Book picks similar to
The Merging by John P. Logsdon


urban-fantasy
fantasy
paranormal
fiction

London Falling


Paul Cornell - 2012
    Then his prize suspect Rob Toshack is murdered in custody. Furious, Quill pursues the investigation, co-opting intelligence analyst Lisa Ross and undercover cops Costain and Sefton. But nothing about Toshack's murder is normal. Toshack had struck a bargain with a vindictive entity, whose occult powers kept Toshack one step ahead of the law -- until his luck ran out. Now, the team must find a 'suspect' who can bend space and time and alter memory itself. And they will kill again.As the group starts to see London's sinister magic for themselves, they have two choices: panic or use their new abilities. Then they must hunt a terrifying supernatural force the only way they know how: using police methods, equipment and tactics. But they must all learn the rules of this new game - and quickly. More than their lives will depend on it.

Night Owls


Lauren M. Roy - 2014
    The employees’ penchant for fighting the evil creatures of the night is just a perk… Valerie McTeague’s business model is simple: provide the students of Edgewood College with a late-night study haven and stay as far away from the underworld conflicts of her vampire brethren as possible. She’s lived that life, and the price she paid was far too high to ever want to return. Elly Garrett hasn’t known any life except that of fighting the supernatural werewolf-like beings known as Creeps or Jackals. But she always had her mentor and foster father by her side—until he gave his life protecting a book that the Creeps desperately want to get their hands on. When the book gets stashed at Night Owls for safe keeping, those Val holds nearest and dearest are put in mortal peril. Now Val and Elly will have to team up, along with a mismatched crew of humans, vampires, and lesbian succubi, to stop the Jackals from getting their claws on the book and unleashing unnamed horrors…

Hard Day's Knight


John G. Hartness - 2010
    The police are stumped. Halloween is coming, with an ancient evil on the horizon. The vampires are the good guys. This is not your ordinary fall weekend in Charlotte, NC. Vampire private detectives Jimmy Black and Greg Knightwood have been hired to keep a young client from being cursed for all eternity, but end up in a bigger mess than they ever imagined. Suddenly trapped in the middle of a serial kidnapping case, Jimmy and Greg uncover a plot to bring forth an ancient evil into the world, and enlist the help of a police detective, a priest, a witch, a fallen angel and strip club proprietor to save the world. This unlikely band of heroes battles zombies, witches, neuroses and sunburn while cracking jokes and looking for the perfect bag of O-negative.

Bill the Vampire


Rick Gualtieri - 2011
    He isn't one of them. Meet Bill Ryder: programmer, gamer geek, and hopeless dweeb when it comes to women. All he ever asked for out of life was to collect his paycheck, hang out with his buds, and eventually (someday) ask out the girl of his dreams.However, then Bill met Sally. She was mysterious, aggressive, and best of all...smoking hot. Bill never stood a chance. Before he knew what was happening Sally had lead him to his death, and that was only the beginning of his troubles. Now Bill awakes to find himself an undead predator of the night. The only problem is he’s still at the bottom of the food chain. He’s in way over his head, surrounded by creatures more dangerous, better looking, and a whole lot cooler than he is. Worst of all is the dreaded Night Razor, a master vampire who just can’t stand him. He gives Bill a 90-day deadline to either prove himself or meet a more permanent kind of death, and the deck is definitely stacked against him.But Bill isn’t exactly average. A vampire like him hasn’t been seen in over five centuries. He's got a few tricks up his sleeve, unlikely allies to help him out, and an attitude problem that makes him just too damn obnoxious to quit. He may just pull it off... if he doesn't get his teeth kicked in first.Bill the Vampire is an 80,000 word horror comedy adventure by Rick Gualtieri.

Keystone


Dannika Dark - 2017
    Half Vampire, half Mage, she’s spent years living as a rogue to stay alive. When a Russian Shifter offers her a job in his covert organization hunting outlaws, dignity and a respectable career are finally within her grasp. The catch? Her new partner is Christian Poe - a smug, handsome Vampire whom she’d rather stake than go on a stakeout with.They're hot on the trail of a human killer who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. One misstep during her probationary period could jeopardize Raven’s chance at redemption, and her partner would love nothing more than to see her fail. Will Raven find the courage to succeed, or will she give in to her dark nature?Dark secrets, unexpected twists, and a blurred line between good and evil will keep you on the edge of your seat.

