’s chosen for an experiment of another sort – given to a pack of alien supersoldiers as a prospective breeder. Tratus, senior enforcer of the Tzibir pack, never expected to find his mate, much less to meet her among the human prison population of the labs. But there she is and there’s no denying the instincts. Despite his Alpha’s objections, Tratus manages to convince the alien scientists to give Katrin to him and he vows to protect her. Deeply unhappy with the way his leader runs the pack as he disobeys all their goddess’s commandments and refuses to ally with other Badari packs to fight the scientists who created them, Tratus plots a revolt.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay coming soon

Aug 19 2021

Why I Wrote TRATUS My New Release in the Badari Warriors #SciFi Romance Series

One of the challenges I enjoy most about writing a long running series is keeping things fresh and always bringing new wrinkles to the situation for the readers. Fortunately I set up the series in the beginning with a number of hooks to use for adding new twists and turns, one of which was the existence of the Tzibir variation of the Badari Warriors. The Tzibir were created using the same Badari humanoid stock but with alien reptilian predator DNA instead of feline or canid. The Alpha of this pack refused to swear allegiance to Aydarr and Jill and in fact entered into a loose alliance with the same hated Khagrish scientists the other Badari packs are battling.

Enter Tratus, the deeply conflicted senior enforcer of the Tzibir pack. He first appeared in CAMRON and at that time I already knew he was so intriguing to me that I would be giving him his own book eventually, when it fit into the overall series arc. Tratus wants to follow the commandments of the Great Mother, their goddess and he is repulsed to be in any kind of arrangement with the Khagrish. After 800 years of the scientists enslaving, abusing, torturing and executing his kind, Tratus wants to be truly free and to join the rebels in fighting them.

But his Alpha is the absolute ruler of the pack by Badari law and so Tratus does his best to mediate between the dangerous bully Briator, the Tzibir Alpha who’s addicted to a human feelgood, and what’s best for the pack. He keeps things running on a daily basis in the Tzibir settlement in the desert and quietly despairs. Every day is a crisis of conscience for Tratus.

And then he meets the human woman who could be his mate in a more perfect world – Katrin Rodgerr, Third Officer of a free trader ship, abducted like so many other humans to become fodder for the Khagrish labs and their grisly ‘experiments’. She’s in the crowd of women who his Alpha is going to choose from, for breeders to live with the pack as captives and help create the next generation. Tratus digs in and demands to be given Katrin, determined to protect her.

And all the events in the book spiral from there.

I had many things to research for this book, never having written Badari with reptilian aspects. It’s not my trope to write ‘alien’ aliens but Tratus has scales and other much less obvious characteristics which Katrin learns about along the way, shall we discreetly say. I’ve had the TRATUS cover from Fiona Jayde for a long time, waiting for me to write the book, so it’s pure coincidence his book is releasing at a time when ‘alien’ aliens are the hot trope. He’s a bit more alien than my other Badari!

DepositPhoto Komodo Dragon

One of the most unusual pieces of research I did for this novel was to watch actual footage of two Komodo dragons in a fight for supremacy. I always research my fight scenes to try to make the action realistic but in this case I figured the Komodo, which are the world’s largest living lizards, would be the closest thing I would find to what the alien predator DNA in Tratus’s and Briator’s bodies might have come from. The biggest one ever recorded was over 10’ long and weighed nearly 400 pounds so I figured the size was about right (Badari men are 7’ and 300 pounds but Briator is a bit bigger, as the Alpha).

I’ve seen Komodo dragons at the Los Angeles zoo, not fighting but still with the ever present air of danger.

Not to give away all my research secrets but one thing I was intrigued by after watching and re-watching the filmed fight (which occurred in the wild – no one staged it) was how the two huge males battled for position, versus going in for a quick kill. They each clearly were searching for just the right moment to…do what a Komodo dragon or a Badari Tzibir Alpha would do.

A word about Katrin – she’s a cool headed, ex-Space Navy veteran from the Sectors and I enjoyed the challenge of writing her believably, from where she started as Tratus’s hostile prisoner to where she ends up, as his loving, claimed, fated mate. She’s not at all on board with any of the what’s going on when the book starts, needless to say.

DepositPhoto

An excerpt, after Tratus has chosen Katrin: Katrin watched the two large men standing together and savoring a private joke. She was thoroughly confused but she appreciated whatever her protector had said to the guards to get them moved into the shade. Surprised at herself, she drew a shaky breath and tried to find a more comfortable position, which was difficult with her arms held behind her back by the force cuffs. Was he a protector? He’d been gentle with her, which impressed her even more after she saw the huge brown talons and the deadly fangs he deployed when he and the one who was in charge argued about her. And he was getting her out of the Khagrish lab, which was no small thing, given the horrors she knew awaited their experimental subjects. It was nothing but a matter of time until each human ended up being selected for the next experiment. So far she’d been chosen for a few but one had been relatively minor as far as the pain and in the other two she’d been a control subject, observed but not forced to undergo the actual experiment in full.

But she had few illusions about what these handsome aliens wanted women for, or why the Khagrish were giving them ten females. For some reason she couldn’t define, she had a hard time imagining the man who’d chosen her forcing himself on her. The boss—yeah. Not only was he apparently drunk, he seemed cruel and careless. The other soldier—maybe. The person who’d plucked her from the line? He made her feel safe, which was of course ridiculous.

Still, she was free of the black bracelet and the pain it could confer at the touch of a button from any bored Khagrish guard. And the indications were the group would be were leaving the lab for another destination. She’d take her chances and see what happened. Stay alert, stay frosty, seize any chance to escape and take the other women with her if she could.

Cinnthea scooted closer to her. “What did he say? What did he tell you?” she asked in an intense whisper.

“Not much, just a few words of Basic. He said everything would be all right.” Rolling her eyes, Katrin added, “I’m not so sure.”

“But what are they going to do with us? Where are we going?”

“He didn’t say anything about that. I can guess what they have in mind, can’t you?”

The woman shot a scornful glare at the two large men. “Yeah, unfortunately I can. This planet is a hellhole, isn’t it?”

“While there’s life, there’s hope,” Katrin said. “And at least we’ll be out of the labs. There’s no future there at all but pain and death.”

The blurb:

Until one day she’s chosen for an experiment of another sort – given to a pack of alien supersoldiers as a prospective breeder.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay coming soon

Aug 18 2021

New Releases in #SciFi #Fantasy and Paranormal Romance for Wednesday AUGUST 18

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).

**********************************************************************************************

TIGRE: ALIEN CASTAWAYS 6 (INTERGALACTIC DATING AGENCY) by Cara Bristol

VS Note: A much anticipated new book from Cara!

When feral fever strikes, more than tempers get hot…During an investigation, small town cop Kat Kelley encounters the most arresting man she’s ever seen. But before she can make her move, the soul-stirring, saber-toothed alien with topaz eyes growls at her. Who does that? This potential relationship is DOA, case closed. She’s confident her heart will fall in line once she immerses herself in the upcoming law enforcement training conference in Vegas. Tigre, a Saberian from planet ’Topia, instantly recognizes Kat as his genmate, so he doesn’t hesitate to let her know. That’s when everything goes wrong. By the disdainful curl of her lips, the stunning human lets him know she finds him lacking as a mate. Fine, then. Somehow, he will extinguish the feral fever’s burn—a little trip to Las Vegas ought to do it. What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Unless you wake up married to an alien.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Author’s Books2Read Link

ALIEN EMBRACE by Various

VS Note: Talk about an eagerly awaited anthology! I’ve had this pre-ordered forever. Great author lineup.

Aliens move among us—warriors, soldiers, explorers, and more—testing fate and finding love with their true mates. And they’ll do whatever it takes to ensure their human mates remain forever caught in their Alien Embrace. This hot new collection brings you all the best in science fiction alien romances from New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling authors. Our heroes and heroines will satisfy your cravings for every kind of alien romance, whether you prefer slow-burn or fast, one hot hero or two…or more.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HIS COLD KISS (CYBORG REDEMPTION) by Michelle Howard

She made a mistake – Full of excitement, Savannah “Savie” Monroe left Earth with high hopes and high dreams. Within weeks of her team’s arrival on a tiny alien planet everything fell through. Stranded on a doomed research facility and facing her final days, Savie sends out a desperate plea for help. She didn’t expect the man who came. Can mistakes be forgiven? Called home by the emperor to wage a war he didn’t understand, Cyllus soon learned everything wasn’t what it seemed. Too late to question his orders, he finds himself charged for crimes of treason along with his fellow Cyborgs. Now on the run with his life on the line and guilt weighing his heart, Cyllus questions if forgiveness was in his future.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

TRUE AS STEEL (CYBORG REDEMPTION) by Regine Abel

His need to be with her defied logic. Yesterday, Jarog Kaijo was a Major in the Cyborg Military Elite of Kirs. Today, he is condemned to a life sentence for rebellion. When a series of explosions rock the transport ship taking him to the prison colony, it’s a race for survival to any means of escape. In the process, he irrationally rescues an injured female he doesn’t even know. Her fierceness as their vessel collapses all around them catches his eye. But her loyalty, strength, and determination during their journey awaken in him feelings he hasn’t experienced in the six years since his transformation.
Stranded on a mercenary planet with a powerful, but emotionally closed-off Cyborg, Tamryn’s world is completely turned upside down. ..(more blurb on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HIJACKED by Lolita Lopez

Spoiled heiress Camila has enjoyed a privileged life thanks to her politically connected family. Sheltered from the harsh realities of the galaxy, she has no idea that her vacation plans are about to go horribly awry. To survive the emperor’s murderous plot, cyborgs Misko, Andro and Branko lead a small group of civilians into an escape pod. During a chaotic launch, Andro is badly injured, and Misko and Branko find themselves holding their panicked group together. Soon, their limping escape pod strands them in space. All seems lost—until a private ship crosses their path. Hijacked by filthy criminals, Camila tries to flee but is captured by Misko. He quickly identifies her as precious cargo and decides to keep her…(more blurb on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Kobo

SAVING THE CYBORG (CYBORG REDEMPTION) by A M Griffin

Debts. Scavenger hunt. Goals. As a participant in an intergalactic scavenger hunt with a large prize, Suni knew she needed all her focus to be on winning the purse that would set her family free of their lifelong debts. What she didn’t expect was the tall, dangerous stranger and his friends who requested an emergency landing on her spaceship. Agreeing changed the course of her heart…and she liked it. Suni knows what’s at stake if she deviates from her plan but how can she resist when Taun is all she thinks about? Rebellion. Treason. Escape – After a tumultuous escape and one risky space jump, Taun finds himself the unexpected guest of three quirky sisters and their father in desperate need of help. Recently branded as a traitor from the Cyborg Military Elite…(more blurb on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

FERAL PRINCE (QURILIXEN LORDS BOOK 3) by Michelle M Pillow

Prince Roderic hates the diplomacy demanded of his position as a cat-shifter royal. As the son of a diplomat, he’s all too familiar with the treaty surrounding the Federation military occupation, Shelter City. The shifters can’t simply ask them to leave, or they’d risk retaliation. Discretion is the key, which includes not getting caught mingling with those under Federation protection. So crossing paths with the beautiful Justina is a mistake waiting to happen. She’s frustrating and rash and doesn’t mind drawing attention to herself. But, as fate would have it, she’s also the one woman he wants to call his own. For decades they have dealt with lies and deceit, but when the humanoid population under the Federation’s control begins hunting shifters out of desperation, he knows things have gone too far. It’s time to drive the Federation off his planet once and for all, even if that means losing his one chance at true love.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

STAR MATE MARKED (INTERSTELLAR SHIFTERS BOOK 2) by Margo Bond Collins

He never expected his inner were-beast to claim the general’s bride for himself. Braxen had zero interest in going to Earth to pick up the Fleet General’s matched mate. The tiny blue planet is an ecological disaster and from what he has seen, its females are insubordinate and stubborn. But he owes General Galatov his life several times over, so he agrees.But then he meets the general’s mate, and his werecat beast insists she’s meant to be Braxen’s mate.Macy Blue was having the best day of her life—a promotion at work, ten pounds lost over the last few months, a gorgeous new dress, a first date with a nice guy planned for that night—right up to the moment she got abducted en route to the subway.When the spaceship they’re on crash-lands on a deserted planet, everything goes from bad to worse.Stranded with no way to call for help, Braxen and Macy must work together to repair the ship—or die trying—all while trying to fight against their forbidden attraction.

Amazon KU

JAWK: TALES OF THE CHOSEN: EROTIC GAY SF by Kayelle Allen

VS Note: Erotica

Jawk spies on the enigmatic man, known empire-wide as the Harbinger. Undercover as a waiter in Luc’s favorite haunt, Jawk gets a break when Luc seeks to hire him for a one-night ménage with his current lover, Wulf. Jawk agrees, and things go well until Wulf and Luc fight, and Jawk is dismissed. He must get back in the man’s good graces. When Luc seeks to make Wulf jealous by taking Jawk on a long trip, the means to gather intel is too good to pass up. But meanwhile, a forbidden dalliance between Wulf and Alitus tests the bounds of trust between immortals and their Chosen humans. The elicit affair threatens to rupture the eons-old alliance forever, and subject every last immortal to risk.

Amazon

ELITE STARFIGHTER: GAME 3 (STARFIGHTER TRAININBG ACADEMY) by Grace Goodwin

Two friends have disappeared playing Starfighter Training Academy. No one cares because it’s just a game. Right? I know something is wrong. Messed up. Completely off. And no one is paying attention.My BFFs went missing after beating the hottest new multi-player game on the planet, Starfighter Training Academy. They won. They celebrated. They vanished. So what’s the girl left behind supposed to do? Beat the damn game, that’s what. Find out the truth, even if that includes being recruited to fight in an alien war, lusting after the hottest alien I’ve ever seen, and marching into a battle there’s little chance of winning.I will find my friends. I will learn what the heck is going on. And I will kiss the alien hunk I’ve been staring at for weeks. Watch me.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

PANDEMIC UNLEASHED by Various

VS Note: Not romance, tending more to horror maybe…but I love anthologies and dystopia.

We survived the global shutdown… now imagine if horror writers had authored our reality. While you were hoarding toilet paper, Skywatcher Press spent the last year barricaded in a hellscape, mining the dark depths of the horror community to bring you the deadliest ravages of civilization by the most twisted and terrifying people. Contained within these sick minds comes startling plagues beyond anything we have yet seen, gruesome horrors blurring the lines between what we experienced and what might have happened, or what never could have happened, or what will happen next time. Step into the darkness, you are going down with the sickness. Amazon KU

SAUTIITION’S HOPE (AMONG THE COSMOS BOOK 1) by Melissa Smith

Waking from a six-year stasis, Captain Kari Hanley – along with her Lieutenant Jeff Mooney – is ready to complete her mission; to find a possible inhabitable planet deeper in our solar system.
When they find themselves suddenly space-napped into a new mission, Captain Hanley will have to fight to make this mission a success. However, when things immediately start to take strange turns, not only do they struggle to help their new friends; but love and friendship, along with life-changing decisions and danger begin to pop up around every corner. Will she succeed in saving her kidnapper’s race? Will she let love invade her soul, causing her to set her mission aside? Or will she manage to complete her mission and make it back home? Does she even want to? Amazon KU

THE OFFICER’S MESS (WARRIORS BOOK 3) by L P Peace

Can she trust them? Trapped on board a Temerin ship, Danielle avoids the aliens who rescued her from the IGC during that fateful explosion. Aerdan, Haddis and Bedvir in particular seem to dog her every step even as Danielle does everything she can to avoid not just them, but the feelings they evoke in her. When Danielle realises she’s fallen in love with all three of them, she fights her darkest memories, and their natural competitiveness, to find a future for them all. Discovering the Tessans have put a bounty Tolomus, Danielle and the crew of Compound Errors engage the entire Temerin nation to find and take down the infamous slaver once and for all. Can their new family survive contact with the enemy? Amazon KU

THE EXILED FLEET (THE DIVIDE SERIES BOOK 2) by J S Dewes

VS note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note…

The Sentinels narrowly escaped the collapsing edge of the Divide. They have mustered a few other surviving Sentinels, but with no engines they have no way to leave the edge of the universe before they starve. Adequin Rake has gathered a team to find the materials they’ll need to get everyone out. To do that they’re going to need new allies and evade a ruthless enemy. Some of them will not survive.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

FATED: A XENO SAPIENS NOVEL (GENETICALLY ALTERED HUMANS BOOK 19) by Rena Marks

Glimpses of the future continually taunt him. Nero knows what will happen, will happen. That’s never been an issue. The issue for him is convincing others of his visions. Especially the woman he knows will become his mate. Harmony Richards doesn’t have time for luxuries like relationships and children. A career woman, she devotes her life to her job as Assistant to the President of Earth’s Global Government. But when Nero finally gets his chance with Harmony—will his secret visions of her private thoughts tear them apart?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

RECLAIMED by Madeleine Roux

VS Note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note…

The Ganymede facility is a fresh start. At least that’s what Senna tells herself when she arrives to take part in a cutting-edge scientific treatment in which participants have traumatic memories erased. And Senna has reasons for wanting to escape her past. But almost as soon as the treatment begins, Senna finds more than just her traumatic memories disappearing. She hardly recognizes her new life or herself. Even though the cure might justify the side effects of the process, Senna knows that something isn’t right. As the side effects worsen, she will need to band together with the other participants to unravel the mystery of her present and save her future.

Amazon Kobo

RESCUED BY THE HUNTER (XARC’N WARRIORS BOOK 5) by Lynnea Lee

KORIV’N – My mate’s scent calls to me. I hunt it, each step taking me closer to the one thing I came to Earth to find. These silly humans think they’ve captured me. What a joke. They’ve captured nothing! I’m here for my female, and nothing can stop me. I will find her, and I will claim her. She is mine! When my mate runs right into me and begs for me to take her away, I can hardly believe my ears. Today must be my lucky day! NIKKI – I need to get out of here. With certain doom pounding at the door, I do the unthinkable, I beg the massively muscled mauve warrior towering over me to take me with him. To my surprise, the hunter gathers me into his arms, growls, “MINE!” and jumps out of a second-floor window! I hope this isn’t a horrible mistake!

Amazon

SERENITY (MODEL HUMANS BOOK 1) by Nix Whittaker

VS Note: A re-release.

Aaru is pregnant but she has never met the father of her baby. Until Kaidan shows up on her doorstep insisting that he is her mate and the father of her unborn child. But secrets get in the way of resolving their problems as the ruling model humans are after Aaru for being a Serenity. A model of human with extra powers and a history of going crazy.

Amazon

TWO HEADS ARE BEHDDER: BLIND DATE WITH AN ALIEN by Jeanette Lynn

I’m going on a blind date with an alien. It’s not as strange as it sounds. Some might even say I was the alien in this situation, seen as odd or weird to more than a few still unaccustomed to the soft skinned creatures and newest to the Coalition to get our feet wet with space flight. Relatively new by a few hundred years or so—green by all longstanding traveling, been puttering around the galaxy for a few thousand years, creature standards. The real surprise of the evening was the third wheel I began to feel like as I met my date. Dates…? He- They- Have two heads. Two males at odds, dual personalities the exact opposite in nature, in one shared, conjoined body. Kihmaer Natharin, to be exact, alien lizardman with twice the personality. I’m always saying it could be worse, or weird, or… I’m not quite sure what tops constantly bickering conjoined two headed alien man- men? I’m sure if this evening proves anything, it is not only looking to be quite interesting, but I’m about to find out.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HELD: A DARK MAFIA OMEGAVERSE UNIVERSE ROMANCE (BARION BOOK 3) by Luna Voss

I’ve brought my mate to heel. The city comes next. This still isn’t finished. Not until my enemies are dead and my wife is safe, rich, and pregnant. I’ll do anything to protect her, even if she keeps finding reasons for me to put her over my knee. For the woman I love. For the family we’re going to have together. I’m going to end this. Amazon KU

ALIEN BETRAYED (ZYANTHAN WARRIORS BOOK 5) by Julie K Cohen

Trust no one. It’s a motto Remmikov has lived by since before the war. Now, he’s been framed for the bombings in Zyan’s capital and he is on the run from his own people. As the son of a traitor, no one will believe he’s innocent. When a hooded figure tracks him through the market, Remmikov is ready to inflict some warriorly damage… until he discovers the figure is a human female. This female with the shorn hair and dark eyes who dresses in a male’s clothes has a way of challenging him, twisting his words to her advantage. When Remmikov discovers she’s working for the Brotherhood, he has no choice but to capture her. He never expected her to capture his heart in turn…(more blurb on ebook seller page…) Amazon KU

FINDING STARDUST (STAR CHART GUARDIANS BOOK 1) by Samantha Rose

Protecting time, fighting for honor, and freedom in a distant realm…When an average woman from Earth, Poppy, finds herself being stood up on a blind date, she thinks a bottle of wine will fix her problems. What she doesn’t expect is to come face to face with the time gate keeper that claims she’s his soul mate. A guardian chosen during his soul’s birth, Tora has long ago given up on finding his destined other half. Now he rules the planet Plu, in a distant realm in space overlooking time and all galaxies throughout the universe. But his time has come, and his life changes within an instant by a small female from the one planet he’s always been drawn to, a planet called Earth. Amazon KU

OUT OF THE ASHES: A SCIFI MAFIA ROMANCE (VAUGHAN SYNDICATE BOOK 2) by Chloe Parker

Callisto’s streets are full of ghosts. And for smart-mouthed mercenary Baz Vaughn, those ghosts are coming back with a vengeance. Framed for the murder of his parents in a bloody massacre, Baz escaped his home moon of Callisto twelve years ago. Since then, he’s been on the run from his vengeful brother, the undisputed king of Callisto’s underworld. Baz was happy to traverse the galaxy, working as a soldier of fortune on distant planets and moons. That is, until he met Tasha Kincaid and fell in love. Now, he’s headed back to Callisto with Tasha to find the sister she lost a decade ago. Baz knows that Callisto isn’t safe, but he fears letting Tasha go it alone. The two discover that their siblings are married themselves, and Tasha will have to go directly into the lion’s den to rescue her sister from Baz’s crime lord brother. Even worse, Baz’s psychotic ex – a deadly assassin – is stalking him through the city’s streets, and she won’t let him go again. Amazon KU

CELESTIAL SINS (FALLING STAR BOOK 1) by Chloe Parker and Clarissa Bright

Aliens took me from my life as a high society princess. My body is my only bargaining chip, and my pleasure their currency. When I sat on the rooftop and wished every night that someone would take me away, this isn’t what I meant. Now my biggest problems–my stepmom, my dad’s expectations–are dwarfed in comparison to my new life. An alien with tentacles wants to make me his wife. Not just his wife–his queen. And if I give in to my body’s desires, I would also be giving up everything I’ve ever fought for. But he’s not the only one that wants me. There are his two bodyguards, both with broad shoulders, big muscles, and blazing eyes. They share everything, and I don’t know if that includes me. There’s the ship’s pilot, a human cyborg with skilled hands and a heart of gold. And of course, there’s the assassin chasing us across the galaxy, who seems to be everywhere at once. These men will kill me. Or they will drive me mad with pleasure. Until Earth seems just as alien as they are–and I have to decide where home actually is. Amazon KU

THE ALIEN’S BOSS (VIRGIN WARIRORS OF KAR’KAL BOOK 3) by Gemma Voss

The Kar’Kali lab team has been drawing some dangerous attention to the Piney Laboratory in what was once a sleepy Earth suburb. Jen Marsden, Head of Research, knows they need to beef up security, but she wasn’t prepared for the Alliance government to outfit her building with an entirely new military facility. When she realizes that the military presence will be focused on keeping the Kar’Kali warriors side-lined and Earth-bound, she finds herself trapped between the demands of her superiors and her personal loyalties to the aliens she’s grown to care for. Pakka has done his best to protect his team while performing his duties to the Kar’Kali people. But with no suppressor chips and no way of knowing what information the Alliance is hiding, Pakka’s starting to feel like he’s failing in his role as leader. To top it all off, the mating call has now come for him. With everything the Kar’Kali are facing, Pakka fears the mating frenzy will derail all his plans. But he does know precisely who his breeding mate would be— only the most fierce and intelligent female he knows.

