The Season of Lightning


Kate Avery Ellison - 2015
    She lives in an insulated world of wealth and privilege, where she spends her time riding her horse, sassing her lady's companion, and being tormented by the family's handsome but irritating nobleman friend, Lord Roth. But when a mysterious, masked vigilante called the Hawk begins stirring up trouble and freeing silvras, the oppressed lower class, Verity's world is turned upside down as she is challenged about everything she knows about her world and her place in it.

The Rules for Lying


L.A. Kelley - 2017
     No good comes from this book. The story has magic, mayhem, theft, murder, sass talk, demons, animals committing felonies, gleeful revenge, and bad things happening to good people for no particular reason. It won’t encourage good habits and probably fine tune bad ones. The only lesson learned is don’t lie unless you know the rules. Teenager Peter Whistler lives at the Little Angels Home for Orphan Boys. Life in New Jersey is harsh in the Great Depression, but Peter has an exceptional ability to lie. He hones his talent, convinced it’s the ticket to easy fortune. He certainly doesn’t foresee the arrival of a murderous conjurer with mysterious designs on a little blind girl named Esther. Drawn into a nefarious plot to unleash a demon, Peter leads Esther and an enchanted terrier on a desperate escape to New Orleans and meets Amelie Marchand. Like all well-bred southern girls she’s trained in deadly martial arts, but with a murderous stepmother, Amelie has troubles of her own. Peter and Amelie’s one chance for survival is to head deep into the bayou and seek help from a mad shaman known as the Frog King. Welcome to an alternate 1930s where both jazz and magic fill New Orleans’ air. Can a little luck, mystical lies, and a dash of Cajun crazy help Peter harness the power to kill an immortal demon? If not, the Depression will be a picnic by comparison when hell arrives on Earth.

The Journals of Kara and Jason


Charlie Wood - 2013
    A girl. A friendship. A shocking secret.When Kara meets Jason, a foreign exchange student from Europe, they quickly form a friendship, bonding over what it feels like to be an outsider who doesn't belong. However, Kara soon learns that Jason has a secret—a secret that will not only rock their friendship, but also everything Kara knows about life.

Miss Landon and Aubranael


Charlotte E. English - 2013
    Miss Sophia Landon is the daughter of an impoverished clergyman. Her father’s health is failing fast, but who wants to marry a woman without birth, beauty or wealth? Her prospects are limited indeed - until her friendship with the town’s fae denizens earns her passage to the otherworldly realm of Aylfenhame. Could her fate truly lie beyond the shores of England?There she meets Aubranael, a young man with a warm heart and a ruined face. In Sophy he sees the answer to his loneliness, but how can a disfigured Ayliri hope to win her heart? When a mysterious witch offers him the temporary gift of beauty, he eagerly accepts: and so begins an adventure that could change his life, and Sophy’s, forever.

Cin d'Rella and the Water of Life : Circle of the Rose Chronicles, Book 1


S.J. West - 2018
    We are her Thorns. When Cin lost her father, she thought her world had been torn apart. Little did she know it was just the beginning of her story… Being the sole heir to the d’Rella family fortune placed a target on Cin’s back that she wasn’t prepared to deal with at the age of ten. Luckily for her, she had a fairy godfather looking out for her best interests who whisked her away from her selfish step-family and helped Cin discover her true destiny as a Thorn within the formidable Circle of the Rose. Thorns are an elite fighting force trained at an early age to protect Briar Rose and search for a way to awaken her from a seemingly eternal slumber. The city of Briardale has been cut off from the rest of the world for a hundred years by a spell no one seems to be able to break. Only by finding a cure to awaken Rose will the city be released from the magical curse and its citizens allowed to rejoin the world of Faloria. A chance encounter brings Cin into contact with the dashing black sheep of the Prince empire, Coltan Prince. For years, his family has been thwarting the Circle of the Rose at every turn in order to keep Briardale isolated and completely at their mercy. Although Cin knows Coltan is the enemy, she feels inexplicably charmed by him for some reason. When Coltan goes to the Circle with information about the whereabouts of the fabled Water of Life, Cin worries that he’s just using them for his own nefarious purposes. Everyone knows you can’t trust a Prince, but a chance to find the magical elixir is too good of an opportunity to pass up. With her trusty daggers by her side, Cin offers to help Coltan on his quest. Not only does she hope to find a possible cure for Rose but Cin also yearns to discover why she feels so drawn to a man she’s supposed to hate.