Once Bitten, Twice Shy


Jennifer Rardin - 2007
    My boss is Vayl, born in Romania in 1744. Died there too, at the hand of his vampire wife, Liliana. But that's ancient history. For the moment Vayl works for the C.I.A. doing what he does best -- assassination. And I help. You could say I'm an Assistant Assassin. But then I'd have to kick your ass.Our current assignment seemed easy. Get close to a Miami plastic surgeon named Assan, a charmer with ties to terrorism that run deeper than a buried body. Find out what he's meeting with that can help him and his comrades bring America to her knees. And then close his beady little eyes forever. Why is it that nothing's ever as easy as it seems?

Inhuman


Eileen Wilks - 2012
    All of them were Gifted, and all of them have been drained of their blood. Kai is a reluctant telepath with a skewed Gift—she sees thoughts instead of experiencing them. So, unlike other Midlanders, she can intuit that they have a “Guardian.” She also knows that the Guardian Nathan isn’t human. His true nature hasn’t been divined. Neither has hers. But when another one of the Gifted is found dead, Kai herself becomes a suspect. And only Nathan can save her.Previously published in On the Prowl.

Blood Heir


Ilona Andrews - 2021
    Now, as waves of magic and technology compete for supremacy, it’s a place caught in a slow apocalypse, where monsters spawn among the crumbling skyscrapers and supernatural factions struggle for power and survival.Eight years ago, Julie Lennart left Atlanta to find out who she was. Now she’s back with a new face, a new magic, and a new name—Aurelia Ryder—drawn by the urgent need to protect the family she left behind. An ancient power is stalking her adopted mother, Kate Daniels, an enemy unlike any other, and a string of horrifying murders is its opening gambit.If Aurelia’s true identity is discovered, those closest to her will die. So her plan is simple: get in, solve the murders, prevent the prophecy from being fulfilled, and get out without being recognized. She expected danger, but she never anticipated that the only man she’d ever loved could threaten everything.One small misstep could lead to disaster. But for Aurelia, facing disaster is easy; it’s relationships that are hard.

Nightwalker


Jocelynn Drake - 2008
    But elemental mastery over fire sets her apart from others of her night-prowling breed . . . and may be all that prevents her doom.The foe she now faces is human: the vampire hunter called Danaus, who has already destroyed so many undead. For Mira, the time has come to hunt . . . or be hunted.

Would-Be Witch


Kimberly Frost - 2009
    The family magic seems to have skipped over Tammy Jo Trask. All she gets are a few untimely visits from long-dead, smart-mouthed family ghost Edie. But when her locket-an heirloom that happens to hold Edie's soul-is stolen in the midst of a town-wide crime spree, it's time for Tammy to find her inner witch. After a few experiences with her dysfunctional magic, Tammy turns to the only person in small-town Duval, Texas, who can help: the very rich and highly magical Bryn Lyons. He might have all the answers-and a 007 savoir faire to boot-but the locket isn't the only heirloom passed down in Tammy's family. She also inherited a warning: stay away from Lyons.

Monster


Carmen Caine - 2014
    It’s all I've lived for. Revenge against those who stacked the cards against me from the start. But I’m changing the deck now. I’m getting even. Born to a vampire, I wasn’t supposed to survive—but I did.My name is Cassidy. Cassidy Edwards. And I’m the first of my kind. The JobTrapping a sixteenth-century Scottish Highlander of a vampire who just might be seduction itself.The TeamA firedrake with an attitude, a werewolf with a problem, and an imp in dire need of rehab.The BossA dangerously powerful warlock as handsome as sin.My Problem:Bluffing my way into a job, my first mission into the Charmed world opens a Pandora’s box of betrayal and secrets... along with attractions of the most lethal kind.

Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper Trilogy


J.L. Bryan - 2017
    Ellie uses a combination of historical research, ghost-hunting technology, and stubborn toughness to protect her clients and remove dangerous entities from their homes. Included in this set: Ellie Jordan, Ghost Trapper (book 1) When a family contacts her to deal with a disturbing presence in the crumbling old mansion they've purchased, Ellie first believes it to be a typical, by-the-book specter, a residual haunting by a restless spirit. Instead, she finds herself confronting an older and more powerful evil that dwells within the walls of the house, stalking the living. Ellie must unravel the secret history behind the haunting in order to remove the ghost. She is aided by her new assistant Stacey, a recent film school graduate with a gift for capturing images and video of ghosts, and Jacob, a reluctant young psychic. Together, they will try to evict the dangerous spirits of the dead, whose threats to the family grow more terrifying every night. Cold Shadows (book 2) Paranormal investigator Ellie Jordan faces a difficult new case. Her clients are a family haunted by multiple ghosts and a poltergeist that wrecks their home at night. Their seven-year-old son’s invisible friends may not be imaginary at all, but the restless spirits of dead children. To clear her clients’ house of the dangerous entities, Ellie must unravel the mysterious deaths of another family who lived in the old mansion more than a hundred and sixty years ago—and she must do it before the ghosts can carry out their malevolent designs on her clients and their children. The Crawling Darkness (book 3) Ellie Jordan investigates an apartment building where a twisted, dangerous entity emerges from closets and doorways to terrorize the residents at night. A powerful spirit, it feeds on fear and takes the shape of its victims' worst nightmares. Ellie and her mentor Calvin have tried to capture the same entity before, in a different house nearby, an attempt that ended in disaster. Now, with the help of her apprentice Stacey, Ellie must try again to capture the elusive shape-shifting ghost before it can claim another soul as its own.

Dark and Stormy Knights


P.N. ElrodCarrie Vaughn - 2010
    1. A Questionable Client (Kate Daniels, #0.5) by Ilona Andrews: Kate Daniels guards shifter Saiman, less trustworthy than the enemy.2. Even Hand (Dresden Files, #11.6) by Jim Butcher: "Gentleman" John Marcone, Chicago's most dangerous crime lord, fights water demon with defenses against White Council wizard Harry Dresden. 3. The Beacon by Shannon K. Butcher: Hereditary fighter faces monster that killed his father and town, with a little girl that attracts said monster. 4. Even a Rabbit Will Bite by Rachel Caine: Liesl trains the new Dragonslayer before she faces the last dragon.5. Dark Lady (Vampire Files, #12.75) by P.N. Elrod: Vampire nightclub owner Jack Fleming promises radio to resident ghost.6. Beknighted by Deidre Knight: Artist tries to free knight painted in real gold.7. Shifting Star (Signs of the Zodiac, #4.6) by Vicki Peterson: Skamar, Tibetan for star, newly created tulpa, fights another vicious male of Tulpa. 8. Rookwood & Mrs King by Lilith Saintcrow: Vampire private eye is hired by wife to kill the woman's vampire husband. 9. God's Creatures (Kitty Norville, #0.8) by Carrie Vaughn: Cormac follows a werewolf to convent school.

Witch's Sorrow


Taylor Aston White - 2019
    A dark past. A fierce deceit.Paladin Agent Alice Skye didn’t think much of the contract forced upon her by Rexley Wild, Alpha of one of the largest packs in Europe. He hired her for one job. Find the missing wolf. Unfortunately for Alice, she might already be too late.She's in way over her head, an inexperienced witch who has to use all her instincts to help the secretive and detached Alpha find his missing pack mate. But it isn’t long before she realises something’s not quite right. It's not simply a missing person, it was something a lot closer to home, something that reignites nightmares that make her question her own, horrific past.Alice is in a race against time that forces her to face against vampires, daemons and anything that gets in the way, for she only has one thing to do, find the wolf before he turns up like the others. Dead.

Burning Water


Mercedes Lackey - 1989
    He also knows that his meager psychic abilities aren't enough to identify the killers, much less stop them.Luckily, Mark has an ace up his sleeve: an attractive young romance novelist who happens to be a practicing witch. And not just any witch, either-Diana Tregarde is a Guardian, charged with protecting the Earth and all its creatures. Using modern science and ancient magics, Diana and Mark discover that they are tailing no ordinary serial killer but the awakened avatar of an Aztec god. Tezcatlipoca and his four beautiful handmaidens are preparing for a great sacrifice that will transform North America into a new Aztec realm.Diana isn't sure her powers are strong enough to take on those of a risen Aztec god, but she has no choice. As a Guardian, she is sworn to protect mankind, even at the cost of her own life. Luckily, she does not stand alone. Mark Valdez is more than just a cop. And Tezcatlipoca is not the only Aztec god walking in the world.