As always, I recommend sampling before you buy! I have not read most of the new releases listed (although I always end up one-clicking a bunch as I prepare these posts LOL).
***************************************************
SENTINEL (GALACTIC GLADIATORS HOUSE OF RONE BOOK 1) by Anna Hackett
VS note: Very exciting that Anna is expanding her Galactic Gladiators universe (and writing cyborgs)! I one clicked this!
When Quinn Bennett’s exploration ship is attacked, the security chief finds herself abducted by alien slavers. Unable to save her crew, she is taken across the galaxy and sold to a desert scavenger on the lawless planet of Carthago. Driven by her guilt and failure, she’ll do anything to escape and save the other abductees from her ship. Chained and forced into servitude, she’s waiting for her chance to strike, when across a dusty trading post, she comes face to face with a big, cyborg gladiator.
Jaxer Rone’s loyalty is to his imperator—the man who saved him from a lethal cyborg military program. Jax works tirelessly for his gladiatorial house and would die for his fellow cyborgs. His emotional dampeners have never functioned well, but while he feels some emotion, he never lets it get in the way of his duty. Right now, his mission is to find the stolen humans from Earth. But when he rescues the fierce, relentless Quinn, he starts feeling a rush of emotion he’s never experienced before.
Quinn and Jax join forces to track down the aliens holding the other Earth women captive. Side by side, they venture into the desert and uncover a desire hotter than the desert suns. But the aliens who captured Quinn want her back. In order to protect Quinn, will Jax embrace his newfound feelings or shut them off to keep her safe?
UNMOORED (CHRONICLES OF THE COMMON BOOK 3) by Elise Night
Luhcean had never dreamed of finding a mate of his own, especially not one as unique as Eva. Now that he has found her, Luhc wants nothing more than to complete their bond and to keep her out of harm’s way. However, Luhc’s plans didn’t take into account Eva’s proclivity to find trouble around every corner. With his mate lost on an unfamiliar planet, Luhc’s only hope to bring her home lies with the last three people he would have ever trusted for this mission.
Eva has had her fill of near-death experiences, insane enemies, and stuffy spaceships. All she wants is a few hours of shore leave on a tropical alien planet with a fruity drink in her hand. But when Synergis lands in the middle of her paradise, she is once again on the run. Eva will need to embrace all of her newfound magical abilities to escape the perils hidden beneath Varuna’s surface.
Fighting to survive the dangerous depths of Varuna, Eva and Luhcean find themselves caught up a secret war with Synergis, and they are forced to choose between saving the Common or saving themselves.
COMMITTED TO THE ALIEN (REBELS OF SIDYTH BOOK 7) by Sabrina Kade
There’s no way she can have him …… but she can’t leave him alone.
Celeste’s always been interested in the sexy, sensitive Glykoran but it’s complicated. This alien has a wife back home. And a kid. She’s accepted her role as his friend, so when Glykoran becomes a widower, she refuses to leave his side. Love may be the last thing he’s looking for, but she’s in too deep to let him suffer.
Glykoran knows he made the right decision to leave his family behind when offered exile. But when news arrives that he’s lost his mate and daughter, he doesn’t know if he’ll recover. Or if he even wants to. Celeste won’t give up on him, but is Glykoran capable of feeling anything now that he’s lost everything?
IQ’HER (CONQUERED WORLD BOOK 10) by Elin Wyn
The focus of K’ver soldiers is legendary.
But the bright eyes of one human female threaten to distract Iq’her from his mission. A rising tide of anti-alien sentiment threatens to destroy the fragile steps towards peace.
Iq’her’s assignment is to infiltrate one of the breakaway groups and try to keep them from doing too much damage. But Stasia’s sharp will and lush curves make his blood boil. And when she’s in danger? All bets are off.
Stasia knows she isn’t anyone important. Nobody special. Just one of the thousands of survivors trying to build a new life. She’s got enough to worry about, trying to keep her hot-headed brother out of trouble. But one alien warrior in particular makes her heart race every time he’s near. His touch sets them both aflame, but can they survive the fire?
OMEGA OF SATHION: A SCIFI OMEGAVERSE ROMANCE by Ana B Starr
Sathion. A new home, where humanity can start over. The planet was gifted to us by a benevolent race of aliens. They intend for us to colonize. I am one of the rare humans who has been chosen to go there.
