Book picks similar to
The Part That Doesn't Burn by Sam Poling
fantasy
dark-fantasy
goddess-fish-promotions
horror
Kill the Willing / Bury the Past But Shoot It First / Reload Faster / Dead In Plain Sight / Tomb Raiding PhD / Tomb Raider Emeritus
Martha Carr - 2020
Requires Life Insurance. Will be working with deadly magical artifacts and killers.
Kill The Willing:
Shay Carson had a wake up call when a hitman was sent after her. Her previous profession was getting a bit personal.
Then, life offered her a chance to disappear, and she did.
What's a girl to do with a very specific set of skills?
Take up Tomb Raiding!Behind every complicated woman is a story. For Shay, it happens to be a little complicated and she can't share with her new friends.
Better to lie to her friends, than have to kill more for knowing too much!
Bury The Past, But Shoot it First:
Magic is back on Earth and there’s money to be made.
It didn’t take long for Shay Carson to figure out that being a hitman isn’t good for a girl’s retirement plans. Time to fake her own death and get the hell out of town. Start over in L.A. with dream job number two – tomb raider in a world just coming to terms with magic. Just as dangerous a profession but the payoff’s bigger even if someone’s still shooting at her.
Good thing this girl has better aim and no problem pulling the trigger.
Reload Faster:
Killer for hire needs to retool her skill set. Find a new career with a little less risk.
Meet Shay Carson – Tomb Raider for hire. Good with weapons, works badly with others, can leave at a moment’s notice and not thrown by magic.
She’s already making a name for herself on the dark web. Rich people in search of treasure willing to pay to send someone else. Look out world…
Dead In Plain Sight:
Shay Carson's rep as a tomb raider grows, along with her list of new friends.
The former killer for hire has managed to figure out what a life looks like without killing off her inner circle. But a teenage elf may upend all of it.New adventures across France hunting for the lost scepter of Dagobert protected by dark magic or finding the answers to a broken piece of machinery that’s 300 million years old. Not your typical day job.
Shay is not your typical woman… just ask Brownstone.
Tomb Raiding PHD:
What do you do when someone threatens your man? If his name is Brownstone, you can take the easy way out and just tell him. He’ll take care of the rest.
But if you’re Shay Carson, archaeologist of magic and history, you take care of it, permanently. It’s her specialty.
In a surprising twist, Shay’s turned out to be teachable and is taking along Lily, a Gray Elf to help her settle the score, while Peyton, her IT specialist with a love of costumes and pizza has her back.
Tomb Raider Emeritus:
Shay Carson has a secret. Not all aliens are Oricerans.
The Last Werewolf
Glen Duncan - 2011
For two hundred years he has wandered the world, enslaved by his lunatic appetites and tormented by the memory of his first and most monstrous crime. Now, the last of his kind, he knows he cannot go on.But as Jake counts down to suicide, a violent murder and an extraordinary meeting plunge him straight back into the desperate pursuit of life — and love.Sexy, smart, bloody and heartbreaking, The Last Werewolf takes literature by the throat.
The Messengers Menagerie
Joey Anderle - 2017
Now, Sterling Booker Wells hasn't been in charge of her for 24 hours and they have already busted up one effort on her life, and even worse, there is a crossbow bolt hole in Alphonse's prized, painstakingly accurate, exquisitely restored, vintage replica of Steve McQueen's 1968 Mustang from the hit movie Bullitt.However, Booker argues in his defense, the Princess hasn't suffered a scratch.
The Messengers Menagerie continues the first weekend when Sterling Booker Wells meets the Royal Elven Princess Auralee, what (else) could possibly go wrong?
How about a new crew sent to do him in?
And the Princess who will be by his side.
Join Runner Sterling Booker Wells as he attempts to keep the Elven Princess out of harm's way...
Again.
Alicron
Maia Starr - 2018
That’s why I took her, she’s the one that can save my race, and myself. Vicki is a smart and busy Hollywood agent forced to go on a yoga retreat with her friend in order to take some time for herself. She is resistant to go, but knows that she needs to make a change in her lifestyle, especially in the romance department. Alicron is an alien on a mission. He needs to bring human females back to his home planet to mate with the males in order to save his species. It’s a heavy mission to bare. When Vicki is abducted, she is angry and hates the aliens that have taken her and a group of other human females. Her hate is focused on Alicron, but her body is betraying her. Alicron is intrigued with the strong human female, and plans to make her his mate. But then all goes wrong when his ship crash-lands on a cyborg planet. Now he will need to save her from the cyborgs that have taken her from him, even if she does hate him. She is his. But will rescuing her make her change her feelings of hate to feelings of desire? Or will she continue to despise him for what he has done to her? Alicron is the first book in the Aliens Of Xeion standalone series. All books in this page-turning Sci-Fi Alien Abduction Romance can be read as standalones, there are no cliffhangers, and happily ever afters are guaranteed! Note: Adults Only!
