Have Stakes, Will Travel


Faith Hunter - 2012
    “Signatures of the Dead” tells the story of the vampire massacre that made Jane Yellowrock a household name.And in “Cajun with Fangs,” Jane makes a new friend who turns out to have old enemies, and finds herself drawn into a vicious blood feud, fueled by dark magic and ancient grudges.

Unwanted Danger


Olivia Jaymes - 2015
     His FBI career in ruins, Caleb Faulkner is back in his hometown of Applewood to lick his wounds and start again. Years ago, he’d left the little town for the excitement of Chicago and the chance to build a career. Unfortunately it also meant leaving behind Michaela Adams, the woman he loved and adored. Michaela gave up her chance at a lifetime with Caleb to stay and nurse her dying sister and care for her infant nephew. She doesn’t regret her decision but sometimes in the middle of the night she thinks about what might have been. In a tiny hamlet like Applewood, they aren’t going to be able to avoid each other. When Caleb runs into Michaela it’s agonizingly awkward and more emotional than he’d expected. She wants nothing to do with him, which is probably for the best. After all, he doesn’t plan to stick around town for long. Funny how plans can change… Could these two lonely souls have a second chance at true love?

Forged


Jennifer Rush - 2013
    When Dani O'Brien entered the Branch, she planned to trade her freedom so that her family could have a better life. But joining up with the mysterious organization is more than she bargained for. Branch head Connor watches over her closely--too closely. The training is brutal, the experiments are secret, and the missions promise to be anything but ordinary. The only thing getting Dani through each day is the hope that she'll run into Sam--a young man, about her age, who wears the world on his shoulders.Find out how it all began in this short-story prequel to Jennifer Rush's thrilling and suspenseful Altered series.

The Lay of the Land (Incryptid, #0.21)


Seanan McGuire - 2017
    But he's never seen anyplace like Buckley Township, Michigan, and he's certainly never met anyone like Alice Healy, who is far too young for him, far too much a Healy for him, and far too wild to disregard. This is going to be an interesting assignment.Unable to understand why her ever-tolerant father wants her to write off a newcomer as dangerous solely because of his origins, Alice Healy has set herself on a collision course with Thomas Price--a man who needs companionship, answers, and someone to guide him through the tangled ecosystems of the local wood, where the unwary go in, but don't come out.It's the beginning of a beautiful friendship, and a new chapter in the story of the Healy family. Assuming that Alice can get Thomas through the woods alive, and Mary can convince Alice not to get Thomas murdered by her father.(Available for free on Seanan McGuire's website in ePub, Mobi, and PDF formats: here)

A Christmas Tartan


Paige Shelton - 2016
    Between mugs of hot chocolate and nibbles of gingerbread, Delaney has been given the task of tracking down the provenance of a mysterious box of objects that her boss, Edwin, has recently acquired. In it are various trinkets, but what really catches Delaney's eye is a worn copy of A Christmas Carol, where she also finds an old photo tucked inside. On the back is a name, which leads her to a woman whose granddaughter has gone missing. When it becomes clear that the box might be connected to the missing girl, Delaney is pulled into the intrigue, and takes it upon herself to figure out what really happened—and why.

A Wee Murder in My Shop


Fran Stewart - 2015
    With so many enchanting items on sale, Peggy can’t resist buying a beautiful old tartan shawl. But once she wraps it around her shoulders, she discovers that her purchase comes with a hidden fee: the specter of a fourteenth-century Scotsman.Unsure if her Highland fling was real or a product of an overactive imagination, Peggy returns home to Vermont—only to find the dead body of her ex-boyfriend on the floor of her shop. When the police chief arrests Peggy’s cousin based on some incriminating evidence, Peggy decides to ask her haunting Scottish companion to help figure out who really committed the crime—before anyone else gets kilt…

