Book picks similar to
Devil of the 22nd by Richard Nell


fantasy
novella
self-published
standalone

A Pilgrimage of Swords


Anthony Ryan - 2019
    For decades, desperate souls have made pilgrimage to the centre of this cursed land to seek the Mad God’s favour, their fate always unknown. Now a veteran warrior known only as Pilgrim, armed with a fabled blade inhabited by the soul of a taunting demon, must join with six others to make the last journey to the heart of the Execration. Allied with a youthful priest, a beast-charmer, a duplicitous scholar, an effete actor and two exiled lovers, Pilgrim must survive madness, malevolent spirits, unnatural monsters and the ever-present risk of treachery, all so that the Mad God might hear his prayer and, perhaps, grant redemption. But can sins such as his ever be forgiven?

Of Roses and Kings


Melissa Marr - 2020
    In this dark, skewed take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Alice is now the Red Queen, and her maid must tread the fine line between favor and blame in this strange world.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

McCall Ranch Brothers: The Complete Series


Leslie North - 2020
    Now, however, he’s forced to not only take over his late parents’ ranch, but also unexpectedly raise his cousin’s four-year-old daughter, Jade. 
 Sure, he can run the place for the year-long stipulation specified in his parents’ will, but take care of a kid? No way. Nothing in his life has prepared him to be the father of a four-year-old girl. Complicating matters, Lacey Cameron, his sweet and pretty housekeeper, is leaving to open up her own B&B. Lacey has always lived at the McCall ranch—she can’t leave now when he needs her most. Desperate, Trevor makes a deal with her: Stay and help him with little Jade and in return he’ll help her fix up the B&B. Lacey agrees, and as the two of them work together, Trevor quickly realizes the girl he’s known all his life has grown into a beautiful woman, one who, to his shock, manages to find a crack in his hardened heart. 
 The Cowboy’s Rescue Single mom Heather Browning will do anything to get away from her controlling ex-husband--including buying a rundown strawberry farm in Montana. Maybe the locals are right, maybe she is crazy. Still, she’ll do anything to keep her twin son and daughter safe and happy—and keep her ex out of the picture. When her only horse comes up lame, she calls local veterinarian Randy McCall. The sexy cowboy takes one look at her farm and dilapidated house and offers his help, but Heather is quick to say no. She doesn’t need anyone’s help—no matter how gorgeous and tempting Randy is. But after hurting her ankle and discovering her roof is riddled with leaks, she reluctantly agrees to temporarily move herself and the twins to the McCall Ranch. If Heather wanted a charming, sexy, man—which she does not—Randy would be perfect. Good thing she only wants to be friends… Even as Randy tells himself—over and over—that he’s not a relationship kind of guy, his stubborn heart doesn’t believe it. Knowing Heather has already been hurt by a man, he decides to stop things before they get out of hand. But can he stop himself from falling in love? The Cowboy’s Pregnant Sweetheart
 Karen Peterson has always known the rodeo was Carson McCall’s first and only love. She got proof of that when they were eighteen and he left her brokenhearted to join the rodeo circuit. She never got the chance to tell him she was pregnant—and never told him she lost the baby. Nine years later, he’s back home at the McCall Ranch nursing injuries from a bull-riding accident. When she sees him, she has a wonderful idea. Her sister’s autistic son, Devon, wants to learn to ride, and Carson is the perfect man to teach him. But Carson turns her down flat. Until the consequences of a barroom brawl require community service…teaching Devon to ride. Though Carson is the only cowboy she’ll ever love, she can shield her feelings for the sake of her nephew, even if Carson still makes her heart feel like it’s on a bucking bronco. Carson is completely at odds. All he wants to do is heal and return to his life, despite his doctors telling him he’ll never ride at the same level again. He hates that he’s not the man he was, hates that everyone pities the washed-up has-been rodeo star. The only bright part of his day is the hour he spends with Devon—and Karen. Carson never forgot her, never really got over her.

Mary's Competition


Brenda Maxfield - 2021
    

The Sword of Kaigen


M.L. Wang - 2019
    For hundreds of years, the fighters of the Kusanagi Peninsula have held the Empire’s enemies at bay, earning their frozen spit of land the name ‘The Sword of Kaigen.’Born into Kusanagi’s legendary Matsuda family, fourteen-year-old Mamoru has always known his purpose: to master his family’s fighting techniques and defend his homeland. But when an outsider arrives and pulls back the curtain on Kaigen’s alleged age of peace, Mamoru realizes that he might not have much time to become the fighter he was bred to be. Worse, the empire he was bred to defend may stand on a foundation of lies.Misaki told herself that she left the passions of her youth behind when she married into the Matsuda house. Determined to be a good housewife and mother, she hid away her sword, along with everything from her days as a fighter in a faraway country. But with her growing son asking questions about the outside world, the threat of an impending invasion looming across the sea, and her frigid husband grating on her nerves, Misaki finds the fighter in her clawing its way back to the surface.

Flametouched


Brian K. Fuller - 2016
    Creating living carvings is an odd and troublesome gift for a humble clerk trying to uncover a plot against his beloved nation, Bittermarch. But like the hidden conspirators he's trying to expose, Davon guards a secret--he wasn't always a clerk. Once a nobleman and a Baron, Davon faked his own death to escape his cruel marriage. Davon wants a quiet life, but the Queen orders her new clerk to delve into the affairs of the lovely Lady Hightower to uncover the truth about the mysterious plot. He discovers that powerful and prestigious conspirators don't like meddlesome clerks, and Davon must dodge bullets and increasing scrutiny, fearing the exposure of his past life. As the clues fall into place, Davon finds that the fate of Bittermarch and the Eternal Flame itself are in his flame-branded hands.