Amazon KU

ALIEN ENSLAVED: REBELLION II: BATTLEGROUND EARTH by Kaitlyn O’Connor

Caught up in an intergalactic war, Enya wasn’t sure of what the trio of alien men had in mind when they grabbed her and hauled her aboard their ship. But she told them she was sure they didn’t want her for whatever it was they had in mind. The Commander, Bastin, assured her she was perfect for what they had in mind. Enya had no idea her entire life was about to be turned upside down when she heard the sounds of an aerial battle above her home. But Bastin, Rayn, and Loki were determined to prevent her from becoming collateral damage in the war they declared against the slave masters, the Shelloni.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

PASSIONATE OBSSESSION by D M Mortier

Ronin (Mac) – After tragically losing everyone in my life that meant everything to me, I had nothing left to live for. Alone, penniless, desperate, I didn’t care whether I lived or died. I allowed myself to be converted to a weapon even the most powerful country in the world couldn’t contain. For years, I roamed where I pleased, assisted where there was a worthy cause, and otherwise minded my own business. And then the same misguided ideology that created me crashed into my path again. This time I did care about life. This time I had someone to fight for, someone I would level the world to protect. Katia (Kat) – My entire life had been a struggle, a fight that I had finally begun to conquer. And then some drunk driver struck me down and left me to die, broken beyond modern medicine to repair. I think I did die that day, only to become a test subject for fanatical scientists…(more blurb on ebook seller page…) Amazon KU

SAVAGE SEED (WARRIORS OF THE OASIS) by Ivy Sparks

I’ve been in some tough situations before, but crash landing onto a desert planet crawling with sand beasts? Yeah, I’m as good as dead. But then Kade appears above the dunes. With his rippling muscles, long raven hair, and intricate tattoos, he should terrify me. Instead, he enthralls me. From the possessive look in his eyes, it seems the feelings are mutual. But the danger’s only just begun. Other native barbarians want a piece of me. And what Kade has to do to protect me from them… Well, let’s just say it involves taking off our clothes, among other things. Kade knows how to get me back to my people. But will his quest to avenge a terrible loss get in the way? And if returning home means leaving him behind, do I really want to go? Amazon KU

BRUTAL MATE (PLANET OF KINGS BOOK 1) by Lee Savino and Tabitha Black

One minute I’m walking back home from a nightclub. The next, I’m waking up in a cage. Abducted by aliens. Given to an alien race. Put up for auction. But instead of being sold to the highest bidder, I’m rescued by one of the Brutal Ones: the biggest, baddest bullies in the universe. But it’s not a rescue. Not really. My rescuer makes it clear he wants something in return for saving my life…… an Omega. Me. Amazon KU

ALIEN PRINCE ILIXI (WARRIORS OF KOLIAM BOOK 2) by Eden Ember and Starr Huntress

ILIXI – Yeah, I rebelled against my older brother and now I’m paying the price. Qor is right, we should not follow in our father’s footsteps. I won’t leave without her. She’s here because of me. And my twin hearts know it. I will do anything to save her even if she never finds out the truth. JARA – I’m pregnant by the AI and supposedly the seed of the long dead king. Unlike the other women, I can’t view this as my duty to Zorlox. They enslaved me. They forced this on me. But my heart loves the baby growing in my belly. I thought I’d be giving up my baby like all the others before me, that is until the palace brute kidnaps me. Maybe my fate is different than the others. Maybe, just maybe there’s something there, where I never thought possible. Amazon KU

PROTECTED BY THE ALIEN COMMANDER (PLANET YAZELL SURVIVAL BOOK 1) by Emerald Cox

My one giant step for mankind…ends in a crash landing. Go figure. Everyone else had something to celebrate, and I needed a pity party. So off we went. Three-day booze cruise to the moon. And down we hurtled. Onto an unknown planet…ultimate buzzkill. Until Doshax. A tall, blue, smooth drink of…
Now I feel intoxicated for an entirely different reason. But Doshax has a mission. He may risk his life to protect me But will our passion quench his thirst for revenge? Amazon KU

LHORA by Linda Mooney

The Coltrosstians and the Beinights have been enemies for as long as anyone can remember, but now they have a common enemy aiming for them both—the Tra’Mell. When approached by the Coltrosstian Sarpi to join forces against this new foe, the Beinights aren’t sure who to trust. They need the help, but at what cost? Furthermore, the Coltrosstians seem to have some secrets they’re not willing to share. Lhora is part of the guard for Esstika Kai, leader of the Beinights, and she has her own secrets to hide, like her torgart powers she’d inherited from her father, and the fact she’s due to take over as Esstika when her mother is no longer able. She never foresaw being captured and used as a bargaining chip, much less have an unexpected ally come to her rescue. Lhora soon learns that maybe the Coltrosstians have more in common with her kind than just being enemies, but can the rest of their people be convinced of that? One thing is certain—this new enemy must be stopped now. It’s time for the Tra’Mell to face the music. And when joining forces, Lhora discovers that love can conquer all.

Amazon Kobo

SURVIVORS by Amy Marsden

VS Note: Not a romance. I did one click it though – you know me and dystopian!

t’s Jennifer’s 24th birthday and she planned to spend it having fun with her friends. Instead, she ends up running for her life through the dark streets of London. Her world is torn apart by a new disease, the likes of which have never been seen before. The government’s decision to conceal its deadly nature exacerbates the panic, and in all the confusion Jennifer is bitten by an infected person. That’s it, right? Her life over. Wrong. Immune to the virus’s ravaging effects, Jennifer finds herself with a small group of survivors. Together they must fight to stay alive long enough for a cure to be found. Humanity won’t be beaten so easily. But madness looms large, and safety seems forever out of reach.

Amazon Kobo

DECEPTION ISLAND: JURASSIC JUDGMENT BOOK 2 by Janice Boekhoff

VS Note: Not a romance but seemed like a fun concept. Apparently a cliffhanger ending though…

Imprisoned on dinosaur-infested Costa Rica, Oakley Laveau is haunted by the desperate question of why her mother tried to kill her. When a dream hints at answers to her mysterious past, she’s determined to uncover the secrets of her manipulated DNA. Oakley boldly decides to flee and hunt down the truth at any price … even execution. Slipping away from the island with the help of a loyal friend, headstrong Oakley makes it to a floating research lab. But with the FBI in pursuit and a smug scientist plotting to exploit her, she may find her newfound freedom is deadlier than the cage she fled. Will Oakley’s determination to trace the clues of her past reveal a dangerous secret better left uncovered? Amazon KU

********************************************************************************************

NEVER SAY YOU CAN’T SURVIVE by Charlie Jane Anders

VS: Non fiction but of interest this week. I put it on my TBR.

From Charlie Jane Anders, the award-winning author of novels such as All the Birds in the Sky and The City in the Middle of the Night, this is one of the most practical guides to storytelling that you will ever read. The world is on fire. So tell your story. Things are scary right now. We’re all being swept along by a tidal wave of history, and it’s easy to feel helpless. But we’re not helpless: we have minds, and imaginations, and the ability to visualize other worlds and valiant struggles. And writing can be an act of resistance that reminds us that other futures and other ways of living are possible.
Full of memoir, personal anecdote, and insight about how to flourish during the present emergency, Never Say You Can’t Survive is the perfect manual for creativity in unprecedented times.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

**********************************************************************************************

DAWN UNEARTHED (RAVENWOOD COVEN BOOK 1) by Carrie Ann Ryan

The moment Sage Reed makes her way to Ravenwood, she knows the small town lives up to its mystical lore—even if she doesn’t believe that she’s a witch. After losing her husband, she’s ready for change, and her aunt’s bookstore affords the perfect opportunity. Rome Baker has secrets of his own—even some that he’s kept from the town he calls home. But when a striking and intriguing stranger saves his life the moment she steps into his path, his inner bear knows that she’s the one for him. However, with the town under fire, he worries he might run out of time before he can show her what they can have together. A new enemy is on the horizon, one who hides in the shadows, whose history is steeped in lies. And if Sage and Rome aren’t careful, Sage’s new powers won’t be the only thing that spirals into flame. Amazon KU

WITCHING FOR KISMET: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL (PREMONITION POINTE BOOK 6) by Deanna Chase

Carly Preston, a beloved Hollywood star, has lived her life in the spotlight. Most people believe her fifty years on earth has been charmed. She knows better. The tragedy that happened one night over thirty years ago, is never far from her thoughts, though she’s learned to let go. But when she receives a message from the past along with a visit from the one person who never wanted to see her again, suddenly it appears that everything that Carly thought about that night is a lie. With the help of Premonition Pointe’s coven, Carly is determined to right a wrong, and maybe find a future she never knew she wanted.

Amazon

A TERRIBLE FALL OF ANGELS (A DANIEL ZAVELOCK NOVEL BOOK 1) by Laurell K Hamilton

Meet Detective Zaniel Havelock, a man with the special ability to communicate directly with angels. A former trained Angel speaker, he devoted his life to serving both the celestial beings and his fellow humans with his gift, but a terrible betrayal compelled him to leave that life behind. Now he’s a cop who is still working on the side of angels. But where there are angels, there are also demons. There’s no question that there’s evil at work when he’s called in to examine the murder scene of a college student—but is it just the evil that one human being can do to another, or is it something more? When demonic possession is a possibility, even angelic protection can only go so far. The race is on to stop a killer before he finds his next victim, as Zaniel is forced to confront his own very personal demons, and the past he never truly left behind.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

AN ANIMATED MIDLIFE: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL (WITCHING AFTER FORTY BOOK 7) by Lia Davis and L A Boruff

Ava Harper’s resume keeps getting updated. It started with witch, then necromancer, author, bookstore clerk, vampire wrangler, and most recent, medium. Yes, you heard that right, she can talk to ghosts.New powers bring more responsibilities and things to add to the list of magic she needs to learn. Especially when Ava finds out her mother isn’t in a happy place. What else can she do but try to rescue her mother from the in-between place she’s been suffering all these years? That doesn’t mean it’ll be easy. She’s going to need the help of all of her team, from her ghoul Alfred to her mischievous cat, Mr. Snoozerton—and his new girlfriend. And Olivia, her best friend, of course. She might even have to call her son home from college for this level of magic. But Ava’s life wouldn’t be Ava’s life if things didn’t go a bit awry. Luci tries to help, but just infuriates all of them, as usual. Larry (the skeleton) is still hanging around, and he’s lost a finger bone, have you seen it?It might be a lot of hullabaloo, but Ava is determined to figure it out and bring her mother home. And Drew, the town sheriff and Ava’s boyfriend is at her side every step of the way and almost every waking hour and sometimes sleeping hour. Could the sheriff be plotting something of his own and try to tame the necromancer/witch hybrid? Amazon KU

WANNA BUY A HOWL (PARANORMAL DATING AGENCY BOOK 32) by Milly Taiden

Archeologist Skylar Grace needs an earth-shattering discovery to make her career or remain an unknown amongst her peers. Maybe the word “earth” is too confining. Skylar believes she scams Gerri Wilder into a trip to another planet, thinking she’ll ditch the man she’s supposed to meet. Not like Gerri can actually match her with the perfect man for her. Piece of cake, right? No, it’s really not. Tamor, Chief of the Seven Tribes, needs to figure out how to save his people from a slow death. He asks Gerri Wilder for help and she sends a beautiful and smart Skylar to his planet. Skylar’s very sassy and her skin’s so soft he can’t stop touching her. But then she tells him she’s there to dig for old things, leaving him completely disillusioned. When Skylar finds ancient cave drawings, she knows she’s looking at something important, but how is she supposed to decode an alien culture she knows nothing about? If she doesn’t, not only will the people who’ve accepted her as she is die, so will the one man she’s come to love. Amazon KU

KYLIAN (CIRCLE OF ASSASSINS BOOK 4) by Ann Gimpel

I’ve chased down every scrap of additional magic that crossed my path, drained it, and started the hunt anew. My obsession hasn’t made me much of a companion. I wouldn’t have blamed my bondmate for leaving, but the snow leopard has stuck by my side. It pains me to admit he’s my sole connection to my better nature. He tempers my penchant for blowing holes in the world and asking questions later. Not that he has a soft side. He doesn’t, but we’ve taken care of each other for all the years in my memory. Information just fell into my lap. Critical material I should have picked up on if I’d been paying attention. My next stop is Grigori, the werewolf who heads up a gang of paranormal assassins. Once I was part his Circle, but I left to sharpen my seer skills. No matter how adept I became, scrying the future—or the past—didn’t augment my power, so I moved on. Flitting from this to that to the other has been the story of my obscenely long life. No more. It’s back to the Circle for the leopard and me. We’ll remain as long as we’re needed.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

THE GHOST AND THE BIRTHDAY BOY (HAUNTING DANIELLE BOOK 28) by Bobbi Holmes and Anna J McIntire

Lily and Ian’s families come to Frederickport to celebrate Connor’s first Birthday. Bringing the in-laws together is not always easy, especially when uninvited guests from the spirit realm show up.

Amazon Kobo

LOVE AND LEGENDS: FANTASY ROMANCE COLLECTION INSPIRED BY BRITISH AND IRISH MYTHOLOGY by Various

Whether it’s haunted castles, witches, or hidden demons, there’s something for everyone within the pages of Love & Legends. If you dare discover the spooky goings-on of British Legends, one-click for your copy of this limited edition anthology.

Amazon Kobo

ASH AND CYNDER: A CINDERELLA RETELLING (THE KINGDOMS OF HARELLIA BOOK 1) by Kimbra Swain

VS Note: A re-release with new scenes added.

The Kingdom of Cyndercillfs is ruled by a tyrant king. Each year trials are held to appease the volcanic god on the mountain. Warrior women step into the arena for the chance to change their lives and win a pair of diamond slippers. A young woman, running from her hateful stepmother, steps into that arena. However, she didn’t know the dangers that she would face in the trials.
Ashtyn Greyson, daughter of a dead lord, discovers that her opponents are deadly and trained. But none of them are more frightening than King Philam. However, she finds support in the First Knight of the King, the Prince of the Kingdom, and a respected and wealthy Lord. She might survive the trials, but can she survive the king? And will the god, Cynder, approve of her? Ash and Cynder is a Cinderella retelling with a touch of deadly trials, an evil king, and a fierce warrior that emerges from an attic of a dead lord. Amazon KU

WHEN THE CAT’S AWAY (PET WHISPERER PI BOOK 13) by Various

VS Note: Not sure any of these are paranormal cozies but it’s a good set of authors and I love anthologies and cats so…

Join these vacationing sleuths as they trade their sunglasses for magnifying glasses in 11 new, never-before-read cozy mysteries. USA Today bestselling author Molly Fitz has gathered a fantastic group of emerging and established talent in the Cozy Mystery genre. Together, they are ready to present the ultimate bookworm staycation. And you’re invited…The best part? When you escape into the pages of these stories, kitty doesn’t have to stay at home. So snuggle up with your favorite furry friend to read this fun collection of travel cozies, each including a fabulous feline sidekick.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

A DRAGON’S TALE (DARK KINGS BOOK 22) by Donna Grant

VS Note: 3 novellas

WHISKY AND WISHES – Finally free of the dangers surrounding him and the burden of pining after his mate, the King of Dragon Kings is ready for some peace—time to enjoy the woman he loves without interruption. HEART OF GOLD –He’s loved her for eons, wanted her forever, and a day never passes without her at the forefront of his mind. OF FIRE AND FLAME – Three extraordinary beings, one tangled Fate.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

CHASING TAIL (FAIRY TALES THAT BITE BACK BOOK 3) by J B Trepagnier

A sad little mermaid trades her voice for legs to get a stupid human prince to fall in love with her. What a crock. That wasn’t how my story went at all. That’s not even how mermaids work. We can have legs whenever we want them. We just mostly choose not to because we dislike people who live on land. I never would have set foot there, but I needed to kill a druid king. Yeah, the little mermaid didn’t come on land to fall in love with a prince. She went there to kill a king. There are rules. Certain waters are off limits for the land dwellers. He came to my home in a large ship and killed several of my friends. The sea council might want to let that slide, but he killed my sister, so now I have to end him. Getting close enough to the king to kill him is going to be hard. He has three sons that could be my answer to living through this. They aren’t bad for druid royalty. Two of them are kindle and gentle. The other is a little mean in a way I can appreciate. Still, I don’t trust any druid. Out of all the supernatural creatures on land, they are the worst. A lot of their magic requires bits from living beings and their ethics on getting those aren’t exactly sound. I might like his sons, but this can’t go anywhere. Most people tend to balk at relationships when you kill their father. I won’t stop until it’s done. I owe it to my sister. Amazon KU

LIES OF MURK (BOUND TO THE FAE BOOK 7) by Eva Chase

Just when it seemed I’d overcome the biggest obstacles my fae mates and I could face, I find myself in the hands of their greatest enemies. Enemies who have more power than we ever imagined. Enemies who hold so much more sway over my life than I want to believe. I have to escape, and not just to warn the men I love and defend the home I’ve made with them. The longer I remain, the more these villains can use me to destroy everything I care about. If I fail now, the entire faerie world will crumble. I don’t know if I can do it alone—but where will I find an ally among the cruelest of the fae?

Amazon KU

KARMA’S SPIRIT: A PARANORMAL WOMEN’S FICTION NOVEL (MAGICAL MIDLIFE IN MYSTIC HOLLOW BOOK 3) by Lacey Carter Anderson, L A Boruff and Helen Scott

When I meet a psychic in Mystic Hollow, I’m skeptical. Even though, you know, I’ve accepted most of the supernatural world. But who could blame me when the psychic acts like a stereotype from a really corny show? Yet when our hands touch, everything changes. Suddenly, I’m seeing ghosts all over our little town. And when they realize I can see them, I become the karmic justice for far too many ghosts. Just another crazy day in my life though, right? Wrong. When one of the ghosts wants revenge against one of my witchy pals, I find myself trying to dive into the dark past of our town. Because this ghost is angry. And if I can’t figure out the truth in time, our little gang is in trouble.

Amazon KU

SPELLCASTER EMBRACED (SPELLBOUND SHIFTERS: FATES AND VISIONS BOOK 4) by Keira Blackwood and Liza Street

With my mates and my sister at my side, I thought I could do anything. Unfortunately, dark forces are proving that belief to be untrue. We’ve been through so much already, but when Geard’s people kidnap the sister of one of my mates, I’m left with difficult choices, and my powers aren’t giving me direction. I don’t want to run or hide anymore, so we’re taking the fight to our enemy’s doorstep. The only way to find peace and stop looking over my shoulder is to end this threat once and for all. If my mates and I are going to get our chance at happiness, either my enemy has to die, or I do. I won’t let it be me.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HER BANANA BEARS by Skye MacKinnon

VS Note: Erotica.

Bananas are extinct. Or so they thought. When a lone banana is swept onto the shore of Bear Island, Isla knows exactly what she’s going to do with it. She’s heard stories of this mythical fruit, of how long and hard and curved they are. How sweet. How thick. How juicy. Of course, her four hunky bear shifters won’t let her play with her banana. Torn apart by jealousy, they challenge the curvy yellow rod to a daring duel that will see the longest fruit win. Who will Isla get to taste in the end?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

OF FAIRYTALES AND MAGIC (OF GOBLIN KINGS BOOK 5) by Emma Hamm

To become a Queen, Freya has to give up everything….There’s only one way to become an immortal, and that is to take up the mantle of everything that she is not. To become fae. To lead a court. To become the Autumn Thief herself. But Freya’s life isn’t that easy to change. She is thrust into a series of trials held by old gods who have seen a thousand years pass. She must impress them, or suffer the consequences. With the Goblin King at her side, Freya must give up everything to become something wholly new. An Autumn Thief. Amazon KU

BLOOD TIDE: LTD ED VAMPIRE PIRATES ANTHOLOGY by Various

They set sail under cover of darkness and prowl through the night to stalk their prey, taking what they most desire. This collection of vampire pirate stories by New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling authors includes alpha heroes, complex anti-heroes, and evil villains in adventurous, swashbuckling tales of paranormal romance, urban fantasy, science fiction romance, and high fantasy. Join these lawless, bloodsucking vampirates as they pillage and plunder for ill-gotten gains!
Whether they’re on the high seas, in space, or on land, these vampire pirates will take your blood and steal your heart.

