Book picks similar to
Code Onyx by Val St. Crowe


paranormal-urban-fantasy
dragons
free-reads
magical-realism

Jackie Cupid's First Love and It's Written In The Stars


Mary Leo - 2017
    . . Jackie Cupid! Jackie Cupid’s First Love: When Eros, the god of Love, appears to Jackie Cupid and transforms her into a real life Cupid with magical love powers and an outstanding bombshell body, Jackie is keen to take on the challenge. “Look out, baby, there’s a new Cupid in town!” There’s just one catch. Jackie’s first couple is a test. The potential soul mates are estranged best friends who must fall madly in love with each other by Christmas morning or Jackie will lose all her powers, along with her outstanding bombshell body. Samantha Bowers, the local preacher’s daughter, and Luke Rutherford, an out of town businessman, haven’t spoken in over a year. Getting these two together is a series of star struck misadventures. Jackie has to learn how deep to prick someone with her tiny magical stars (arrows are way too gauche) so they can become delirious with desire . . . just not too delirious. More importantly, Jackie must learn when to poke them or that person might fall for anyone but their intended lover. The clock is ticking. Christmas is fast approaching. Will Jackie Cupid turn these two misbegotten lovers around in time to keep her powers? Or will her magic become a stardust memory? It’s Written In The Stars: Billionaire, Antonio Milani has come to London for the annual book fair and to retrieve his first edition, signed copy of Oliver Twist, from a woman who not only played him in his bed, but pretended to be a talented new author his publishing house was courting. Margot James has spent the better part of her adult life raising two children in a small town and writing stories in her personal journals. Now that her kids are grown, Margot takes a leap of faith and travels to London to visit her best friend, Jackie Cupid. When her friend takes a hike and leaves her with Antonio Milani, the delicious looking billionaire, Margot wants nothing more than to fly back home. But Jackie has used her magical stars on these two and the attraction, heat, and a pending book contract get in the way of Margot’s departure. Will Cupid’s magic be enough to keep these two lovers together, despite the odds, or will best-friend guilt get in the way of their destiny?

Another One


Tony Faggioli - 2017
    After two tours in the Afghanistan War, he thought the horrors that he witnessed there were behind him. But the death of his partner has now opened a dark hole of memories that are threatening to swallow Parker alive. Desperate to maintain his grip, he focuses on the last unsolved case his partner left behind: the brutal murder of Hymie Villarosa.  Father Bernardino Soltera is being destroyed by the present. After ministering to the gang ridden streets of East L.A. for over twenty years, he's unable to see past the pain and suffering that drugs and violence have wreaked on his neighborhood; he’s ready to give up. But when a young girl confesses that she's pregnant and her boyfriend will hurt her if she doesn't get an abortion? Father Soltera decides to make one more stand. Hector Villarosa is being mocked by the future. After being released from jail he discovers the love of his life is with another man. As the leader of his gang, losing face could mean losing his life, and the fact that detectives are now asking questions about the death of Hector's cousin, Hymie, isn't helping. But Hector's bigger problem is the demon that has followed him out of jail and on to the mean streets of East L.A. Three men, one neighborhood. All about to discover that the veil between this world and the next is razor thin. “Faggioli does an astonishing job bringing both criminals and cops to life as three-dimensional, sympathetic characters.” – Amazon 5 Star Review “This is a book that so profoundly illustrates the never ending battle of good and evil, I'm almost without the words to explain it.” – Amazon 5 Star Review

The Girl


Lola St. Vil - 2012
    They've been sent to elicit the secret from her before the demons can. Emmy later learns that her name is the only clue to locating a sought-after bridge that for centuries, Evil has plotted to destroy; this would in turn bring about the end of humanity. Things get worse when Emmy falls madly in love with Marcus, the well-intentioned but obstinate leader of the Guardians. He eventually confesses that he is in love with her as well. Unfortunately, Marcus has been warned by his clairvoyant and omniscient guide that should he and Emmy get together, the mission will fail and humanity will perish.