The Dragonslayer's Sword


Resa Nelson - 2008
    Her happiness is shattered when her lover-the dragonslayer-disappears without a trace, and the life that she knows and loves implodes without warning. Astrid lives in a world of shapeshifters whose thoughts have the power to change not only themselves but others. Everything Astrid knows to be true is called into question when she learns the truth about her past and the mysterious family from which she was separated as a child. Reality turns inside out as Astrid gradually learns the truth about the people she loves as well as those she disdains. With the fate of dragons, ghosts, and slaves in foreign lands resting on her shoulders, Astrid faces the challenge of deciding who she is and how she will stand up inside her own skin. Will she withdraw and hide from the world that has disappointed her so much... or will she rise to lead others to freedom and peace? AUTHOR'S NOTE: This series is written for adults but appropriate for ages 14 and up.

The Sixteen Burdens


David Khalaf - 2015
    An indestructible madman. And an odd young man cursed with powers to end the world.When Gray Studebaker discovers a pattern on the movie-star maps he sells on the street corner, he thinks he's solved Hollywood's biggest crime mystery of 1939. Instead, he stumbles into a secret world where society's greatest figures share a fiercely guarded secret: They're supernaturally talented. As a half-crazed circus strongman hunts them down, Gray realizes he's the only one who has the clues to find a mystical talisman that can stop the maniac. Gray embarks upon a wild, dangerous hunt through the gritty streets of Los Angeles, dodging cutthroat mafia bosses, Zoot-suited gangsters, and knife-wielding circus clowns. But the end of the search may force Gray to reveal his own secret, a mysterious power that will either save the society or destroy them all.The Sixteen Burdens is the first book in David Khalaf's historical fantasy series. If you like The Night Circus, The Paper Magician, or Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, then you'll love Khalaf's page-turning period-piece adventure with a fantastical twist. Named 2016 Editor's Choice (Historical Novel Society) and a Favorite Indie Book of 2015 (Self-Publishing Review).Buy The Sixteen Burdens to start the first in Khalaf's award-winning series today!

Earth's First


M.J. Caan - 2013
     Maura Riley learns this the hard way after a fateful first contact with an alien being that literally fell from the stars. She finds herself thrust into a world of shadowy government operatives, vengeful alien factions, and mutated human beings that suddenly have the ability to act on their darkest, most deprave desires. War is coming to Earth. War in the form of an invading alien horde known as the Anisari, that is bent on dominating or destroying our planet. They are seeking their lost property, the very being that fell to Earth and caused the massive genetic changes occurring on our world. After first contact, human beings are evolving into something that can either save our world, or hasten its destruction. Maura and her friends have to decide if they want to be Earth's defenders or give into the savagery and lust that their newfound mutation allows them to explore. Book one in the dark and gritty science fiction series Earth's First is not to be missed. All three books in the Earth's First saga are available for purchase, or read for free in Kindle Unlimited!

Hellenica


Jonathan Maas - 2013
    The sole remaining functional province, Hellenica, decides to act. They build the Academy and are about to recruit 16 young gods with the hopes of training them to police this world.The HorsemenOf these 16 young gods, four have strange powers that the Academy might not be able to control. Kayana Marx, Gunnar Redstone, Tommy Alderon and Saoirse Frost aren’t like normal gods, and their abilities stem from the Monotheistic times. But if Hellenica has any hope of holding this world together, they will have to teach these four to exercise their powers to their fullest extent, even if it might bring everything to an apocalyptic end.

The Bone Flower Throne


T.L. Morganfield - 2013
    The bloodthirsty sorcerer god Smoking Mirror has sent her patron god—the benevolent Feathered Serpent–into exile, but the Feathered Serpent is determined not only to regain his sacred city, but also to end human sacrifice all together.Princess Quetzalpetlatl barely escaped Culhuacan with her life, but when the Feathered Serpent tasks her with helping his mortal son Topiltzin fulfill his divine mandate, she eagerly embraces her destiny. Finally she can avenge her father’s murder at the hands of the Smoking Mirror’s high priest, and return home.Yet the price for involving herself in a war among the gods is high, paid in blood and loss. But for Topiltzin—who’s more than just a brother to her—she’s willing to do anything. Even sacrifice her own heart."A wonderfully immersive look at the Tolteca civilization, which brings to life the old myths-giving voice to a strong cast of characters who linger with the reader long after they have closed the book." - Aliette de Bodard, 2013 Nebula winning author of Immersion"Morganfield delivers an elegant tale of love and honor, passion and betrayal ... a fascinating journey through the tangled webs of rivalry and betrayal that surround a royal family in the world of the ancient Toltecs." - J. Kathleen Cheney, author of The Golden City

The Tithe


Elle Hill - 2014
    Joshua Barstow, raised for twenty years among her town’s holy women, is one of these seventy Tithes. She is joined by the effervescent Lynna, the scholarly Avery, and the amoral Blue, a man who has spent most of his life in total solitude. Each night, an angel swoops down to take one of their numbers. Each night, that is, except the first, when the angel touches Josh… and leaves her. What is so special about Josh? She doesn’t feel special; she feels like a woman trying to survive while finally learning the meanings of friendship, community, and love.How funny that she had to be sacrificed to find reasons to live.

