But in the midst of a birthday celebration, her world shatters when a mysterious assassin takes her brother's life. Shasta, the only remaining heir to the throne, narrowly escapes the assassin's blade thanks to the intervention of a traveling acrobat named Talon.With the threat of another attempt on Shasta's life imminent, her father declares that the young hero will be come the Princess's bodyguard. But what Shasta doesn't know is that her new guardian has a very well-kept secret: he is actually a she.Talon and Shasta soon grow closer than anyone, especially her father, could have predicted. Will the truth of her guardian's secret change their relationship forever?Book 1 of The Legends of Ithyria Series

    Agnes, a beautiful London shop girl, takes in the bewildered 21st century American lesbian, but, as Dara begins to accept that she is stuck in 1908, she also begins to accept that she has feelings for Agnes that go beyond gratitude. And the longer Dara stays, the harder Agnes finds it to hide her growing love for the accidental time traveller from the future. Will they overcome grief and prejudice to acknowledge their true feelings for one another? Or will Dara be snatched back to the 21st century before they can express their love?Excerpt:“When? When is this?” Dara asked, gesturing at the room.“It’s June 18th, miss,” Agnes said. “You really didn’t know?”Dara closed her eyes. “The year. What year, please?”“It’s 1908, miss,” Agnes said.Dara opened her eyes, opened her messenger bag, and pulled out her cell phone. She pushed the button to activate the main screen. It didn’t have a signal or the time and date. The battery was at 80 percent. She looked over at Agnes, whose eyes had gone wide. Agnes leaned over in her chair, trying to get a better look at the phone. Dara tapped a few buttons to pull up the photos she had stored on her phone. Yes, they were still there. The photos of Nick, their parents, and their friends were still there. The many pictures of Jenny, with and without Dara, were there. With Agnes still gazing at her and the phone intently, Dara went to her phone’s contacts and dialed Nick’s number. Nothing.“That still doesn’t mean I’m not dreaming,” she muttered.“Perhaps I should make us both some tea, miss.”Dara nodded yes, although she figured she could do with something a good deal stronger than tea. Agnes bustled out of the room.“Oh my God,” Dara said when she was alone. Her eyes darted around the room, taking it all in, the flower-patterned curtains on the one window, the shabby wardrobe standing in the corner, the night stand, the wooden chair, a small desk, the plain iron bed frame and the bedclothes that adorned it. One part of her couldn’t believe it was true, but another part could. That part urged her to accept the truth. It will go much easier on you if you do and soon, it said.She thought of her brother, who was probably frantic with worry wondering where she was. What would he tell their parents if he didn’t find her before they were supposed to fly out of Heathrow next week? Then there were her friends and the co-workers she actually liked. Most of all, though, there was Jenny. Jenny had been dead for over a year, so it wasn’t the fact that she wouldn’t see Jenny again that upset her. She had accepted that. No, it was the fact that she might never see the places she associated with Jenny ever again. She may never see all the little gifts Jenny had given her during their time together. In a panic, she clutched at the thin gold chain she wore around her neck. She kept her engagement ring on that chain. At least she had that. She kissed it tenderly and wept.

    When the desperate crew of a cargo vessel stops by her shipyard looking for her spiritually advanced sister Nova, Alana stows away. Maybe her boldness will land her a long-term gig on the crew. But the Tangled Axon proves to be more than star-watching and plasma coils. The chief engineer thinks he's a wolf. The pilot fades in and out of existence. The captain is all blond hair, boots, and ego . . . and Alana can't keep her eyes off her. But there's little time for romance: Nova's in danger and someone will do anything--even destroying planets--to get their hands on her.

    But when the festival lights go down and the palace slumbers, Katya chases traitors to the crown and protects the kingdom’s greatest secret: the royal Umbriels are part Fiend. When Katya thwarts an attempt to expose the king’s monstrous side, she uncovers a plot to let the Fiends out to play.Starbride has no interest in being a courtier. Ignoring her mother’s order to snare an influential spouse, she comes to court only to study law. But a flirtatious rake of a princess proves hard to resist, and Starbride is pulled into a world of secrets that leaves little room for honesty or love, a world neither woman may survive.