But en route our transport ship was attacked by pirates, and my friend and I have been kidnapped. These new aliens tell us we are ‘Omegas’. They tell us we are meant to pair and breed with ‘Alphas’ of any race, be they human or alien.
I don’t know what it means to be Omega. But what I do know is that I was just given a second chance at life, an opportunity to live it on my own terms. No matter what my captors say, I will find a way to get to Sathion. No one is taking this away from me.
BOUND BY HER ALIEN (BALROV MATES BOOK 1) by Tempest Luna
Sent through a wormhole on a routine harvesting mission, Tessa finds herself bound, caged, and auctioned off to the highest bidder.
Ro isn’t free. No Balrovian is. Not with the Sypians in control. So when one of the invaders tells him to buy Tessa—or else—he isn’t sure what to make of the soft, beautiful human.
Something about her calls to him. Reminds him what life was like before Sypian rule. Before the endless nightmare of enslavement and fear.
STEEL COYOTE by Beth Williamson
The universe is a tough place to make it as a female cargo ship captain, and Remington Hawthorne fights every day to scrape by. A sketchy deal goes south, and although she doesn’t want anyone else to touch her ship, she’s forced to accept help from the stranger who calls himself Max Fletcher. He’s hot. And he’s trouble. Big trouble. But she’s out of time, out of money, and every crooked cartel is on her tail.
Max Fletcher has spent his life running from his past. So he has no idea what makes him offer to bail out tall, gorgeous, sassy Remy when she needs a pilot to get her illegal cargo to its destination—the last place in the universe he ever wanted to land again. One thing’s for sure, it’s gonna be a helluva ride.
VENOMOUS LUST (EOK WARRIORS BOOK 4) by Mary Auclair
Commander Khal has been tasked with the mission of a lifetime by Prime Councilor Aav, the most powerful Matriarch in the Ring. He must locate and retrieve a weapon so powerful it could plunge trillions of people into civil war, chaos and violence. This is a dangerous mission – the mission he needs to prove himself once and for all as a worthy Eok warrior, just like his brothers before him. He is the Ring’s only hope for peace, and he won’t fail – no matter the cost.
Hazel wants go to Earth to be reunited with her twin sister and she will stop at nothing to achieve that. When she hides under Commander Khal’s spaceship past curfew, she has no idea of the trouble she’s going to cause. Soon enough, she finds herself hurtling into space, far away from home and at the mercy of a stern and dominant Eok warrior who doesn’t want her there.
She is a hindrance to Khal’s mission, but he can’t seem to keep his hands off her anyway. As an intricate web of deception and betrayal threatens to thwart his plan, Commander Khal will have to choose between his lust for Hazel and his duty.
Can he rein in the urges of the Mating Venom, or will he – and the entire Ring – be lost to the Madness?
TEMPTATION by Penelope Woods
He was once a man. Now, he is a caged beast. This world has shattered him, but I will be the one to make him whole again.
I live a sheltered existence. When my mother died, my father took us into the heart of the forest. He gave me one simple rule: never cross to the other side.
I’m pulled to him like a magnet to metal. He stares into my eyes. My body locks with fear, and I collapse into his arms. In one moment, he makes me his. My guarded life is over.
He and I are connected by a secret. A pulse between two broken hearts. Every sin leaves a mark, but his are forever.
SOUL OF STARS by Ashley Poston
Once Ana was an orphaned space outlaw. Then she was the Empress of the Iron Kingdom. Now, thought dead by most of the galaxy after she escaped from the dark AI program called the HIVE, Ana is desperate for a way to save Di from the HIVE’s evil clutches and take back her kingdom.
Ana’s only option is to find Starbright, the one person who hacked into the HIVE and lived to tell the tale. But when Ana’s desperation costs the crew of the Dossier a terrible price, Ana and her friends are sent spiraling through the most perilous reaches of the Iron Kingdom to stop the true arbiter of evil in her world: an ancient world-ending deity called the Great Dark.
Their journey will take their sharp-witted pilot, Jax, to the home he never wanted to return to and the dangerous fate he left behind. And when Robb finds out who Jax really is, he must contend with his own feelings for the boy he barely knows, and question whether he truly belongs with this group of outcasts.
When facing the worst odds, can Ana and her crew of misfits find a way to stop the Great Dark once and for all?
