FATE IS A CRUEL MISTRESS

The daughter of a powerful but disgraced Blood Worker, Shan LeClaire has spent her entire life perfecting her blood magic, building her network of spies, and gathering every scrap of power she could. Now, to protect her brother, she assassinates their father and takes her place at the head of the family. And that is only the start of her revenge.

Samuel Hutchinson is a bastard with a terrible gift. When he stumbles upon the first victim of a magical serial killer, he's drawn into the world of magic and intrigue he's worked so hard to avoid - and is pulled deeply into the ravenous and bloodthirsty court of the vampire king.

Tasked by the Eternal King to discover the identity of the killer cutting a bloody swath through the city, Samuel, Shan and mysterious Royal Bloodworker Isaac find themselves growing ever closer to each other. But Shan's plans are treacherous, and as she lures Samuel into her complicated web of desire, treason and vengeance, he must decide if the good of their nation is worth the cost of his soul.

Fans of From Blood and Ash and Kingdom of the Wicked will devour this decadent, bloodthirsty debut.

Sheldon Soleskin should be having a horrible day. Even though he’s been unexpectedly transferred to a new school right before the holidays, has only one day to set up his new classroom, and just discovered his twin sister's been hiding an invitation to his ex-boyfriend’s Christmas Eve wedding, he’s still ready to take on the world with a smile on his face and a skip in his step.

Theo Berenson just wants to be left alone to his custodial duties. But when the chipper new first-grade teacher needs help moving furniture the Sunday after Thanksgiving, he's forced to do something he detests ... help. To make matters worse, Theo's overbearing parents are coming for Hanukah in a few weeks, and he's told them he has a boyfriend. Except he doesn't. Because who would want to date an oaf like Theo?

Working together, these opposites discover they might be able to help each other out. Agreeing to be each other’s dates, they become friends as they practice for their upcoming events. But when all the rehearsing starts feeling a little too real, and both men's pasts come roaring back to haunt them, will they be able to pull off the ultimate holiday masquerade?

A witch has a second chance to get her magical powers - and her life back on track in this feel-good, whimsical new cozy fantasy from the author of The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

Once, Sera Swan was one of the most powerful witches in Britain. Then she resurrected her great-aunt Jasmine from the (very recently) dead, lost most of her powers, befriended a semi-villainous talking fox, and was exiled from her Guild. Now she helps Jasmine run an enchanted inn in Lancashire, where she deals with their quirky guests' shenanigans and longs for a future that seems lost. Until she finds about an old spell that could restore her power . . .

Enter Luke Larsen, handsome magical historian, who might have the key to unlocking the spell's secrets. Luke has no interest in the inn's madcap goings-on, and is even less interested in letting a certain bewitching innkeeper past his walls. So no one is more surprised than he is when he agrees to help.

Running an inn, reclaiming lost power, and staying one step ahead of the watchful Guild is a lot for anyone, but Sera is about to discover she doesn't have to do alone - and that love might be the best magic of all.

He broke her heart once before. Can she risk him doing it again?

Five seconds of honesty: Wells Canyon is the last place Blair Hart wants to be.

But her mother's illness leaves her no choice except to return to the hometown-and the traumatic past-she's spent thirteen years hiding from. A run-in with the boy who tore her life to pieces is inevitable in a town like Wells Canyon, but that doesn't mean she's prepared for the way Denver Wells can turn back time with a single smile.

Thirteen years ago Denver's world crashed around him. Since then, he's done everything he can to outrun his demons, until a flash of brown hair knocks him from his saddle. But if he wants her back, he'll need to prove he can be the man Blair needs-the same one she used to love.

With a thousand sticky notes worth of responsibilities, Blair doesn't have the time to sift through their messy history and resolve things with the man who's determined to be in her life. And Denver's going to need more than cowboy charm and five seconds of honesty to convince Blair he's worth a change of heart.

A brand new heart-stopping series from a USA Today bestselling author No sooner has Alexis Stone been sworn in as the interim sheriff for Russell County, Tennessee, when a serial killer dubbed the Queen's Gambit Killer strikes again--this time in her hometown. Pearl Springs is just supposed to be a temporary stop along the way to Alex's real dream: becoming the first female police chief of Chattanooga. But the killer's calling card--a white pawn and a note with a chess move printed on it--cannot be ignored. Pearl Springs chief of police Nathan Landry can't believe that his high school sweetheart Alexis (he refuses to call her Alex) is back in town, and he can't help wanting to protect the woman he never stopped loving. But as the danger mounts and the killer closes in, can Nathan come through on the promises he makes to himself to bring a killer to justice before it's too late.