    Just ask high school nobody, Jessica Tran. Despite her heroic lineage, Jess is resigned to a life without superpowers and is merely looking to beef-up her college applications when she stumbles upon the perfect (paid!) internship—only it turns out to be for the town’s most heinous supervillain. On the upside, she gets to work with her longtime secret crush, Abby, who Jess thinks may have a secret of her own. Then there’s the budding attraction to her fellow intern, the mysterious “M,” who never seems to be in the same place as Abby. But what starts as a fun way to spite her superhero parents takes a sudden and dangerous turn when she uncovers a plot larger than heroes and villains altogether.

    Safe from the pollution that still clings to more populated areas, they grow crops to sell in the Cities, they hunt for their meat, and they take care of their own. Their rural way of life ensures the politics of the Cities doesn't reach them.Until one day, it does.Like all orphans, Love Ward was conscripted into the Venus Guard as a child. She has done her best to take the opportunity and make it into a career, something she can be proud of. The Venus Guard is her family.But the New Republic has secrets, the kind of secrets that can get a low-ranking officer like Love reassigned and even killed if she's not careful.When chaos erupts around them, the two women find themselves at odds but with only each other to rely on. Their shared past and the growing attraction between them can only serve as a distraction as they fight for their lives.Can a guard from the Cities and a girl from the Tribes expose the New Republic's dirty secrets?Can they change their world without losing their lives—or their hearts?

    When her car is washed into a rising creek, it could be the last thing she does. Lexington (Lex) Walters has run the Rocking W Ranch for the last ten years, alone except for hired hands and her feisty housekeeper, Martha. She doesn’t have the time or inclination for dating, but when fate drops a beautiful woman into her path, how can she resist? With the bridge out of service and the weather against them, Lex and Amanda work together to take care of the ranch. When they stumble across a group of rustlers also stranded by the weather, will the stress destroy their budding relationship?

    As Tala’s wedding day approaches, simmering tensions come to boiling point and the pressure mounts for Tala to be true to herself.Moving between the vast enclaves of Middle Eastern high society and the stunning backdrop of London’s West End, I Can’t Think Straight explores the clashes between East and West, love and marriage, conventions and individuality, creating a humorous and tender story of unexpected love and unusual freedoms.

    She's known since she was young; being a woman just fit better. She was happier in skirts than trousers, but that was before her stepmother moved in. Eleanor can't stand her, and after Ella's father passes she's forced to revert to Cole, a lump of a son. She cooks, she cleans, and she tolerates being called the wrong name for the sake of a roof over her head. Where else can she go? An opportunity to attend the royal ball transforms Ella's life. For the first time, strangers see a woman when she walks down the stairs. While Princess Lizabetta invited Cole to the ball, she doesn't blink an eye when Cinderella is the one who shows. The princess is elegant, bold, and everything Ella never knew she wanted. For a moment she glimpses a world that can accept her, and she holds on tight. She should have known it wouldn't last. Dumped by her wicked stepmother on the farthest edge of the kingdom, Ella must find a way to let go of the princess and the beautiful life they shared for an hour. She'll never find her way back. But it's hard to forget the greatest night of her life when every rose she plants is a reminder.

    As a fugitive refugee in the territory controlled by the tyrannical Mercer corporation, I've always had to hide who I am. Until I found Excalibur. Now I'm done hiding. My name is Ari Helix. I have a magic sword, a cranky wizard, and a revolution to start.When Ari crash-lands on Old Earth and pulls a magic sword from its ancient resting place, she is revealed to be the newest reincarnation of King Arthur. Then she meets Merlin, who has aged backward over the centuries into a teenager, and together they must break the curse that keeps Arthur coming back. Their quest? Defeat the cruel, oppressive government and bring peace and equality to all humankind.No pressure.

