But before she can complete a mission in that besieged city, Aliisza finds herself in the one place a demon would never want to go, no matter how sure she is of her wits and cunning: the very heart of Celestia. But Aliisza soon discovers that being held captive in Celestia is just a distraction for a far deeper and more deadly scheme. One that threatens all of the Forgotten Realms® world. One that, as much as she hates to admit it, the angels of Celestia really should know about. But how is she going to convince the angels that she, a demon, could have more in mind than destruction?The Empyrean Odyssey features the return of popular characters Alissza and Kaanyr Vhok, from Thomas Reid’s Insurrection, the first book in The New York Times bestselling series R.A. Salvatore’s The War of the Spider Queen. Forgotten Realms fans won’t want to miss the truly Realms-shaking events of this epic tale of two fiends struggling to escape the heart of a deeply troubled Celestia.

    Knights of blood and of war bring forth the very worst that Medieval brutality has to offer, but in that darkness, there is a ray of hope. Women of brightness shine the most when confronting the darkness within men. Be shocked at nothing within the pages of this collection, for these novels will take you into the blackness and back again, where love reigns supreme, even over evil.Romance comes in many shades, in many ways.This set contains:DarkWolfe – A de Wolfe son puts a tragic past behind him and finds love with an enemy.DarkMoon – A special ops knight finds an unexpected romance. Will it cost him a life-long friendship?Dark Steel – A happenstance creates a new duke – who falls into a surprising romance.The Dark Lord – The darkest lord of all finds a woman to tame his vicious ways.Guardian of Darkness – A noble knight and a Scottish hostage find love amidst a web of royal lies.The Dark Lord’s First Christmas – Bonus book! The Dark Lord discovers the meaning of Christmas.The original Medieval Romance novels with no cliffhangers, no cheating, and always with a Happily Ever After.

     ABOUT THE SHORT STORY’S PRICE: Hello, you lovely people. Odd to talk about money straight up, but I know that some of you might be thinking, £1.99/US$2.99/CDN$3.99/A$3.99 is a lot for a short story. Let me explain how it works in the UK. A rate of 20% VAT (Value Added Tax) applies to eBooks. This doesn’t apply to ‘real’ paper books. That means 33p of the £1.99 goes straight to the British government. Amazon takes around 2p to deliver the story to your Kindle, then takes another 48p as its cut. The remainder, £1.16, goes to me. That's not a great deal, I hope you agree. A roughly similar story applies in foreign territories. In these times of falling sales, and authors losing their contracts, and only one in seven traditionally published authors being able to write fulltime, stories like this are a vital way of YOU supporting the authors whose books you enjoy. So THANK YOU for your support! Think of it in terms of a pint of beer or a cup of coffee: they cost £2-4, depending on where you live in the UK. This story will give you more enjoyment (I think!) than either of those things, and last for a longer time, and cost you less money. This is the third time I have self-published a short story. (Massive thanks here to Pete Simpson, who designed the cover for me!) It’s been an exciting project since the day I did the poll on Facebook, asking you lovely people which of my characters you wanted me to write about. Centurion Tullus won out, narrowly, and this is the result. The one hundred and something people who backed the Kickstarter campaign got to read this story almost 7 months ago, but now you can too. Oh, what's it about? The war of the Batos, or the Pannonian War, which took place between AD 6 and 9, a general emergency that had almost 100.000 legionaries sent to modern-day Croatia to sort out the rebels. Enjoy the story, and please email me if you have any questions about it or anything else – ben@benkane.net Ben

    But when entrancing Pict thrall Bridget falls into Thorolf’s arms begging for help, Thorolf cannot resist the golden-haired beauty’s pleas. He risks his life to spirit her safely back to her homeland, despite vowing never to return to Pictland. Now he must choose between guarding the truth of his past or giving his heart to the brave woman who heals him with her merest touch. A fated future… After being shunned by her people for possessing the gift of Touch, Bridget resigns herself to a solitary life on the outskirts of her village. When Viking raiders capture her and deliver her to their cruel Jarl, she fears that this new nightmare may never end. Yet within Thorolf’s protective embrace, Bridget lets herself hope for not only the shelter his strong arms promise, but also the acceptance her own people denied her. But when the truth of both of their pasts comes to light, will fate rip them apart forever? This novella-length Viking historical romance is part of the Viking Lore Series, but can also be enjoyed as a standalone story. Start reading today!

    After nine long years of trying to grow their family into the perfect dream come true, fated mates, Ryan and Layna, are ready to give up. Not on each other but on their dreams. When they're given the chance to help an abandoned baby temporarily, they're faced with a pain harsher than what they've already been through. The pain of hope. But this little one isn't what any of them expected, and when the fiery truth comes out, hearts are bound to melt.A visit from a shadow of Christmas past, a lost child, and the reunion P. Jameson fans have been asking for, all wrapped up with a shiny bow as we revisit the Ouachitas in Merrily Ever After.

