Alizhan can’t see faces, but she can read minds. Her mysterious ability leaves her unable to touch or be touched without excruciating pain. Rescued from abandonment and raised by the wealthy and beautiful Iriyat ha-Varensi, Alizhan has grown up in isolation, using her gift to steal secrets from Iriyat’s rivals, the ruling class of Laalvur. But Iriyat keeps secrets of her own. When Alizhan discovers that she isn’t the only one of her kind, and that a deadly plot threatens everyone like her, there’s only one person she can trust. Ev liked having a secret. None of the other girls in the village had a thief-friend. Evreyet Umarsad—“Ev” to her parents and her one friend—longs to be the kind of hero she reads about in books. But the rest of the world feels impossibly far away from her life on a farm outside Laalvur. Ev will never lay eyes on the underground city of Adappyr, the stars of the Nightward Coast, or the venomous medusas that glow in the dark depths of the sea. At least on her weekly trip to the market, Ev gets to see her thief—the strange young woman who slips by her cart and playfully steals a handful of thornfruit. When the thief needs help, Ev doesn’t hesitate. Together, they uncover a conspiracy that draws them all over Laalvur and beyond. Thornfruit is the first book in The Gardener's Hand trilogy.

    Forced out of the service because of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, she tries to move on with her life-- putting up a good facade to those who don't know her very well. Alone, however; she is plagued with battle scars she can't shake even two years after her tour. When successful psychiatrist, Sara Lawson, decided to move back to the only place she ever felt safe, the last thing she had on her mind was falling in love. Deciding to renovate the home she inherited from her grandmother, she crosses paths with Sammy, who is now working as a contractor. Sara spots something kindred in the woman's hardened, but kind blue eyes. Each hiding their own secrets in the small Florida town, they both realize that the walls they had spent years perfecting have started to crack around one another. As they slowly build a friendship, can they keep each other safe from the danger that is speeding towards them?

    Chauncy Rollock is an amiable archaeologist with just the right knack for solving logic problems. And the Mexican Military captain Gustavo De Leon is tired of fighting corruption at all levels of government. All three men and their families become entangled in the secret of the Mayan Riddle found on the steps of a newly discovered pyramid. Those who would use the treasure for personal gain are never far from their goal and must be stopped at all costs.The Yucatan will never be the same.Treasure of the Mayan King is a clean action-adventure novel that is safe and enjoyable for the whole family to read. “If you like Indiana Jones, you’ll love this book!”From the back cover:A violent tropical storm has uncovered a previously unknown Mayan pyramid in the Yucatan Peninsula. On the steps of this temple lies a riddle that leads to the hidden treasure of a great Mayan king. One man, the French linguist Dr. Sova, believes he knows the secrets of the riddle. But his efforts to find it are cut short and the information falls into the hands of unscrupulous people. The race is on to see who will be the first to find the treasure of the Mayan king!

    Sucksby, a "baby farmer," who raised her with unusual tenderness, as if Sue were her own. Mrs. Sucksby’s household, with its fussy babies calmed with doses of gin, also hosts a transient family of petty thieves—fingersmiths—for whom this house in the heart of a mean London slum is home.One day, the most beloved thief of all arrives—Gentleman, an elegant con man, who carries with him an enticing proposition for Sue: If she wins a position as the maid to Maud Lilly, a naïve gentlewoman, and aids Gentleman in her seduction, then they will all share in Maud’s vast inheritance. Once the inheritance is secured, Maud will be disposed of—passed off as mad, and made to live out the rest of her days in a lunatic asylum.With dreams of paying back the kindness of her adopted family, Sue agrees to the plan. Once in, however, Sue begins to pity her helpless mark and care for Maud Lilly in unexpected ways...But no one and nothing is as it seems in this Dickensian novel of thrills and reversals.