INTO HER ORBIT by Miranda Vold
Nobody’s ever had sex in space before.
But that’s about to change.
Maya Tarkanian, one of the new astronauts being sent to help construct the state-of-the-art Atlas Space Station, is approached by a NASA doctor who wants her to collect data while she’s in orbit. Not just any data, though: biological data. Private data. Intimate data.
They want to study zero-gravity sex.
It’s absurd, presumptuous, and totally out of line.
But then Maya meets her new crew—which just so happens to be full of intelligent, competitive, gorgeous men. Men in peak physical condition, wearing skin-tight jumpsuits. Men she’ll be tightly confined with for months…(more blurb on ebook seller page…)
MORTOK (MORELIN PRINCES BOOK 1) by C R Corbin
Prince Mortok is in need of a mate and he curses his misfortune as soon as he finds out that the human girl that he has chosen is dead set on resisting his offers of luxury and status. Yet, when he sets his eyes on her he’s unable to resist her curvaceous body and fiery attitude and makes it his goal to claim her as his mate for life.
Will she be able to resist? And as his time with her draws on, will she want to?
Julie despises Prince Mortok and everything that he stands for no matter how powerful, big, and sexy he may be. Her goal is to resist him until he tires of her and lets her go back to her old life. As time passes, however, she soon becomes acquainted the prince’s more tender side and finds her resistance faltering.
The burgeoning passion between prince and human is soon challenged, however, when a plot to usurp Prince Mortok’s rule is revealed and forces the couple to take action in order to not only preserve their bond, but their way of life itself.
TAMED: A DARK SCIFI ROMANCE (CENTAURI CAPTIVES BOOK 3) by Kallista Dane and Kate Richards
Joran – I command an elite team of warriors. Lead them into combat, conquer my enemies. How can one human female be so hard to tame?
Once our world was the pride of the galaxy. Now Arythios is gone. Destroyed by evil forces while we were away. Our leaders, our friends, our lovers – all dead. We alone survived. But without offspring, our race will not.
Homeless, hopeless, we begged the Interstellar Federation to help us track down and vanquish our enemies. They ignored our request. Instead, they sent us a handful of females from a primitive planet called Earth. “To see to the needs of your troops,” their ruler said.
I was ordered to choose one of the aliens. Breed with her. My human is stubborn and undisciplined, not like our sweet, gentle Arythian females. Her fiery spirit tempts me to indulge my darkest desires. But if she is to be my mate, she must learn to obey me. She will submit – or she will be punished.
She will be tamed.
Xia – I may be the captive of an alien warlord. But I call no man Master.
And I never will.
A feral child, abandoned in the wild, I survived by being stronger, tougher than the most ferocious beasts. After my rescue, I trained as a warrior. Fighting side by side with the men, yielding to none. Now I’m trapped on an alien warship. The arrogant commander thinks he owns me. He’s determined to turn me into his submissive mate. I’m determined to escape.
I can never let him know I find his dominance wickedly arousing. Stern punishment won’t bring me to my knees – but I’m becoming a slave to the passion he’s awakening in me.
MINI MAX (TEAM EIGHT ORIGINS BOOK 5) by Viola Grace
VS Note: I don’t believe these Team Eight books contain romance. It’s a super hero series, scifi, but not even romantic elements from what the reviews of the other books indicate.
Max was raised with a purpose, but her accelerated development had nothing to do with it. She was born to be a Demyani, a Girl Bringer. In a community full of men who could only generate boys, she produced a hormone via her passive presence that tipped the scales and made girl babies enter the families.
Her extreme height and immense strength were secondary characteristics to her place in her adoptive family. She brought the girls.
Life was routine, but she had a plan for her retirement when her family no longer needed her services. That plan was set on its edge when she meets an investigator from the Cluster Team Project. She is a candidate for Team Eight, but she has to strike a balance between being there for her family and going off-world to be there for everyone else.
PORT HOLE (TEAM EIGHT ORIGINS: BOOK 6) by Viola Grace
VS Note: I don’t believe these Team Eight books contain romance. It’s a super hero series, scifi, but not even romantic elements from what the reviews of the other books indicate.
Duulahar grew up knowing that her adoptive mother had killed her birth mother, or at least, that is what was on the video that her father kept showing her. It was not the most pleasant of upbringings.
