How long it has occupied the fibrous soil of that place is uncertain, but Dr Jim Alburton estimates it is close to ten million years. Then again, this is not his sphere of expertise. He would normally consult Jane Milner, the county’s only resident fungus expert. But Jane is dead, along with her partner — victim of a rare, acute brain disease. Alburton found her on the floor of a laboratory, sticky orange fluid oozing from her ears. This was disturbing enough, however her partner’s face was mutilated beyond recognition, an apparent result of his girlfriend’s killing frenzy. Alburton comes to know of the fungus because of Jane’s notebook, which describes its discovery but gives little scientific detail or where it is located. He can’t help thinking the discovery is bound up with her sudden death and that of her partner. The police are moving too slow for Alburton’s liking and don’t accept there’s a connection between this incident and an increasing number of horrific deaths rapidly blooming in the area. A woman walking her dogs along a popular pathway is savagely attacked, a local student inexplicably kills the school nurse, a care-worker suffers a psychotic episode and attacks an elderly man in his home. The news bulletins deliver more reports by the hour. As the number of incidents mounts, Alburton becomes convinced the county is quickly becoming the epicentre of a fungal disease epidemic that could spread nationwide. He concludes the fungus must be acting on its host’s nervous system, causing them to become depraved killing machines. Yet few believe him as he has little evidence for his theory. Now he faces the responsibility of tracking down the source of the disease, persuading the authorities and somehow preventing a cascade of bloody murders. With the newly christened phenomenon known as Mycophoria accelerating in its impact, there are only days or perhaps hours to accomplish this before the disease goes pandemic.

    He beat and choked her to death. I'm told that he was found hanging from a homemade noose in his cell. I want to know why he waited so long to do it." Sydney Brennan isn't sure how to answer her client's question, short of holding a séance, and the Tallahassee detective has some questions of her own. Why does Noel Thomas remember so little about her childhood? Why is she delving into her father's suicide now? And, most importantly, why isn't Noel telling her the truth?Sydney crisscrosses the Florida Panhandle, reconstructing the tragic Thomas family history. The violence that destroyed the Thomas family connects to a present-day web of deceit and corruption through a desperate man willing to do anything to keep his secrets safe. To discover his identity, Sydney must go Back to Lazarus, back to the town where Noel's beautiful but troubled mother began her inevitable descent over twenty years ago. But by following in the footsteps of the murdered woman, does Sydney risk sharing her fate?Rooted in bars and back roads and Panhandle prisons, forgotten towns and forgotten people, at its heart Back to Lazarus is about stories: the stories people tell us, the stories we tell ourselves, and what happens when we realize it's all a lie.

