Book picks similar to
The Guardian by Angel Lawson


fae
fantasy
paranormal
paranormal-romance

Magic Forged


K.M. Shea - 2020
    As someone with barely a flicker of magic, I've spent my life being mocked and surviving fights with bullies. But when my parents die in an accident, and I find myself responsible for our whole wizard house and family, I know my usual tactics aren't going to cut it.The situation veers from bad to catastrophic when my backstabbing cousin stages a coup and takes my family hostage. I barely manage to flee, but the only supernatural willing to help me is Killian Drake - the most feared vampire in the region, and a far more deadly villain than the jerk threatening my family.Is Killian sexy and charismatic? Heck yeah.He's also so powerful that my flight or fight instincts kick in every time our eyes meet. And he's definitely using me as his personal magic detector in his feud against the local fae.But Killian is also the first person to believe I might have more than just a scrap of magic. And if I can convince him to train me, I might get strong enough to free my family and get my house back.I'm not sure what happens when a scrappy wizard is taught how to fight by a hall of deadly vampires, but I'm about to find out.Magic Forged is the first book in the Hall of Blood and Mercy trilogy, which features vampires, wizards, fae, and werewolves. It's packed with humor, adventure, and a sweet, slow burn romance between a vertically challenged wizard and the most lethal vampire in town.

Sora's Quest


T.L. Shreffler - 2012
    She yearns for freedom, but he won’t let her go—not when her Cat’s Eye necklace is the only thing that can save his life.But the necklace itself presents a problem. It is an ancient device from the long forgotten War of the Races, and its magic has the ability to steal souls. Can Sora learn to wield its power—or will the power wield her? (Winner of the SKOW 2006 Best Fantasy Award)

Twin Souls


K.A. Poe - 2012
    What generally means a step into adulthood instead opens its way to a terrifying truth about not only her family, but herself. She comes from a long line of vampire hunters, and her real dad wants her to carry on the family quest. At the same time, she is falling for a new boy at school who has his own secret. He is a vampire. Alexis is forced to make a decision from which there is no turning back. - Will she deny this newly discovered heritage, or embrace it.

The Scarlet Thread


D.S. Murphy - 2016
    After I saw my little brother’s death but failed to stop it, my parents abandoned me to a juvenile detention facility. I don’t let people touch me anymore. Not my fingertips, not my skin, not my heart. I make my own clothes by stitching together the donations we get; usually a bunch of crap that fits like a parachute. My sweater is a patchwork of different shades of inky, dark squares. I make plain gray skirts that hang to my knees, with cute or funny T-shirts sewed in. They clash ironically with my unsmiling face. My Allstar high-tops are black and frayed, like my soul. I also wear a chunk of brightly colored legos around my neck. My little brother was working on it the day he died. The day I failed to save him. It’s unfinished, so I’ll never know what it was meant to be. Most days, I just try to get by. But then I got a visit from a cute guy, who tricked me into giving up my secrets. He said I was special. That he needed me. For a while, I believed him. But once I found out what I could really do, I learned everybody wanted the power I possessed. The power to destroy deities. To kill gods. To end the world... or to save it. My heart is torn, and those I loved most betrayed me. I'm trying so hard to do what's right, but nobody can tell me what that is anymore, and the moral boundaries I'd always let define my life have been shattered. Whose rules should I obey now? Or do I have to make my own? The Scarlet Thread is a dark fantasy for fans of Greek mythology and Gothic romance. Fans of Fallen and Percy Jackson will be captivated by this mashup of fallen angels and forgotten gods.

A Demon Bound


Debra Dunbar - 2012
    All she wants to do is drink beer by the pool, play mischievous pranks on the humans, and get her hot neighbor in the sack. It’s a relaxing break from her infernal home, as long as she manages to avoid the angels, who won’t hesitate to execute her on sight.But when her naughty hellhound lands her in trouble with the local werewolf pack, Sam is blackmailed into helping track and catch a killer. The steps she must take to appease the werewolves will put her right in the crosshairs of the angels. And with angels, there is no second chance.