Love Never Dies


Christina Dodd - 2016
    A love lost. A ghost haunted by the past.Only one woman can right the wrongs...If she can survive the night...From this "master of the genre," Christina Dodd, comes a suspenseful short story of this "remarkable, mesmerizing series" (Library Journal starred review) set in the quaint -- and deadly -- coastal town of Virtue Falls...Christina Dodd NYT Bestselling Author http://christinadodd.com

Devil's Luck


Carolyn Crane - 2012
    His dark secrets drive him to take increasingly extreme risks, but he’s never lived so quite so dangerously as when he hooks up with Midcity’s most powerful prognosticator. Fawna Brady is tormented by the destinies she sees for those around her. To Fawna, knowledge of the future is a cage she’d do anything to escape. She’s stunned to discover a taste of the freedom for which she yearns at the side of Simon, the one person in the world who despises everything she is, everything she stands for. Simon’s defiant attitude toward destiny captivates Fawna, but will her love destroy him? And will Simon rush headlong into the delicious doom she offers?

Blood Lite III: Aftertaste


Kevin J. AndersonHeather Graham - 2012
    Banks, Kelley Armstrong, and many more! Horror fiction explores the dark side of human nature, often pushing the limits of violence, graphic gore, and extreme emotions. But with the popularity of shows and movies, such as "The Walking Dead," "True Blood," "Twilight," "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," audiences have demonstrated their love for the genre--especially accompanied with a dose of humor to tone down the terror."Blood Lite III: Aftertaste" continues to put the fun back into dark fiction, featuring a wide range of humorous and highly entertaining horror-filled tales. Edited by Horror Writers Association founding member and award-winning author Kevin J. Anderson, the stories vary in tone from wry to downright laugh-out-loud funny. Featuring such well-known horror writers as Jim Butcher, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Christopher Golden, and many others, this collection of tales is perfect for anyone who enjoys being entertained as much as they love a good scare.Contents:I was a teenage Bigfoot / Jim Butcher --Blood-red greens / Joel A. Sutherland --V plates / Kelley Armstong --Put on a happy face / Christopher Golden --Devil's contract / E.S. Magill --Nine-tenths of the law / Eric James Stone --Scrumptious bone bread / Jeff Strand --Let that be a lesson to you / Mark Onspaugh --Mint in box / Mike Baron --Great zombie invasion of 1979 / J.G. Faherty --Dating after the apocalypse / Stephen Dorato --Typecast / Jeff Ryan --Making the cut / Mike Resnick, Lezli Robyn --Acknowledgments / Will Ludwigsen --Mannequin / Heather Graham --Short term / Daniel Pyle --Distressed travelers / Nina Kiriki Hoffman --Bayou brawl / L.A. Banks --Steeple people / John Alfred Taylor --For sale / David Sakmyster --Man who could not be bothered to die / Norman Prentiss --Last demon / Don D'Ammassa --Misadventure to call your own / Adrian Ludens --Smoke and mirrorballs / Chris Abbey --Brians!!! / D.L. Snell --Still life / Ken Lilli-Paetz --Day in the life / Sherrilyn

Manhunt


Ann Voss Peterson - 2008
    Each stand-alone story is set in the brutal and beautiful Rocky Mountains and contains intrigue, romance, and break-neck action. Read all three. A Reluctant Hunter... Desperate to provide for her young daughter, accountant Shanna Clarke accepts an invitation to go on a company hunting trip in the Wind River Mountains, even though she's never shot anything in her life. If she can get through it without embarrassing herself, maybe that sought-after promotion will be hers. But then her boss starts shooting... at her. ...Becomes the Prey Dodging gunfire and struggling to survive in the Wyoming wilderness, Shanna stows away in the back of a rancher's truck. A snowstorm, a grizzly bear, and a murder rap can't keep Shanna and rancher Jace Lantry from discovering why she was targeted. But knowing the reason is only half the battle... the rest has a good chance of killing them both. The first book in Ann Voss Peterson's Rocky Mountain Thriller series, Manhunt is a fast-paced, pulse-pounding novel of suspense and romance. It is approximately 55,000 words long. An earlier draft of this novel was previously published under the title Wyoming Manhunt.