Her father decides to break a lifetime of habits and send her shopping in his treasured sports car, and she knows that her dementia-laden mother is the target with her as the scapegoat. Her father is not particularly subtle.
Kidnapping her mom is a reflex, but Duulahar knows that putting distance between her father’s hypnotic talent and those in his way is all that she can do to keep them alive. Her talent for small holes in space will not help her here.
Her stubbornness versus her father’s evil. Who will win?
AURELIAN PRISONER (CAPTIVE MATES BOOK 1) by Corin Cain
Allie: I took from the species. Now they want… me. My greatest fear is captivity on their ships. I’ve been hiding for years, and times running out.
Aurelian enforcement agents.
They look like Greek Gods in the flesh. Greek Gods had more mercy. Break their laws, and the seven-foot-tall alien warriors chase you down. The only thing they hunt more passionately than criminals is their Fated Mate, the one woman who can bear their sons.
My sister was taken from me by space pirates. My freedom is all I have. I won’t let them take it. No matter how they try to break me, I’ll keep fighting to break free.
Aurelians may be honorable on the surface. The arrogant species has strict laws and rules to how they can treat their prisoners. But I’ve seen another side of the alien species…Possessive. Dominant. Controlling.
And if I can make them succumb to the mating rage, they’ll have no choice but to let me free.
THE LAST ASTRONAUT by David Wellington
VS Note: Hard scifi not a romance but sounds intriguing. On my TBR list.
SELAS’S SALVATION: THE QASAR LINEAGE BOOK 8 by Pearl Tate
Selas – Sent to the surface of the prison planet Dactyles, I’m appointed to clean up the mess created by the Warden Benard. In addition to restructuring the management and ferreting out any of the previous warden’s supporters, I have to supervise the matings of a few lucky males.
Branching out beyond the dome, I work to notify all the prisoners that Benard’s no longer in power on the planet. Not everyone believes me though, and I’m captured and held as a prisoner.
When mating marks develop on my body, I’m shocked and confused. There are no more females, right? And does it really matter when I’m about to be executed by the previous warden’s crazy followers?
Karen – Struggling to live up to the professional aspirations of my family while attending college, I find myself less and less interested in becoming a doctor or lawyer as they expect. I’m much more interested in continuing on with the active lifestyle and Aikido training that makes me so focused and relaxed.
When I’m abducted by aliens at a study group with friends, I’m told if I give up my family and life on Earth, I can have the life I want. But it also comes with a little catch that definitely sounds… interesting. Is there really someone out there that’s perfect for me?
THIEF: A REGHA HORDE WORLD STORY (HORDE#0) by Milana Jacks
VS Note: Previously published on author’s website as a 3 part serial
Eron – Regha Horde never lingers in one place. They come, they raid, and they leave. I’m counting on that. Because I stole the Omega the Horde raided the house for, and I’m keeping her.
Kate – Abducted, auctioned, then stolen, I will resist for as long as I damn well please.
AGE OF DRAGONS (DRAGON DOJO BROTHERHOOD BOOK 4) by Olivia Ash
All my life, I was trained to be the perfect killer.
An assassin. A ghost in the night. The sort of phantom that gives grown men nightmares.
But the woman who raised me to hunt dragon shifters made a mistake, and that blunder left me marked. Magical.
Determined to undo all of this, Zurie is now at war.
With me.
My former mentor won’t stop until I’m dead, but we know each other too well.
Moves. Tactics. Fears. Strengths. Weaknesses.
This will be a gruesome end for one of us—and I don’t care if she is the best assassin in the world.
No one tries to kill me and survives.
Because I’m not the same little girl she took in all those years ago. The one she trained to murder and steal from dragons.
I’m a warrior, something neither human nor dragon. There’s more power brewing within me than even I realize, and it’s about to break free.
And when it does, the world will tremble at my feet.
JADE WAR (THE GREEN BONE SAGA BOOK 2) by Fonda Lee
A BEGGAR’S KINGDOM (END OF FOREVER SAGA BOOK 2) by Paulina SimonsJulian has failed Josephine once. Despite grave danger and impossible odds, he is determined to do the unimaginable and try again to save the woman he loves.
What follows is a love story like no other as the doomed lovers embark on an incredible adventure across time and space. Racing through history and against the merciless clock, they face countless dangers and deadly enemies.