Amazon Kobo

DAMAGED WOLF’S HEROIC MATE (LUMBERJACK WOLVES) by Serena Meadows

I had just returned home to my clan of wolf shifters, and the first thing that happened to me was insane. The most beautiful woman I’d ever seen almost ran me over with her car. A woman who was completely forbidden. But when Tabitha told me her story, I had to stick around. I felt the need to protect her… to stay close. She was in danger, and she was also naïve. I couldn’t tell her the truth about me. About my identity. But I would have to shift to be able to protect her. Being with her was wrong… it wasn’t permitted. And I didn’t care if I wasn’t allowed to have children. Saving my clan was priority but saving Tabitha… and our unborn baby was the most important. But what would happen when she found out who I was? And when the clan found out that I was breaking every rule in the book? Amazon KU

WHEN HELL FREEZES OVER (SIN DEMONS BOOK 5) by Mila Young and Harper A Brooks

Vampire gangs, Lucifer rising, hellhounds on the loose, and an unruly shadow creature hell-bent on taking control… And no, that’s not the beginning of a bad joke. It’s a nightmare. And it’s my life. To get to Hell and stop the coming war, we need to find the last three relics and open the gates. But the greatest threat isn’t Lucifer. It’s the creature who shares my soul. Hell will freeze over before my demons let me go, but with Sayah’s powers and influence growing, I’m not sure anyone can stop my greatest fear from coming true. I’m losing myself to the darkness. And scariest of all… I like it.

Amazon KU

REQUIEM OF SILENCE (EARTHSINGER CHRONICLES BOOK 4) by L Penelope

Civil unrest plagues the nation of Elsira as refugees from their old enemy, Lagrimar, seek new lives in their land. Queen Jasminda is determined to push the unification forward, against growing opposition and economic strife. But the True Father is not finished with Elsira and he may not be acting alone. He has built a powerful army. An army that cannot be killed. An army that can only be stopped by Nethersong and the help of friends and foes of Elsira alike to stop it. Former assassin Kyara will discover that she is not the only Nethersinger. She will need to join the others to harness a power that can save or end Elsira. But time is of the essence and they may not be ready by the time the True Father strikes. Sisterhood novitiate Zeli will go to the reaches of the Living World to unlock a secret that could save the kingdoms. When armies meet in the battlefield, a new world will be forged–whether by the hands of gods or men, remains to be seen.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

A CHASE OF ILLUMINATION (BAKERY WITCH MYSTERY SERIES BOOK 5) by Constance Barker

When a witch ends up dead at her place of business, the accusations fly. Could a disgruntled employee and fellow witch have had enough of the sour grapes? Or was the vagrant in the back alley tired of having the cops called on him constantly? And what is wrong with the deceased’s husband? He seems spacey and out of sorts. Is it the tragedy of the murder, or is it guilt? Sophie is on the rampage and she has Ben in her sights. Can Cora convince her that a past terrible wrong can somehow be righted, or is it too late? Will Sophie fulfill the prophesy the ancient witches predicted would occur? Amazon KU

THE BLOOD BOSS (BLACK VEIL SERIES BOOK 1) by Davidson King

Vampires, mermaids, and witches…oh, my! Black Veil is full of them all, but at the end of the day, it’s The Blood Boss who has the last word. Ever since The Final War, Vampires rule Black Veil, and with The Blood Boss in charge, peace reigns. Keeping the vampires under control is a task Cain takes seriously. Humans have accepted his rule, and anyone who seeks to destroy his territory is given swift punishment. His promise to keep Black Veil safe comes with great sacrifice and selflessness; never does he dare hope for more in life. Until one day, a man walks through his front door and changes everything. Jayce has a happy life. His adopted parents love him, he wants for very little, and he lives every day to the fullest. But when a normal evening turns into a nightmare, and Jayce is forced to come face-to-face with The Blood Boss, the world as he knows it feels like a lie. Then a great secret is revealed, and nothing is what it seems. Cain and Jayce must work together to stop the forces uniting against the vampires. Life and love are in jeopardy as they fight those who seek to destroy them. Can Cain and Jayce keep Black Veil from crumbling into the sea when every attempt to do so seems impossible? Amazon KU

DREAMS OF THE NECROMANCER (MOMENTO MORI BOOK 2) by Kathryn Ann Kingsley

Marguerite went in search of answers. The ones she found led her to only more questions…and down a very dangerous path. Doctor Gideon Raithe claims that she has every right to hate him, and yet all she feels is drawn to him. The Ordo ut Solis, a secret order of holy warriors against the dark creatures of the world, wants her help to contain him. Two warring sides want her help, but she can’t trust either of them. Hell, she can’t even trust her own memories. But if she wants to get to the bottom of what’s happening, she’ll have to choose. Even if it means disaster. Amazon KU

GHOSTS OF NEW ENGLAND: SKULLERY BAY by Various

An anthology unlike any other…4 Different Centuries – 4 To-Die-For Romances – The Same 2 Ghosts!…more details on ebook seller page…)

Amazon Kobo

CAZADORA (WOLVES OF NO WORLD BOOK 2) by Romina Garber

Werewolves. Witches. Romance. Resistance. Enter a world straight out of Argentine folklore…Following the events of Lobizona, Manu and her friends cross the mystical border into Kerana—a cursed realm in Argentina—searching for allies and a hiding place. As they chase down leads about the Coven—a mythical resistance manada that might not even exist—the Cazadores chase down leads about Manu, setting up traps to capture and arrest her. Just as it seems the Cazadores have Manu and her friends cornered, the Coven answers their call for help. As Manu catches her breath among these non-conforming Septimus, she discovers they need a revolution as much as she does. But is she the right one to lead them? After all, hybrids aren’t just outlawed. They’re feared and reviled. What happens when the Coven learns of Manu’s dual heritage? Will they still protect her? Or will they betray her? And after running this far, for this long—how much farther can Manu go before her feet get tired, and she stops to take a stand?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

A SPARK OF PROMISE (FIRES OF THE FAE SERIES 2) by Erin O’Kane

Liberated from the Master’s castle, Annalise is finally free. At least that’s what she keeps being told. Fabien, one of the rebels, saved her. However, does she really know the kind fae who wears many faces. Has she just gone from one form of capture to another? Having left behind her mate that she never wanted, she tries to adapt to this new life. Only she can’t seem to get him out of her mind. Trying to keep busy, she begins to learn to use her power, refusing to ever be weak again. When fae start disappearing across the land, rumours of a great evil start to circulate. All eyes turn to Annalise as the true promessa, the Chosen One. Finally learning to embrace her powers, she’s the spark of promise the rebels so desperately need. Only the role of the promessa is so much more than she understands it to be, and ultimately could cost her life. Amazon KU

WILDWOOD WHISPERS by Willa Reece

At the age of eleven, Mel Smith’s life found its purpose when she met Sarah Ross. Ten years later, Sarah’s sudden death threatens to break her. To fulfill a final promise to her best friend, Mel travels to an idyllic small town nestled in the Appalachian Mountains. Yet Morgan’s Gap is more than a land of morning mists and deep forest shadows. There are secrets that call to Mel, in the gaze of the gnarled and knowing woman everyone calls Granny, in a salvaged remedy book filled with the magic of simple mountain traditions, and in the connection she feels to the Ross homestead and the wilderness around it. With every taste of sweet honey and tart blackberries, the wildwood twines further into Mel’s broken heart. But a threat lingers in the woods—one that may have something to do with Sarah’s untimely death and that has now set its sight on Mel. The wildwood is whispering. It has secrets to reveal—if you’re willing to listen.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

A DANCE WITH THE FAE PRINCE (MARRIED TO MAGIC) by Elise Kova

She knew her hand in marriage would be sold. She had no idea a fae prince was the buyer. Katria swore she’d never fall in love. She’s seen what “love” means through the cruelty of her family. So when she’s married off to the mysterious Lord Fenwood for a handsome price, all Katria wants is a better life than the one she’s leaving. Feelings are off the table. But her new husband makes not falling in love difficult. As their attraction begins to grow, so too do the oddities within her new life: strange rules, screams in the night, and attacks by fae that Katria never thought were real. When she witnesses a ritual not meant for human eyes, Katria finds herself spirited away to the land of Midscape. Surviving the fae wilds as a human is hard enough. Katria must survive as a human who accidently pilfered the magic of ancient kings – magic a bloodthirsty king is ready to kill her for in order to keep his stolen throne – and her new husband is the rightful heir in hiding. The power to save the fae is in her hands. But who will save her from a love she vowed never to feel? Amazon KU

REDEMPTOR (RAYBEARER BOOK 2) by Jordan Ifueko

For the first time, an Empress Redemptor sits on Aritsar’s throne. To appease the sinister spirits of the dead, Tarisai must now anoint a council of her own, coming into her full power as a Raybearer. She must then descend into the Underworld, a sacrifice to end all future atrocities. Tarisai is determined to survive. Or at least, that’s what she tells her increasingly distant circle of friends. Months into her shaky reign as empress, child spirits haunt her, demanding that she pay for past sins of the empire.
With the lives of her loved ones on the line, assassination attempts from unknown quarters, and a handsome new stranger she can’t quite trust . . . Tarisai fears the pressure may consume her. But in this finale to the Raybearer duology, Tarisai must learn whether to die for justice . . . or to live for it.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

THE TRAITOR (FIRE’S EDGE BOOK 6) by Abigail Owen

Decades ago, rogue dragon shifter Rune Abaddon took a stand against the decaying, corrupt systems governing their people. He now uses his bad-ass reputation to protect the innocent as it all comes crashing down. But he’s pushed the limits one too many times. His hideout is destroyed, his few allies are scattered and hiding, and the Alliance has placed a dead-or-alive bounty on his head, making him the most wanted dragon in the western hemisphere. And then the most enticing woman he’s ever met barges into his mountain, demanding an audience. Hadyn Reece’s future was ripped away long ago. The man fated to be her mate was murdered alongside her parents before Hadyn was old enough to be turned, leaving her to be raised and trained by her dead mate’s parents in the dragon shifter world. Now, the Alliance has come for the only family she has left. It’s a good thing she was raised by dragons, because the only one who can help her save them is a traitor she’d be smart to fear. Especially when his dragon decides she’s theirs.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

PSYNC (ENCXHANTED UNIVERSITY BOOK 1) by Zile Elliven

VS Note: From July 25

Touch. It’s what most of us crave. A source of comfort, companionship, and desire. For Eli, it’s a source of terror. Branded by the trauma of his past, Eli is struggling in his freshman year of college. He might be afraid of just about everything, but in his heart of hearts, he’s nobody’s bitch. Yet it’s at his lowest point, that he first hears it. Him The voice. Wet feet, a frozen ass – this guy likes to complain, but why would Eli care about any of that, when he’s got his own problems? The bigger question is what, or rather who, the voice is. Afraid it’s a sign of his fragile psyche’s demise, Eli is torn between hunting down the source to prove it’s real, and ignoring it in case it isn’t. His eventual quest will see him grappling with geese, battling burritos, and dodging deities – all in the search for his sanity. And maybe, just maybe, finding love. Amazon KU

MAGICAL DECISIONS (MAGICAL SLEUTH MYSTERY BOOK 2) by J A Whiting and May Stenmark

Two years ago, forty-two-year-old Mackie Fleming lost her husband and a month ago, she lost her job. In the middle of it all, something terrible happens to one of her close friends. Now in a life she never planned for, Mackie decides to take control, learn about her magical skills, and maybe even, make a career change by becoming a private detective. Will the neighborhood crime force her to face the future and make some decisions that will change her life for the better? Amazon KU

THAT TIME I GOT DRUNK AND SAVED A DEMON (MEAD MISHAPS BOOK 1) by Kimberly Lemming

All I wanted to do was live my life in peace. Maybe get a cat, expand my spice farm. Really anything that doesn’t involve going on a quest where an orc might rip my face off. But they say the Goddess has favorites. If so, I’m clearly not one of them. After saving the demon Fallon in a wine-drunk stupor, all he wanted to do was kill an evil witch enslaving his people. I mean, I get it, don’t get me wrong. But he’s dragging me along for the ride, and I’m kind of peeved about it. On the bright side, he keeps burning off his shirt. Amazon KU

HERS TO CLAIM: F/F SHIFTER PARANORMAL ROMANCE (THE NIGHTSTAR SHIFTERS BOOK 4) by Ariel Marie

A stubborn wolf. A curvy bear. A Sizzling attraction neither of them could ignore. Mindi Martin wasn’t thinking of settling down. Something was in the water in Howling Valley, driving everyone to find their mates. She was determined to dodge that bullet, but then she met gorgeous, curvy bear shifter, Echo Norden. And her wolf made plans of her own—claim Echo. Echo was convinced she’d never find her mate. In all of her years, she hadn’t met anyone worthy of her bear’s affection. Her beast was headstrong and wanted a mate who was her equal. One scent of a beautiful wolf shifter and Echo knew one thing. She’d found her mate. Two problems were standing in her way. Her clan did not approve of Mindi as a suitable mate, and she was betrothed to another. The call to mate was overpowering the two women. Nothing was going to stand in their way of what fate had in store for them. Together they would face anyone who would dare try to keep them apart. Amazon KU

FERAL BREED (WOLVES OF CHAOS COUNTRY) by Nikki Landis

Tess: Humans and werewolves don’t mix. We don’t share drinks at the bar, shop at the same stores, or even live in the same part of town. There’s no trust, just decades of superstition and haunting rumors of a dark night only spoken about in hushed whispers. I know what everyone fears. After all, my shop is located in the center of the city. When people want natural and herbal remedies, they come to me. My family has helped the people of Morningstar for generations. I hate the shifters as much as they do. When the handsome alpha breaks into my shop and hurls accusations, I’m determined to set him straight . . . until all hell breaks loose. Quinn: I’m the Alpha. It’s my responsibility to ensure my clan is protected from the humans. Four packs that rely on the Hogan brothers to keep their secrets and families safe. Years of mistrust, lies, and carnage have placed a wedge between my kind and the humans. Just when I have it all under control a new threat emerges.
It’s not just my people that are in danger. To top it off, the need for a mate surges in my blood as the Chaos approaches. I had it all figured out until I recognized a new and tantalizing scent and the female it belongs to: A human with a special gift, a sexy smile, and an aura that calls to me in a way I can’t seem to resist. Amazon KU

HOLLOW’S SUNRISE (SHIFTERS OF STARFALL CREEK BOOK 1) by Quell T Fox and Ariel Dawn

I was born to be alpha. They were born to be mine. Jade Hollow wants more. More than a life as an Alpha’s female. More than spending forever in Starfall Creek. She wants to rule the pack. Reverie Jacob’s life is as normal as it gets… until he witnesses something he shouldn’t and finds himself in the middle of his wildest dreams. His friend is a wolf… The hottest girl he’s ever seen seems to be into him… Two very unimaginable, but real things. Dustin Blackridge has been waiting his whole life to be the Alpha of the Hollow Pack—after all, he’s been in love with Jade since they were kids. Nothing and no one will stop him from getting what he wants. When a pain in the ass human shows up on Hollow’s ground and threatens to ruin everything, Dustin needs to handle it. And quickly. Dustin must decide where his loyalties lie… with Jade or with his pack. Will unexpected love get in the way of what they want? Amazon KU

BROKEN BY MAGIC (DRAGON GATE BOOK 3) by Lindsay Buroker

Even before our heroes discovered a portal to other realms, Jak Freedar wanted to seek out powerful allies to help overthrow the tyrannical wizard rulers of his home world. Instead, he chanced across a dragon egg and is now the surrogate father of a hatchling. Since he found the egg, taking care of the young dragon is his responsibility. Even as King Uthari forces the team to prepare for another mission, Jak must do his best not only to care for the hatchling but to keep it safe from those who want to use it for their own gain. As he soon learns, it’s not only the wizards of his own world who would love to control a dragon. It turns out that powerful enemies in other realms want a hatchling too. And they’re willing to kill for it. Amazon KU

JUST IN TIME by Jenn Romano

Best friends Ana and Cara are on a tour of Brodie Castle in Scotland when they are unceremoniously thrust back in time to the year 1292. Forced to work in the medieval castle to survive, they encounter an ages-old legend, a murder plot, and two handsome highlanders who keep them on their toes. Perhaps even sweep them off their feet. Amazon KU

THE ENDLESS SKIES by Shannon Price

High above the sea, floats the pristine city of the Heliana. Home to winged-lion shapeshifters—the Leonodai—and protected from the world of humans by an elite group of warriors, the Heliana has only known peace. After years of brutal training, seventeen-year-old Rowan is ready to prove her loyalty to the city and her people to become one of the Leonodai warriors. But before Rowan can take the oath, a deadly disease strikes the city’s children. Soon the warriors—including two of Rowan’s closest friends—are sent on a dangerous mission to find a fabled panacea deep within enemy lands. Left behind, Rowan learns a devastating truth that could compromise the mission and the fate of the Heliana itself. She must make a decision: stay with the city and become a warrior like she always dreamed, or risk her future in an attempt to save everyone she loves. Whatever Rowan decides, she has to do it fast, because time is running out, and peace can only last so long.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

DEMON DEBACLE (WITCHES OF ABADDON’S GATE BOOK 2) by Tegan Maher

Sometimes all a witch wants to do is stay in, make some pimple-clearing potions, and watch some TV. Is that really too much to ask? Though Mila Maganti prefers running her fun little potions and lotions shop, somebody’s gotta slay the bad guys when nobody’s looking. When a warlock runs past her shop knocking over carts, pushing little old witches down in the street, and wreaking havoc on general, she writes it off to another weird day in Abaddon’s Gate. When one of her regulars falls under the same spell, she realizes something is afoot in her small but mysterious town. Can Mila capture the mischief demon before somebody gets hurt? Amazon KU

RITES AND KNIGHTS (AMETHYST’S WAND SHOP MYSTERIES BOOK 3) by Laura Greenwood and Arizona Tape

VS Note: From July 22.

With Ambrose as a murder suspect, the clock is ticking to prove he’s innocent and to find the real killer. The bodies are mounting up, and with Ambrose suspended, it’s up to Amy to uncover the truth behind a series of murders that make her favourite detective look really guilty. Can Amy and the Paranormal Police Department discover who could be doing this to Ambrose before he’s charged with a crime he didn’t commit?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

AN ORIGIN TAIL (VAMPIRE DETECTIVE BOOK 4) by Arizona Tape and Laura Greenwood

Lucy Corentine, Vampire Detective, is content that all the mysteries in her personal life are solved. Except one. Where did the blind cat delivered to her doorstep come from? A clue left in the box Jester came in leads her to one of her Grandmother’s old friends, and on the search for a secret room. Can Lucy find the answers she’s looking for, or will she end up sending Jester back where he came from? An Origin Tail is a happy-ever-after companion story to the Vampire Detective series and is set approximately a year after the events of Fangs For All. It contains minor spoilers for the series, but can be read on its own.

Amazon Kobo

SIREN’S HUNT (ROYAL STORM OF ATLANTIS BOOK 12) by Sedona Ashe

Thanks to a protective spell gone wrong, I am what the world calls a ‘siren’. Yep, you heard me right. I’m a siren. The lost princess of Atlantis. During the horrific battle between light and darkness, as Atlantis sank beneath the waves, I was caught in some crazy magic that changed my body and put me down for a really long nap. The humans, still greedy as ever, woke me up when they stumbled on an energy source near the heart of my home. I battled alongside my Atlantean brothers and sisters as evil spread like a plague from city to city. We fought bravely, but in the end, I lost everything. I have nothing left to lose. That same darkness has continued to take over the world while I slept. My mission is to cleanse the world of evil, so I need to get busy. It is easy to find the men with blackened hearts and drag them to their watery graves beneath the sea. But it isn’t long before the disappearances are noticed, and I go from hunter to hunted.Cleansing the world of evil takes a lot out of a siren. So, when the three good-hearted men cross my path, I’m ready to make them bad. I just need to figure out how things work with my new anatomy. Amazon KU

SHADOW PROPHET (SCYTHE GROVE ACADEMY BOOK 2) by Laura Greenwood

I’ve never known who I am or where I came from, and now that’s going to change. The Shadow Association want me back under their control, and I’m sure their hold over me has something to do with my parents. Between trying to discover my past, staying out of the Association’s clutches, and keeping up with my reaper studies, I have my hands full. But I’m determined to achieve everything I need to. I’m going to find out who I am, no matter how long it takes.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

BITE OF THE OATH (THE BLACK FAN BOOK 3) by Laura Greenwood

When her brother’s best friend asks her to pretend to be his fiancée, Bindi says yes, even though she knows she shouldn’t. Pretending to be madly in love with Julian is easy for her. Perhaps too easy, and she finds herself falling for the charming vampire for real. Can they continue their charade without losing their hearts?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HUNTSMAN (HOUSE OF MISFITS BOOK 3): A UNIQUE MODERN RE-TELLING OF RAPUNZEL by Cambria Hebert

Once upon a time…A boy is sired with poison in his veins. He cannot outrun the venom in his blood, so he escapes from those who put it there. Secreting away his darkest tendencies, he grows to become a friend, brother, bartender…Huntsman. A man who becomes exactly what he ran from, a villain of his own making. A villain who falls in love with the one woman he is told to steer clear of.
Enchanted by a girl with hair as brilliant as the sun and innocence as potent as his corruption.
A girl locked away in a tower and told she will never walk again. This boy doesn’t want to be the villain in her story. For once, he desires to be a hero. Regrettably, his past creeps in like thick, winding fog, reaching wickedly for the one he loves the most. A hero is no match for the rotten tree from which he fell. Once a huntsman, always a huntsman. Poisoning guaranteed. *Huntsman is book 3 in the House of Misfits series. It is recommended that you read Ivory White (House of Misfits #1) before reading Huntsman* Amazon KU

PRIDE (THE DEADLY SEVEN BOOK 8) by Lana Percherczyk

There are many words to describe Parker Lazarus. Some call him stubborn. Some call him impossible. Some call him a liar. He doesn’t care what anyone calls him, as long as he fulfills his destiny to rid the world of the fanatical Syndicate and leads his family to victory. Of his seven siblings, six have found their lifemate. But it should have been him first. He battles the deadly sin of pride, and he accepts no failure. Especially his own. When Parker finds out his mate has been under his nose for years, an assassin masquerading as his assistant, his controlled world is thrown into chaos. Not only does he lose his arm because of his unwillingness to accept this truth, but he loses himself when she challenges him in ways he’d never thought possible. How did this woman slip past his defenses? How does she continue to defy him at every turn? Why does he risk everything – even his secret identity – to keep her safe? Pride becomes more than another word to describe him. It becomes his downfall. And if he can’t learn to open himself up to failure, and to trust the help of loved ones, then his pride will pave the road to destruction. Not just for the Syndicate, but for all mankind.