    Every book's a winner!" New York Times Bestselling Author Brenda Novak This contemporary romance boxed set includes 3 full length LOVE IN BLOOM: THE REMINGTONS novels: GAME OF LOVE, Bk 1 STROKE OF LOVE, Bk 2 FLAMES OF LOVE, Bk 3 Sneak Peek, SLOPE OF LOVE *** GAME OF LOVE... Ellie Parker is a master at building walls around her heart. In the twenty-five years she's been alive, Dex Remington has been the only person who has always believed in her and been there for her. But four years earlier, she came to Dex seeking comfort and then disappeared like a thief in the night, leaving him a broken man. Dex Remington is one of the top PC game developers in the United States. He's handsome, smart, and numb. So damn numb that he's not sure he'll ever find a reason to feel again. A chance encounter sparks intense desires in Ellie and Dex. Desires that make her want to run--and make him want to feel. A combination of lust and fear leads these young lovers down a dangerous path. Is it possible to cross a burned bridge, or are they destined to be apart forever? *** STROKE OF LOVE Kate Paletto runs a volunteer program in Belize for Artists for International Aid, where she deals with self-centered artists who use the program as a means to repair their marred reputations. She loves the country, the people, and what AIA stands for, but too many diva volunteers have turned her off to press-seeking celebrities altogether and left her questioning the value of the volunteer program. When she meets incredibly handsome and charming Sage, he stirs emotions she hasn't felt for ages, even though he represents the things she despises. Laid-back artist Sage Remington escapes his wealthy lifestyle in the Big Apple for a two-week journey of self-discovery to figure out how a guy who has so much can feel so empty. When he meets ultra-organized Kate, who lives her life the way he's always dreamed of living his, the attraction is too hot to ignore, but Sage is there to figure out what's missing in his life, not to find a woman. Every look, and every late-night chat in the romantic jungle brings them closer together, but Sage can barely think past stripping away Kate's misconceptions about him. Kate fights him every step of the way--even though she finds it hard to ignore the strikingly handsome, generous-to-a-fault artist who wants to do nothing more than right the wrongs of the world--and love her to the ends of the earth. *** IN FLAMES OF LOVE... As one of New York's Finest, firefighter Cash Ryder is always prepared. When a woman's car skids off the side of a mountain during a snowstorm, he's there to rescue her. Cash is totally focused on the woman's well-being, but within minutes of getting her to safety, he realizes that he's nowhere near prepared for the heat that rolls off of sensual, smart-mouthed, and stubborn Siena Remington. As a model, Siena Remington has dated some of the wealthiest, most handsome men in the industry, and she's made peace with the idea that most men are just looking for eye candy and they wouldn't know how to romance a woman to save their lives. When she's rescued by a tall, handsome stranger, she thinks that maybe, just maybe, she's found her own real-life romantic fairy tale--until he opens his mouth and everything that comes out is gruff, ornery, and aggravatingly sexy. Thrown together during an annual firehouse calendar photo shoot, the passion between Cash and Siena sizzles, and neither one knows how to control the flames. After an evening of verbal sparring followed by a sinfully sensual night, their darkest secrets are revealed--and so is Cash's warm, romantic heart. But Siena's secret might be too much for big, strong, always-prepared Cash to handle--and Siena is forced to choose between a man who's everything she's ever dreamed of and an opportunity of a lifetime.

    Atwell knows. He knows how everyone will die, even the ones he won't kill himself.   He also knows about all your clones. You didn't really think you were the original, did you? He's even traveled back in time to bring his daughter back from the dead. SHADOW ON THE STAIRS is a collection of short thriller, horror, mystery, and suspense stories. Each bite-sized page turner is a quick, exciting read, made more so by Dr. Atwell's elaborate narrative subtly woven between the stories.Supernatural and paranormal encounters. Deranged murders and master assassins. Mad experiments and profane rites... Delve into these mysteries and join the hunt to discover the truth.    Praise for Shadow on the Stairs:    "This book is filled with quick and easy-to-read horror stories that pack a punch."★★★★★ Review"Blair has the incredible ability to weave the most mundane passing thoughts into creepy nightmares. She does this without evocative shock and gore and instead builds imagery and cadence that lead you there. She manages to build a world of existential dread that is not too unlike our own and doesn't waste time."★★★★★ Review"I devoured it in a day and a half. Blair's writing is in that perfect Goldilocks zone where it's accessible and easy to read but not dumbed-down or too simple. I got chills more than once reading this!" ★★★★★ Review Read now to see the full-page illustrations.  Exquisite original illustrations from the author make this collection truly unique.   About Haunted House Publishing:  We're passionate about publishing horror stories for adults, scary books for teens, and all sorts of dark fiction. We've got new horror kindle books every month, specializing in supernatural stories, supernatural book collections, and paranormal books for adults. We've got zombie books, demonic horror, ghosts and specters, angels and demons, gothic novels, and haunted houses and ghosts novels. We promise some of the top horror books 2018.