Darkness Falls
Jessica Sorensen - 2012
The Colony is hidden deep underground, far away from the vampires—humans that were transformed by the disease. The vampires are hideous, starving, and they will kill any human they come across.Seventeen-year-old Kayla is a Bellator, a warrior that protects The Colony. In order to survive, there are three rules she must follow:Rule #1—Never go out after dark.Rule #2—Always carry a weapon.Rule #3—No matter what, never EVER get bitten.But what happens when the rules Kayla has always lived by can no longer apply? The Highers run The Colony and accept nothing less than perfection. One slip up can mean death. Kayla has always worked hard to follow the rules and strive for perfection. But during a moment of weakness, she lets her imperfections show. Her punishment is worse than death. She is chosen for The Gathering and is thrown out into a world full of starving vampires. No one has ever survived The Gathering, at least that’s what Kayla’s been told. But when she runs into a group who insist they were once part of The Gathering, Kayla discovers the Highers have been keeping secrets. Secrets that could lead to a cure.
Monsters Beware
John G. Hartness - 2011
From the author of The Black Knight Chronicles comes a new series of supernatural comedy with a Johnny Cash soundtrack and a Kevin Smith twist. The first collected edition of Bubba the Monster Hunter stories features the three "B's" of fine literature - beer, boobs and blood. Add the fourth B for Bubba and you've got a rollicking good time!Meet Bubba the Monster Hunter, a 6'5" 340-pound hero for the working man. If it goes bump in the night, Bubba'll kill it. Vampires, Zombies, Ghouls, Werewolves, Ghosts, Witches, Warlocks, whatever. If it can be shot, he'll shoot it. If it can be hit, he'll hit it. And if there's a payday involved, he's on the case. Voodoo Children - In this first Bubba the Monster Hunter story, everybody's favorite redneck is chasing zombies through the hills of Tennessee. Follow Bubba through beer joints, strip clubs and graveyards as he and his best helper Bertha (a .50 Desert Eagle Pistol) make sure that what's dead, stays dead.Ballet of Blood - He's back and badder than ever. Bubba the Monster Hunter returns in the hilarious follow-up to Voodoo Children. In Ballet of Blood, Bubba has to investigate a mysterious touring dance troupe that of course turns out to be more than he expected. Bubba, backed up as always by the hilarious Skeeter, has to make do with his wits and what weapons he can find backstage at a theatre to get out of his most dangerous adventure yet.Ho-Ho-Homicide - Bubba's back and this time he's in costume! Everybodys favorite redneck monster hunter goes undercover as a mall Santa to get to the bottom of a series of mysterious murders. Along the way he encounters snotty kids, annoying mothers, a smokin' hot elf, the spirit of Christmas and a tribe of fairies that would rather make war than toys!Tassels of Terror - Bubba's back, and this time it's personal! A mysterious fire destroyed a topless club in South Carolina, and Bubba must get to the bottom of the mystery and rescue a missing stripper before more bloodshed ensues. A timeless story of love and pole dancers by the author of Voodoo Children and Ho-Ho-Homicide.This collection also features a pair of John Hartness short stories never before available for purchase!
Nightmare City
Jack Conner - 2014
Lavorgna is a city of fog and shadows, undead servants soaring zeppelins, where mad scientists prowl the alleys, mob bosses strive for power and the dreaded Guild of Alchemists holds the land in an iron grip, while below the city lies a network of black caverns embedded with the ruins of an ancient race known as the Elders that worshipped Lovecraftian horrors. To survive and save the world from an unimaginable fate, Katya must navigate all these dangers and more. Running from the loan shark, she seeks out the local mob boss Ravic, only to learn that he’s embroiled in a vicious gang war with his rival Loqrin, a conflict that has supernatural overtones. A new horror has gripped the city, with mysterious creatures called haunts killing people by the dozen, and Ravic believes Loqrin is behind it. If Katya wants Ravic’s help, she must find out what Loqrin is up to – and stop him! To do this, Katya must use all her thieving skills and cunning, because if she doesn’t and Loqrin accomplishes his endgame, the whole world will suffer an awful fate. No pressure, Kat.
Limbo.
Marko Pandza - 2016
A place beyond time and space as we know it where psychopaths compete for perverse honour and status as they carry out their deathly duties. As Grim struggles to hold onto the memories of the life he’s lost, he discovers that the insane being who shaped him (and the course of existence itself) may have sinister plans for the one thing he values most.In Limbo, the end is only the beginning.