Amazon KU

THE FOG OF WAR by A L Lester

VS Note: LGBTQ Time travel

The quiet village of Bradfield should offer Dr Sylvia Marks the refuge she seeks when she returns home from her time in a field hospital in France in 1918. However, she is still haunted by the disappearance of her lover, ambulance driver Anna Masters, two years previously. Settling back in as the village doctor alone in her large family house is more difficult than she realised it would be after the excitement of front-line medicine. Then curious events at a local farm, mysterious lights, and a hallucinating patient’s strange illness make her revisit her assessment of Anna’s death on the battlefield. Lucille Hall-Bridges is at a loose end now her nursing work is finished. Her Mama and Papa are perfectly happy for her to pursue any or no career or social round; but she felt useful as a nurse and now she really doesn’t know what to do with her life. She hopes going to stay with her friend Sylvia for a while will help her find a way forward. And if that involves staying at Bradfield with Sylvia … then that’s fine with her. But Sylvia is still focused on finding out what happened to her very good friend Anna three years ago; and the unbelievable events at a local farm over the course of the last year don’t seem to have helped her let that go. Will the arrival of Lucy in Bradfield be the catalyst that allows both women to put their wartime stresses to rest? Can Sylvia move on from her love affair with Anna and find happiness again with Lucy, or is she still too entwined in the unresolved endings of the past?

Amazon Kobo

ALPHA’S OMEGA (THE RENEGADE ALPHA PACK BOOK 1) by Carol Dawn

My name is Cora, and I’m an Omega. Being an omega in a world of alphas is scary. Especially in my father’s pack where they think an omega is only good for one thing. Breeding. The alphas in the pack sit back and watch me with hunger-filled eyes as they wait for my first heat to hit. Once it does, my life, or what little life I’m allowed to have, is over. But, when my brother decides to take me and leave, we land ourselves in with a group of renegade alphas. So, here I am, an omega about to go into heat, surrounded by alphas. One of which claims that I am his mate. Too bad omegas don’t have mates. Noah: I’m Alpha of the alphas. We call ourselves, The Renegade Alpha pack. We’re a group of outcast alphas that don’t fit in with other packs. We’re a small pack of four but so many alphas together isn’t always a good thing. Fights happen more often than not over the smallest things.
To make my job even more difficult, a couple of my pack members found an alpha and his omega sister on the run. Now, they’re staying with us. An omega, surrounded by unmated alphas. To make matters worse, the omega is my mate, but she refuses to accept the truth of it. It turns out that having an omega in the pack is far riskier than I originally thought. But, I don’t care what I have to do, who I have to kill, no one will harm a single hair on my mate’s head. Amazon KU

THE WITCH’S JOURNEY (THE WITCHS OF TIME BOOK 3) by Leigh Ann Edwards

Modern-day Bostonian, Angelique Kavanaugh was born in Ireland but mysteriously adopted. Unaware of her parentage, she’s always had unusual, witch-like abilities. Hopelessly unlucky in love, she jokingly casts a spell during a magical Samhain full moon hoping to conjure Mr. Perfect—tall, strong, attentive, chivalrous…and smoldering hot. Faolan Mahoney, a notorious eighteenth century Irish privateer, is abruptly hurtled forward 250 years into the future. While the beautiful, alluring auburn-haired witch responsible undoubtedly saves his life, she also irreparably changes it…and him. Angelique’s all contradictions––gentle and amiable one moment and a wild force that challenges him the next. Instinctively, he wants to protect and cherish her. Fully aware he’s to be sent back under the next full moon, Angelique and Faolan attempt to fight their fierce attraction. Their farewell is delayed when they must travel through time to complete dangerous, challenging tasks. After learning there are many intent on keeping them apart, staying together suddenly seems all that matters.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

SHADOW IN THE BACKWATER (ACADEMY OF NECESSARY MAGIC BOOK 7) by Martha Carr and Michael Anderle

Senior year has started at the Academy of Necessary Magic. One long summer in the swamps and Amanda is ready to get back. Not only does she have a job with the Coalition but newfound independence with independent study. Look out world. Idle hands make for a devil’s playground… especially when a boy is involved. When Amanda’s ghost-wolf acts up and leads her straight to Matt Hardy practicing magic on school grounds, she proves herself wrong one more time. A boy like Matt shouldn’t be able to use that kind of magic. She should know—they’re both shifters, after all. Except the new boy’s something else too, and he just won’t leave her alone. How in the world is our shifter girl supposed to juggle senior year, a complicated shifter relationship, an oddly jealous best friend, and a serious emergency threat to an entire continent? All in a day’s work for a teenage monster hunter, right? Amazon KU

LOGAN: CHOSEN CHAMPIONS BOOK ONE by Macy Blake

Logan Moore is a leader without a pack…And after the rejection he faced from his last pack, he’s not sure he wants one. But when a mysterious benefactor he nicknames The Oracle offers Logan the chance to use his military expertise to lead a group of misfit shifters to protect the creatures of the magical realm, Logan’s wolf won’t allow him to say no. Bailey Cairn is a man without a protector…And for the entirety of his very human life, he hasn’t needed one. But when his friend is attacked at a bar, sweet, caretaker Bailey is drawn into a world he hadn’t known existed. A world full of secrets, and magic. A world full of danger… and gorgeous, protective Logan. But if Bailey and Logan want to break the chains of the past, they’ll have to learn to trust each other and themselves, and start to believe in things that are bigger than they are…That magic exists. That packs are about more than blood ties. That sometimes true love is a matter of fate. And that heroes aren’t made…they’re Chosen. Amazon KU

DRAGON HEAT (AIR DRAGONS BOOK 1) by Charlene Hartnady

Azure has resigned herself – just like many of the infertile dragon females – to being single forever. She’s okay with that. She does not need a male. There are many things that fulfill her. Things that she is passionate about; like her job as a hunter. What could be more important than feeding the tribe? Nothing! If she wants to rut, she can have her pick of the males – just as long as she doesn’t expect any of them to stay. They all want to settle with human females. Humans who can give them offspring…and give the tribe a future. It makes perfect sense to her. She’s okay with it. Her feelings change when she comes into heat for the first time. Why now? Why her? Instantly, every unmated male in her tribe comes sniffing. They all want her. They want to mate her and to get her with child. All. Of. Them. Anger infuses every last cell of her body. An anger she never knew she felt. Snubbed for years and now they want her. Now they see her. They can all go straight to hell! Her king has other plans. The tribe needs offspring. They need female young, which is something the humans cannot provide. He instructs her to choose a male…any male, and to do so right away. She doesn’t have long. Thunder wants her impregnated before the end of her heat cycle. Amazon KU

A SCHEME OF SORCERY by Ennis Rook Bashe

Palace squire Edwynne Dovecote has discovered her life is a lie. She wasn’t born into the nobility- she’s a daughter of the North, an inhospitable country where people worship a mysterious goddess. Even if it puts her at odds with her adopted family, she’s determined to explore her heritage, as long as no one finds out who she truly is. But Sariva al-Beroth, an ambitious Northern girl who’s started working for the queen, is sick of rude outsiders gawking at her culture. She refuses to be in the same room as Edwynne, let alone share ancestral secrets. Then the queen falls under a curse, and only Sariva and Edwynne can rescue her. To save their country, they’ll have to survive a ruined underground castle infested with ghosts, a fascist uprising prepared to sway public opinion with mind-control magic… and each other.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

BIOLOGICAL IMPERATIVE (ALEKA CHRONICLES BOOK 3) by M A Freeman

Ursula Hofwyn is a botanist more comfortable around plants than people. So nothing makes her happier than to be in the middle of the woods collecting samples. As a bonus, Ursula’s current assignment has taken her into the vicinity of the most intriguing man she has ever met. But all is not well on the mountain. Predators are stalking her — predators who want to discover just how different she is. Royce Stockard is content hibernating on his mountain away from the stares and judgment of others. Never mind he’s alone and lonely. The only woman to truly pique his interest is the one woman who should be off-limits. Yet, when he finds her on his mountain within his territory, all bets are off. But others are hunting for her, and Royce will have to choose what’s more important — maintaining his lonely existence to keep a secret or saving the woman he loves.

Amazon Kobo

SOFT KITTY (DENALI PACK EXILES BOOK 3) by Tielle St Clare

This kitty needed to be petted. Hard. A little too much domestic bliss around the Pack is making Knox’s nerves tingle. If he had his choice, he’d escape to the city for a few nights of hot, sexy fun, but after the recent attacks, Knox knows he can’t leave. He needs to stay and protect the others—the happily mated pairs. Ugh. That doesn’t stop the intense urges inside him. He needs a fight or a f—
Well, you get the idea. Enter Gideon – He could give Knox both his desires—a fight and a f—
Well, you know what he means. But Gideon’s not here for sex and he’s certainly not here to get mixed up in inter-Pack politics. Bears are solitary creatures. They don’t get involved and they certainly don’t take mates. Ever. Well, okay, sometimes, but rarely ever. It’s just while the rest of the Pack is living in Happy Ever After world, Knox and Gideon have to keep up their defenses. There is not time for, well, you know.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

WOLF CHARMER (REJECTED MATE REFUGE TRILOGY BOOK 2) by Lola Glass

After killing my mate to keep myself and my sister alive, I’m left picking up the pieces of my life as well as trying to deal with new problems. When two of my rabid wolves run off, my old alpha threatens to hunt them down if I don’t find them. That sends me and the other rejects into overdrive as we work to retrieve the other wolves in time to prevent their deaths. Meanwhile, the memories of my torture continue to haunt me and Ginger, messing with our lives and the people around us. Knox is watching out for us too, but he’s got problems of his own to deal with. I hoped my life would be smooth-sailing after I escaped the cages, but things are only getting more complicated. I’ve got to figure out how to juggle everything in my life… or my gift and my past might just overwhelm me for good. Amazon KU

THE DEMON’S IN THE DETAILS by Meghan Maslow

Can a sexy demon really spin straw into gold? Poe Dupin, raven shifter and thief extraordinaire, is in trouble with a capital ‘T.’ Not only did he get his wing caught in the cookie jar during his latest heist, but his loser stepdad, the alpha, seems determined to run their roost into the ground. And Baltimore is many things, but forgiving is not on the list. When his stepdad puts the roost in peril, Poe sees no choice but to bargain with Charm City’s only demon, Tommy Tittoti. Rumors are that Tommy eats the souls of those foolish enough to try. Three strikes and you’re out. But really, Poe wasn’t using his soul anyway. And if it saves his roost? Worth it. Tommy isn’t what Poe expects. Demon—huge, horned, hairy, and scary, right? Nope. Blond, gorgeous, with a bubble butt, and a lilting drawl that beckons Poe to come play. Total hookup-app fantasy material. Even if he is a murder twink. Poe’s no angel, but Tommy . . . well he’s more devil than demon. Yet, Poe just can’t seem to keep his feathers out of the fire. As one bargain turns into two, and then a third tragedy strikes the ravens, Poe finds himself falling for a guy who may very literally be the death of him. Or maybe the flames will burn them both. Amazon KU

TRAPPED (PROMISED TO THE PUCKS BOOK 2) by Sam Hall

You, Meghan, you belong to us, they’d told me. Well, now I’d stepped into an interdimensional portal into a whole new world And what a world. The fairy land I’d always dreamed of, literally, filled with fantastic creatures and alien landscapes, but that’s not all. For the first time in my life, I feel truly wanted, but why? Is it for me, Meghan Marie Devlin, or is for the power I am supposed to be able to access? Is that why the preternaturally beautiful Pucks want me by their side, or is it for reasons even more complex? Amazon KU

AS GRIMOIRE AS IT GETS (WITCHING HOUR BOOK 5) by Christine Zane Thomas

When the Faction returns to Creel Creek, Constance thinks it’s to help solve the mystery surrounding her missing mother. But they have other priorities… like the spike in attacks coming from the shadow realm. It doesn’t help that Constance has her own demons to face—the kind from hell. Can they work together to rid the world of these threats? And will Constance finally find out what happened to her mother? Amazon KU

FOX UNDERCOVER (WOLVES OF CRESCENT VALLEY BOOK 1) by Maya Nicole

The wolves of Crescent Valley are hungry for blood, and I might just be their next meal. It was supposed to be an easy job, especially for a fox shifter. Or so I thought. My assignment was simple: go undercover, gather intel, report back. Instead, I found myself in much deeper with the wolves of Crescent Valley than I’d ever imagined. For fox sake, what did I get myself into? Amazon KU

BY HER SIGHT (UNITAM REALM SERIES BOOK 1) by Sunny Hart

In the Unitam Realm, power determines where you belong. Blind, orphaned witch Claire has spent her entire life wondering where she belonged. She’s grown up in a small coven on the outskirts of the Unitam Realm. While the teasing about her blindness hurts, the ridicule the coven members give her about her orphan status cuts deeper. What kind of disappointment do you have to be to have your parents abandon you? When the semi-sentient Academy sends her an acceptance letter, she’s sure it’s a mistake. If she doesn’t belong at Windshire, she surely won’t belong at the Academy. But what does she have to lose? As she navigates new friends, intense classes, and professors who seem to be split on whether she will pass or fail, her power starts to unravel inside of her, leaving Claire with more questions about her parents and where she belongs. And why does the Stonemont Triad (Desmond, the charming wizard, Everett, the silent Gryphon, and Malcolm, the grumbly Dragon) want to get to know a low-level witch like her? Amazon KU

SURF DRAGON by Scarlett Grove

Myrtle MacArthur has lived in Fate’s Peak all her life. She’s always put her family first. Since her mom died, she’s had to forget her dreams to take care of them. Water dragon and extreme sports champion Caspian Storm came to Fate’s Peak to settle down and start a family. After two years on the fire crew, he still hasn’t found his mate. Without the love of a mate to give him purpose, he might not be able to resist the call to adventure much longer. Myrtle’s family situation is tense. Her dad and older brother hate dragons and waste all their time complaining about them. That leaves Myrtle and her younger brother to tend the crumbling ranch. When Caspian and Myrtle meet, it changes everything. Caspian can finally see a happy family in his future. All Myrtle can see is drama. If her family ever found out she was the fated mate of a dragon, it could be very dangerous. Can Myrtle and Caspian create the passionate life they desire, or will everything burn down around them?

Amazon KU

THE SINNER by Emma Scott

Shy, introverted Lucy Dennings lives a quiet little life in New York City, working for a nonprofit and keeping to herself. Every afternoon, she goes home to her empty apartment and Edgar, her houseplant, and every night, she loses herself in the pages of her beloved romance novels. Her lonely heart seeks solace in tales of passionate, enduring, all-consuming love, but more and more, Lucy feels she’s not just reading for pleasure but searching for a lost piece of herself in the pages. As if she once touched something beautiful but it’s been ripped away. Until one day Lucy discovers a dead body in the alley behind her apartment. Even if it’s too late, her first instinct is to help. Her second is to run. Because the dead body isn’t so very dead, and suddenly, her little world isn’t so little but one in which dreams feel like memories, “inner demons” actually lurk in dark alleys, and a beautiful creature of darkness with amber eyes and wings like night might hold the key to what her heart has been aching for…if she doesn’t fall down the path of eternal damnation first. Amazon KU

TEMPTED (TWO MARKS BOOK 2) by Renee Rose and Vanessa Vale

We see a female, we want her. But she’s a wolf biologist prepared to expose us to the world. We scent a female, we claim her. Except we can’t claim the one who could destroy our pack. We touch a female, we give her two marks. Yet we can’t mark her without sharing everything. Because in the Two Marks pack, shifters share. Two cowboys for every mate. If she can ever be ours.

Amazon Kobo

OMEGA’S GAMBLE (STORMSHIELD BOOK 1) by Claire Cullen

VS Note: From July 27.

With the threat of being banished to the priory hanging over his head, Raine will do whatever it takes to find himself a husband. Even visit Stormshield, a remote kingdom no omega prince ever sets foot on. A kingdom that just so happens to have three eligible alphas. Prince Darien has all but given up on the idea of marriage after years of being snubbed by royal omegas. He has far more important things to worry about, like the pirates besieging their island kingdom. When an omega finally does step off the airship, Darien has no interest in a wedding. But he’s not given a choice—this marriage represents an alliance his kingdom cannot refuse. Bound to each other only hours after meeting, Raine and Darien face a rocky road. One wants this marriage at all costs, and the other resents being forced to marry the son of an enemy to keep the peace. They’re both hiding secrets, but in Stormshield Kingdom, secrets never stay hidden for long. Amazon KU

STONEWING GUARDIAN (STONE SHIFTERS BOOK 2) by Zoe Chant

After a devastating accident, archaeologist Thea shut herself away from the world. But now, there’s an incredibly hot guy in her office, with an offer that might just be enough to drag her back into the field. He’s either crazy… or an entire secret race of magical shapeshifters desperately needs her help. Time is running out for gargoyle shifter Mace. His people are in grave danger, and their only hope is a lost Viking amulet… and the brave, smart, emotionally scarred woman who might just be his mate. But if this is going to work, he’ll have to trust a human with his people’s greatest secret…… and she’ll have to trust him with her heart. Amazon KU

*******************************************************************

VS: Next on my Badari Warriors series backlist is CAMRON. I got to write a trope I’ve always wanted to use for a story – two prisoners chained together and on the run, plus another trope I’ve seen in some intriguing movies – a man being hunted as big game and how he turns the tables on his pursuer. PLUS, this is the first book where TRATUS appears as a supporting character and TRATUS’s book is coming next as a new release, probably around August 25.

Here’s my sexy tiktok book trailer for CAMRON (you don’t have to be a Tiktok member to view it).

CAMRON: A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL (SECTORS NEW ALLIES SERIES BOOK 7)

Dr. Gemma Madarian is far from her home in the human Sectors, kidnapped along with hundreds of other humans to be used for horrifying experiments conducted on a remote planet by alien scientists.

She and another prisoner, Camron of the Badari, are the only survivors of a deadly crash landing. She’s paired up with the genetically engineered soldier by their mutual enemies and sent fleeing through rough country, hunted for pleasure by an enemy officer and his ferocious trackers.

The enemy wants a triumphant kill. Gemma and Camron want to survive.

Camron never dreamt of having a mate but Gemma shatters his preconceptions and makes him desperate to do everything in his power to save her life and claim her for his.

There’s no help or refuge to be had in the desert where they’re fleeing for their lives.
Or is there?

Will Camron and Gemma live to fight another day and explore the growing attraction between them, or will ancient secrets and bitter rivalries end their bid for freedom?

Amazon Apple Books Nook Kobo Google

***********************************************************************************************

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 check and verify all the buy links at the time I create the post but after that I’m not responsible.

Required Statement: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifiying purchases.

Required Statement: As an Apple Books Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Aug 14 2021

Pharaoh’s Newest Recruit Weekend Writing Warriors

May be edited a bit from published version.

The snippet – the POV of Senebkai, the heroine’s 9 year old brother. He’s just taken his oath to Pharaoh and now General Marnamaret re-enters the situation.

…the man who stepped forward was young like Pharaoh. With a cheerful face, the skin around his eyes crinkled as he smiled. He was tall and walked with the carriage of a warrior. He rested his fist on the golden falcon badge over his heart. “What is your command, Great One?”

“I assign this new soldier to you. Go with him now to his home and see the mother and sister are properly cared for.” Pharaoh leaned closer to Marnamaret and murmured, his voice carrying only as far as Senebkai’s keen ears. “There must be more to this story. Find out if this was a miscarriage of ma’at and justice under the Usurper. He mentioned her role in his father’s death and their family’s problems. I expect a report.”

Marnamaret saluted. “With pleasure, sir.”

Pharaoh turned to Senebkai. “I’ll see you again, no doubt. Go with my general. He will oversee your education and training, and will set your future assignments once your family issues have been resolved.”

Senebkai stepped aside, General Marnamaret drawing him out of Pharaoh’s path with a gentle tug on the sleeve.

Nat-re-Akhte rose. As the assemblage bowed, he walked away, exiting through the private door at the rear of the dais

Marnamaret and Senebkai regarded each other silently for a moment. The general held out his hand. “Allow me to be the first to congratulate you on your enlistment.”

VS Note: I’ll do another one or two snippets from this book but I’ll be releasing my next scifi romance TRATUS soon so then we’ll change books.

The book blurb: 1550 BCE – Forced by a vengeful Pharaoh to flee for her life and hide in the poorest section of Thebes, Lady Pebatma has scraped and struggled to support her ailing mother and young brother for the past two years. Now, out of funds with the rent to pay and no possessions left to sell, she begs the goddess Hathor for help. With a new pharaoh taking the throne, surely something can be done…

A powerful general in command of the army and best friend to Pharaoh, Marnamaret has everything a nobleman in Egypt could desire…except for true love. He refuses to settle for less. On a whim, he prays to Hathor to send him the woman of his dreams.Will the goddess answer these heartfelt petitions? And if she does, will Shai the god of Fate allow the course of two lives to be changed by love? For none can deny Fate….