    Their foster mother, Carol, has always been fanatical, but with Jazz grown up and out of the house, Carol takes a dangerous turn that threatens thirteen-year-old Joaquin’s life. Over and over, child services fails to intervene, and Joaquin is running out of time.Then Jazz gets a blocked call from someone offering a solution. There are others like her—people the law has failed. They’ve formed an underground network of “helpers,” each agreeing to eliminate the abuser of another. They’re taking back their power and leaving a trail of bodies throughout Los Angeles—dubbed the Blackbird Killings. If Jazz joins them, they’ll take care of Carol for good.All she has to do is kill a stranger.

    Now, their border walls begin to crumble, and villages fall to demons swarming out of the forests.Away on the silver steppes, the remaining tribes of nomadic Qorin retreat and protect their own, having bartered a treaty with the empire, exchanging inheritance through the dynasties. It is up to two young warriors, raised together across borders since their prophesied birth, to save the world from the encroaching demons.This is the story of an infamous Qorin warrior, Barsalayaa Shefali, a spoiled divine warrior empress, O-Shizuka, and a power that can reach through time and space to save a land from a truly insidious evil.

    It will be the deal of a lifetime, if Shaw can pull it off. But then Vornis parades his latest toy around in front of him—a captured DEA agent whose time is running out. It’s none of Shaw’s business, and it doesn’t matter that under any other circumstances Lee would be exactly Shaw’s type: he’s young, he’s hot, and he might even have a personality if they hadn’t beaten it out of him. Too bad there’s no way Lee is getting off the island. Too bad there’s nothing Shaw can do for him. And too bad there are some lines that even Shaw won’t cross. Keeping his hands off Lee proves harder than he thinks, but Shaw’s not stupid enough to fall for the tortured captive of a dangerous crime boss, is he? If he did, it wouldn’t be just his job he would be risking—it would be his life.

    Marian Pardoo, Reference Librarian for the Iowa City Public Library, would be happy if the woman she’s loved for years wasn’t already married. Annoyed by the thoughtless out-of-town Liddy, she isn’t prepared for the seething passion that erupts when Liddy careens into her meticulously controlled life.Liddy has run two thousand miles from a devastating love affair. Now the idea of spending the sweltering summer watching the corn grow is driving her mad. Finding herself lusting after Marian the Librarian seems like yet another cosmic jest at her hopeless love life. The only thing that keeps her sane is the coffee.In a town where everybody knows your name, the names of your exes, pets, and your third grade teacher, Marian is thankful that she and Liddy at least don’t have an ex-girlfriend in common.One degree of separation is too close for comfort.A hilarious, erotic and insightful story of a close-knit community in America's Heartland from master storyteller Karin Kallmaker.

    Secretly afraid that her ex-husband’s assertions that she’s too uptight are right, Emma nonetheless keeps her life, and her emotions, firmly under control, fearful of getting hurt again. However, when she meets the dangerously attractive Beckett Black on a job assignment, the way his casual touch sends her pulse racing forces her to acknowledge her growing need to move beyond her fear. When Beckett offers her a job writing the memoir of his father, a renowned cancer researcher, Emma jumps at the career opportunity and the chance to get to know Beckett better.Emma spends her days with the renowned doctor, who has spent his career studying a plant in the Amazon that has the potential to cure cancer, and her nights with Beckett, who slowly pushes past her fears and breaks down her barriers, introducing her to a passionate and forbidden love that surpasses her wildest fantasies. As the doctor’s story of secrets and cover-ups unravels, so does Emmaline’s view on everything she thought she knew about herself and the power of surrender.