Penumbra
Nazri Noor - 2018
Transformed in death, Dust awakens to the eldritch mysteries behind the grit and glamor of the city of Valero – and to the wellspring of dark magic that lives inside his very bones.
Gods and Monsters Books 4 - 6
Quinn Blackbird - 2020
SyfonerValissa's death toll keeps climbing and her sanity unwinding.After she uncovers the true reason that Prince Poison keeps her like a caged bird, and she uncovers his terrible secret, Valissa faces the her greatest and deadliest challenge yet. Betray her closest friend, Ava, who is lost into the arms of a devil or stay by the Prince's side.Problem is, Valissa doesn't sacrifice herself for anyone, especially when escape comes in the tempting package of Damianos, her mysterious night-time visitor.Valissa is on her own, but that doesn't mean she won't tear everything down on her way to freedom.The Prince made a mistake in training her up to withstand his poison. Now, Valissa is stronger than ever ... as strong as a God.5. GodsStolen away by Phantom, Valissa finds herself tangled in a war older than herself. But with her powers climbing and cruelty rising, she starts to doubt her choice. Phantom offers her greatness but at a price, a price that carves into her a longing for her wretched Prince Poison.What can be worse than running from a malicious God?Running into the arms of another...6. MonstersValissa's power burns like a murderous fire within her, consuming her. Now a God, she must choose whether she will be cruel or fair. But what remains of her humanity is destroyed by a betrayal so cutting that Valissa kills a God close to her.What is worse than killing a God? Perhaps killing the wrong one...
Sea Raptor: A Deep Sea Thriller
John J. Rust - 2014
Army Ranger, until an unfortunate incident forced him out of the service. He is soon hired by the Foundation for Undocumented Biological Investigation and given a new mission, to search for cryptids, creatures whose existence has not been proven by mainstream science. Teaming up with the daring and beautiful wildlife photographer Karen Thatcher, they must stop a sea monster's deadly rampage along the Jersey Shore. But that's not the only danger Rastun faces. A group of murderous animal smugglers also want the creature. Rastun must utilize every skill learned from years of fighting, otherwise, his first mission for the FUBI might very well be his last.
Jenny Pox
J.L. Bryan - 2010
A lifetime of avoiding any physical contact with others has made her isolated and painfully lonely in her small rural town.Then she meets the one boy she can touch. Jenny feels herself falling for Seth...but if she's going to be with him, Jenny must learn to use the deadly pox inside her to confront his ruthless and manipulative girlfriend Ashleigh, who secretly wields the most dangerous power of all.* * *Not recommended for readers under eighteen.BONUS: Includes an excerpt of Glimpse by Stacey Wallace Benefiel.
Sympathy for the Bones
Marjorie M. Liu - 2014
from An Apple for the CreatureClora, a girl of particularly gruesome talents, must choose to defy her teacher and the woman who raised her—or else risk losing her soul.
Haunting Me (Haunting Me #1)
Nikki LeClair - 2016
Getting engaged is just the honey in her tea! Then she gets run over by a hot dog cart, wakes up with a concussion and the ability to see ghosts. Well, one ghost. A loud, obnoxious woman who claims to have been murdered for her vast fortune. Soon, Phoebe is solving a mystery that not only threatens her relationships, but her career as well. As she begins to battle feelings for the ghost’s handsome nephew, she realizes quite a few people in her life are not as they seem. Slowly, Phoebe uncovers the secrets and lies around her, learning that in order to solve this mystery and be free of the ghost, she must lie herself. The only catch? The secrets Phoebe has kept from the people in her life could ruin everything for her, and her ghostly companion, in the end.
The Thirteen Hallows
Michael Scott - 2011
Ancient artifacts imbued with a primal and deadly power. But are they protectors of this world, or the keys to its destruction?A gruesome murder in London reveals a sinister plot to uncover a two-thousand-year-old secret.For decades, the Keepers guarded these Hallows, keping them safe, hidden, and apart from one another. But now the Keepers are being brutally murdered, their prizes stolen, the ancient objects bathed in their blood.Now, only a few remain.With her dying breath, one of the Keepers convinces Sarah Miller, a virtual stranger, to deliver her Hallow--a broken sword with devastating powers--to her nephew, Owen. The duo quickly become suspects in a series of murders as they are chased by both the police and the sadistic Dark Man and his nubile mistress.As Sarah and Owen search for the surviving Keepers, they unravel a deadly secret the Keepers were charged to protect. The mystery leads Sarah and Owen on a cat-and-mouse chase through England and Wales--and history itself--as they discover that the sword may be the only thing standing between the world... and a horror beyond imagining.