Blood Vows


Kathryn M. Hearst - 2017
    and we don't sparkle. Serena’s not your typical vamp. She drinks holy water for breakfast, and her boss runs the Vatican. However, life isn’t all rainbows and unicorns. Her relationship is in the crapper, and she’s asking herself the age-old question… “Should I stay or should I go?” Change is hard, especially for an immortal. For three centuries, two things have been constant – Nicholai and her job. Working as an assassin for one of the most influential forces in history has its perks, but business is slow. That all changes when Nicholai's human descendant is murdered, and he's the prime suspect. As the body count rises, Serena and Nicholai are forced to work together to find the real killer before it's too late. The problem is…the more they discover, the more they’re convinced the murderer is their commander. Worse still, proving him guilty could lead to a rebellion. On the bright side, there’s nothing like a war to put the spark back in a 300-year-old marriage. You'll adore this urban fantasy series, because everyone loves a tale of redemption and second chances. **Previously published as Feast of Reverence**

City of Masks


Ashley Capes - 2014
    Yet the sentient bone mask, powerful enough to Compel those around her, will not speak, and Sofia, the first female Protector in a hundred years, is left defenceless.Hunted by the king, she is driven from the palace and must fight for survival, alone in the cold streets of Anaskar. There, she crosses paths with Notch, a bitter mercenary with problems of his own. Accused of murder, Notch is trying to clear his name while hunted by the city's robed assassins, the very people who are now searching for Sofia.To take back their city and cast down the tyrant on the throne, Sofia and Notch must face the blades of Anaskar's assassins, the rage of a mighty sea beast, and the mysterious Lupo, a man with a Greatmask of his own, who has masterminded vicious terrorist attacks on the city that spurned him.Their struggle threatens to tear the city – and the kingdom - into shreds.

Her Bodyguard


Lexy Timms - 2018
     His security company is the hottest on the market, but that doesn’t mean his job is easy. Ethan Stark has three rules: Never get personally involved. Never get blindsided. And never screw around. Ever. His Special Forces background, coupled with his family’s resources, have made him successful, but they didn’t prepare him for the politician’s daughter with a body that could make grown men weep, and an attitude that puts his teeth on edge. He’s agreed to guard her as a personal favor to her father, but he’s beginning to wonder how long he can put up with her spoiled brat ways. That is, until she sets her seductive sights on him. Now he’s got to keep her safe from a mystery threat while keeping it in his pants. Sometimes he thinks facing off an entire army would be easier… Protecting Diana Series Her Bodyguard – Book 1 Her Defender – Book 2 Her Champion – Book 3 Book 4 – coming soon! Book 5 – coming soon!

Dragon Call


Emily Ryan-Davis - 2007
    Yoga. Meditation. Getting in touch with her inner Lune via witchy rituals she doesn’t even realize she’s enacting until she’s naked in the dark with an aggressive dragon...or two.Cora Phillips has spent her life denying the Lune tradition but with two dragons - and their masters - hounding her with mating claims, her denying days have come to an end. Like it or not, the dragons have come.And she doesn’t like it one bit.

Fury Frayed


Melissa Haag - 2018
    It’s the one place she should be able to fit in, but she can’t. Instead, she itches to punch the smug sheriff in his face, pull the hair from a pack of territorial blondes, and kiss the smile off the shy boy’s face. Unfortunately, she can’t do any of that, either, because humans are dying and all clues point to her.With Megan’s temper flaring, time to find the real killer and clear her name is running out. As much as she wants to return to her own life, she needs to embrace who and what she is. It’s the only way to find and punish the creature responsible.

