Book picks similar to
The Forsaken by R.J. Craddock


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A Kingdom of Iron & Wine (The Ironworld Series One)


Candace Osmond - 2022
    A New Adult Fantasy Romance, perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Holly Black, and Jennifer L. Armentrout.She’s half Fae with sunlight in her veins, he’s a vampire with a soul. It’s a match made in magical hell...but Avery just can’t seem to stay away.Avery Quinn’s worst nightmares come true when the taunting shadows of her mind become real, and an entire mythical world reveals itself to her. Ironworld. Fae, Shapeshifters, Vampires, Witches…all pitting themselves against one another in a formidable quest for ancient power.With her new circle of friends–a misfit crew of mythical beings–they work together to bring down an illegal black-market ring of shapeshifters selling Fae blood to vampires. But the further Avery sinks into this mythical domain and discovers secrets of her own past; the more she realizes…she’s not human at all. She’s not really even Fae.With each secret she uncovers, Avery grows closer to darkness. Because, while her mortal heart may belong to the vampire she loves, her immortal soul was long promised to a Dark Fairy Lord…And he’s coming to collect.

Heart of the Witch


Debbie Peterson - 2013
    She can see the future. But the visions don't include capture by the Spanish, nor her rescue by a handsome captain. Rand Van Locken expects to find treasure when he and his crew board the galleon. Instead, they discover a bedraggled beauty in chains behind a locked door. He wants to know more about her. She wonders if he can be trusted with her secrets. Hunted by the Spanish, they embark on a quest to rescue Lissa's kidnapped sister. But when Lissa disappears in the ghost mists, is Rand's love enough to bring her back?

A Taste of Magic


Tracy Madison - 2009
    If there’s a bitter taste in her mouth, no one can blame her.But today, Liz is about to receive a gift. Her Grandma Verda isn’t just wacky; she’s a little witchy. An ancient gypsy magic has been passed through her family bloodline for generations, and it’s Liz’s turn to be empowered. Henceforth, everything she bakes will have a dash of delight and a pinch of wishes-can-come-true. From her hunky policeman neighbor, to her gorgeous personal trainer, to her bum of an ex-husband, everyone Liz knows is going to taste her power. Revenge is sweet…and it’s only the first dish to be served.

A Portable Shelter


Kirsty Logan - 2015
    They spend their time telling stories to the unborn baby, trying to pass on the lessons they've learned: tales of circuses and stargazing, selkie fishermen and domestic werewolves, child-eating witches and broken-toothed dragons. But each must keep their storytelling a secret from the other, as they've agreed to only ever tell the plain truth. Ruth tells her stories when Liska is at work, to a background of shrieking seabirds; Liska tells hers when Ruth is asleep, with the lighthouse sweeping its steady beam through the window. As their tales build and grow along with their child, Liska and Ruth realise that the truth lives in their stories, and they cannot hide from one another. A Portable Shelter is a beautifully produced collection of elegant, haunting short stories from one of Britain's most exciting new talents. Each story is accompanied by an illustration by award-winning artist Liz Myhill. Produced with the assistance of the Dr Gavin Wallace Fellowship.

The Sisters' Grimoire


Suza Kates - 2014
    The Victorian house near the cliffs holds much more than painful memories, and when lightning strikes midnight, family secrets unfold. She and her sisters have no choice but to work together, as they find strength they never knew they had . . . and face danger from a place they never knew existed.

And I Do Not Forgive You: Stories & Other Revenges


Amber Sparks - 2020
    Now, she reaches new, uncanny heights with And I Do Not Forgive You. In “Mildly Happy, With Moments of Joy,” a friend is ghosted by a simple text message; in “Everyone’s a Winner at Meadow Park,” a teen precariously coming of age in a trailer park befriends an actual ghost. At once humorous and unapologetically fierce, these stories shine an interrogating light on the adage that “history likes to lie about women”— as the subjects of “A Short and Speculative History of Lavoisier’s Wife” and “You Won’t Believe What Really Happened to the Sabine Women” (it’s true, you won’t) will attest. Blending fairy tales and myths with apocalyptic technologies, all tethered intricately by shades of rage, And I Do Not Forgive You offers a mosaic of an all-too-real world that fails to listen to its silenced goddesses.Mildly unhappy, with moments of joy --You won't believe what really happened to the Sabine women --A place for hiding precious things --Everyone's a winner in Meadow Park --A short and slightly speculative history of Lavoisier's wife --We destroy the Moon --In which Athena designs a video game with the express purpose of trolling her father --Is the future a nice place for girls --Our mutual (theater) friend --The dry cleaner from Des Moines --The eyes of Saint Lucy --We were a storybook back then --Rabbit by rabbit --Through the looking-glass --The noises from the neighbors upstairs --Our geographic history --Death deserves all caps --A wholly new and novel act, with monsters --When the husband grew wings --The language of the stars --Mildly joyful, with moments of extraordinary unhappiness --Tour of the cities we have lost

Every Family Has One (All Things D #2)


Joanna Warrington - 2015
    The attacker, unimaginably, is her trusted parish priest. Terrified, Kathleen never tells her pious Catholic mother, and when she discovers she is pregnant, she pays a terrible price for her silence. Her mother believes Kathleen to be a fallen child and sends her to have her ill-begotten baby in Ireland. Kathleen toils in a notorious Magdalene Laundry, where heartless nuns dole out merciless penance on shamed girls. Kathleen never recovers from her trauma, and years later she’s become the overprotective, paranoid mother of a second child. Meanwhile, Faye, a widowed mother of three worries about her teenage son, Tim. He’s increasingly withdrawn, but when several parcels are mysteriously delivered the shocking truth about what is going on in his life is slowly revealed. She turns to an old flame believing he is at the root of Tim’s problems and as the couple rekindles their love, Tim’s troubles deepen. Faye pours out her sorrows in letters to a friend, and slowly, shocking family secrets and interwoven relationships reveal themselves. As it turns out, Kathleen isn’t the only fallen one in this story of love, forgiveness, and powerful family ties. Every Family Has One is the anticipated sequel to The Catholic Woman’s Dying Wish. It can be read as a stand-alone sequel.