The Clockwork God


Jamie Sedgwick - 2013
    I highly recommend The Clockwork God, and cannot wait to see what else Jamie Sedgewick has in store for us."-Goodreads ReviewFour Stars: "An action packed, thrilling read; Very much a must for sci-fi and steampunk fans!"-Goodreads ReviewFive Stars: "Can't get enough of the stories by Jamie Sedgwick. This has been the best yet."-Amazon ReviewMr. Sedgwick’s new steampunk series picks up where the Tinkerer’s Daughter Trilogy left off:Barreling through their post-apocalyptic world in a massive steam locomotive called the Great Iron horse, the steam-powered ape Socrates and his crew of warriors, miscreants, and genetic anomalies are in search of a rare and precious element known as starfall. Starfall is the fuel that powers the Iron Horse, as well as the great city of Sanctuary. Supplies are running low and unless they can locate another source, all civilization may soon collapse. Starfall also happens to be the ape’s power source and without it, Socrates will die.On their first adventure, Socrates, River, and the rest of the crew encounter a bizarre cult of isolationists and their strange “Clockwork God.” Meanwhile, several crew members have gone missing, and tensions are rising as mutineers conspire to overthrow Socrates and destroy the train. As the conflict comes to a boil, a power more ancient and sinister than anything they ever imagined threatens to destroy them all. The "Iron Horse" series is a follow up to Sedgwick's "The Tinkerer's Daughter" series. A reading of the earlier books is not necessary to enjoy this new series, but may provide added insight to certain characters and history.

The Madman’s Daughter


Megan Shepherd - 2013
    After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father’s gruesome experiments. But when she learns he is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations are true.Accompanied by her father’s handsome young assistant, Montgomery, and an enigmatic castaway, Edward — both of whom she is deeply drawn to—Juliet travels to the island, only to discover the depths of her father’s madness: He has experimented on animals so that they resemble, speak, and behave as humans. And worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island’s inhabitants. Torn between horror and scientific curiosity, Juliet knows she must end her father's dangerous experiments and escape her jungle prison before it's too late. Yet as the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father’s genius—and madness—in her own blood.Inspired by H. G. Wells’s classic The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Madman’s Daughter is a dark and breathless Gothic thriller about the secrets we’ll do anything to know and the truths we’ll go to any lengths to protect.

Sisera's Gift


Robyn Wideman - 2016
    Dragons have returned! Kai is the town drunk. His life is simple, he works every day to pay for the drinks that help drown his sorrow, until one day when a beautiful warrior enters his favorite watering hole and changes his life forever. Raven is a proud warrior sworn to defend Princess Isabella. Her task to take child away from a devious stepfather is interrupted by an ambush that leaves her in desperate need of a tracker. When she goes looking for help she has an altercation with the one man who can help her! Princess Isabella flees one bad situation only to find herself in a much worse one. However, an unlikely character comes to her rescue. One that she had only dreamed about... Author's note: Book two of the Dragonblood Sagas continues the story of the return of dragons. This time on the Isle of Seron.

Lady of Devices


Shelley Adina - 2011
    Victoria is Queen. Charles Darwin’s son is Prime Minister. And steam is the power that runs the world. At 17, Claire Trevelyan, daughter of Viscount St. Ives, was expected to do nothing more than pour an elegant cup of tea, sew a fine seam, and catch a rich husband. Unfortunately, Claire’s talents lie not in the ballroom, but in the chemistry lab, where things have a regrettable habit of blowing up. When her father gambles the estate on the combustion engine and loses, Claire finds herself down and out on the mean streets of London. But being a young woman of resources and intellect, she turns fortune on its head. It’s not long before a new leader rises in the underworld, known only as the Lady of Devices . . . When she meets Andrew Malvern, a member of the Royal Society of Engineers, she realizes her talents may encompass more than the invention of explosive devices. They may help her realize her dreams and his . . . if they can both stay alive long enough to see that sometimes the closest friendships can trigger the greatest betrayals . . .