    In Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency, Dirk finds himself on the trail of a gruesome murderer who is somehow involved with the works of Coleridge, quantum physics, and the enigmatic study of the Cambridge Professor of Chronology. Ultimately, the stakes of the case are far greater than a single murder, but go to the fate of life on Earth. Confused? Don't be - everything is connected.

    Even if she skipped or was late for school, she should be up, her cell phone charged, ready for action by now. Then a concerned policeman appears. He too is looking for Aria. Her mother is also worried: nobody can find the missing student. And some of Aria’s clothes are missing. Suddenly, Spencer remembers the text message she recently received from the Little Liars’ mysterious, truth-telling antagonist, “A” – “Five foot two, eyes of blue; has anyone seen my gal?” Even though Aria has hazel eyes, the girls are freaked. When A has something bad to report, she’s never ever wrong.A Kiss For Luck is a spellbinding story inspired by the bestselling, award-winning Pretty Little Liars’ series.

    The city has a new Master of vampires, House Altau, and the existing, unaffiliated community is now facing a sentence of death. The storm builds, and one of the leaders of that community, Livia or Julius, must chose to be the lightning conductor to save the rest from destruction. But will that be an acceptable sacrifice to Altau? And if so, which one of them will it be?

     Yancy Lazarus—bluesman, gambler, mage, and professional fix-it man—has been working for the Guild of the Staff for over twenty-five years. Handling ugly problems no one else wants to touch. Mostly by breaking things, blowing ’em up, or otherwise meting out Guild-sanctioned justice, Rambo-style. His next assignment will be his last. A Guild operative, with a headful of dangerous secrets, has gone missing inside the court of the High Tuatha De Danann: ye olde Irish gods of badassery. Yancy—along with fellow wet-works man James Sullivan and Judge Ailia Levchenko—is dispatched to retrieve the missing operative or, barring that, make the perpetrators behind the operative’s disappearance pay a steep, bloody price for crossing the Guild. But with pissed-off godlings gunning for him on every side, a little kidnapping might be the least of Yancy’s worries. The Guild investigators are gonna have to navigate the murky waters of court politics, ferret out a traitor, and devise a way to put the kibosh on an inter-dimensional invasion if they want to avoid being murdered horribly. And even if they do get to the bottom of the diabolical mystery, nothing will ever be the same, because one of their number isn’t coming home …

    And since the missing box is ancient, has no keyhole and holds tremendous darkness inside, Kaylin knows unknown forces are once again playing with her destiny—and her life.CAST IN FURYWhen a minority race of telepaths is suspected of causing a near-devastating tidal wave, Private Kaylin Neya is again drawn into a world of politics…and murder. To make matters worse, Marcus, her trusted sergeant, gets stripped of his command, leaving Kaylin vulnerable. Now she's juggling two troubling cases, and her dreaded magic lessons are starting to look good by comparison…CAST IN SILENCEPrivate Kaylin Neya has sacrificed much to earn the respect of the winged Aerians and immortal Barrani she works alongside. But when the city's oracles warn of brewing unrest in the outer fiefdoms, a mysterious visitor from Kaylin's past casts her under a cloud of suspicion.

    Somewhere in the heart of the steaming jungle lies the answer to the whispered tales - rumors of a magnificent city and foul, horrid rituals! Here a brave party might find riches and wonders - or death! Is your party brave enough to face the terrors of the unknown and find - the Forbidden City!

    . . .Max Westin. Sex incarnate. She could smell it, feel it with his proximity. Everything about him was a little rough, a little gritty. He was a primitive creature. Just like her.He held her hand a little too long, his gaze, under thick lashes, clearly stating his intention to have her. To tame her. . . ."Victoria."Her name, just one word, but spoken with such possession she could almost feel the collar around her neck."It's in your nature," he murmured. "The desire to be taken."In this game of cat and mouse, everything is an illusion, but the passion is as real as it gets. . . .

    NOTES ABOUT To Kill a MockingbirdNOT the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

    When the mysterious soul bringer, Blackthorn Regis, demands she give up her livelihood, the two question their very reason for living—and loving.

     In the Year of Our Lord 1497, an estimated fifteen thousand rebels march from Cornwall to London to protest the King's taxes levied to pay for the war against the Scots. Lady Rosenwyn Burville finds herself caught in the middle of two powerful entities, when she is given in marriage, to the enemy, as a spoil of war. She loses her home, her legacy, and her father. Will she surrender her heart? Sir Titus De Wolfe, son of Atticus and Isobeau, defends the Crown and is awarded a title, an estate, and a bride, none of which he wants. As the heir of the great Lion of the North makes his own mark in a world that respects naught but violence, his father insists the greatest reward is neither wealth nor prestige. Rather, love is the greatest gift of all. Titus resolves to uphold the family legacy, until the incomparable warrior meets the one challenge he has never confronted--an unyielding bride.