The Death Series; Boxed Set


Tamara Rose Blodgett - 2012
    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._

Entangled


Nikki Jefford - 2012
    Not until her diabolical twin sister decided to go on a rampage that could expose them all. To add to the aggravation, coven reject Raj McKenna catches Gray performing a complex spell and is convinced they would make a powerful couple. He can delude himself all he wants. Gray has sworn off dating warlocks, especially delinquents who play with fire.  But even Gray’s mysterious death won’t deter Raj, not after Gray is brought back from the great beyond. Only she’s not truly back. Her body’s still six feet under and she’s on borrowed time. There are forces threatening Gray’s existence and a powerful wizard willing to help . . . for a price. Gray doesn’t know who to trust or how long she has left before she vanishes for good, but she’s determined to stick around no matter what the cost.

Carpe Noctem


Katie Salidas - 2010
    Newly-turned vampire, Alyssa got a lot more than she bargained for when Lysander saved her from a pair of rapist on the college campus of UNLV. Immortality is not as pretty as all the books and movies had portrayed it, and Alyssa's having a hard time with the change."Becoming a vampire is easy. Living with the condition, that's the hard part."With danger looming on the horizon and the vampire hunters closing in, Alyssa will have to find the strength to accept this terrifying new reality. There's no turning back now. It's either, Carpe Noctem (seize the night), or final death.

The Kiss of Death


Auryn Hadley - 2018
    It wasn't. Four years later, I can still remember the exact shade of his skin: a blue so pale it looked like moonlight. I dream of his touch. Mostly, I paint the man under the heavy cowl, including those perfect lips which ruined mine for anyone else. I'm obsessed with him. The doctors say he's nothing more than a hallucination caused by a mixture of head trauma and emergency pain medications. I think he's a really sexy figment of my imagination. I mean, who besides an artist would dream up the Grim Reaper for their hero? Now, something's changed and my drawings are taking on a life of their own. As if college wasn't hard enough, trying to keep this a secret is going to be impossible. Keeping my sanity might be worse. And that's not the worst of my problems. Death is back. He wants another kiss. And he's not alone. The Kiss of Death is a 156,000 word, full-length novel with NO cliffhanger ending. This is a Reverse Harem series which includes multiple love interests, some m/m themes, and graphic scenes of sex, violence, and language. Be warned: everything you thought you knew about the world, religion, and death will be pulled apart, twisted around, and put back together in ways you will not expect.

Allure of the Vampire King


Bella Klaus - 2020
    I had no choice but to leave.That was a long time ago. I got over the betrayal. Now, I’m on the mend.But when an assassin tracks me down to London, claiming that a deadly power thrums beneath my veins, only one person is strong enough to save my hide:Valentine Sargon—the Vampire King who stole my virginity and broke my heart.He’ll help, but only if I move into a safe house. With him.Valentine is as handsome as the devil, silver-tongued and seductive as sin. I don’t trust him or the way he hungers for my blood. But I’ve run out of choices and can’t refuse.He’s going to protect me from the assassins, but who’s going to protect me from him?If you like enemies-to-lovers paranormal romances with adventure, conflict, and steam, you’ll love Allure of the Vampire King.

Lone Wolf


J.R. Rain - 2021
    and wolves.One wolf in particular.I’ve seen him before—in dreams that have been plaguing me since I moved to Hope. The dreams are always the same; a gigantic, black wolf with haunting steel-gray eyes. He wants something from me. I’m just not sure what.When my deputy and I retrieve a frozen corpse from the Alaskan tundra with a silver dagger stuck in his chest, those legends about shape-shifters become more real than I care to admit.It’s my first homicide case in Hope, and I’m determined to solve it and prove myself. But, when the corpse ends up coming back to life and escapes, the case becomes anything but routine.My prime suspect is Alexander Johnson, a sinfully handsome bounty hunter who knows a lot more about shifters than he’s letting on. The missing John Doe case is definitely personal to Alex, but I’m just not sure how personal. And I’m also not sure if I can trust him, though he might end up being my only ally.That or he’s the killer.And there’s also the fact that Alex happens to have hair as black as night and eyes the color of steel…