Author’s Note: This is a connected series. Heiress of the Nile can be read as a standalone. Although it’s my newest novel, the story falls between Priestess and Warrior timewise and is set in the early days of this Pharaoh’s reign.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay

Aug 12 2021

Introducing My Newest Pet in Space Eyn the Alien Turtle

This is the sixth year of the award winning, best selling Pats in Space scifi romance anthology, which is done to benefit Hero Dogs, a nonprofit organization providing service dogs to veterans and first responders in need. The anthology is up for pre-order now and releases OCT 5.

Some years the story idea comes first for me and other years the pet concept is first and drives the story. This year they arrived together, which made things easy. My family has always enjoyed turtles as pets. We’ve had a lot of the common green turtles and many red-eared sliders over the years. My brother is especially keen on turtles and not only has several as pets, he also does rescues and has hand raised baby snapping turtles until they were old enough to be re-released into the wild. I decided to make my space pet a turtle this year in honor of my brother, who is one of my most devoted readers and fans.

Eyn is an alien turtle of course and he can and does leave his shell most days. I always felt a bit sorry for terrestrial turtles that they had to carry their shell around all the time and couldn’t go out unencumbered at least occasionally so Eyn has that freedom. He returns to his shell nightly and can close it up tight, and while he sleeps the biological mechanisms in the shell structure replenish his energy. He belongs to Raelyn, my heroine, who is a senior stewardess on board the Nebula Zephyr interstellar luxury cruise liner and is also a symbol of her home world and its belief system.

He can also function as a piece of living jewelry for her. Eyn not only sets off the events in the story, he’s also quite involved in dealing with bad guys along the way to the plot’s resolution and the Happy Ever After ending. It’s a fun challenge to me each year to ensure the pet is more than just a pretty set decoration but is also important to the events. I think Eyn manages all of that quite nicely although he’ll probably need a nap in that shell by the end of the novel.

Did I mention he has three eyes?

Of course we see other members of the ship’s crew from past stories but this can be read as a standalone.

PETS IN SPACE 6 by Various, including moi. My story in this year’s volume is STAR CRUISE: TIME LOOP and I finally wrote my own “Groundhog Day” style story. Here’s the anthology blurb: Pets in Space® is back for a new year of adventures! Join the incredible authors in this year’s Pets in Space 6 for another out-of-this-world adventure. This award-winning, USA TODAY Bestselling anthology is packed full of your favorite Pets in Space®. Featuring 11 original, never-before-released stories from some of today’s bestselling science fiction romance and fantasy authors, Pets in Space 6 continues their vital support of Hero-Dogs.org, the non-profit charity that improves quality of life for veterans of the U.S. military and first-responders with disabilities. Don’t miss out on this limited-edition anthology before it’s too late! Pets in Space 6 is edited by Carol Van Natta. Contributing authors: S.E. Smith (NY Times and USA TODAY bestselling author), Veronica Scott (USA TODAY bestselling author), Honey Phillips, Carol Van Natta (USA TODAY bestselling author), Cassandra Chandler (USA TODAY bestselling author), J.C. Hay (USA TODAY bestselling author), S.J. Pajonas (USA TODAY bestselling author), Greta van der Rol, Deborah A. Bailey, Melisse Aires, and Kyndra Hatch (USA TODAY Best Selling author).

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook Google Play

DepositPhoto – Eyn’s Earthly Cousin

Aug 11 2021

New Releases in #SciFi #Fantasy and Paranormal Romance for Wednesday AUG 11

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).

**********************************************************************************************

SEDUCED BY AN ALIEN WARLORD (FATED MATES OF THE FAELERN BOOK3) by Ava Ross

Bruge: I’m a serious warlord, not a youngling warrior in need of a mate. Ensuring the duskhorde don’t kill us and that the clan gathering runs smoothly is enough to keep me busy. Court an Earthling female? Perhaps later. But when I meet Alexa, my second heart starts beating, proving she’s my maelstrom mate. Now I want her, and the best way to claim her is with an ancient Ferlaern tradition: abduction and seduction. If only my entire village would stop trying to help make it happen.
Alexa: I’ve crushed on Bruge for a while. He’s grumpy, gruff, and he has interesting social skills. What’s not to like? A widow raising three-year-old twin boys, I still have room in my life for romance. But whenever Bruge and I get close, we either wind up in trouble or we’re interrupted. Even better? His warriors follow us around snickering. Our relationship is going nowhere fast, but I’m not giving up, because there’s more than one way to seduce an alien warlord. Amazon KU

BARING GRUDGE (REBEL CYBORGS BOOK 3) by Cynthia Sax

VS Note: Have I been waiting for this! I love her cyborgs….had it pre-ordered.

No one in the universe is more determined than a cyborg warrior tracking his female. Grudge, a C Model cyborg, has been assigned a mission – safeguard a Humanoid Alliance space station for his kind. Honor was once all he had, and he is determined to fulfill his duty. That resolve is tested when a tiny human female enters the space station and sets the prettiest little explosives the warrior has ever seen. She is Grudge’s genetic match, the one being manufactured for him. He wants to touch her, kiss her, claim her in all ways, but first he has to stop her from blasting him into the next galaxy. Taelyn has a self-appointed mission—to destroy every battle robot the Humanoid Alliance has ever manufactured. A huge gray-skinned, blue-eyed cyborg warrior with mismatched arms won’t prevent her from achieving her goal. She’ll escape him, leaving destruction in her wake.
Before she departs, she’ll experience one toe-curling moment of hatred-edged passion with her handsome foe. She’ll show him how skilled with detonations she truly is. He will have his universe rocked. Then she’ll disappear. Her cyborg, however, has no intention of ever letting her go.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

PRIMORDIAL EARTH 7 by Baleigh Higgins

This is their world, and we are the prey. After a harrowing journey, Rogue and the surviving members of their group finally reach the city of Vancouver. Exhausted, battered, and running out of time, they have to negotiate with the city’s leadership for the medicine they so desperately need. Their loved ones are hanging on by a thread…Overwhelmed by the sudden outbreak of the Red Flux, Prime City is descending into anarchy. While Callum and Ric set out on a dangerous supply run, Kat must fight for her life against the deadly disease. Can they hold on or will they succumb to this silent killer?

Amazon KU

VAWN (KADDIM BROTHERS BOOK 1) by Jessica E Subject

VS Note: The snippets from this have been really good…

Vawn doesn’t need a mate. He’s already established himself universe-wide as a hot name in fashion while raising his daughter. But he won’t say no to a fling with a hot space racer when he travels to Eurebly to visit his brothers. One night. That’s all he can give. Because his heart shattered when he lost his previous alpha, and he hasn’t been able to repair it completely. He refuses to love someone like that ever again. Ojokun survived on Jenegath in order to leave the planet and become the best space racer in the universe. Though he flies with a team, he’s never depended on anyone outside of his jet. He keeps to himself. Has one-night stands, just like every other space racer. But, after a mind-blowing night with the brother of two of his teammates, he can’t stop thinking about the gorgeous omega, or the foreign longing that scares him more than his overly-protective teammates. Can Ojokun convince Vawn that he wants more than one night? Or is that all they were ever meant to be? Amazon KU

A BIT OF PIRACY: THE RIM BOOK 1 by Severine Wolfe

VS Note: From June 18

It’s been a really bad two years for Chloe Butler. Two years ago, she’d been abducted walking home from her crap moonlighting job as a bartender. She’d been so close to escaping from the ghetto she’d been born into and had survived. She was working two jobs, got her GED and was applying to the community college. She may have been born and raised in South Chicago, but she had a plan and it was to get out of South Chicago. All of those dream had been destroyed on her way home from work. Finding herself stuck, alone, on a spaceship probably headed into some sun somewhere, she was running out of food, water, and the stupid thing was making a weird noise.
Larn was at the end of his privateering gig. The sell of the derelict ship he’d come upon would put him well above his budget for living like a king for the rest of his life. He’d not expected to find his mate. He’s never imagined she’d be so damned tiny… or pale. Her hair was as red as his sin and she smelled like forever. Chloe’s got a price on her head. She’s a human with no mental shields and the Skelosians want her for their breeding experiments. She’s also got a huge, red guy protecting her when she lets him. Perhaps, something good might come out of all of the hell she’d been through.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

ALIEN WARRIOR’S PROMISE (VAXXLIAN MATCHMAKERS BOOK 2) by Sue Mercury

After barely escaping Earth with her life, Macy seeks refuge on planet New Vaxx, along with her sister Skylar—even though it means they’ll both be expected to mate with Vaxxlian Warriors. Haunted by the past, she fears she’ll never feel ready to take a mate. But when she realizes she’s holding Skylar back from her own happiness, she decides to visit Vaxxlian Matchmakers in secret, where she’s matched to a huge warrior named Dakk. At first, she’s terrified of the scarred warrior, but his warmth eventually starts to win her over. Could she truly find happiness with the big, muscular stranger?
Dakk is shocked when he gets a call from Vaxxlian Matchmakers. He never expected to be matched with one of the single human females living on planet New Vaxx—surely no woman could tolerate his scarred face or his unusual eye color, the latter of which marks him as cursed by the Star God. Nevertheless, he shows up to collect his bride, a small female called Macy with soft golden hair he can’t seem to stop stroking. But she trembles at his touch, and he senses her deep fear, making him worry Vaxxlian Matchmakers made a mistake. What if Macy never accepts him fully as her husband? Even worse, will an old enemy endanger their mating union?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

THE SISTERS OF RECKONING (THE GOOD LUCK GIRLS BOOK 2) by Charlotte Nicole Davis

VS Note: Not a romance but an SF&F release of note.

The Good Luck Girls are free. Aster’s sister and friends have new lives across the border in Ferron, while Aster remains in Arketta, helping more girls escape. But news of a new welcome house opening fills Aster with a need to do more than just help individual girls. And an unexpected reunion gives her an idea of how to do it. From there, grows a wildly ambitious plan to free all dustbloods, who live as prisoners to Arketta’s landmasters and debt slavery. When Clementine and the others return from Ferron, they become the heart of a vibrant group of fearless fighters, working to unite the various underclasses and convince them to join in the fight. Along the way, friendships will be forged, lives will be lost, and love will take root even in the harshest of circumstances, between the most unexpected of lovers. But will Arketta’s dustbloods finally come into power and freedom, or will the resistance just open them up to a new sort of danger?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

CONSUMED BY THE ALIEN SPACE WARIOR: A DHASU ALIEN ABDUCTION ROMANCE BOOK 10 by Charmaine Ross

No matter how many times I tell myself ‘this’ isn’t happening, every time I open my eyes I have to convince myself all over again. By ‘this’, I mean being sold as a slave and then being thrown into a cell filled with aliens of all different shapes and sizes. Then I’m put in a cage with a deadly alien with biceps the size of my thigh and skin that flashes with a pure, golden light. I think I’m not going to make it through the night. That maybe I’ll be an after dinner snack, but when he calls me his bond-mate, I’m hit with a wave of desire unlike any I’ve ever felt before. He tells me I’m his fated. That I am his and he is mine, and I know he’s right because I feel it deep inside my chest. It’s a knowing that won’t go away no matter how hard I try to ignore it. The only thing is, he shouldn’t want me. Not at all. When we’re taken to an unknown planet, the aliens who brought us here need me for my blood. They’re in the final stage of planning an attack on every being in the universe and they need something from me that will annihilate millions. We can’t let that happen. Amazon KU

THE GREAT DESTROYERS by Carioline Tung Richmond

VS Note: Not a romance but a scifi release of note.

Jo Linden was born into a world where wars are won with giant mechanical soldiers and the nuclear bomb was never invented. Yet the Cold War still rages, and international rivalries between democracy and communism are now fought at the Pax Games, an Olympic-style competition that pits young pilots of mechas against each other. The USSR has beaten the US in nearly every game since its inception, and in the 1963 Games, the US is desperate for a win. Because it’s more than just the Games at stake. Premier Khrushchev will be attending, and after, he and President Kennedy are slated to sign a peace accord stabilizing the war in Vietnam-and their volatile relationship.Raised in her father’s mecha repair shop, Jo knows more than anyone about piloting. She’s also the most unlikely pick for Team USA since she’s a virtually unknown fighter. So when she’s invited at the last minute to compete, she jumps at it. This could be the only chance to save her family’s home from debt collectors. All eyes are on Jo from the moment she arrives. But as fighters start dying in the arena, it’s suddenly clear that it’s more than the usual Pax Games, and Jo finds herself drawn into a deadly political plot. And if she can’t figure out the truth, it might mean the annihilation of everything. In a global arms race between superpowers, playing out in violent games that only humanity could create, comes a chilling story of clashing titans, ruthless competition, freedom, and the girl caught in the middle of it all.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

CLEAN SLATE: KHARGALS OF DURAS by Abigail Myst

VS Note: At the time the report was put together this had only 1 rating but the author has a good track record in this series, so here’s the book.

Working with the enemy – Special Agent Margaret Lark is nothing if not tenacious. She’s tracked aliens on Earth for years and now she has the Rose Syndicate in her sights. Then she meets Erlend, the mysterious and undeniably sexy half human, half Khargal. He might be just the one she needs to get the job done, if she can keep his dark side in line. Erlend has other ideas. – Determined to avenge the brutal murder of his father, Erlend has vowed to hunt down every known member of the Rose Syndicate, the ones responsible, and he doesn’t care who gets hurt. From the moment he lays eyes on Special Agent Lark, Erlend knows she is his destined mate. She’s irresistible, but can he trust her to help him eliminate the Rose Syndicate, once and for all? Amazon KU

INK: QUEER SCIFI’S 8TH ANNUAL FLASH FICTION CONTEST (QUEER SCIFI’S FLASH FICTION CONTEST BOOK 1) by Various

VS Note: Not romances per se but I do love anthologies and also flash fiction.

INK (NOUN) – Five definitions to inspire writers around the world and an unlimited number of possible stories to tell: 1) A colored fluid used for writing 2) The action of signing a deal 3) A black liquid ejected by squid 4) Publicity in the written media 5) A slang word for tattoos – Ink features 300-word speculative flash fiction stories from across the rainbow spectrum, from the minds of the writers of Queer Sci Fi.

Amazon

BRINGING HEAT (TERRAN RESET BOOK 6) by Viola Grace

The love of her life died when they were teens, and Idalia had no plans for any kind of future. When a woman named Minerva arrived near the lighthouse where she spent her days escorting tourists and made Idalia an offer, it was a no-brainer. Nothing or something. She chose something to bring her life out of the lock she had been in. The process to change her body to enable her to survive Los was detailed and altered every bit of tissue and bone she had. Taunting a planet’s avatar into reappearing using sex isn’t something one can train for, but Idalia has a good instinct for it, and he soon rises to claim her, body and soul.

Amazon

DEFYING THE ROGUE (SKY PIRATE TRILOGY BOOK 2) by Anna Applegate and Angela Sanders

Ainsley Lilstrum set out to find her birth parents, knowing it would bring her the adventure she’s always craved. What she didn’t account for was the cost of that journey. She’s been blasted with a powerful magic that’s leading her to the most unexpected and unwelcoming places. Her magical quest to unite the banished casters from all corners of their country is the only thing that might save them all in the end. Sebastian “Bash” James’s fearsome influence runs deep in the world, and the enemies surrounding her close in on her and her new pirate protector, Killian Flynn. And more harm coming to those she loves is something she hadn’t considered. With an unpredictable magic thrumming inside of her, and no one to train her properly, Ainsley is in for one wild ride in the skies.
Will she succeed in her journey without anyone else getting hurt? Or has Ainsley taken on more than she’ll be able to handle if those she loves most are threatened by her mere existence? Amazon KU

SURVIVAL TACTICS: A SHORT STORY COLLECTION by Elizabeth Bonesteel

VS Note: Not romance but a scifi re-release of note with 3 new stories added.

en genre-spanning speculative tales of worlds both strange and familiar…On a planet that should have been long abandoned, a salvage operator discovers an impossible ecosystem…On an isolated mining outpost on Mercury, a woman dreams of suicide—and wakes to find other people dead…Alone in a crowded city, a woman seeks the origins of a haunted clock connected to a captivating stranger…Plus seven more stories of aliens, poltergeists, threatening polygons, and carnivorous rabbits, exploring why we need each other—and why sometimes we don’t. Includes three adventures set in Bonesteel’s acclaimed Central Corps universe. This edition contains the full text of the original 2020 release and adds three new stories, two never before published.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

OWN HER (WARRIORS OF HADES) by Jenika Snow

Mekenna’s life started off on the wrong foot as soon as she was born. As the daughter of a servant, her path was already carved out. And because she was only half human, she was looked down upon due to her bi-species genetics. But Mekenna kept her strength, not letting the awful hand she was dealt control or shape who she was. Vicktor, Savastian, and Fillip were brothers from the planet of Hades, and known as fierce male alien warriors. Their species was known for their brutal and violent nature. They fought to survive, victorious in all they challenged. And now it was time for them to find a female to share not only their life with, but also their bed. The first time they saw Mekenna, they knew instantly she was the one. They’d move heaven and hell to claim her. They’d level anything and anyone who thought to hurt her. And they’d make her see that no matter what, she’d be the most important thing in their world. They just had to convince her of that. Amazon KU

CAGED WITH THE ALIEN GLADIATORS (CAPTIVE MATES BOOK 8) by Corin Cain

Three hulking alien gladiators killing for their prize. If they choose me…Jacky: I won’t survive the mating rage of the Aurelian species. The marble-skinned alien triads roam the universe with one obsession. Find their Fated Mate. When they catch the scent of the one woman in the universe who can bear their child, they go insane with need. I felt their power. Their dominance. Strength. The boiling rage that burns through them. These three aren’t just killers. The seven-foot-tall, alien warriors are violence incarnate. They’re being held on this prison planet just like me, fighting and killing for their pick of women. I’ve fought my life to be free. When I wake up in a Toad vessel to be sold at an alien auction, I don’t weep and accept my fate. I plot my escape – but there’s no escaping a triad of Aurelians. If you’re Bonded to them, you are linked for eternity. And now I’m shivering in front of the blood-soaked warriors, their slate grey eyes staring us down. Their hunger is ravenous. Their power is absolute. If I’m theirs…They’ll never let me go. Amazon KU

FOSTER (EARTH REISTSTANCE BOOK 6) by Theresa Beachman

Ex-bomb squad, Lincoln Foster lost his young daughter to the Chittrix at the beginning of the invasion. He pledged to use his remaining time alive, eliminating the hated aliens, preferably in as many imaginative ways as possible. There’s no space in his life for love, or the fierce woman he can’t get out of his mind since he sighted her down the barrel of a gun. Diplomatic bodyguard, Neve Bishop lives alone on the streets of Cardiff. After escaping a disturbed group with a dark connection to the Chittrix, she’s convinced humanity’s lost its moral compass. And she’s deeply suspicious when her world collides with Foster’s. Her first impression is he’s no different from all the other men in this brutal future. But as a cataclysmic chain of events forces them together in more ways than one, she sees beyond the ink and scars—to the protector who will do whatever is required to protect those he loves. And, as their attraction tips into incendiary, so does the battle with a new generation of Chittrix on the verge of hatching. The clock is ticking, and Foster and Neve’s new found trust in each other will be tested to the limits as a subversive force attempts to thwart their plan to annihilate the alien invaders. Amazon KU

******************************************************************************

VS Note: I don’t often do this – go way back in time to pick up a book I missed reporting – but I saw this scifi romance series mentioned by several SFR authors recently so I’ve gone back to NOV 2019 for the first book (there are only 3). Sounds like it could be fun:

THE HEART OF AREA 51 (INTERSTELLAR ROMANCE BOOK 1) by Strawberry Chase

He looks like a rancher, but when he reveals who he really is, my life changes in a moment. I’ve never seen more than my boring life as a waitress in Nevada. When a handsome alien rancher offers to show me the universe, can I follow my heart? A stranger came to my rescue on a chilly fall night, and it turns out this stranger is a local rancher who wants to know me better. I thought I was stuck being a small-town spinster, but Tom is everything I’ve dreamed of and more — a lot more. He is polite, courteous, and the chemistry between us is out of this world. But the police think Tom has more to do with the death of a local ne’er-do-well — the one who attacked me. And I cover for Tom because I want him more than I thought possible. Tom might try to keep his desire for me hidden, but he begins to reveal who he really is. The last thing I expect is a shimmering alien whose job is keeping an eye on Area 51 a few miles away. When the police turn the mysterious dead man case over to the government officials at Area 51, I realize Tom may have more secrets. We share a fiery, earth-shattering love, but is it enough? Do I turn him over to the government? Or should I follow her heart and take the chance at a new, exciting life with this rancher? Aliens meet Cowboys in this 1950s Retro Sci-Fi steamy Alien Contact romance! Amazon KU

**************************************************************************************

WILD GIRL by C R Jane and Mila Young

My fated mate who rejected me has returned. I should have known Alistair would find me. But the dark secrets of my new home have been distracting me from the danger I’ll always be in as long as he is alive. A serial killer. My lovers’ psycho ex. Not to mention my strange new powers; It’s been a lot for a girl to handle. Two Alphas have also claimed me as their own. Now that I’ve been taken, they’ll stop at nothing to get me back. But we should have remembered that there were scarier things in the shadows than my ex. I need to be more wolf than woman now, because to survive, I’m going to have to embrace the wild in me. Amazon KU

MY COLORFUL CONUNDRUM by Molly Fitz

Following a freak electrical storm, Lisa Lewis’s vibrant paintings of fairytale creatures have started coming to life. Unfortunately, only she can see and communicate with them. And when her mentor turns up dead, this aspiring artist must turn amateur sleuth to clear her name and save the day with only these “pigments” of her imagination to help her.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

MUST LOVE FALCONS (SABLE COVE BOOK 3) by R E Butler

Injured royal falcon? Check Mistaken identity? Check Death threats? Double Check When witch Hadlee Moreau volunteers to clean the local vet’s office after hours, she’s abducted and unconscious before she even has a chance to speak one word of a protection spell. Anders, king of the falcon shifters, loses his ability to fly during a night hunt and is gravely injured in the fall from the sky. His men search for a healer in a small, seaside town and find a female in an animal care center who they believe is a medical doctor. They abduct her to help Anders, taking her to their island home under the cover of darkness. When Hadlee wakes from the drugs, she knows two things: she’s never been so pissed, and the gorgeous man on his death bed is her destined mate. It’s not enough that she has to save Anders’ life, but now she has to figure out who wants the falcon king dead and how she can save him…and herself.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

WINDFALL (LEGENDS OF VIORIA BOOK 1) by Shawna Barnett

Captain Liana Foley knows a thing or two about fights. She fights the King’s Navy. She fights to balance power in oppressive Vioria. She fights for respect as a female, bisexual, pirate captain. But she’s losing her biggest fight: to escape her secret past as a lost Princess. With a mysterious letter and a stranger threatening to expose her, Liana is blackmailed into attending a royal ball and protecting her counterpart, sheltered Princess Rhian. The pretenses are suspicious enough, but Liana takes the risk in hopes to finally unveil the magic plot that killed her parents and forced her into hiding. When Liana encounters Rhian’s own lightning-wielding powers, the ball erupts in violence. The sheltered princess falls into the care of Liana—and her band of pirates. On the run, the only safe haven for the Windfall crew to hide is the most-dangerous place of all: under the thumb of Liana’s narcissistic, abusive brother-in-law. In order to protect her crew, her family, and naïve Rhian, Liana must demand sacrifices from herself and the people she loves. Her choices will make powerful enemies; good thing Liana Foley knows a thing or two about fighting those.