    How could a common courtesan be the progeny of a goddess?Beneath the ballrooms of the Silver Rose palace sleeps an ancient labyrinth. Constructed by a vicious sorcerer, its twisted halls and shadowy guardians once challenged the world’s mightiest champions. When Shadyia is commanded by her madam to seduce a wealthy and mysterious scholar, she becomes ensnared in an ancient conflict between gods, villains, heroes and magicians. The scholar, Aaron of Featherquill, searches for an enchanted treasure, a key that will show the way to a forgotten city of wonders.As Demos Azari, the adviser to a vicious order of crusading knights, schemes to ensnare Shadyia into his devious plot, she must descend into the labyrinth and solve its deadly traps. Accompanied by Aaron and her mischievous lover, Deresi, Shadyia finds the strength to defy Demos and strives to prevent a brutal demigod of chaos from returning to consume the world.Beneath the Silver Rose begins Shadyia’s ascension into the heroine she was meant to become. 5 Stars!I could very easily waffle on for ages here, but I won't. I'll just tell you that I read this, was captivated within the first few pages, and thoroughly enjoyed it.

    Feisty, independent women in need of help. Seven troubled young men from varied backgrounds bonded together at a summer camp for juvenile delinquents – a bond that held them together into adulthood and grew stronger through their shared interest in the lifestyle. In this six-book collection, each confirmed bachelor will meet that one woman who will complete him, save her from the trouble plaguing her and, using all his experience and trips on their specially designed, co-owned yacht, help her succumb to her HEA with pleasure. Publisher’s Note: This compilation contains all six books of the Miami Masters series. These steamy contemporary romances include elements of power exchange.

    The younger roommate, Sherry has boyfriend troubles and cannot find a break when it comes to love. The older of the two roommates, Danielle is a traveling business management consultant and often finds herself at odds in her relationship with Jon. She doesn’t trust Jon when she is out of town and believes that he might be a bad boy at heart.After an eviction from his house, Jon needs somewhere to stay until he can get back on his feet. Against her better judgment, Danielle allows Jon to move in while she is away on a business trip.Sparks fly when Sherry runs to Jon for emotional support and advice. Will they resist their carnal pleasures for each other? Can Danielle trust Jon well enough to leave him alone with her longtime friend and roommate, Sherry? If Jon screws up, where will he go to live if his girlfriend kicks him out for his indiscretions? And, will someone get hurt in the end?Author's Note: Mature audiences only.

    Her greed made me a slave and circumstance left me with no way to escape.Trapped, the only way I could silence the nightmares driving me to insanity was to wrap them in color, hold them with shadow, and stitch them to negative space with line.But no matter how bright the pigments, no one could see my confession.Except for Roy Callahan.I thought he was just another nameless one-night stand in a long line of many. But I was wrong. Roy could see past the façade of my life and through the veil color over the canvas. He could see what the world couldn’t.And with him I’d find the courage to tell the truth about the boy.The boy who kissed me.The boy who loved me.The boy whose name I couldn’t remember.

    Sometimes, it's as ugly as our worst nightmares. This is one of those times.” Pepper has hit rock bottom. With barely enough money to pay for food, desperate times call for desperate measures. She's convinced that she has been through enough to weather any emotional storm. But she never could have prepared herself for meeting Dmitri Strife. This is book one of a dark romance series.

    After feigning his own death to escape from prison, Compton makes his way to the United States with the sole ambition of bringing his "art" to new heights. Tortured by his own perverse desires, and drawn to possess and destroy young boys, Compton inadvertently joins forces with Jay Byrne, a dissolute playboy who has pushed his "art" to limits even Compton hadn't previously imagined. Together, Compton and Byrne set their sights on an exquisite young Vietnamese-American runaway, Tran, whom they deem to be the perfect victim.Swiftly moving from the grimy streets of London's Piccadilly Circus to the decadence of the New Orleans French Quarter, and punctuated by rants from radio talk show host Lush Rimbaud, a.k.a. Luke Ransom, Tran's ex-lover, who is dying of AIDS and who intends to wreak ultimate havoc before leaving this world, Exquisite Corpse unfolds into a labyrinth of murder and love. Ultimately all four characters converge on a singular bloody night after which their lives will be irrevocably changed — or terminated.Poppy Z. Brite dissects the landscape of torture and invites us into the mind of a killer. Exquisite Corpse confirms Brite as a writer who defies categorization. It is a novel for those who dare trespass where the sacred and profane become one.