Rising Tide: Dark Innocence


Claudette Melanson - 2014
    She seems to drive her classmates away—except for the odd times they pay enough attention to torture her—but she doesn’t understand why. Maura considers herself to be a freak of nature, with her unusually pale skin and an aversion to the sun that renders her violently nauseous. Her belief is only worsened by the fact that almost everyone around her keeps their distance.Even her own father deserted her before she was born, leaving Maura alone with her emotionally distant mother, Caelyn. Even though Maura is desperate for answers about her unknown parent, Caelyn remains heartbroken and her daughter can’t bring herself to reopen her mother’s wounds. Or is there a more sinister reason Caelyn refuses to utter a word about her long-lost love?When a cruel prank nearly claims Maura’s life, one of her classmates, Ron, rushes to her rescue. Darkly handsome & mysteriously accepting, Ron doesn’t seem to want to stay away, but Maura is reluctant to get too close, since her mother has announced she’s moving the two of them to Vancouver…nearly 3,000 miles away from their hometown of Indiana, Pennsylvania.If life wasn’t already challenging enough, Maura begins to experience bizarre, physical changes her mother seems hell bent on ignoring, compelling Maura to fear for her own life. Vicious nightmares, blood cravings, failing health and the heart-shattering loss of Ron—as well as the discovery of a tangled web of her own mother's lies—become obstacles in Maura's desperate quest for the unfathomable truth she was never prepared to uncover.

Death Cursed


Sara C. Roethle - 2015
    A touch from her, even accidental, can kill, and she’s haunted by the victims she never meant to hurt. Alone, isolated, and remorseful, she thinks life can’t get any worse--until she’s kidnapped in the middle of the night and thrown into a secret world more twisted than her darkest nightmares.The Vaettir claim to be the children of the gods, created by the fates themselves, and tell her she’s one of them--and that they can help her control her abilities. But not everything is as it seems, not all gods are good, and the dark powers surrounding Madeline are no exception. She finds herself in the middle of an ancient search for a dangerous and all-powerful charm, one that has the power to kill all humans and bestow its bearer dominion over all. Amid the secrets and danger is Alaric, a deadly cat shifter, who’s as mysterious as he is alluring.When the Vaettir’s plans come to light and Madeline is betrayed, she embarks on a quest to find the charm herself, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Her dark gifts may just be the key to everything, but will she be able to accept them in time, or will the Vaettir destroy mankind, and inherit the earth?Find out in Death Cursed, the first book in a series sure to please fans of Bella Forrest’s Shade of Vampire and Ilona Andrew’s Kate Daniels series.Discover the underworld of the Vaettir, gods and monsters, secrets and lies, and a temptation equal parts irresistible and deadly...

Tainted Energy


Lynn Vroman - 2014
    Dealing with a drunken father who can't keep his fists to himself doesn’t help matters either. The only good thing in her life, other than track, is the mysterious man who visits her dreams, promising to find her.When a chair burns her arms, Lena chalks it up to stress-induced crazy. Yet as bizarre incidents escalate, even being crazy can’t explain it all away… until one day dream guy does find her.Tarek lost Lena seventeen years ago after she was accused of treason and marked Tainted. He finally discovers her reborn on Earth into a life of suffering as punishment for her crime. However, someone else has already found her… and wants her dead. Willing to sacrifice everything, he fights to keep her safe so she can live the only life she’s ever known—even if that life doesn’t include him.

Balanced on the Blade's Edge


Lindsay Buroker - 2014
    Until he punches the wrong diplomat in the nose and finds himself issued new orders: take command of a remote prison mine in the inhospitable Ice Blades Mountains. Ridge has never been in charge of anything larger than a flier squadron — what’s he supposed to do with a frozen fortress full of murderers and rapists? Not to mention the strange woman who shows up right before he arrives...Sardelle Terushan wakes from three hundred years in a mage stasis shelter, only to realize that she is the last of the Referatu, the sorcerers who once helped protect Iskandia from conquerors. Their subterranean mountain community was blown up in a treacherous sneak attack by soldiers who feared their power. Everyone Sardelle ever knew is dead, and the sentient soulblade she has been bonded to since her youth is buried in the core of the mountain. Further, what remains of her home has been infested by bloodthirsty miners commanded by the descendants of the very soldiers who destroyed her people.Sardelle needs help to reach her soulblade — her only link to her past and her last friend in the world. Her only hope is to pretend she’s one of the prisoners while trying to gain the commander’s trust. But lying isn't her specialty, especially when the world has changed so much in the intervening centuries, and if Colonel Zirkander figures out who she truly is, he’ll be duty-bound to sentence her to the only acceptable punishment for sorcerers: death.