    When teens receive a government-sanctioned pharmaceutical cocktail during school, paranormal abilities begin manifesting... making the teens more powerful than the adults.After Caleb discovers he has the rare, Affinity for the Dead, he must do whatever it takes to hide it from a super-secret government agency whose goal is exploitation. Caleb seeks refuge in his new girlfriend, Jade, until he realizes that she needs as much protection from her family, as he does from the government.Suddenly, Caleb finds that hiding his ability while protecting Jade and his friends is a full time job; can he escape the government, protect Jade and lose the bullies that are making him miserable? (App. 119,000 word count.)DEATH SPEAKS:Caleb's in high school now and thinks the chaos of last year is behind him. Unfortunately, a serial killer is on the loose and children are his victims. Caleb agrees to help the police apprehend the murderer...until the killer takes notice of Caleb and his paranormal friends.Carson and Brett remain the bullies they always were and their posse continues to grow. How long can the two groups stay out of each others' way before there's a firestorm of retribution...The Government Graysheets continue to keep tabs on Caleb's every move while Jade's family threatens their relationship. Can they still be together even when events threaten to tear them apart? (App. 92,000 word count.)DEATH INCEPTION:Kyle Ulysses Hart and his team of scientists mapped the human genome in the year 2010. As Brain Impulse Technology came online... so did the long arm of the United States government. A covert, military-driven regime was born with genetic manipulation the key to future widespread control. When pharmaceutical laboratories, funded by the Graysheets, discover a way to unlock paranormal potential through compulsive inoculation, their exploitative dream is realized.Clyde and Caleb's lives are predestined to intertwine as they cross paths, his history becoming Caleb's future.A lone teenager named Jeffrey Parker, falls prey when he manifests the rare, Affinity for the Dead. The Graysheets abandon all pretense of stewardship, ripping him from his family for their nefarious purposes. Can Jeffrey remain who he was destined to be in an environment exclusively built for mass control? (App. 24,000 word count._

    What comes is a blinding blizzard, and a mass disappearance of nearly every person Robby Pierce knows. He and his family flee, trying to escape the snow and the invisible forces stealing people right from the street.Miles away, Brad Jenkins battles the same storm. Alone, he attempts to survive as snow envelops his house. When the storm breaks, Brad makes his way south to where the snow ends and the world lies empty. Join Brad, Robby, and the other survivors as they fight to find the truth about the apocalypse and discover how to live in their new world.

    A gunned-down detective. A woman in fear for her life. All three are connected somehow.Detective Inspector Carl Sant and his fellow officers get on the case. But what links the disappearance of a university student, the death of an off-duty police sergeant, and a professor reluctant to help them solve the case?Their only clue is a sequence of numbers, etched by the police sergeant Dryden on a misty window moments before he breathed his last. Soon it becomes clear that Dryden's clue has brought the past and present into a head-on collision with the very heart of Sant’s profession.Racing against time, D.I. Sant must find out what's behind the mysterious events - before the bodies start piling up.

    She works hard with other enforcers to maintain peace and order among the CORE's 2 million residents, especially against the radiation-crazed outsiders called fringers.But Reese hides a secret she can never share with anyone, a secret that killed her father and ruined the life of the person she once loved more than anyone.When a new assignment sends Reese to Amarillo City, near where she grew up, she's partnered with Jaxon Tennant on the Violent Crimes Investigation Unit, and she knows her secret won't stay secret long. Somehow their past is connected to missing scientists and programmers, but all leads go nowhere: evidence disappears, witnesses change testimony, and names vanish from the CORE database.Someone is willing to do anything to stop Reese and her former Colony 6 crew from discovering the truth behind what has been done to them—and thousands of others. To learn what they have become, Reese and her friends must go against the very foundations of the society they serve. There is no going back.Sketches (Colony Six, #1) is the first of a series following the six members of the Colony 6 crew.

    A private haven for only those deemed worthy enough to attend.Landon Verger is a titan of industry, a man who casts a long dark shadow and founder of Paradise. The resort's opening weekend should have been a celebration of wealth and excess, but without warning the resort has gone silent.Sam Verger knows his father only too well; the great man casts a long and dark shadow. He also knows that Landon Verger's enemy list is long and varied, any one of which would love to see his father dead.Sam seeks to employ a professional to investigate the island, Mac is one such woman. An ex-military officer she works dirty jobs and doesn't ask questions if the money's right. With her like-minded team they travel to Paradise.Mac thought she'd seen everything that death had to offer, she was wrong. What started out as a simple mission will quickly become the most desperate fight for survival she's ever faced. There's only one thing that she's sure of, not everyone is getting out alive.