Academy of Magic


Angelique S. AndersonTracy Korn - 2019
     Choose wisely because the magical education you pick could set the course of your whole life….or sometimes ever after. Join Mages, shifters, princes, princesses, witches and spies in this fantastical collection of magical academy books by USA Today and Amazon best selling authors. Scroll up to start your magical education now. Class is now in session.

Beggar's Rebellion


Levi Jacobs - 2019
    I have nothing save my discovery—but with this shall I destroy an empire. Tai Kulga lost the rebellion and his best friend on the same day, stripping him of his will to live even as a strange power flooded his bones. When the friend returns as a spirit guide, it feels like a second chance—but his friend is not who he was, and the Councilate is not done oppressing his people. When trouble with lawkeepers lands Tai’s surviving friends in a prison camp, he must go underground to find the last of the rebels and convince them to break his friends free. Along the way he meets Ellumia Aygla, runaway Councilate daughter posing as an accountant to escape her family and the avarice of the capital. Curious about the link between spirit guides and magic, her insights earn her a place among the rebels, and along with Tai’s power help turn the tide against the colonialists. But as the rebels begin to repeat the Councilate’s mistakes, Tai and Ellumia must confront their own pasts and prejudices, before the brewing war turns them into the monsters they fight.

We Are Blood and Thunder


Kesia Lupo - 2019
    A young woman, Lena, running for her life, convicted of being a mage and sentenced to death. Her only way to survive is to trust those she has been brought up to fear - those with magic.On the other side of the locked gates is a masked lady, Constance, determined to find a way back in. She knows only too well how the people of Duke's Forest loathe magic. Years ago she escaped before her powers were discovered. But now she won't hide who she is any longer.A powerful and terrifying storm cloud unites them. It descends over the dukedom and devastates much in its wake. But this is more than a thunderstorm. This is a spell, and the truth behind why it has been cast is more sinister than anyone can imagine ... Only Lena and Constance hold the key to destroying the spell. Though neither of them realise it, they need each other. They are the blood and they have the thunder within.

The Chosen (Guardians of Rima #1)


K.J. Nessly - 2015
    Some lessons are hard learned and this is one that Kathryn has mastered. Abused at a young age, her subsequent rescue and acceptance into a reclusive magical community should have given her story a happy ending. But there are dark secrets hiding within the kingdom threatening to come to light. While fighting to protect the throne from the dangers working to unbalance the stable peace, Kathryn is confronting the prison of her past. A physical battle she can win. But she faces a demon army with none at her back. How does one overcome a legion alone? Especially when that legion finds allies…

Kingdom at Sea


Jill Williamson - 2016
    As a flock, they sail north into the unknown in hopes of finding land that might become their new home. As the king's illness worsens, Sâr Wilek takes authority over the expedition and struggles to rule the disjointed people, while assassination attempts, vicious serpents, and dark magic endanger his life.One prophecy has come to pass, but another looms dauntingly in the future. Who is this Deliverer? And if the Magonians have him, what might that mean for the realm of Armania?

Soul Insurance


Glenn Bullion - 2013
    They know nothing about life as a soul. Do souls think and feel? How do they fly up in the clouds? Do they take any part of their old life into the new one?Only Connor has the answers.

Ghosts of the Citadel


Jen Williams - 2011
    When a mysterious nobleman offers them a small fortune to explore its depths, sellswords Wydrin and Sebastian decide they can afford to be a little foolish - it's a chance for adventure, riches, and they might even have a tale or two to tell in the tavern afterwards. But they will soon discover that sometimes there is truth in rumour...The complete novel, THE COPPER PROMISE, is available from Headline in Trade Paperback and Ebook in February 2014The complete novel, THE COPPER PROMISE, is available from Headline in Trade Paperback and Ebook in February 2014

Dangerous Voices


Rae Carson - 2012
    He lives for the moment each day when the window of his dungeon cell shines a bit of light onto his bearded face.But everything changes when he gets a new neighbor--a young girl with a voice as beautiful as the springrise.They both know the rules: No singing. No speaking. Voices are dangerous. But they can't help themselves. And soon enough, Errik begins to remember himself, why he's here in this dark place, and why his captors will stop at nothing to ensure his silence.

There and NEVER, EVER BACK AGAIN: A Dark Lord's Diary: (A Memoir and Manifesto For Villains and Monsters)


Jeff Mach - 2019
     The Dwarves: Doomed hammer-swinging dwellers of the underground. The Armies of Man: No one tells a better tale, or causes a more rapid extinction. The White Wizard: Embodiment of all that is good and right; just ask him. ....and The Chosen One: Victim--sorry, meant to say "Hero"--of a glorious prophecy. The Chosen One is destined to bring down the Dark Lord, if not killed first. In which case, The White Wizard will have to find a replacement. Again. Behold! A (relatively) epic narration of world-changing events, told from the point of view of the Dark Lord. 'Tis a story of shattering destiny, drinking, arcane secrets, drinking, and battles worth of the Sagas. Well, not the Sagas of Men, but the Orcs have probably got something to say about it. Let's get going; it's time to steal the Sun. "There and NEVER, EVER BACK AGAIN" is the first novel by Jeff Mach, playwright, event creator, and certified Dark Lord.