Being kidnapped by aliens is one thing. Being kidnapped by aliens and sent to a prison planet is something infinitely worse. Here in Haven’s prison system, I’m stranded among strangers, enemies, and the most ruthless criminals in the galaxy. There’s no safety for a human woman here, especially not one branded as a murderer. I’m doomed to a fate worse than death. Then -- he decides I should be his. His name’s Jutari. He’s seven feet tall, blue, and horned. He’s an assassin and one of the most dangerous prisoners here. He’s like no one I’ve ever met before…and he might be my only chance. This story stands completely alone and is only marginally connected to the Ice Planet Barbarians series. You do not need to read those books in order to follow this one.

A drizzly, moody, and lustrously carnal rendition of a storybook tale, Savage Blooms is the holy grail for lovers of dark academia and faery magic alike. By the time I got to the epilogue, I was ready to bite into the pages like they were made of faery fruit, just so I'd never have to leave' Sierra Simone, author of Priest.

Wuthering Heights meets Sierra Simone in the new Celtic-inspired erotic fantasy romance from Sunday Times bestseller S.T. Gibson, author of the cult phenomenon A Dowry of Blood.

For as long as Adam can remember, the legends passed down from his world-traveling grandfather have called him to a crumbling manor in the Highlands. His closest friend Nicola longs for the same adventure, as well as for Adam himself. She'll follow him just about anywhere -even to the remote wilds of Scotland-if it pushes the pair to surrender to their shared attraction.

But when a storm strikes and strands them unexpectedly, Adam and Nicola find themselves at the mercy of the eccentric owner of the infamous house, Eileen, as well as her brooding groundskeeper, Finley.

Trapped by the weather, and bound by ancient faery magic, Nicola and Adam get more than they bargained for as they become entangled in Eileen and Finley's world of mind games, deceit and forbidden desire. As ancestral sins are unearthed, Adam and Nicola will have to reckon with the spell Eileen and Finley have cast over them - and whether or not they even want to be free.

Praise for S.T. Gibson's A Dowry of Blood:

'With Savage Blooms, Gibson cements herself as one of the strongest and most unique voices in gothic romance. This dangerous and decadent subversion of a found family is fresh, unabashedly queer, and gripping from the very first rain-soaked page. Gibson is a ferociously talented writer at the top of her game' Sydney Shields, author of The Honey Witch

A man broken in body and spirit, Cazaril returns to the noble household he once served as page and is named secretary-tutor to the beautiful, strong-willed sister of the impetuous boy who is next in line to rule. It is an assignment Cazaril dreads, for it must ultimately lead him to the place he most fears: the royal court of Cardegoss, where the powerful enemies who once placed him in chains now occupy lofty positions.But it is more than the traitorous intrigues of villains that threaten Cazaril and the Royesse Iselle here, for a sinister curse hangs like a sword over the entire blighted House of Chalion. And only by employing the darkest, most forbidden of magics can Cazaril hope to protect his royal charge -- an act that will mark him as a tool of the miraculous . . . and trap him in a lethal maze of demonic paradox.

"If this is madness," she whispered almost against his lips, "drown me in it."

Corvina Clemm is a woman with secrets. The last thing she expects to receive is an admission letter from the University of Verenmore, a place just as secretive.

A castle atop a mountain, Verenmore is steeped in shadows, deceit and death, a place where students have been disappearing every five years for over a century. As Corvina becomes caught up in unravelling the clues to solve the mystery, her path collides with Vad Deverell, her enigmatic professor.

Vad, too, is a man with secrets. And he cannot allow Corvina to get close enough to discover what he hides. But whenever she is near, his heart and soul yearn to possess her.

As Corvina and Vad become more and more entangled, their passion for each other could be the very thing to solve the mystery of Verenmore - or it could bring them both down in flames.

When the clone pods were abandoned on the ice planet, two of them opened before the others. Corvak, a gladiator and a splice, ran into the snows. He carried Aidy, a confused human woman. They're on the run, determined not to get caught.

Aidy has no idea what's going on or why she's been dumped in the icy mountains. Corvak, however, is convinced this is all one big gladiator game, and one he's determined to win. To do that, they'll have to avoid all the others and survive by any means possible.

Why do they need this parasite anyhow...and why do their chests keep humming?