Living amid beauty and ecstasy, bloodshed and betrayal, each time they court and cheat death brings Julian and Josephine closer to an unthinkable sacrifice and a confrontation with the harshest master of all…destiny.
CHOSEN SOUL (DEMON BAYOU SERIES BOOK 2) by S Lawrence
Charlie has fled from death her entire life, but it’s finally caught up to her. Now to survive, she must go to hell.
Dagen is a Prince of Hell who recently discovered his forgotten past. He has battled the Fallen, those angels determined to destroy humanity for thousands of years.
When Charlie runs into his bar to escape her fate, they both might find their destiny.
Turns out being killed might not be the worst thing that can happen to you!
STEEL (KALIMIA CHRONICLES BOOK 3) by Aiki Flinthart
Even steel can be broken.
Mamlakah is once again on the brink of war, this time over who sits on the throne. Alere, Jarran, and Mina race toward Madina to claim Jarran’s inheritance as Jun First. With a Weishi House kill-contract on her head, Alere unlocks new yanstone powers – which lead her further down a destructive path Mina cannot condone.
But Nasra Connor and Jun Fourth Hassan Wen-Gates reach Madina first, and they pave the city’s streets with blood to secure the throne. Xintou House’s students and Bonded Xintou are murdered. Mistress Li, the two Jun Seconds, and Jarran’s daughters are imprisoned and slated for execution.
Even if Alere can reach Madina in time to prevent the executions, her fighting skills are no use against Nasra and Rohne – the two most powerful Xintou in existence. Her only chance is if she and a reluctant Mina can master the yanstones. But Mina is unwilling to use the yanstones’ brutal powers against her old friends.
So Alere will gamble her mind, her life, and the sanity of everyone she loves on one, dubious, chance of victory. If she can’t prevail, Kalima will be subjugated beneath the steel will of the strongest xintou in history.
All hope of freedom… lost.
FIRST FANGS: A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY by Zara Zenia
Welcome to Diablo Falls, the town where anything can happen. Built on magic by an ancient coven, it draws all sorts to its quaint streets—shifters, vampires, fae, and more, including a baby witch who has no idea what she is or what she’s capable of…
Ebony Case’s only goal when she hits the road is to get away from her cheating boyfriend and to find solace in the tiny town of Diablo Falls, a place her grandmother once lived and she remembers visiting as a child. But car trouble and a freak snowstorm leave her stranded and exposed in the wilderness with no way to contact help.
Vampire and Diablo Falls resident tarot reader Malcolm Orloff knows when his cards give him a sign, he has to act. They send him into the woods during a freak weather event when the temperatures skyrocket, threatening to melt the snow and cause massive flooding and landslides. When he finds Ebony, he immediately realizes she is the source of the magically warm-up but she’s complete unaware of her powers or that she’s causing it.
Ebony is reluctant to believe his claim that she’s a witch, but after finally observing her powers and seeking help from one of the town’s resident witches, she is forced to not only accept her true birthright but also her growing attraction to the vampire who saved her life.
FIRST INSTINCT: A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY by Tamsin Ley
She’ll make him purr for more…Darcy Mae is certain she’s a witch. Her mother was, as her mother before, but her stutter botches every spell she tries. Convinced that an eloquence potion will solve her problem, she heads to Devil’s Crown to gather ingredients. But a rugged park ranger with golden eyes shows up and awakens something wild inside of her. A need so strong, it scares her. A desire she’s helpless to resist.
Adrian’s inner animal demands seclusion, a place away from humans and shifters alike. His job patrolling the mountain wilderness is all he needs to be happy—until he rescues a curvy human from a rogue shifter. Darcy smells of catnip and makes his mountain lion growl for a mate.
He’s going to claim her even if she’s a witch.
FIRST WITCH-BEAR BABY: A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY by Charlie Hart and Frankie Love
Three is bear-ter than one.
It takes me nineteen years to figure out my life was a lie.
My dad? Liar. My mother? Who the hell knows.
And my future?
Well, apparently these bear shifters in Diablo Falls think they know exactly where I belong.
They say I’m their mate, that I smell like apple-pie a la mode.
That I’m the only thing they ever want to taste.
Turns out, after being sheltered so damn long, I want a bite of what these untamed alphas offer.
A mysterious address may have brought me here, but my destiny has been calling all along.