Steel Lily


Megan Curd - 2013
    No, more than a commodity. Her existence is guarded at all costs.She’s a water Elementalist, the strongest of her dwindling kind. She creates steam to provide energy to fuel Dome Four: the only thing standing between humanity and an earth ravaged by World War III. No steam, no Dome. No Dome, no life.Or so she thinks.That is, until a mysterious man offers her a way out of having to donate steam. A way to escape the corrupt government of Dome Four. While the offer seems too good to be true, Avery is intrigued. But when she arrives to her new home, she realizes the grass isn’t any less dead on this side of the fence. Instead, the lies are just hidden better.…Which means digging deeper.When Avery enlists the help of her friends to uncover the truth, she learns that while some secrets are better left concealed, humankind was never meant to live in a cage. And when you can control the most sought after resource, you can learn to control anything…including the fate of your world.

Birthright


B.J. Keeton - 2013
    As a technomage of the Charonic Archive, Damien had the power to create entire universes. Then, five hundred years ago, he gave it all up. He suspended the nanites that made up his bloodstream and began to age—and eventually die—like anyone else. For centuries, Damien has lived among those who once worshipped him, his real identity fading into myth and legend. Hundreds of years later, when Ceril Bain finds Damien’s old sword buried in his grandfather's garden, he is put on the fast-track to follow in Vennar's footsteps. Over the next six years, Ceril trains as a technomage aboard the Inkwell Sigil, a ship with the ability to travel between dimensions. Just as Ceril is preparing to undergo his Rites and finish his training, the Inkwell Sigil loses power. Stranded in space with no way back home, Ceril and four of his classmates are given their final assignment: go into uncharted territory, find a way back home, and bring back the one person who can fix the ship—Damien Vennar himself.While away, Ceril and his team find themselves in a predicament when they confuse an attempt at first contact with an attack and kill two of the world’s winged inhabitants. They are shortly captured and imprisoned, and the only thing keeping them alive is their angel-like captors’ belief they may be the subjects of an ancient prophecy about a group of magic-wielding messiahs. But that’s impossible. Isn’t it?

Fire Burn and Cauldron Bubble


H.P. Mallory - 2010
    If you like your books steamy (this is a paranormal romance series for adults, not for kids or teens!) and you appreciate a good witch, warlock and vampire romance triangle, read on!A self-deprecating witch with the unique ability to reanimate the dead.A dangerously handsome warlock torn between being her boss and her would-be lover.A six hundred year old English vampire with his own agenda; one that includes an appetite for witches.The Underworld in a state of chaos.Let the games begin.Life isn’t bad for psychic Jolie Wilkins. True, she doesn’t have a love life to speak of, but she has a cute house in the suburbs of Los Angeles, a cat and a quirky best friend.Enter Rand Balfour, a sinfully attractive warlock who insists she’s a witch and who just might turn her life upside down. Rand hires her to help him solve a mystery regarding the death of his client who also happens to be a ghost. Jolie not only uncovers the cause of the ghost’s demise but, in the process, she brings him back to life!Word of Jolie’s incredible ability to bring back the dead spreads like wildfire, putting her at the top of the Underworld’s most wanted list. Consequently, she finds herself at the center of a custody battle between a villainous witch, a dangerous but oh-so-sexy vampire, and her warlock boss, Rand.