Amazon

A FAMILIAR HEX (OXFORD MAGIC KITTEN MYSTERIES BOOK 3) by Rosemary A Johns

My name’s Astra, and since arriving in the quaint magical village of Witch Hollow in Oxford with my demon kitten familiar, Satan, I’ve faced murders, curses, and even cold coffee. But today is my scariest challenge yet: a visit from my fierce grandma. What will the witch, who raised me and wants me to return home and run the family business, think of my ramshackle farm and my adorable but wild familiars? That’s if my new phoenix familiar doesn’t burn down my cottage first. Plus, how do I hide the fact that I’m now Deputy to the hot dragon shifter Sheriff of Oxford, Earl Sin, who lives next door…? Oh, and his family are also visiting for the weekend. When grandma’s struck down by a hex, it becomes a race against time to save her. Plus, will Satan finally solve the mystery of my missing dad? Amazon KU

ON THE PROWL (GUARDED BY THE SHIFTER BOOK 2) by Kate Rudolph

Sparks fly when an ex-military werewolf shows up to protect his rock star mate. When a strange monster threatens Em’s rock tour she needs help. But when her sister sends dark and mysterious Andre to protect her, Em is sure she’d be better off on her own. He’s too attractive for his own good, but just because her body wants him doesn’t mean she’ll let him have her heart. As the ghostly monster escalates the attacks, Em can’t keep going without Andre’s help. But the beast may be too powerful even for a werewolf. How can Andre fight a monster that disappears out of thin air? Even more difficult is convincing a stubborn rock star that he’s her fated mate. Andre will need to figure it out before malicious magic tears them apart.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

INTO THE DARK: A SUPERSTITIOUS REVERSE HAREM ROMANCE ANTHOLOGY by Various

Travel into the dark and discover over a dozen sexy reverse harem stories twisted with superstitious lore. Hell’s Princess cursed into finding her destiny – A witch cursed to be mortal. Demons fighting hexes. Vampires in need of some luck…and more! From sizzling slow-burn attraction to steamy-goodness, there is something for every romance lover.

Amazon Kobo

DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY (COUNTRY COTTAGE COZY MYSTERIES BOOK 18) by Addison Moore and Bellamy Bloom

My name is Bizzy Baker, and I can read minds—not every mind, not every time but most of the time and believe me when I say it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. The summer heat is pressing down on in Cider Cove as Bizzy’s relatives descend on the inn for a family reunion. But not everyone is thrilled to see one another. Bizzy’s mother, Ree, is forced to confront her estranged sisters and the man that came between them all those years ago. And when that man turns up dead, there are one too many suspects—and three of them happen to be sisters. Summer in Cider Cove is proving to be deadly. Bizzy Baker runs the Country Cottage Inn, has the ability to pry into the darkest recesses of both the human and animal mind, and has just stumbled upon a body. With the help of her kitten, Fish, a mutt named Sherlock Bones and an ornery yet dangerously good looking homicide detective, Bizzy is determined to find the killer. Amazon KU

PACK CAPTIVE (MOON CALLED BOOK 1) by Cate Corvin

My pack is dying. After being hunted down by fiery shadow wolves, we’re on the brink of extinction. As one of the rare Moon Callers, wolves who imbue warriors with lunar power, I was meant to protect our pack…but I failed. When a shadow wolf nearly kills me, a powerful new pack sees its chance to strike. They call it rescue. I call it servitude. They say they desperately need a Moon Caller of their own, and I’m not given a choice. I can either stay of my own free will, or I can serve in chains. But the shadow wolves threaten us all. And if I want to preserve what’s left of my family… I’ll have to be an ally to my enemies. Amazon KU

OCEAN’S RISE (SIREN OF WAR BOOK 4) by Demelza Carlton

With a baby on the way, Maria thought her troubles would be over, but a new storm is brewing with the power to sweep away everything she holds dear.Maria will be faced with a heartbreaking choice between the ocean and her family. A choice that could cost her everything.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

GOODNESS GRACIOUS GREAT GOD OF FIRE by Kinsley Adams

Jeslyn – You’d think I’d have planned better. Or seen it coming. I am a matchmaker, after all. But when I find out my fiancé is cheating on me—at the altar of all places—I don’t think. I just run.
Stealing his car and bailing on the wedding sounds like the best option. Until I run out of gas. In the middle of nowhere. In front of a biker bar. And the burly mechanic who helps me? He’s a rebound. One hundred percent. I don’t care, until he claims he’s the Greek god Hephaestus, and I’m a descendant of Pandora, and that my great-times-a-thousand grandmother’s chaos follows me everywhere. Hilarious, right? Except, it explains so much.
Hephaestus – I can fix anything. As the Gods of Thunder MC’s mechanic, my job is to keep everything running smoothly. When Jeslyn crashes into my quiet, predictable life, she throws smooth out the window. She’s on the run from a cheating fiancé, something I am intimately familiar with. So, I do what any hot-blooded Greek god would do. Let her hop on the back of my bike and take her on a road trip. Except, I’ve just learned something interesting. Jes is descended from Pandora, and Epimetheus needs her blood to free Pandora’s soul. But Zeus won’t let that happen. I have to keep her safe. I can fix anything, but even I can’t bring someone back from the dead. Amazon KU

RESCUING KEIRA (FOREVER YOURS BOOK 4) by Kallista Dane

I couldn’t bear to be touched – until a stranger with piercing blue eyes reached out and took my handMy psychic abilities have always been more of a curse than a blessing. If I hug a friend or brush up against someone in a crowd, images pour into my head. I know her new guy abused his last girlfriend. And that nice old man? His wife will die next week. I’ve learned not to share most of what I see. People can’t handle it. Carrying the weight of those secrets can be a crushing burden. So I keep everyone at a distance. Especially men. I’ve never slow danced, never let a guy kiss me. As for sex – forget it. But the day my truck broke down and I got fired from my job, a hot guy in tight jeans and a leather jacket offered me a ride. I looked into his deep blue eyes and felt like I’d known him forever. So I took his hand and climbed on the back of his Harley. Because I have other visions too. Visions of people I’ve never touched, people I don’t even know. Like the little girl with curly blonde hair locked in the basement of a farmhouse in the North Carolina mountains. She’s crying for her mommy. No one knows where she is – except me. I’m determined to rescue her. He doesn’t know it yet, but Reid, the sexy biker, is going to help. I’ve had visions about him too. Visions of him stripping me naked. Touching me everywhere with his hands, his lips…I’m sorry. Here I am, telling you all this, and we haven’t even been properly introduced. My name is Keira. Amazon KU

SPIRITS ABROAD: STORIES by Zen Cho

VS note: Author of Sorceror to the Crown

Nineteen sparkling stories that weave between the lands of the living and the lands of the dead. Spirits Abroad is an expanded edition of Zen Cho’s Crawford Award winning debut collection with nine added stories including Hugo Award winner “If at First You Don’t Succeed, Try, Try Again.” A Datin recalls her romance with an orang bunian. A teenage pontianak struggles to balance homework, bossy aunties, first love, and eating people. An earth spirit gets entangled in protracted negotiations with an annoying landlord, and Chang E spins off into outer space, the ultimate metaphor for the Chinese diaspora.

Amazon Kobo

FAE-THER ISSUES (FALLEN FAE B. I. BOOK ONE) by Rachel Angel

VS Note: From July 22

Now that it is changeling Harley’s mission to find and capture the rogue dark fae her evil father has unleashed into the human world, Harley leaves the opulence of her mother’s kingdom in the Faery Realms to return to her human adopted parents’ home in Las Vegas to start her career as a trainee FBI agent. Piece of cake, isn’t it, especially since she has finally discovered and mastered the powerful fae magic she went through the Fallen Fae Academy to learn. When a series of unusual murders show up along the Strip, and a close friend becomes the suspect, Harley would never have guess who would show up to give her some advice and clue to solve the murders…her evil dark fae wizard father. But could she trust him? Meanwhile the four princes from her Fallen Fae Academy days grapple with her decision to live in Las Vegas instead of assuming the throne of her kingdom in the Faery Realms. Amazon KU

PREDATOR AND PREY (THE SHIFTER CHRONICLES BOOK 9) by M D Grimm

VS Note: A re-release

Vietnam War vet turned deep-sea treasure hunter Digger Sullivan scratches out a living, and this new commission is just another job—albeit an exciting one—off the Florida coast in 1977. But while exploring the area, Digger and his crew encounter one shark too many. Reef and his shark shifter clan are charged with protecting a vital, magical secret—two of four scrolls that, when brought together, could annihilate shifters across the world. But Reef can’t keep his head in the game around this intriguing diver, and it’s not long before Digger takes one of the scrolls topside. Reef now has two missions: seduce Digger and recapture the scroll. Despite his attraction to Digger, Reef’s priority must be reclaiming the scroll. For Digger’s part, he can’t keep his eyes off the flirty young man on his boat. While he doesn’t know what Reef could want with a scarred old vet, he’s not going to pass up an opportunity of pleasure. Unfortunately for Reef, he loses sight of his duty and all his plans go awry. Then Digger’s crew is captured by the very person who commissioned them, and Reef and his shark clan are the only things standing between them and death.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

GRANDMA MUST DIE by M L Bonatch

n a world where magic is hunted and feared, the worst job a reckless witch like Carman could have would be in a small-town library that stores banned magical items. When a friend goes missing, and another is infected with a deadly spell, Carman is desperate to save them. Escorting Dylan, a Magic Bounty Hunter, to inspect the mysterious artifacts provides an opportunity to locate a cure. Instead, she discovers one of the items kept hidden belonged to her family—and recognizes Carman as its’ rightful owner—with Dylan bearing witness. Carman can barely control her newfound powerful magic. Still, if she doesn’t stop the infection from spreading, the host must die…the grandmother. Teaming up with Dylan may be a terrible idea, but so is spelling a household product into a mode of transportation. Carman is known for impractical shoes and impulsiveness, not sensible choices.

Amazon KU

DEFENDER OF HEARTS (KINGDOM OF WALLS BOOK 2) by Tanya Bird

Lyndal Suttone is done watching the merchants suffer. So when an opportunity to help them presents itself, she grabs hold of it with both hands. Now she must leave her family behind and step into a world she has no idea how to navigate. With her eyes fixed firmly on the prize, she is going to need someone to watch her back. Astin Fletcher has resigned himself to a life he was never supposed to live. His only purpose is to keep the king alive, a job that is becoming increasingly hard. The merchants are rising, and so is Astin’s pulse whenever Lyndal walks in the room. The middle Suttone sister has entered his territory, turning his purpose on its head. She has no idea what she is stepping into, and now it falls on him to safeguard her.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

STONE IN THE CASK: THE ALCHEMIST HEIR BOOK 2 by Kimbra Swain

Stuck between a rock and a hard place. Galan Faraday juggles his responsibilities as the owner of Faraday distillery, being the head of the Alchemist Guild, and searching for the cure to his best friend’s illness. As if he needed any added pressure, the Feds send a wizard investigator to oversee Galan’s activities as the new head of the Guild. Monetary discrepancies point toward a traitor in his inner circle, sabotage wrecks his tenuous hold on the distillery, and the real reason his parents have kept their distance spins Galan’s world out of control. One object could solve all his problems. The philosopher’s stone. But does the mythical object actually exist or is it just a legend? Finding it might mean the end to his troubles or it might complicate things beyond his ability to fix. Will Galan choose to use the stone to save his best friend, or will he use it in the conflict between the factions? Amazon KU

KAPPA COMPANION by Margaret L Carter

Two years after her husband’s sudden death, Heidi hopes to make a fresh start with a new love and a new home. But she hasn’t planned on sharing her century-old house with her son’s not-so-imaginary friends—a ghost child and a Japanese water monster. Jeff, the man she’s dating, definitely wants to marry her. Yet how can his scientific rationalism accept Heidi’s belief in paranormal forces? If the alleged haunting turns out to be real, he’ll have to change his entire worldview. Can their love flourish while coping with an exotic supernatural infestation? At least the creatures aren’t dangerous—or are they?

Amazon Apple Books

PHOENIX HEART: EPISODE 5: GRAND HADRI by Sarah K Wilson

With their enemies arrayed before them more dangerous and powerful than ever, Sersha and Kazmerev find themselves forced to ally with those who might not have their same goals at heart – and might actually want their destruction. But in a world of kings and subterfuge, secret war and coup attempts, they are determined to do what they set out to do – save the ai’sletta and defend phoenixes everywhere. Amazon KU

FORSAKEN (REJECTED MATE ACADEMY BOOK 2) by E M Moore

Unwanted. Dismissed. Forsaken. As if it’s not bad enough that I’m the OG at Greystone, Lydia has decided that the school’s apparent generosity is running out. I have two weeks to get my mate to accept me—or I’m out. Left to die. Feral. With the odds already stacked against me, I return to Daybreak for the Winter Solstice festivities. One last chance. One more desperate attempt. However, what’s supposed to be a time filled with fun and falling in love is the complete opposite. Not only is someone trying to kill me, but things are heating up with the wrong person—a shifter who is most definitely not my mate. I guess I’m playing the game of what’s going to take me out first: Feral, a murdering psychopath, or breaking the pack’s most cherished law. Amazon KU

SHE WOULDN’T CHANGE A THING by Sarah Adlakha

A second chance is the last thing she wants. When thirty-nine year old Maria Forssmann wakes up in her seventeen-year-old body, she doesn’t know how she got there. All she does know is she has to get back: to her home in Bienville, Mississippi, to her job as a successful psychiatrist and, most importantly, to her husband, daughters, and unborn son. But she also knows that, in only a few weeks, a devastating tragedy will strike her husband, a tragedy that will lead to their meeting each other. Can she change time and still keep what it’s given her?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

SILVER’S BREATH (THE FAE THIEF’S HAREM BOOK 3) by Melody Novak

In the eternal cold, a grudge can last forever. They need a real queen. Too bad they’re getting me. The Fae of Northstorm are preparing to wage war against the vampires living over the mountains. They believe it will bring an end to the eternal cold that plagues their lands. But I can’t let Silver’s cruel family destroy the fragile alliance I’m building. They’ve issued him an ultimatum. Turn his back on us or lose his inheritance: throne, powers, and all. But I’m not going to let them bully a whole town into silence because I know how that ends. It’s up to me to make these mortal enemies see eye-to-eye… even when the gods have abandoned us. Amazon KU

CITY OF THORNS (THE DEMON QUEEN TRIALS BOOK 1) by C N Crawford

I never thought I’d be singing happy birthday to myself in a dungeon. And yet when a sinfully sexy demon crashes happy hour, that’s exactly what happens. He’s known as the Lord of Chaos, he’s mistaken me for my succubus doppelgänger. Happy birthday to me. When he tastes my blood, he finally understands I’m mortal. And I realize we have something in common: we both crave revenge. So we make a deal: I can stay in the forbidden city to hunt for my mom’s killer. In return, I’ll help him get the vengeance he craves. I just have to pose as a sexy succubus. One problem–he’s my number one suspect. And that’s increasingly hard to remember as he teaches me my role: seduction. With each heated touch I drift further into peril. And if I fall under his seductive spell, death awaits me.

Amazon KU

A TREACHEROUS TAKEOUT (THREE KITTY FAMILIAR PI WITCH MYSTERY SERIES BOOK 2) by Constance Barker

When the half owner of a boutique is killed, the witches are hired to crack the case. Ned is the defense attorney for the defendant in the case, but is she as innocent as she seems? Or could a sister of the deceased decide it was high time for her brother to pay up. An old grudge has come back to haunt the witches in the form of a warlock. Barton Raynor plans to bring the witches down one at a time, starting with Anna. Ned and Camille are becoming close. Anna is happy for her friend, but Jackie is wary of the defense attorney. Does she have reason to be? Amazon KU

HELL CAT ESCAPING (HELL’S FIRE BURNING BOOK 1) by Jade Bones

I’ve been in Hell so long, I don’t remember who I was before this. How did I die? What did I do to earn the worst torture this place has to offer? Just kidding—I don’t give a crap. Whatever I did, no one deserves this; it’s time to get out of here. The only problem is, my escape is thwarted by three spoiled demon princes begging to go topside. And now Lucifer, the Devil himself, has stuck his unfairly attractive nose in. Lucifer promises I can work off some of my debt by guarding these three troublesome princes and keeping them out of mischief. My princes have other plans—beginning and ending with my personal hell on earth, since that’s apparently all a feral soul like me deserves.
I’ll show you what I deserve. Saddle up, boys. You’re riding with me, now. Amazon KU

LEVIATHAN’S SONG (THE BOUNDLANDS SERIES) by Elsie Winters

Elara is well versed in creating beautiful things with the potential for great destruction, and the moment she meets Levi she knows that’s exactly what he is. Charmed and irritated by the seductive siren, Elara is drawn to him, but though his siren song pulls her in, his words push her away. As a landlocked half-merman, rejected by his people, Levi is used to wanting things he can never have, and the soft-hearted and strong-willed Elara just hit the top of that list. She’s tempting, and that’s dangerous for him. He should stay away. But when an underwater city’s distant war comes to Elara’s doorstep, she’s suddenly in over her head, and Levi can no longer bear to keep his distance. Can she trust the mercurial siren that calls to her with more than his voice? Amazon KU

SILENCE ISN’T GOLDEN (TURNSKIN UNIVERSITY BOOK 5) by T L Reeve and Michele Ryan

Utah Blake shouldn’t have been born. In the shifter world, he’s imperfect—deaf. His mother smothered his triplet brothers before they even had a chance to grow, afraid they’d have the same defect as Utah. His father… Well he doesn’t know if the man who raised him is his biological father, or not. Everything has been a struggle for Utah until he met her. Raquel Leon thought she had a chance with the hunk of a tiger. However, at Hayden’s and Nico’s mating ceremony, Utah’s sister made it perfectly clear, he didn’t need a human as a mate. Not someone who usually allows what others think affect her, the idea of Utah’s family believing she’d do anything to hurt him, breaks her. The truth comes out. Once Utah finds out who cut Raquel from his life, he’s willing to do anything to get her back, including leaving home for the first time ever, without his family. Can Utah gain his little mate’s trust, or will the silence built between them, keep them apart? Amazon KU

THE MALEFICENT SEVEN by Cameron Johnston

Black Herran was a dread demonologist, and the most ruthless general in all Essoran. She assembled the six most fearsome warriors to captain her armies: a necromancer, a vampire lord, a demigod, an orcish warleader, a pirate queen, and a twisted alchemist. Together they brought the whole continent to its knees… Until the day she abandoned her army, on the eve of total victory. 40 years later, she must bring her former captains back together for one final stand, in the small town of Tarnbrooke – the last bastion against a fanatical new enemy tearing through the land, intent on finishing the job Black Herran started years before. Seven bloodthirsty monsters. One town. Their last hope.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

TWISTED PRETTY THINGS (SHADOWS OF LONDON BOOK 1) by Ariana Nash

In the underground world of glitzy illegal auctions, fast cars, and stolen magical artifacts, John “Dom” Domenici knows he’s out of his depth. But he needs the job at Kempthorne & Co like he needs to breathe. The alternative—going back to the organized crime gangs of London’s East End—is unthinkable. So when Alexander Kempthorne, boss of Kempthorne & Co Artifact Retrieval Agency, wants him on a special case to track down an illegal artifact dealer, Dom can’t say no. It shouldn’t matter that Kempthorne’s world is full of deadly secrets. It shouldn’t matter that the billionaire is sexy as sin, and it really shouldn’t matter how there’s an American agent stalking Dom, an American who knows more than he should about Dom’s case, including the real reason Alexander Kempthorne hired Dom. The only thing that really matters to Dom is solving the case and finding the artifact dealer. Because there are worse things in London than a conflicted billionaire and a trigger-happy American. Something wicked is stalking London’s streets, and if Dom doesn’t stop it, its shadows will rise and consume them all. Amazon KU

THE OTHER ME by Sarah Jachrich Jeng

Her birthday should be like any other night. One minute Kelly’s a free-spirited artist in Chicago going to her best friend’s art show. The next, she opens a door and mysteriously emerges in her Michigan hometown. Suddenly her life is unrecognizable: She’s got twelve years of the wrong memories in her head and she’s married to Eric, a man she barely knew in high school. Racing to get back to her old life, Kelly’s search leads only to more questions. In this life, she loves Eric and wants to trust him, but everything she discovers about him—including a connection to a mysterious tech startup—tells her she shouldn’t. And strange things keep happening. The tattoos she had when she was an artist briefly reappear on her skin, she remembers fights with Eric that he says never happened, and her relationships with loved ones both new and familiar seem to change without warning. But the closer Kelly gets to putting the pieces together, the more her reality seems to shift. And if she can’t figure out what happened on her birthday, the next change could cost her everything.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

THE BASILISK’S LOVER (FAIRVIEW CHRONICLES BOOK 8) by Alexa Piper

Leon is a basilisk, a snake-demon. He is also a teacher and used to hiding his true nature, that dark secret that has always kept him apart from others. When he meets Cy, what Leon thought would just be a fling quickly turns into more. Cy and Leon may be from different worlds, but with a dangerous creature feeding on the students at Fairview University where Leon teaches, those worlds soon collide. Cy finds himself pulled into a world of mages and shapeshifters, of seductive snake-demons. To help find what is murdering students at the university, Cy, along with the St. John Investigations team, decides to go undercover. He ends up a university student once more — and Leon is his hot teacher. Cy will need to come to grips with the supernatural and with his feelings for Leon. If opposites truly attract, the cold-blooded basilisk and the warm-blooded human might just find their way to a happily-ever-after, but not before they figure out what haunts Fairview University — and put a stop to it.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

OF ANOTHER WORLD by Edward Kendrick

A storm at sea leaves shifters Tony and his brother Daniel castaways on an unknown island. They soon discover they much farther from home than they imagined when they meet Brion, the elven mayor of the town of Rerenlion. They also learn all the island’s shifters have been magically imprisoned in Stronghold for crimes against the populace. Brion tells them the only way they can return to their own world is with the help of King Cerdic, and gives them a letter of introduction, as well as one for safe passage to the capital. The safe passage serves them well when they cross paths with elves who hate or distrust them for what they are. When they eventually meet the king, Tony and Cerdic are drawn to each despite the fact that Tony refuses to believe the island’s shifters are guilty of the crimes that landed them in Stronghold. He offers to prove they were framed by having Cerdic send him to Stronghold as a spy from another world. Will Tony be able to prove his theory and survive in the process? Will the shifter and the elf act on their mutual attraction in spite of their differences?