I belong in Diablo falls … but I have to die if I want to stay.
FIRST SHIFT (A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY) by Rebel Raven
Celine Crane can’t remember how she ended up in Callum Cree’s arms but she’s not exactly complaining.
Attacked and left for dead in the woods, somehow, she survived—and in fact, she feels better than ever. Her savior explains her life is about to change and she somehow senses he’s the only one to help her with that change. Something makes her trust the mysterious and mesmerizing mechanic and she finds she doesn’t want to be anywhere else but by his side.
Finding a beautiful woman wounded and confused in the woods is not how Callum expects to find his mate. But, after he finds Celine bitten by a rogue shifter—and in the throes of her first shift—he knows he has found exactly that.
Nothing is as it seems in Diablo Falls and now that she’s part of the shadowy creatures her mother warned her about, she’s not so sure who the bad guy is anymore.
FIRST SIGHT (A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY) by Stephanie West
Gwen had no clue who she was tempting with her smart mouth and scathing glances. Tyr wanted to put the fiery human in her place. She was hard to ignore, even before he discovered the secret in her blood, a secret that could alter the balance of power among vampires. Something had to be done to silence the maddening human.
Tyr was that pompous, overdressed man who frequented the bar. He had the sex appeal of a modern-day Norse god, but the personality of a Viking raider. It didn’t matter that Tyr radiated an unworldly power, Gwen refused to fear him. After all, he wasn’t the only one who was unique. And though he claimed good intention, his actions said otherwise.
FIRST FAE-BEAR BABY: A DIABLO FALLS PARANORMAL SHORT STORY by Charlie Hart and Frankie Love
My mother warned me to never go to Diablo Falls.
But I never was a rule follower.
When I see a crazy-pants ad on a DF Forum from a supposed bear pack, looking for a woman to breed, I’m curious.
And more than a little aroused.
It’s not long before I find myself on the doorstep of a cabin with three burly men ready to claim me.
It’s all fun and games until they shift.
Then sh*t gets real.
Turns out my mother warned me for a reason.
I’m more than a rule-breaker – I’m a freaking Fairy Queen.
HARLEY MERLIN 10: FINCH MERLIN AND THE FOUNT OF YOUTH by Bella Forrest
It’s been a year since Katherine tried to take over the world, and Finch Merlin is itching to do something other than odd jobs for Erebus, God of Darkness. Erebus promises he’ll free Finch of his servitude after he completes one final task—finding the Fountain of Youth.
Finch has no idea why Erebus wants eternal youth, since the guy is already an immortal being. All the secrecy makes Finch uneasy, but he has no choice but to obey.
He knows he’ll get by with a little help from his friends, namely his old pal Garrett, who’s still dealing with the whole “being resurrected” thing. There’s also Ryann, Harley’s foster sister, now a regular at the San Diego Coven. Whenever she’s around, Finch feels butterflies in his stomach. Or maybe it’s just a bad case of indigestion.
Together, they’ll infiltrate the flashy world of the magical elite in search of a rare artifact, one that will help them capture a poltergeist—the angry ghost of famed adventurer Ponce de León.
HAVE LIZARD WILL TRAVEL (DOUBLE OH SHIFTERS BOOK 1) by Eve Langlais and Mina Carter
A lizard of many faces, he not only must save the world, but also convince a lady to pet his reptile. International agent Simon is on a mission. And it isn’t to avoid the shoe of the woman he’s sent to spy on. This undercover operative must find a dangerous recipe book before it’s too late. The fate of shifterkind depends on him. But if it comes down to saving the lovely Petunia or the world…his trouser-lizard wants a say.
VAMPIRE CAPTIVE (THE ALPHA BROTHERS BOOK 3) by G Bailey
I was a blessed vampire queen until the day I decided to kill my king.
Now I’m a captive of alpha wolves, rulers of the Luxa Pack, and it is no place for a vampire.
They decide to keep me as a slave on this strange land across the sea, and no part of me ever wants to go back to my home.
I ran from my world, from my people, and from everything I had ever known to a world much darker than I ever thought possible.
I crave their blood, they crave my immortality.
They also want my heart, and if they knew who I really was…they would want my throne.