    That solution, however, is more of a problem. Too footloose for responsibility and distrustful of Kathryn’s selfless moral code, Aiden is a resistant heir. Her only interests are freedom and adventure. Despite their differences, Kathryn and Aiden discover common ground and a growing attraction as they set out on their mission to defeat the ruthless rogue ruler of Belstaff. The true test lies ahead, when they find they must free their hearts to finally liberate their queendoms.

    A MAP. A MUTINY. You can’t run away from yourself… The year is 1720 and two young women are about to find themselves in more trouble than they could ever have imagined possible.Cat Meadows is a smuggler who’s built her reputation on the backs of unsuspecting souls.Lily Exquemelin has been left nothing by her father but his troubles and his treasure map.Forced to make a desperate escape, they each find themselves on a Trans-Atlantic adventure that will pit them against pirates, mutineers, lost treasure, and each other!Can they learn to trust one another and escape the clutches of their would-be captors or will their past’s finally catch up to them? Find out in this swashbuckling, romantic adventure! This book is for anyone who loves: Lesbian Pirates Lesbian Romance Young Adult and New Adult Fiction Action Adventure Stories Exciting stories with Strong Female Lead Characters Historical Fiction Rollicking Adventures with Sapphic Romance

    She is happy to be an anonymous drudge, so long as it keeps anyone from guessing the dangerous secret she hides.But when Malini accidentally bears witness to Priya’s true nature, their destinies become irrevocably tangled. One is a vengeful princess seeking to depose her brother from his throne. The other is a priestess seeking to find her family. Together, they will change the fate of an empire.

    In this anthology, seventeen authors find new ways to pair one weapon-wielding woman and one whose strengths lie in softer skills.“Which is more powerful, the warrior or the gentlewoman?” these stories ask. And the answer is inevitably, “Both, working together!”Herein, you’ll find duels and smugglers, dance battles and danger noodles, and even a new Swordspoint story!From big names and bold new voices, these stories are fun, clever, and always positive about the power of love.Contents:“Margo Lai’s Guide To Dueling Unprepared” by Alison Tam“Princess, Shieldmaiden, Witch and Wolf” by Neon Yang“Elinor Jones vs. the Ruritanian Multiverse” by Freya Marske“Plan Z” by Django Wexler“Little Birds” by Cara Patterson"Positively Medieval" by Kaitlyn Zivanovich“Book and Hammer, Blade and Bone” by Ann LeBlanc“What Finds You in the Deep” by K.A. Doore“The Sweet Tooth of Angwar Bec” by Ellen Kushner“Danger Noodle” by S.K. Terentiev“Chicago Iron” by Chris Wolfgang“In the Salt Crypts of Ghiarelle” by Jennifer Mace“The City Unbreachable” by Yoon Ha Lee“The Commander and the Mirage Master’s Mate” by Elaine McIonyn“The Epic Fifth Wedding Anniversary of Zaynne The Barbarian and Tikka the Accountant ” by Elizabeth Davis“The Parnassian Courante” by Claire Bartlett“The Scholar of the Bamboo Flute” by Aliette de Bodard

    Upon returning to the city of Khelathra-Ven after five years fighting a war in another universe, Captain John Wyndham finds himself looking for somewhere to live, and expediency forces him to take lodgings at 221b Martyrs Walk. His new housemate is Ms. Shaharazad Haas, a consulting sorceress of mercurial temperament and dark reputation.When Ms. Haas is enlisted to solve a case of blackmail against one of her former lovers, Miss Eirene Viola, Captain Wyndham finds himself drawn into a mystery that leads him from the salons of the literary set to the drowned back-alleys of Ven and even to a prison cell in lost Carcosa. Along the way he is beset by criminals, menaced by pirates, molested by vampires, almost devoured by mad gods, and called upon to punch a shark. But the further the companions go in pursuit of the elusive blackmailer, the more impossible the case appears. Then again, in Khelathra-Ven reality is flexible, and the impossible is Ms. Haas' stock-in-trade.