Amazon Kobo

MUCH A’BROOM ABOUT NOTHING (MAGICAL RENAISSANCE FAIRE MYSTERIES BOOK 1) by Erin Johnson

When Adelaide “Laidey” Ryan dragged herself off the couch for a date at the Renaissance Faire, she didn’t expect to run into her cheating ex-fiancé. The day only gets better when she winds up trapped on the magical grounds and discovers she’s a witch. And the best part? She’s charged with a homicide she didn’t commit. With the “help” of a snarky talking cat, this former Pilates teacher will have to wade through a turkey-leg sized list of suspects to find the real killer, all while juggling her new job as a broom maker’s apprentice. Despite her troubles, there’s a dashingly handsome pirate captain who has her heart aflutter. But time is running out on her sleuthing, and the lazy sheriff is eager to march her to the gallows. Can Laidey catch the murderer, or will her snooping make her Faire game for the killer? Amazon KU

FORSAKEN SECRETS (ISLE OF THE FORSAKEN BOOK 1) ny Olivia K Moto

VS Note: From July 29.

With a corrupt magistrate breathing down my neck, a magical affinity to keep hidden, and my slightly illegal propensity for relic hunting, it’s all I can do to keep Aunt Grace and myself from destitution. There’s no time left for anything else! Not the far-too-cheerful mage, Lord Elimri Westin, who feels indebted to me for saving his life. Nor the prickly monster-hunter, Lynk, who seems to think his job includes protecting me. And certainly not Jaiel, the smug Fae prince who cares for nothing but himself. No. I’m better off on my own. But the magistrate won’t let up, and one short conversation with his wife makes my whole world crumble. Now, my last chance at keeping Aunt Grace safe lies in locating a rare relic in the ruins near our estate. It’s a long shot, and I’ll have to team up with those vexing men to do it … but what other choice do I have? Amazon KU

THE ROOKERY (THE NIGHTJAR DUOLOGY BOOK 2) by Deborah Hewitt

After discovering her magical ability to see people’s souls, Alice Wyndham only wants three things: to return to the Rookery, join the House Mielikki and master her magic, and find out who she really is. But when the secrets of Alice’s past threaten her plans, and the Rookery begins to crumble around her, she must decide how far she’s willing to go to save the city and people she loves.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

ETERNAL FIRE (THREADS OF TIME BOOK 1) by Mariah Stone

Billionnaire Channing Hakonson isn’t where—or when—he belongs. He’ll do whatever it takes to return to the 9th century and protect his family, even if he has to use every penny of his vast fortune to build a time machine. But when a crime in his port brings him to the attention of a determined and very lovely police detective, his plans (and feelings) get a lot more complicated. All Ella O’Connell has to do to keep her job is solve the case and put the handsome billionaire behind bars. Easy, right? She wishes. Because while the evidence points to his guilt, she knows there’s more to his story than meets the eye—and she plans to uncover all his secrets. Now, if only she could keep her mind (and hands) off her sexy suspect…But forbidden romance is only where their problems start. When enemies from Channing’s Viking days arrive with the start of Ragnarok in their wake, will Channing choose to return to his past, or protect his present with Ella? Only time will tell…(This is the first part or a trilogy and not a standalone) Amazon KU

UNDER THE COVE (BOOKS AND BAES BOOK 2) by Ellis Leigh

Being a bobcat shifter means plenty of people thinking calling me Bob is funny, though that’s far from the worst thing a girl living alone in a small town deals with. I’d seen the true crime shows. I knew the dangers of serial killers and sociopaths. But Kinship Cove really was a safe place to be yourself, no matter the shifter type. At least, I thought so until I met the man of my dreams and the one the fates picked to be my perfect match. He’s tall, lean, quiet, and absolutely not telling me the truth about himself. What’s a girl to do when the man she’s falling for turns out not to be a wolf in human clothing but something much rarer and more dangerous. And how is a cat shifter of any type supposed to accept a life partially lived under the sea? They claim life is better down where it’s wetter…and I’m about to find out if that’s true.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

SECOND CHANCES by Alyson Belle

When Terrance Campbell, a divorce lawyer in Chicago, dies at fifty-three of a heart attack, the last thing he expects is to wake up in the body of his ex-girlfriend Edee Prescott, twenty years in the past. Not only should this be impossible, but Edee died in a car crash all those years ago—except now everyone is saying that Terrance is the one who died, and Terrance is Edee! Terrance now finds himself thrust into the bizarrely familiar life of his former sweetheart, working as an elementary teacher and sharing a house with Edee’s pal, Lana. Even stranger is interacting with Edee’s best friend, Michael Cox, the one man he was always jealous of when he was with Edee. But his interactions with Michael are totally different now, and as he increasingly starts to see what she saw in her friend. As confusing and alarming emotions blossom, Terrance searches desperately to uncover the truth about what happened to him. But as he gets better and better at adjusting to his new life as Edee, he’s not even sure what he wants anymore: Can he really go back to being Terrance even if he does find a way to do it? Amazon KU

AFRAID OF NO GHOST (HAUNTED HOUSE REHAB BOOK 1) by Rae Stapleton

VS Note: From July 30.

There’s nothing I enjoy more than making magic in the bedroom but taking on this ‘hotel of horrors’ is driving me crazy. Quite literally, I’m having the strangest flashbacks of kidnappings and asylums. Are the ghostly girls of Wolfeboro trying to tell me something or am I losing my mind? Of course, I’m also having flashbacks of a sensual nature, involving the men around me and the summer I fell in love. The weird part is that some of these memories include the newest ghost hunter in town. But how can I have memories of a man I only just met? Is he the reason I’m being haunted? I’m confident we can have the hotel ready in time for the grand opening, provided I can stay alive. But that might be easier said than done, with my unbalanced sister stalking me. Not to mention, the ghostly girl who keeps leading me down dark and dangerous hallways. For a mystery obsessed woman like me, there’s only one thing to do. Click on my trusty flashlight and shine a light on it…(MUCH more blurb on ebook seller page including the 3 guys…) Amazon KU

SCARLET DISASTER (CHEEKY FAIRY TALES BOOK 3) by Colette Rhodes

My name is Lou, but I’ve been known by many names over the years. The junkie’s daughter. The teen bride. The Internet knows me as Scarlet, but in real life, I’m just Lou. Scarlet is desired. She knows how to flirt, how to seduce, how to win. But Lou… well, I guess I’m still trying to figure that out. After a wake up call with a client that made me realize I was not leading my best life, I decided to make some changes. Stop living online. See the world beyond Fairbanks. Explore. Except my ex-client isn’t taking ‘no’ for an answer, and there are three new guys in town for the winter who insist on coming to my rescue. And all of them are keeping secrets. Secrets that might explain what bright eyes they have. And what sharp teeth they have. And what big packages they have. Amazon KU

A MELODY IN THE DEEP by Cara N Delaney

VS Note: From July 20

Keola is a mermaid – and bound for marriage to a foreign human prince. Unable to face a life cut off from the ocean with a man she despises, she chooses freedom at a terrible cost. Posing as a human wavesinger to remain hidden from her pursuers, she finds work on the ship of the dashing captain Anaar Kahlani. Anaar is searching for a mythical treasure and believes that Keola is the key to finding it. Amidst the hunt for fame and fortune, Anaar begins to fall for the mysterious wavesinger. Confronted with a secret and a dangerous revelation, she must decide what price she is willing to pay for untold riches – and for love. When Keola’s past catches up with her, can they survive the oncoming storm together, or will the trials ahead demand more of them than they are willing to sacrifice? Amazon KU

GHOSTLY DECEPTIONS (GHOST RELEASERS INC BOOK 2) by Jill James

After witnessing her sister’s paranormal misadventures, Andrea Martin-Stovall persists in denying the spectral world exists. That doesn’t stop a ghost from taking over her body and mind. Luke Tremaine is friend and business partner of the Ghost Releaser, but he remains a non-believer. When the ghost destroys Andrea’s career, deceives her family and friends, and places her in danger, she and Luke will have to confront what is and isn’t real in the paranormal world. Will their new-found love be strong enough to survive the ghost and the deceptions? Amazon KU

DADDY BIKER BEAR (BEARS OF FOREST HEIGHTS BOOK 1) by Roxie Ray

I was young and naive when I fell hard for bad boy Grizz, a shifter who was hot enough to melt my good girl heart. Big mistake. Because when good girls are naughty, they end up pregnant. Now I’m back in Forest Heights to care for my aunt with my son Rainer—the son I’ve been raising on my own for nine years because gruff, tough Grizz didn’t believe our baby was possible. But Rainer is living proof that shifters and humans can have babies, and now he’s showing signs of growing up to be just like his daddy. When Grizz realizes Rainer is his, he says he wants to get to know him. And the problem is, I’ll do anything for my son. Except open my heart to Grizz again. I won’t be rejected twice. And it’s far too dangerous, especially when a rival biker gang has their sights set on his patch of turf. Amazon KU

HONOR RESTORED (GUARDIANS OF THE FAE REALMS BOOK 9) by J L Madore

The reign of the usurper queen is over…Since before the time of the Wars of Power, Thornebane siblings have ruled Dornte—the male as Guardian of the Quadrant and the female as the Guardian of the Crown. Two years after my parents were murdered and their crown stolen, my brother reclaims leadership of the Dornte quadrant and rescues me from the prison she cursed me into. My mentor is dead, my training incomplete, and my recent trauma more than I can deal with alone. Thankfully, I’m not alone. Amazon KU

THE RECKONING (DEMON ENTANGLEMENTS 9) by Torri Heat

Luc, a demon Mare, and Joelle, the sassy woman he started out tormenting only to fall in love with, must travel to hell to save Joelle from a fate worse than death — eternal damnation. But when they arrive, they’ll be damned if they’re putting up with what they find. Betrayal, tricks, and a twist of fate have them questioning reality and their love for each other. Will either of them survive?

Amazon Kobo

SERPENTINE by J Kearston

They turned me to save my life, but damned themselves in the process. My life has always been a morbid test, seeing just how much I can endure before I finally break. So when I’m abducted and shoved into some psycho’s trunk, it really shouldn’t come as a surprise. Yet even the mercy of death is torn away from my grasp, three men sinking their teeth into me and refusing to let me go. Now I’m drawn to them in ways I’ve never experienced, and it’s as terrifying as it is thrilling. A blessing and a curse, I escaped my old life only to replace it by three sets of chains forged in blood, binding me to these strangers that feel like home. With the bond forcing my hand, it’s impossible to tell what’s real and what’s not where they’re concerned, if I’m only drawn to them because their venom is coursing through my veins. Or if they only bit me because they couldn’t stop themselves, my blood a siren’s call for shifters. One hit and they’re faster, stronger, and hopelessly addicted. If I thought I was being hunted before, it’s nothing compared to now, when turning me into one of them amplified the draw of my blood enough to turn men feral. All I want is a quiet life and the chance to explore this bond with the men who saved me, who look at me like they’ve waited a lifetime to find me.
But will they be strong enough to stand between me and a world that would bleed me dry the first chance it gets? Amazon KU

DWAYNE (BISHOP’S SNOWY LEAP BOOK 5) by Kathi S Barton

Brittany Handle was doing the best she could. She had just gotten out of a violently abusive relationship, and she was doing her best to get her business rolling. Having heard her sister died, she and her son, Jamie, went to Ohio to settle her sister’s affairs. Dwayne Bishop was settling into his new job at Addington. The owner was grooming him to take over when she retired. He was walking back to his office when Jamie literally barreled into him. The boy was being chased by three bullies. He had given as good as he got until one of them had hit him in the head with a baseball bat. Dwayne stepped in and protected the boy. Once back at his office, the boy was hurt worse than Dwayne thought and collapsed. Panicking, Dwayne reaches out to his family for help. Brit was doing her best to keep her shit together. Everyone kept saying it was bad, but she hadn’t seen Jamie yet, and until she did, she was doing her best to keep from snapping at everyone. But when Dwayne handed her what Jamie had had in his pocket, the jolt nearly knocked her off her chair. They were mates! She had just got out of one abusive relationship. There was no way she was bowing down to any man ever again.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

DARK POSSESSION (DARK DESIRE BOOK 3) by J Thompson

For over 200 years, Sebastian has served his kind as the best tracker ever bred for the Enforcers. Until the night of his Taking ceremony. With his bonded, his mate, stolen from him, Sebastian drowns himself in sorrow and blocks everything from his mind but the need to hunt—desperate heart be damned. Aria was lost. Stolen from her love, tortured beyond reason, she felt the clutches of darkness suffocating her. And on the brink of that darkness was the sharp, painful edge of need for something she no longer had. She knows she needs to escape, to fight, but will it all be too little too late? Can Sebastian find the drive to win back his fated? Can Aria use the last of her strength to break free? Their desire to be together again should be enough, but the demons that haunt them threaten to tear them both apart for good.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

FATED BY STARLIGHT (SUPERNATURAL INSTITUTE BOOK 1) by Krista Street

VS Note: From July 30

Avery – Half witch, a quarter werewolf and barely passable at either. Still, there’s an upside to my lacking abilities. I’ll be an excellent supernatural ambassador if I can survive three months of high-intensity training. I expected it to be rough and sweaty, but I didn’t expect my commander to wear a face from the past. Wyatt’s my former teenage crush, and he’s even more delicious than before. But as my superior he’s forbidden fruit, so I can’t let his distracting presence deter me. No matter how much I yearn for a taste. Wyatt – Squad Commander. Pureblooded werewolf. Alpha. My responsibilities weigh on me daily, and I’m more crushed than ever under that weight. Because my new recruit isn’t the shy, awkward girl I once knew. Avery’s become a luscious temptation that duty demands I resist. One glorious night under the stars, my willpower slips, but no matter how much I want her, I can’t let it happen again. So I reject her, and I’m prepared for her hatred until a rare celestial event changes everything. Now fate demands that I choose between Avery and duty. Little do I know, that decision is only the beginning. Amazon KU

BORN BY MOONLIGHT (SUPERNATURAL INSTITUTE BOOK 2) by Krista Street

Avery – The job I’ve dreamed of at the Supernatural Ambassador Institute awaits me…if I can stay alive long enough to claim it. An unknown darkness is slithering through my veins, poisoning me with its deadly venom. Still, I’m determined to fight—to claw my way on shredded nails to survive. I can see Wyatt’s desperation to help. Most likely it’s out of guilt for rejecting me as his mate. But I can’t risk trusting him again. Now, more than ever, I have to be strong. Wyatt – I refuse to let Avery die, even if her withering glances threaten to burn me to ash. I tried to fight fate, but now I’m at its mercy. Still, I’ll do whatever it takes to protect my mate. Teeth bared, I will battle my way back to her side, even if she resists me every chance she gets. But little does either of us know, a prophecy is in the works, and Avery is the catalyst to it all. Will she allow me to stand at her side and face what’s to come? Or will her isolated cries haunt me forever in the silvery moonlight? Amazon KU

PROPHECY OF THE WATER SPRITE by K Rose

Our kind has been enslaved by the Fae for as long as this kingdom remembers. They need us to keep water in their kingdom flowing, without it, their kind would surely all perish, as not even the powerful Fae have control over the waters that feed life to everything. Somewhere along the line, they all lost that ability, as if that element revolted against them. For over twenty-one years I’ve been kept in the dark about my true heritage, being raised as a witch, like my auntie, that can wield water with spells. Soon I would be old enough to leave my childhood home and go beyond the protection spell that has kept me safe all these years to seek out my destiny. A vision—perhaps even a prophecy, in the castle where I was born caused my parents to secret me away under the cover of darkness. I was saved by an unlikely partnership. For the first time in thousands of years, the elements are set to combine into the greatest power ever known, and somehow I am the center of it all. The power of the elements are told to bring about peace in the lands and restore life in the realm to a greatness more than it has ever been before. No more struggles for food, no more starvation. No more taxation with penalties of death. No more hatred and fear of the rulers of the kingdom. Only prosperity, health, and maybe even something more? Amazon KU

TO HUNT A FAE (ASSASSIN’S PULL BOOK 1) by Rachelle Hobbs

The Fae king’s rules aren’t made to be broken…To live in the human world, Fae must adhere to a certain code. They don’t, they die—and it’s up to my people, the Order of Assassins, to carry out the sentence. The rules are simple: Don’t reveal your true self to humans. Don’t kill one of your own. See rules one and two. Fae aren’t the only ones held to these standards. Assassins are, too. Why? Humans are dangerous, especially when they don’t understand something, and there are more of them than there are of us. I’ve spent my life following the rules—until I didn’t. Now, I’m the one being hunted. It’s strange being the prey, and even though I hate to admit it, I find myself seeking help from men fate deems are my Bonded, no matter how hard I fight against it. Ben, the gorgeous and devoted Assassin I’ve been running from for years. Luca, the mysterious and sexy Assassin who wants nothing to do with me. And Finn, the beautiful, exasperating Unseelie with too many secrets.
I’ll do what’s necessary to survive… even if it costs me the one thing I’ve come to value most. My freedom. Amazon KU

HUNTED BY FIRELIGHT (SUPERNATURAL INSTITUTE BOOK 3) by Krista Street

Avery – He’s always there, watching and waiting. The golden-eyed wolf who refuses to leave me be. A part of me yearns for him. Another screams to run. My memories have been stolen, erasing any recollection of what we once were. Still, I can feel the magnetic pull of my soul to his, and I know without a shadow of a doubt that fate isn’t through with us. Not yet. An ancient evil is on the hunt for me, bringing with it the threat of death. The only thing I know for sure? Wyatt and I have to work together if I’m going to survive. Wyatt – It kills me to see Avery like this, so anxious and distrustful. I know I broke her heart once before, but I’ll be damned if I let that happen again. I have to win her back. I have to earn her trust. Now, more than ever, she needs me because a prophecy is coming to pass, and the enemy behind it is hell-bent on making Avery their unwilling pawn. For her, I will fight. I will lay down my life to keep her safe. The question is, will she stand with me in return? AmazonKU

DRAGON GUARD KNIGHT: DRAGON GUARD OF THE NORTHERN ISLE BOOK 3 by Alicia Montgomery

A knight in search of his true love – Dragon Guard Niklas has been looking for love in all the wrong places. While he’s happy that his twin brother has found his mate, he wishes that he too, could find the other half of his soul. When a mission leads him to the one he’s been searching for, she’s not at all what he expects. Not only has she been living in isolation, but she has no idea what mates are and he finds wooing his soulmate will be the biggest challenge of his life. A damsel who’s hardly in distress – Female dragon Annika has been waiting all her life, but not for her knight in shining armor. Her entire existence has been devoted to protecting a long-lost prince, and when three strangers show up to her isolated home, she knew the wait was over. However, now that her duty is done, she feels rudderless and lost. That, and a certain handsome Dragon Guard is stirring up feelings inside her she never knew existed, and it scares and thrills her at the same time. When a new mission pairs them together, they must work together to solve a sixty-year-old mystery and put to rest the ghosts of the past. Can Niklas find a way to prove to Annika that he’s the perfect man for her or will she fly away before the bond is formed? Amazon KU

OFFICER DRAGON (EVERGLADES DRAGON DADDIES BOOK 6) by Kayla Wolf

I remember the warmth of his skin. I remember the touch of his hand…It’s been five long years since that night. Five years of trying to put him firmly in the past. Maybe it’s how on-edge I’ve been all night, being on the run. I know he’s my enemy—a cop and a dragon no less. But the adrenalin is coursing through my veins. And I feel so safe under his protection, no matter how awkward this is.
I try to lean into the awkwardness, to embrace it. Awkward is good. Awkward means I don’t have to think about the tension between us. About the undeniable fact that I’m still as attracted to him now as back then. About the question of what he is going to say…When he finds out that a lot more has come out of our night of passion than blurry memories. Amazon KU

