I was right about the sorcery, but wrong about everything else.Rule two: Don't listen to the demon.My uncle chose a far deadlier power. He calls creatures of darkness into our world, binds them into service contracts, and sells them to the highest bidder. And I'm supposed to act like I don't know how illegal and dangerous it is.Rule three: Don't talk to the demon.All I had to do was keep my nose out of it. Pretend I didn't find the summoning circle in the basement. Pretend I didn't notice the shadowy being trapped inside it. Pretend I didn't break the rules.But I did, and now it's too late.

    Without it, Christmas isn’t happening, and Santa himself is in grave danger.Could Winterspell hold the key to saving Christmas?**Grimoires and Gingerbread is a holiday-themed novella in the Sugar Shack Witch Mysteries series by Danielle Garrett. This festive novella falls after the events in the first book, but could also be enjoyed as a standalone.**

    A cemetery full of secrets. And murderous ghosts on the loose. After more than a decade, Connor Mann is forced out of the psychiatric ward he once called home. He finds himself back in the town where he grew up, with a distant father, and a tragedy all too painful to bear. His attempt to resume a normal life soon comes under attack when he encounters restless spirits lurking in the basement. And someone - or something - terribly vicious awaits him with open arms in nearby Pine Grove Cemetery. Meanwhile, a series of unexplained murders begin to wreak havoc on the town, and a group of detectives work tirelessly on the puzzling case. Unbeknownst to them, an elderly Chinese man, Hu, is on the lookout for a nefarious priest, who might hold the key to unlocking the mystery. As a legion of deadly ghosts cast an ominous cloud over Pine Grove, Connor must confront his tragic past and gather all his strength to defeat them. The battle against unimaginable evil will change everything he knows about himself, and the world.

    Let's just hope they don't hack the druid off... for everyone's sake.Name's Colin McCool. Folks call me the Junkyard Druid. I hate that name.Despite my last name, I'm not "cool" like the other hunters in town. I don't run an occult bookstore, I've never owned a Harley, and I didn't inherit a family fortune passed down through generations of hunters before me.And I kind of have this curse on me that's messed up my life.So, things have gone to hell since I was cursed. I live in a junkyard, my mentor Finn is a heroin addict, I've got the Cold Iron Circle breathing down my neck, and the local Fae Queen Maeve is blackmailing me into doing her dirty work.Now I'm in way over my head trying to retrieve Maeve's stolen magic rock, all while helping my friend Belladonna solve a series of murders that may or may not involve the local werewolves.And did I mention that my girlfriend is a ghost?If I can just get the Faery Queen's tathlum back, and help Belladonna solve the murders...Then I just might live long enough to finish my first year of college.

    Then his prize suspect Rob Toshack is murdered in custody. Furious, Quill pursues the investigation, co-opting intelligence analyst Lisa Ross and undercover cops Costain and Sefton. But nothing about Toshack's murder is normal. Toshack had struck a bargain with a vindictive entity, whose occult powers kept Toshack one step ahead of the law -- until his luck ran out. Now, the team must find a 'suspect' who can bend space and time and alter memory itself. And they will kill again.As the group starts to see London's sinister magic for themselves, they have two choices: panic or use their new abilities. Then they must hunt a terrifying supernatural force the only way they know how: using police methods, equipment and tactics. But they must all learn the rules of this new game - and quickly. More than their lives will depend on it.

    The magic is gone but the monsters remain.I'm Fetch Phillips, just like it says on the window. There are a few things you should know before you hire me:1. Sobriety costs extra.2. My services are confidential.3. I don't work for humans.It's nothing personal—I'm human myself. But after what happened, to the magic, it's not the humans who need my help.Walk the streets of Sunder City and meet Fetch, his magical clients, and a darkly imagined world perfect for readers of Ben Aaronovitch and Jim Butcher.

     Lydia has always known she has no power, especially next to her infamous and more-than-slightly dodgy family. Which is why she carved her own life as a private investigator far away from London. When a professional snafu forces her home, the head of the family calls in a favour, and Lydia finds herself investigating the disappearance of her cousin, Maddie. Soon, Lydia is neck-deep in problems: her new flatmate is a homicidal ghost, the intriguing, but forbidden, DCI Fleet is acting in a distinctly unprofessional manner, and tensions between the old magical families are rising. The Crows used to rule the roost and rumours claim they are still the strongest. The Silvers have a facility for lying and they run the finest law firm in London. The Pearl family were costermongers and everybody knows that a Pearlie can sell feathers to a bird. The Fox family... Well. The less said about the Fox family the better. For seventy-five years, a truce between the four families has held strong, but could the disappearance of Maddie Crow be the thing to break it? The Night Raven is the first book in Crow Investigations, an exciting new paranormal mystery series from bestselling author of magical fiction, Sarah Painter.

    At least, that's what her cards tell her and they've never been wrong. She's evicted from her apartment, loses her job and is banned from Beverly Hills. So when the tarot cards predict her imminent demise, she uses a little magic to make her world right.Suddenly, an aunt she's never met dies, leaving Mara as her sole heir. But when Mara moves into her inherited home, she discovers Aunt Tillie never moved out. She's still one pissed-off old lady, even post-mortem, and she blames Mara's magical meddling for her death.When Mara accidentally releases a demon and awakens the spirit of the most powerful witch in history, Tillie's ready to kill her -- literally. It's the only way she can think of to save the girl from herself. The witch and the demon, however, have other plans for Mara's body.

    Forced to live as a human under the name of Jeremy Clovenhoof, the dark lord not only has to contend with the fact that no one recognises him or gives him the credit he deserves but also has to put up with the bookish wargamer next door and the voracious man-eater upstairs.Heaven, Hell and the city of Birmingham collide in a story that features murder, heavy metal, cannibalism, armed robbers, devious old ladies, Satanists who live with their mums, gentlemen of limited stature, dead vicars, petty archangels, flamethrowers, sex dolls, a blood-soaked school assembly and way too much alcohol.Clovenhoof is outrageous and irreverent (and laugh out loud funny!) but it is also filled with huge warmth and humanity. Written by first-time collaborators Heide Goody and Iain Grant, Clovenhoof will have you rooting for the bad guy like never before.F Paul Wilson: Clovenhoof is a delight. A funny, often hilarious romp with a dethroned Satan as he tries to adjust to modern suburbia. The breezy, ironic prose sets a perfect tone. If you need some laughs, here's the remedy.

    Winner of the Imadjinn Award for Best Short Story.Everyone knows that there's no such thing as ghosts, but when a client claims that her house is being haunted, Ivy tries to keep her mind open and her weapons handy. If her psychic gifts and recent cases have taught her anything, it's that you're better off arming yourself for the unexpected.Will our favorite psychic detective face down murderous ghosts? Anything is possible in Harborsmouth.

    The last thing patrol cop Kate Prospero expected to find on her nightly rounds was a werewolf covered in the blood of his latest victim. But then, she also didn't expect that shooting him would land her in the crosshairs of a Magic Enforcement Agency task force, who wants to know why she killed their lead snitch.The more Prospero learns about the dangerous new potion the MEA is investigating, the more she's convinced that earning a spot on their task force is the career break she's been wanting. But getting the assignment proves much easier than solving the case. Especially once the investigation reveals their lead suspect is the man she walked away from ten years earlier—on the same day she swore she'd never use dirty magic again.Kate Prospero's about to learn the hard way that crossing a wizard will always get you burned, and that when it comes to magic, you should be never say never.