The Sleep Tight Motel


Lisa Unger - 2018
    Check in for the night with New York Times bestselling author Lisa Unger.Eve has a fake ID, a .38, and a violent lover receding in the rearview mirror. He’ll never find her at the isolated motel, and its kindly manager is happy to ease her fears. But if Eve is the only guest, whom does she keep hearing on the other side of the wall? Eve won’t get a good night’s rest until she finds out.Lisa Unger’s The Sleep Tight Motel is part of Dark Corners, a collection of seven heart-stopping short stories by bestselling authors who give you so many new reasons to be afraid. Each story can be read in a single sitting. Or, if you have the nerve, you can listen all by yourself in the dark.

A Grave Calling


Wendy Roberts - 2017
    To Julie, it's a curse, not a gift, and one she rarely uses—she prefers her quiet life in a trailer, with her grandfather and her dog for company. But when FBI agent Garrett Pierce shows up at her door seeking help with a case, she has no choice but to assist with their search. Three girls are still missing. The killer is still out there. As bodies are discovered and more girls disappear, the case becomes almost more than Julie can bear. And when the killer turns his sights toward her, even her growing relationship with the protective Agent Garrett may not be enough to save her.

The Wicked


Thea Harrison - 2013
    She has been hired as part of a team to help manage the safe transportation of the collection of books owned by the Vampyre sorceress Carling Severan. The fact that the library is located on a mysterious island in an Other land only heightens the adventure. Head of security for the expedition, Sebastian Hale is tired of his rootless life of adventure and finds himself attracted to the calm, beautiful librarian. But he is living a personal nightmare. He has been hit with a curse that is slowly taking away his sight, and he doesn’t know if he will survive the results. But the powerful feelings growing between them, along with Sebastian’s inner turmoil, take a backseat when they learn there is a traitor lurking among their expedition team. With Elder Races politics and a priceless library on the line, they’ll have to rely on each other to survive the experience. Warning: When a librarian who likes to nest meets an owl Wyr who has always lived for adventure, their romance won’t just be fly-by-night…

Stroke of Luck


B.J. Daniels - 2019
    She’s ready to settle the score.The Sterling Ranch’s season opening isn’t going so smoothly. With the ranch’s lodge full of guests and a Montana blizzard threatening, Will Sterling needs help—and he needs it fast. So when his childhood friend Poppy Carmichael agrees to lend a hand, he’s grateful for a second chance…and more enticed by the woman she’s become than he cares to admit.For Poppy, it was supposed to be a retreat full of horse rides and hoedowns—with a side of showing Will what he’s been missing all these years. But as the snow deepens outside, the guests’ suspicion and mistrust turn sinister inside, catching Will and Poppy in the crosshairs.Weathering the storm in each other’s arms is all too easy for Will and Poppy, but will a confrontation with a killer mean their reunion is short-lived?New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author B.J. Daniels starts her Sterling’s Ranch series off with a bang in this suspenseful story of romance and revenge.

City of Demons


Richelle Mead - 2016
    The Seattle-based shape-shifting succubus is used to getting what she wants, when she wants. Until she falls for a mere mortal…Georgina is finally, irrevocably in love, and she doesn’t care who knows it. There’s just one problem. If she and her boyfriend, Seth Mortensen, succumb to their all-consuming desire, the consequences will be dire: Seth will be destroyed. Of course, no one cares about their struggle to keep their hands to themselves, especially not Georgina’s archdemon boss, who is sending her to L.A. to sit on a demon-run tribunal. An immortal has been murdered—and the high court is determined to find the killer and set an example…Bribery, corruption, murder—the three demons on trial will stop at nothing to avoid a guilty verdict. But all the dark magic zipping through the atmosphere must be going to Georgina’s head, because suddenly she suspects that Seth is up to no good. Now she can’t help but wonder how far she’d be willing to go to make sure she doesn’t lose the love of her immortal life…