PLAYBOY DRAGON’S CAT LADY (IRISH DRAGON SHIFTER BROTHERS BOOK 16) by Brittany White

VS Note: From July 29

The Female Mountain Lion Shifter – I was raised in a remote clan. My family rejected everything human. But I longed to be out in the world. And I dreamed of a life on the big screen. My family gave me an ultimatum — if you go to Los Angeles, you may never return home. I made the choice. I left to make my way in Hollywood I’ve starred in movies, and walked red carpets. I was lonely, but I had an amazing career. Until the day a malevolent demi-God found me. I ran from him. There was no way I could let him hurt anyone near me. On the run, I met a gorgeous playboy dragon shifter. My sexy dragon is rich, well-connected, and brave. And he’s determined to protect me. But how can he help me if I won’t tell him the truth — that my presence is putting him in danger? The Playboy Dragon Shifter – Years ago, I had a wife. A human wife. But I lost her to a careless accident. For a long time, drinking was the only way I dealt with the pain. I even laced my alcohol with magic, so I was never sober. But I got clean, and I traded my drinking parties for charity fundraisers. I hosted parties attended by hundreds, but I was numb to the world. Everything changed when a beautiful mountain lion showed up at my mansion. She was on the run, so I gave her refuge in my home. As the weeks go, I’m falling for her, but I swore I’d never have another mate. She’s hiding something from me, but I don’t care — I will do anything to keep her safe, even if it means risking my own life. Amazon KU

DEMON DISCORD (RESURRECTION CHRONICLES) by M J Haag

VS Note: From July 28

All Terri ever wanted was a family of her own. Then, her world fell apart in more ways than one. Hellhounds, infected, and food shortages became her primary concern and would have made pregnancy difficult, but not impossible. Until her husband divorces her in a fit of hurt feelings.
Now, she has a choice to make. She can linger in the same house with a man filled with bitter resentment…or find someone in the other survivor settlement to take her in. Someone not human. The thought of living with a fey makes Terri want to faint with fear, but maybe there’s a silver lining. The fey want babies just as badly as she does. Starting over isn’t easy. But it might be exactly what she needs. Amazon KU

GOLDEN WOLF (GOLDEN SERIES BOOK 2) by Paulina Vasquez

The Alpha King and God of War walks the earth. The golden wolf of the century is born again, but that won’t be enough to save the werewolves from the great war to come. Ares must accept a century-old family prophecy as it starts to unravel and seek the blessings of the Gods to master his elemental gifts. What he finds is more than he expected and everything he’s wanted. She’s beautiful, for a human. She’s sweet, smart and a little sassy, for a human. He’s certain she’s enchanted his wolf, but how could a weak little human have such power over the strongest wolf on earth? A whirlwind adventure from the Mayan jungles of ancient ruins to the sacred volcanoes of Hawaii, the plot twists and turns as we hunt down Gods and fight temptation. Amazon KU

RESCUED BY HER BEAR (BLACK RIDGE BEARS SHIFTER ROMANCE SERIES BOOK 2) ny Felicity Heaton

Leaving his cosy cabin at Black Ridge in the middle of a winter storm isn’t Lowe’s idea of a good time, but he’ll do whatever his alpha wants. With his twin for company, he battles the blizzard and his grouchy bear side, trying to keep his spirits up. When his brother brings up his bad habit of getting his heart broken, Lowe is sure things can’t get any worse… and then a gunshot echoes around the valley and the smell of blood sends his instincts wild. And when he finds the owner of the delicate, tempting scent and sets eyes on the most beautiful female he’s ever seen, fear and hope collide as he realises she’s human but everything inside him roars ‘fated mate’. Going on the run hadn’t been in Cameo’s life plan, but when her nice-guy-turned-drug-lord ex kills her brother and sets his sights on her, the binder goes out of the window. Staying one step ahead of Karl and his men is vital to staying alive, but a wrong turn leads her into a remote valley and what looks like the end of the line… until a gorgeous six-six mountain of a man rescues her and growls a vow to protect her. As the heat that crackles between them blazes into an inferno, Cameo is torn between accepting Lowe’s help and leaving to keep him safe. With the clock ticking and the men hunting her drawing ever closer, will Cameo follow her head or her heart?

Amazon Apple Books Kobo

HER DRAGON PROTECTOR (AWAKEN THE DRAGON BOOK 3) by Milly Taiden and Ava Hunter

Eating a sheep isn’t usually a big deal for dragon-shifter Tarn. But waking up in a new time and getting shot at for his little snack comes as a surprise. Although he escapes, he finds himself at the mercy of the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen. His mate. He wants to heal quickly to show her all the dirty things he wants to do to her. To prove he loves her, of course. Eva’s tired of living in a big mansion with loneliness as her companion. Tarn brings happiness and romance into her life. Okay, so he’s a little outdated when it comes to flirting, but that’s what makes him charming. Unfortunately, Tarn learns all the latest slang and it’s no time before he makes it clear he wants to tap her backside. She should be embarrassed, but the sizzling looks he gives her make it really hard to not be excited instead. Tarn and Eva need to figure out why he has woken up and why her father is acting so strangely. Dragons are being destroyed with their own magic. It must be stopped. They track down the poachers that want him dead. It’s a battle for survival while Tarn and Eva figure out if their romance can survive the dragon hunters. Amazon KU

******************************************************************************************

VS: Next up on my Badari Series Backlist is KIERCE. I had so much fun with this book and it opened up avenues for the series to explore in later books as well. The plot sprang from the opening scenes, which were stuck in my head – a woman being thrown into a massive alien ‘tiger’s’ cell and what would happen next…because of course he’s not exactly a tiger, or not all the time. I even tasted cat kibble as part of the research LOL.

KIERCE (A BADARI WARRIORS SCIFI ROMANCE NOVEL): Sectors New Allies Series Book 6

Elianna McNamee, spaceship engineer, is far from her home in the human Sectors, kidnapped along with all her shipmates to be used for horrifying experiments conducted on a remote planet by alien scientists.

Her captors decide to toss her in a cell with a ferocious predator, expecting him to kill her…but Kierce, the Badari warrior in question, has too much honor to mistreat a human woman. The trouble is, he’s trapped in a form drastically different from his own as a result of twisted genetic meddling and hiding dark secrets to save other Badari lives.

Able to become a man again briefly with Elianna‘s help, he and Elianna bond over their mutual hatred for the enemy but when rescuers finally arrive, the pair are separated by well-meaning Badari authorities.

Kierce struggles to overcome flashbacks from the torture and drugs the alien scientists inflicted on him. He and Elianna despair over whether he’ll ever be able to regain his rightful place as a man and a soldier in the pack, much less be ready to claim a mate.

Elianna accepts a risky but essential assignment far away from where Kierce is being held, working with another man who’s more than professionally interested in her. Her heart belongs to Kierce and she can’t forget their two nights of shared passion but will that be enough to lead them to a happy reunion?

Amazon Apple Books Nook Google Kobo

***********************************************************************************************

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 check and verify all the buy links at the time I create the post but after that I’m not responsible.

Required Statement: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifiying purchases.

Required Statement: As an Apple Books Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Aug 7 2021

Taking the Oath Weekend Writing Warriors

May be edited a bit from published version.

I’m doing a few excerpts from HEIRESS OF THE NILE, my most recent ancient Egyptian paranormal romance.

The snippet – the POV of Senebkai, the heroine’s 9 year old brother. He’s just begged Pharaoh to listen his petition, the Great One has agreed and they’ve been talking. I’ve skipped a little bit ahead.

Pharaoh picked up his flail and the crook, crossing them over his chest and gazed beyond Senebkai to regard the avidly attentive crowd. “I am pleased to accept the oath of service from my newest soldier.”

Senebkai licked his lips and swallowed hard. Let him forgive me for reminding him. “And my wages?”

Fortunately Pharaoh remained unperturbed, merely tilting his head ever so slightly in agreement. “Edekh, have one month’s wages, plus a suitably generous signing bonus, brought immediately.”

“Yes, my lord.” The Chief Scribe bowed and sent an under scribe running on the errand.

The High Priest of Horus paced forward, dressed in finely pleated robes, wearing a leopard skin belted across his loins and holding a large, fragrant onion. He touched Senebkai gently on the shoulder to get his attention. “Kneel to your pharaoh, boy, place your hand on this sacred icon, symbol of eternal life, circle upon circle unending, and repeat the oath after me. I, state your name—”

This was all going too fast now but he stumbled into speech. “I, Senebkai…”

“Do solemnly swear by my immortal soul, under the eyes of the Great Ones of Egypt, I will defend Pharaoh and my country against all enemies, be they foreign or Egyptian, human or inhuman, and I will obey the orders of Pharaoh and any officers he appoints over me, according to Ma’at, the eternal truth, here and in the Afterlife.”

Senebkai repeated the entire oath, his voice strong and calm. This was what he wanted, had dreamed of since he was a small boy. And to make my oath directly to Pharaoh, not a bored recruiting officer…my father would be proud. Tears prickled in Senebkai’s eyes, and he swiped at them with his fist, pretending the onion affected him. The priest took a ceremonial knife from his belt, gripping it by the golden falcon’s head hilt and sliced off a thin ring of the onion, giving it to Senebkai to eat as the completion of the ritual, sealing him to Pharaoh’s service.

“Here are your wages,” Pharaoh said as Edekh handed Senebkai a fat leather purse full of clinking gold deben. “And now I give you my first order.” He considered his gathered nobles and soldiers then pointed the cobalt and gold officer’s flail at one man. “General Marnamaret.”

Senebkai’s heart sank. A general? How sympathetic will he be to my need to pay the landlord right away and to take proper care of my mother?

VS: Ah but we know Marnamaret is a very understanding person, since we met him earlier in these snippets. Next week – Pharaoh’s orders.

Amazon Apple Books Kobo Nook GooglePlay

******************************************************************************

I did a fun new trailer for DANCER OF THE NILE, which you can view HERE.

Aug 6 2021

8 Favorite Novels by #SciFi Romance Author Cynthia Sax

VS: I’ve been writing about scifi romance for various platforms for a number of years so some portions of the post below have appeared previously in other places.

For my continuing, occasional series on favorite books from authors I enjoy, I’m covering Cynthia Sax today, partly in honor of her new book releasing next week BARING GRUDGE.

In a 2019 interview I did with the author for Amazing Stories Magazine blog, I asked her what she felt the appeal of cyborgs was for readers. Her answer: “The appeal of cyborgs for me is the conflict between their machine side and their human side, between logic and emotion, between the head and the heart. I think we all have that conflict. Should we take jobs that feed our families or jobs that feed our souls? Should we listen to our brains or to our guts? Cyborgs are also often military heroes and who doesn’t love someone who is willing to die to protect others? That type of bravery and self-sacrifice is definitely worth writing and reading about.”

The first book I ever read by Ms. Sax was Releasing Rage in 2015 and I remember thinking “Wow, I’m in over my head” because a lot of it was very dark and very sexy but I couldn’t stop reading and all these years later I still remember the plot in great detail. I read so many scifi romance novels, that’s kind of amazing – I only remember the details of the ones which made a huge impression on me. It’s not one of my favorites though, because I just found the cyborg Rage to be too angry for me (he’s well named, no?) and I hated the way the heroine Joan was treated by the other humans, although she was a very strong woman who could and did stand up for herself.

The tenth book in the Sizzling Cyborg series was Seeking Vector and I loved the characters. As the book begins, Vector, the C Model cyborg in command of the warship Freedom, is a rough, tough, deadly fighter hiding a painful personal secret that borders on being a phobia I’d never have expected from a cyborg. Not only that, he’s frustrated by and attracted to, a female human hacker who’s been feeding him valuable intelligence tidbits about the evil Human Alliance (HA) battle plans. Can he trust her? Should he trust her? Is she possibly his fated mate? (You can guess the answer to that one!) They’ve never actually met when the book begins but her voice in his head is pretty intoxicating.

Kasia, the hacker, can break into anything, even cyborg programming. She’s also extremely good at hiding out in the HA battle station without being detected, while she spies on them and tries to help cyborgs being mistreated and tortured. She’s also fascinated by Vector and enjoys their verbal sparring – she wants to meet him just once before she goes on the run again. Here’s what Vector thinks of that idea: “I’ll follow you. I’ll chase you to the ends of the universe. You will never escape me.” Very determined, these cyborgs.

These two are scalding hot together, as with all of Author Sax’s couples, and their encounters are steamy and frequent. ”Every part of her touched by his lips fizzed, bubbling with his nanocytes…he tasted of metal and frustrated male…”

Each learns to trust the other, there’s a lot of action, she gets to do more hacking…Vector learns through his love for Kasia to break a few of the rules running his life and she acquires a bit more discipline over her impulsive approach to everything. Author Sax’s world is dark, as I’ve mentioned before and some of the scenes of well-deserved cyborg pay back against the truly evil HA members get pretty grim, but it’s balanced by how invested the reader becomes in the love story between Vector and Kasia. (Sax doesn’t linger on the grimness but it’s one thread in the background of the worldbuilding.) As usual I finished the book feeling well pleased with the ending and the journey to get there.

And I loved Taking Vengeance, book twelve in the series and the story is like her cyborgs – rough, tough, brutal at times, steamy, sexy and with love bringing a happy ever after ending that fits the hero and heroine. Her cyborgs have discovered over time that each may have a genetically matching human woman out there. Vengeance, an older Model C cyborg, doesn’t believe in this bond, or that mated human women should be allowed on the Homeland planet. Cyborgs were created by the Humanoid Alliance (HA) to fight and die, and were treated by their masters in terrible ways until they finally rebelled and escaped. He wants to protect his fellow cyborgs from any new threat.

But his hardline stance on this issue as a member of the cyborg ruling council jeopardizes the happiness of the existing couples, and the future chances for happiness of others. When he’s informed his own genetic match has been located, he says he’ll find the female and kill her to prove the genetic bond isn’t real. Uh oh.

Astrid the Buoir Beserker is a scarred, ferocious human warrior, whose entire race has been exterminated by cyborgs under the command of the HA. In the past she’s killed hundreds of cyborgs in combat. She lives alone on her world now, finding and properly burying her dead compatriots so their spirits can achieve peace in the afterlife. She also fiercely nurtures her hatred of cyborgs.

A match made in heaven?

Their relationship begins with an exchange of air to air missiles as he approaches her planet and grows more personal from there. Taunting each other as they battle, Vengeance is determined to capture her and she’s equally set on killing him. After she blows up his ship, they tangle hand to hand. Soon enough “Awareness, need and desire energized the air between them. They were enemies, hated each other. His yearning to kiss her was wrong. He had to fight it.” Next thing they’re declaring regular truces to swim, conduct very steamy physical relations, hunt a deadly predator, locate more graves…but each continues to deny that they have a true bond. (His nanocybotics flow into her and speed up her healing during romantic encounters after battle.)

I loved the way these two total enemies began to respect each other and moved from there to falling in love. Each had to abandon strongly held beliefs about the other, and forgive past atrocities. Vengeance makes the mistakes you’d expect from a hard headed Model C but Astrid is a pretty cool customer and figures out how to bring him along to the truth of what they share. She definitely holds her own.

I had other favorites in the cyborg series but I want to spend some time on another series written by Ms. Sax that I also enjoyed greatly, which is entitled The Refuge. Several of those books are among my favorites, beginning with the first one Dark Thoughts. The book is set in the same universe as her sizzling cyborgs, but as the title implies, much darker in tone, with some horror-like elements. I was fascinated by the hero, Kralj, a scarred monster who rules over the Refuge, home to countless evil beings. The heroine, Dita, is an assassin and when these two meet, sparks fly. I felt that the author really leveled up from previous novels in her treatment of the main characters in this book – so complex, both of them; fascinating to watch each one change in response to their feelings for the other – there’s definitely romance and an HEA ending, although bear in mind Kralj likes to eat his kills and Dita bonds with him over their mutual enjoyment of tracking down bad guys and eliminating them.

Next came Dark Flight. In this city of genetically enhanced warriors whose ruthless creators combined human traits with those of various other fierce galactic races, nano tech keeps them healthy and pretty much immortal. These men escaped their Human Alliance creators and now live safely under the rule of Kralj This outing follows Orol, the winged and tormented second-in-command. I was quite drawn to him from the beginning. “In the air he felt complete, whole and powerful. He was free. No other being could touch him.”

Orol is sent to retrieve two sisters who’d been on their way to the Refuge for sanctuary and bringing top secret information about a Human Alliance invention. The sisters’ ship crashes in the desert, and the situation becomes very complicated. Rhea, the heroine and elder sister, turns out to be someone who doesn’t trust easily, certainly doesn’t believe that Orol has been sent to help her, shoots better than he does, enhanced warrior or not and is so badly wounded she may die. The sister is nowhere to be found. Fairly immediately Orol realizes Rhea is his fated mate. “She wouldn’t be a simple female to care for, to protect. He’d have to pay attention, see past her silence, her lies, her feigned nonchalance.”

I read the book in one sitting, because I thoroughly enjoyed the duel of wits between Orol and Rhea, and their mutual battle against the forces involved in the peril sister Paloma has fallen into. No spoilers! Author Sax has spun another fascinating tale – she writes some things much darker than I normally read (certain aspects of combat to the death for example) but because I find her characters pull me into the story in such compelling fashion, I go with it. The darkness fits the world building and the story. She also skillfully weaves a lot of steamy and sexy scenes throughout the entire book, about which of course I’m not complaining.

There are some very tender happy scenes toward the end, where I was definitely in “aww” mode and all in all Dark Flight was a terrific read.

The third was Dark Strength and the story belongs to Balvan, the Refuge’s massive gatekeeper, and Elyce, a human refugee who’s been held captive and tortured by a particularly sadistic HA commander before escaping to the sanctuary. The two discover they are fated mates and it’s really a beautiful love story taking place in the midst of skull crushing and other violence. The Refuge is not a civilized place, trust me.

But Elyce knows instinctively Balvan can and will keep her safe.

He “…wanted her to love him, to see past his size, his bald head, green skin, menacing features.” Balvan, who routinely rescues abused puffkers – tiny purring fluffballs – from people who think tormenting them is a fun idea, has a soft corner in his big warrior heart. Even in her abused and terrified state, Elyce instinctively responds to that. “Balvan was the exception to everything…”

He just falls deeper and deeper in love. “No one had ever called any part of him beautiful, no one excerpt her.”

Ms. Sax writes dark books, lots of blood and guts and violence, as well as steamy sex, and the Refuge series is no exception. Action and plot twists and turns. What really draws me in, however, are the characters she creates to live in her galaxy – their motivations and back stories, and most of all their journeys toward the HEA ending they deserve. I was thoroughly happy with the tale of Balvan and Elyce and read it in one sitting.

Dark Fire was book 4 in her Refuge series. As the book begins, Dare, a silver-scaled Dracheon warrior, is faced with unique challenges, beginning with the fact he’s having a hard time controlling his inner dragon. He longs to meet his mate, who he instinctively knows is on the planet somewhere…but then there’s the small problem that his inner beast might kill her while they make love the first time. “His female had a better chance of remaining alive if they didn’t meet.”

When we first meet Dare, he has a bed rock core of things he knows with absolute certainty. It was most amusing to watch pretty much every one of his cherished beliefs – who his mate would be, how she’d look, where they’d live and so forth – get demolished as the book progressed. Fortunately Dare adapts fast and the reality turns out better than he could have imagined.

Faylee’s a short, small, thin, ragged, dirty young human woman pretending to be a boy. She makes her living as a thief and loves shiny things, which is handy since Dare’s scales are shiny. “But she had the most beautiful big brown eyes he’d ever seen. He could stare into them forever, the mixture of innocence and world-weariness enchanting him.” I very much liked Faylee and her sense of honor, plus her amazing pickpocket skills.

The sex is, as always from author Sax, frequent, creative and hot. No, I mean literally hot, since Dare is an alien dragon shifter type male. I enjoyed the interesting twists that his nature and endowments provided for the story telling, in the bedroom and in battle.

We get to see favorite Refuge dwellers from the earlier books in the series, which is always fun!

I’d been waiting for and pestering Ms. Sax to tell the story of Gisella, the Refuge’s chief medic. The Refuge is a dark and violent place where the one and only law is not to kill anyone or the ruler, Kralj, will end you quite messily. I’ve been intrigued with Gisella ever since the first time she was mentioned in a Refuge book, in passing, because I figured a woman had to be tough as nails to survive in the Refuge and must have quite the backstory to end up there.

Dark Cure is Gisella’s book, sixth in the series and well worth waiting for. She’s absolutely devoted to being a medic and curing people, and intends to remain at the Refuge forever because Kralj respects her skills and has bought her the very best, top of the line equipment. She has everything she needs to be able to heal, unlike many of her earlier life experiences, where she had to practice more primitive medicine and people died or were left alive but maimed. Nothing and no one can pry her out of the Refuge. She has an unending supply of patients because of the violent nature of life within the city walls and she takes pride in training other medics. But most important to her, she has a fully equipped hospital with literally everything in the known universe at hand to help her patients.

Immovable Gisella meets irresistible force in Oghul, a fierce alien warrior, second-in-command to a warlord of his people, the Chamele. Oghul and his squad are in the Refuge temporarily but he immediately recognizes Gisella as his gerel or life mate. Her toughness is an added attraction for him. “You’re intelligent for a barbarian,” she says. “You’re very savage for a medic,” is his answer. Instant attraction at the bar and they adjourn to her quarters for one of author Sax’s very steamy sex scenes. Oghul is perhaps not the most articulate of guys, although he tries to explain the meaning of gerel and Gisella fails to ask enough questions because in the morning surprise, surprise – bonded mates, to be together forever, who literally have to adjourn to the bedroom at frequent intervals during early gerel-ship.

Watching these two figure out the future when she refuses to leave the Refuge – but realizes over time how much Oghul means to her – and he longs for nothing but to go home to Chamele as planned, where his people have a rich, full family life was engrossing. I have to hand it to the author because for quite a long time while reading this, I didn’t see how a genuinely happy ever after could be achieved. One or the other of the lovers was going to have to give up their dream…but noooo. Events happen, backstory is learned and dealt with and the romantic HEA occurs. A good read, much inventive time is spent in the various bedrooms but there’s a lot of other action and plot development besides. Another successful outing for fans of author Sax.

Here’s the information on her new book, releasing next week:

BARING GRUDGE (REBEL CYBORGS BOOK 3) by Cynthia Sax