CARDS OF LOVE: THE EMPRESS by Rochelle Paige
Being an unmatched warlock serving as the head of a coven wasn’t easy. The desire for a feminine touch to help preserve harmony among his witches made Warren Ainsley long for his fated consort more than usual.
Then she finally showed up in the local diner. Only Opal Smith had no idea magic existed and didn’t know what a consort was.
Can Warren convince Opal that the magic between them is real?
HUNGER (WITCHES OF THE BIG EASY BOOK 2) by TS McKinney
Gabriel Gaudet is still in New Orleans, and still the Legislateur in charge of the city, now that Nic has taken Thibeau back to New York with him. Though happy for his brother, he can’t help but be jealous of Nic’s happily ever after—not jealous to the point he didn’t want his older brother to find the love he so richly deserved, but the kind of jealous where he wanted love to find him too, but suspected it never would. When mysterious murders involving voodoo dolls begin happening all over the Big Easy, Gabe has to track down the culprit and destroy the dark magic associated with the murders. It should be simple enough—but when was anything ever simple when it came to magic? The bloody poppet at the last murder scene leads him straight to the shop of a known warlock, but instead of finding him, he encounters a gorgeous creature who reeks of dark magic but has the smile of an angel. Things turn from simple to deadly complicated faster than Gabriel can pronounce a spell to stop it.
Marchand’s life sucks. Not only can he not find the desire to escape the cruel fiancé he’s apparently tied himself to, but he feels anchored in a world where he has zero desire to be. All that changes, though, when a mysterious, handsome and sexy man enters his boyfriend’s shop, calls himself a Legislateur, like Marchand is supposed to know what that is, and even stranger than all that, calls Marchand a vampire! He tells him the little poppets he makes for the shop have been killing people all over town and then takes him captive until he can “figure out what to do with him.”
Two powerful men are thrust into a mystery full of dark magic, gorgeous vampires, warlocks, voodoo, demons, and fallen angels, and the two have to first determine if they’re even on the same side…and if their rapidly developing feelings for one another are all too real or if they’re something they just conjured up. An evil plot to take over New Orleans and terrible danger surround them on all sides in this city where the veil is thin between this world and the next, and most especially, after dark.
LOST WHISPERER OF THE SEAS (THE WINDBOURNE BOOK 3) by Laurel Wanrow
Tired of drifting from one port to the next on her family’s schooner, with no one but the dolphins to talk to, teen witch Coral is desperate to find a place where she fits in. Then she discovers the illegal world of magical dueling. She can let her wayward magic fly and finally make friends—if she can hide the competitions from her parents.
A young wizard of prodigious skill, Ty Sterling has lived his seventeen years land-bound, but he dreams of a life on the sea. Yet, in this tightly knit enclave of seafaring folk, no one will give a landlubber with no apparent skills a place on board their vessel, and Ty can’t disclose his special training.
As Coral climbs the dueling ranks, the stakes with the town bully go even higher. Her place as a duelist and her work with her beloved dolphins are turning with the tide—until newcomer Ty becomes an ally. Will they find enough trust in each other, despite their secrets, to stay afloat?
CONFETTI, GARTERS AND THE DEMON BRIDEZILLA (THE DRAMATIC LIFE OF A DEMON PRINCESS BOOK 3) by Mina Carter
As Jynx’s big day gets nearer, everything is going to plan. Kinda. Almost. Okay, not at all. Sorting out the guest list is taking more diplomacy than a terse standoff with nuclear-capable nations. Half the guests will happily each the others and that’s just the hell contigent. Plus, no one actually knows the etiquette for seating God and the Devil in the same row.
The seating plan is the least of Jynx’s worries when the dress shop is hit and her custom made gown is stolen. Trying to track down another lands her in a car accident with a polar bear and almost struck off the Anti-christ’s Christmas card list.
What she doesn’t expect is every bride’s worst nightmare… her groom’s ex turning up at the wedding. In HER dress. Forget princess of hell, in a fight for her groom, true love and her pack, ALWAYS bet on a Demon Bridezilla.
WHEN WITCHES WAKE: BOOK 1 (THE BANCROFT COVEN SERIES) by Hilary Foxhill
She fell in love with a witch. And then she met her.
Emily Quinn led a lonely and mundane life. Until the dreams started. Naked bodies lit only by candlelight, dancing and chanting in a smoke-filled room. Then there was the woman in her bed. Whose kiss felt like nothing she had ever felt in her waking life. In her dreams, she loved this woman, and those dreams led Emily right to her.