To Catch a Witch (The Witches of Castle Clair Book 3)


Sharon Booth - 2020
    It's three hundred and fifty years since the famous witch's leap happened in the North Yorkshire town. Riverside Walk is swarming with eager tourists, wanting to pay tribute to the legendary Blaise St Clair. It's also Christmas Eve, and the family has gathered to celebrate an eventful year, and to look forward to even better times ahead. But a shock event changes everything, bringing a whole lot of trouble to the door of Castle Lodge. For something big is happening in Castle Clair. Strangers are arriving, a prophecy is unfolding, a mystery is deepening, a reckoning is coming ... and someone's getting rather too fond of Mrs Greenwood's baking. The past is colliding with the present, and the future is in jeopardy. No wonder the High Council of Witches is a bit miffed. Will the St Clairs have enough strength, courage ~ and chocolate fudge cake ~ to see them through? Or is this the end of the world as they know it?

Restless Spirits


Kathy Bryson - 2014
    Converting an old hospital into a bed and breakfast seems like a golden opportunity. Stressed and aggravated, Marilee wants nothing more than to redeem herself, even if faucets and lights turn themselves off and on, and old baseballs fly without help.John Smith has every confidence in the bossy, strong woman he hired to launch his bed & breakfast. She handled difficult customers at the bank and now she’s handling electricity and plumbing and whatever unseen force keeps throwing baseballs. But when the angry, treacherous King of the Fairies shows up, can Marilee become his champion?Award-winning sequel to the hilarious romp, Feeling LuckyParanormal Finalist in Colorado Romance Writer's 2015 Award of Excellence Contest

Enigma


Mazzy J. March - 2021
    No idea why I’m at a castle where things float and candles alight themselves. No clue as to my age or even my last name. At this point, I’m not for sure that I didn’t burst into being from a spark.For the record, my name is Mia.The man who drove me here handed me a suitcase and patted my shoulder before telling me good luck. The headmaster seems to think I belong here and that my powers will bloom. Sure, buddy. And donkeys will dance in tutus while a jester pushes him in a wheelbarrow.This school is like no otherThe girls at the Conjurer Academy whisper, and lines have already been drawn in the sand as far as social groups go. The students here all look like goddesses. The food shimmers as though it is enchanted. Every girl has at least three boyfriends, so maybe there’s no shortage of god-like men who can make magic? No idea, but I’ll take four if they are handing them out.What should I do?The way I see it, I have two choices... One: Try to fit in and survive here. Two: Find a way out and back to reality. Neither one sounds promising to me.Enigma is book 1 of the exciting new paranormal reverse harem series The Conjurers Academy from bestselling Authors Mazzy J. March and Jenna M. Jett, featuring a heroine who is completely out of her element in an academy where magic is the norm and up is down…or maybe sideways. It is a why choose alternate universe romance with a slow burn buildup to sizzling heat. Relationships develop over the course of this supernatural series and, of course, Mazzy guarantees an HEA.

Three for a Witch


Lucy Auburn - 2018
     I was supposed to cry my broken heart away. Instead I did a spell to draw three men to me: Orlando, Roman, and Jack. There were my best friends when we were kids. Then something more when we were all fourteen. And I still long for them. But things have changed since we were fourteen. There are cracks and missing pieces. And somewhere out there in the woods, a darkness lurks… a darkness coming for us all. I just hope we can reunite in time to face it, or we might not live to see tomorrow. Three for a Witch is a complete, standalone novel with no cliffhangers in sight.

Immersion Online: The Noob: A LitRPG Novel (Immersion Online: Lit RPG Book 1)


Evan Klein - 2021
    

Behind Blue Eyes


D.M. Wolfenden - 2013
    At the end of WWII Cain returned to England, longing for the comforts of home, but found his mother was different; she had been changed by a vampire who preys on women. There came a point where his mother felt there was no choice…Cain had to be turned as well. After watching his mother die he changed his way of thinking, his way of feeding. He tried to reclaim some of his humanity but it was not easy as he was fueled by rage against the one that had changed her. He wanted his revenge and nothing would stop him. After he was attacked he came across a young girl, ten year old Mia, whose innocence was slowly being taken away from her. They needed each other, and both their lives depended on it. The world was a very bad place for Mia. She was about to find out just how much worse it could get.

The Houseguest and Other Stories


Amparo Dávila - 2018
    With acute psychological insight, Dávila follows her characters to the limits of desire, paranoia, insomnia, and fear. She is a writer obsessed with obsession, who makes nightmares come to life through the everyday: loneliness sinks in easily like a razor-sharp knife, some sort of evil lurks in every shadow, delusion takes the form of strange and very real creatures. After reading The Houseguest—Dávila’s debut collection in English—you’ll wonder how this secret was kept for so long.

The Drowning of Arthur Braxton


Caroline Smailes - 2013
    It is a dark and brooding modern fairy tale from one of our most gifted writers.