    The stranger’s glowing hands were a big tipoff.When the stranger murders Maya’s boyfriend with a single touch and injects the college sophomore with a DNA-altering serum, Maya prays for a savior. Instead, she gets a double helping of knight-in-not-so-shining-armor when two young men claiming to be her half-brothers pull off a belated rescue. Now Maya is swiftly transforming into an “angel”, one of the scientifically enhanced, energy-sucking creatures her brothers have spent their whole lives trying to destroy. Maya’s senses sharpen, her body becomes strong and agile, and she develops the ability to visually see the emotions of those around her as colorful auras…beautiful auras…tempting auras. Struggling to control the murderous appetite that fuels her new abilities, this reluctant protagonist must find a way to accept her new condition and learn to trust her angel-hunting brothers as she joins them in their fight against the powerful and destructive creatures. On the up side, at least Maya’s eldest brother has stopped trying to kill her!FALLING takes all the foul-mouthed, attitude-driven humor of the BLACK DAGGER BROTHERHOOD series and combines it with the action-packed, love/hate family dynamics of the CW show SUPERNATURAL. Get ready to fall hard for FALLING, the first novel in J Bennett’s new adult paranormal series, GIRL WITH BROKEN WINGS. Warning: This book contains violence, sexual content, and strong language.

     But now the most vicious sociopath he ever brought to justice wants him dead. And the crossfire between good and evil threatens the intriguing woman Jack desires. If you love sexy romantic thrillers with explosive surprises and edge-of-your-seat suspense, grab a copy of DEADLY PURSUIT today! Ann Christopher’s DEADLY Series (IMPORTANT NOTE: these books are tightly plotted and should be read in order): Book 1: Deadly Pursuit Book 2: Deadly Desires Book 3: Deadly Secrets

    These brave men and women stand up to the darkness, stare it right in the eye, and give it the finger. These are the stories of those who rage against the night, stories of triumph, sacrifice, and bravery in the face of overwhelming evil. Rage Against the Night features the megastars of dark fantasy and horror—including Stephen King, Ramsey Campbell, Peter Straub, Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, F. Paul Wilson, Jonathan Maberry, Scott Nicholson, Nancy Holder, Sarah Langan, and many, many more.

     They thought they were alone. They were wrong. On October 15th, humanity went missing. A handful of scattered survivors wake to find the world empty of friends, family, and neighbors. Among them, a child searches for his family. A special agent turned enemy of the state survives a fiery plane crash with no way to reach his daughter. A serial killer discovers he’s no longer at the top of the food chain. Now these strangers must find the strength inside them to weather the new world. But they are not alone. In the absence of civilization, a new threat emerges. In the stillness, it waits and watches, preying on their weakness. Their only hope is to find more survivors, rise above their fear, and face the oncoming darkness. But can they unite before they too are lost? And can they all be trusted? Season One of Yesterday’s Gone by Sean Platt and David W. Wright is a tense post-apocalyptic thriller that will leave you guessing to the end. Combining TV’s thrilling, episodic nature with the in-depth character only found in novels, Yesterday’s Gone is a new wave in fiction. If you like The Stand and LOST, you’ll love this series that combines tension, intrigue, and fear of the unknown. Get Yesterday’s Gone now and see who lives and who dies! (Warning: This book is intended for mature audiences and contains disturbing and potentially offensive material.)

    But as she forms an unlikely connection with her abductor, Luke, her adventure takes a strange turn.There is nothing magical about growing up in a mountainside castle, when it’s your prison. Kaya’s ruthless and powerful father keeps her under lock and key, watched every second of the day–and Kaya’s not really sure why. She’s just a normal girl…no one special. She doesn’t understand her father’s obsession with her safety – until she is kidnapped. Dragged through a brutal wilderness, Kaya’s captor shows her the devastating truth, and even though he has dark secrets of his own, she is inexplicably drawn to him–when the stars are in your eyes, sometimes the line between right and wrong is blurred. Passion obliterates common sense. Love... makes you reckless. As Kaya's father’s men and her devoted bodyguard scour the woods to find her, she wonders if staying in the arms of her abductor is the safer place to be. At least, that’s what her heart is saying—her head is saying run… Dangerously passionate and darkly romantic, SERENADE is a page-turning thriller and seductive love story.

    identifies an anomaly that leads her into a cat-and-mouse game online with a deadly enemy whose motives are unclear. The chase lures her through dark corridors of cyberspace into a confrontation with the violence from her past that sent her fleeing to the United States. She’ll need every skill she’s learned to defeat her worst nightmare — and the stakes couldn’t be higher.