Kiss of a Dragon


Alisa Woods - 2016
     Five hundred years is truly enough for a man like me. A monster. Yet a ten-thousand-year treaty will die with me, if I don’t spawn a dragonling to take my place. My two brothers are no use in this task. It falls to me, the eldest by a hair’s breadth, and yet, I cannot face the horror of another sealing. Another death. Another woman’s blood on my hands. ARABELLA I was saved from death in a dark Seattle alley by an impossibly beautiful man who swooped in on golden wings. Now he’s taken me to his lair, opened my eyes to a world of immortals I didn’t know existed, and given me an impossible task—find him a mate. Then, and only then, will he set me free. He needs her more than he wants; she wants him more than she should; and the fate of both the mortal and immortal worlds depends on not just repairing their hearts, but finding a Love that’s True…

Grim Girl


Nicky Graves - 2020
    . . and deadly.I never used to see ghosts, but life took a bizarre detour. Avoiding dead people and their reapers is now impossible.Yes, reapers.I found out they’re real too. And, in an odd twist of fate, I’m destined to become one. However, not many in the reaper world want me in their ranks, including the Grim Reaper, aka the king of death and all things scary.Now I must enter a terrifying new world and keep up normal appearances at school. It’s becoming an increasingly difficult task, especially since my trainer has the initiative of an overfed hamster.And that’s not even the worst of it. To follow my destiny, I must die.If you like action packed books filled with enthralling characters, a deadly plot, and enough twists to keep the pages turning, read Grim Girl.Reaper Files series:Grim GirlGrim LifeGrim Lost

Edge of Magic


Jayne Faith - 2019
    Professional thief by night. Haunted by what could have been . . .Between paying off a debt to a Fae mob boss, working as a professional thief, and keeping up with her busy three-generation household, Tara Knightley barely has time to eat and sleep. But thieving supports her family, and her mother’s life depends on the Fae mobster’s magic, so Tara can’t quit either job. She’s used to the juggling act, but sometimes it feels like she’ll never really have a life of her own. Then she learns of a bounty for a mysterious magical skull. The reward would bring her close to paying off her debt to the Fae mob, finally freeing her from the grip of her powerful, manipulative boss.She decides she must get her hands on that prize.But just as Tara is ready to go after the skull, her childhood best friend and crush, wolf shifter Judah McMahon, shows up unannounced and begging for her help. It’s been a decade since the falling out that ended their friendship, and Tara knows she shouldn’t get involved. She doesn’t have time for side projects or distractions. But Judah’s life is threatened, so Tara gives in. The deeper she gets, the more her orderly existence unravels. Suddenly, she stands to lose everything—her family’s home and security, her shot at freedom from the Fae mob, and a chance to make things right with Judah. How will she pull through?

The Curse Keepers


Denise Grover Swank - 2013
    It’s about to come crashing down.Ellie Lancaster has lived her whole life by the site of the mysterious Lost Colony of Roanoke, the North Carolina settlement that vanished without a trace around 1590. Only the descendants of the two men who banished the spirits of an enemy tribe from the material realm know what really happened to the colony. Ellie is one of those descendants—a Curse Keeper. Her father took pains to teach her what he knew of the curse and the responsibilities of its guardians. He taught her that if the two Curse Keepers ever meet, the curse will be lifted, the gate will open, and the raging Native American spirits will be unleashed to seek their revenge.Despite her father’s seriousness, Ellie has always taken the legend for a harmless fairy tale. Until she meets the darkly handsome, but downright infuriating, Collin Dailey and realizes everything she was told is true. For when they meet, it’s like the air is sucked from the room. Collin’s presence is electrifying… and it’s not just attraction Ellie feels, but the inexorable pull toward her destiny. The prophecy is real, and now Ellie and Collin must battle supernatural forces and their loathing—and passion—for each other to set things right.The Curse Keepers are all that stand between the world and its destruction.