Claire was an artist and the High Priestess of a coven of witches. If only there was some way to tell this beautiful stranger that they were meant to be together.
Getting involved with witches couldn’t have come at a worse time. There were a lot of them in the city, and they were being hunted and murdered one at a time.
Would Emily’s dreams save her life and the life of the woman she loved, or would they send her running blindly into danger?
RAFE: THE DRAGON KNIGHT (DRAGON’S BLOOD MC BOOK 10) by B A Stretke
Rafe Adair knows why he’s been forced down the mountain to live among Clan Keith and their Human mates, but that doesn’t mean he has to like it. After a confrontation with King Duncan’s mate and consort Lyle, it was decided that Rafe needed some sensitivity training. Humans have always been a sticking point for Rafe. He sees them as selfish and disloyal and he never wanted them in his company. That was fine in the sparsely populated Shetland Islands, but here in their new home of Laramie, Wyoming it wasn’t going to work. He needed to be able to function around humans and the many new human mates of the dragon circle. Rafe expected to do his time and maybe learn something, what he didn’t expect was to find his mate. His human mate. Scared and alone on the streets of Laramie, Rafe finds the young man and saves him from a group of wolf shifters, and Rafe knows he has to follow him and keep him safe. The young man has secrets and is in grave danger. Can Rafe open himself to this human enough to keep him safe?
Noah Owens is running for his life. Back home in Idaho, he and his cousin were attacked by a pack of jackals and left for dead in their burning house. Only Noah survived. There is a contract out on his life, and the jackals are after him to finish the job. All Noah knows is to run and with any luck stay one step ahead of his pursuers. On a darkened Laramie street he is being accosted by a group of wolf shifters when he runs into a wall of a man who scares the wolves away. He doesn’t know why, but this man makes him feel safe for the first time since the attack. Events move quickly and his enemies are hot on his trail. Can Noah trust this man Rafe Adair? Can he learn to trust a stranger and allow him to save his life? Dark forces surround them and only by Rafe’s side can Noah find the safety he craves.
GRAND MASTER (DEMONS BOOK 3) by Marina Simcoe
I’ve been told my love for adventure would get me in trouble one day. When I agree to be taken to a place unknown to entertain a group of men I’d never met, I wonder if that day has come.
It is supposed to be a fantasy brought to life. Until one man hijacks it, taking over my imagination, my body, and eventually my heart.
Except that he turns out to be not a man at all and his dark past might ruin everything between us before it even began.
Unknown to us, danger lurks in the shadows, leading me to discover firsthand that sex demons have their vulnerabilities. And even the Grand Master of the Eastern Council is not invincible.
LOVE ME DREAMY by Laura Burton
Sitting on a park bench, Amelia can’t remember how she got there. But when a young, Californian surfer wanders up, figuring it out doesn’t seem so important. The chance meeting leads to a date and then another. Sparks fly and although she never imagined falling in love with someone so much younger than her, he’s perfect.
That is… except for the strange men in black suits who keep showing up.Are they being followed?
Toby knows a secret, but if he tells Amelia, he risks losing her forever. With the guardians set on tearing him away from her, he whisks Amelia to another part of the world. They’re safe, but not for long. Their relationship is put to the ultimate test, when Toby and Amelia stand at the top of a waterfall. With only one chance to stay alive, he asks her to take a leap of faith. Amelia thinks they will surely die, but Toby insists it’s the only way to be together.
STRANDS OF LOVE (TAPESTRIES BOOK 7) by N J Walters
VS note: a re-release
Tied to the land in a way that only another Texan can understand, Samantha Calloway is facing mounting debts and a merciless drought as she struggles to save the farm that’s been in her family for generations. Unwilling to surrender to an unscrupulous neighbor who offers her a way out, Samantha is left hoping for a miracle when she’s stunned by the mysterious appearance of two hulking, otherworldly warriors on her land—men who stir an undeniable sensual desire in her.
Jace and Darian Hunter are deeply committed to the welfare of their expansive lands and all the people who rely on them, but privately they are also deeply saddened at the prospect of living out their lives without the blessing of a loving woman. They know well the stories of the magic tapestry that might bring them a bride, but they’re still shocked when the tapestry appears—and mysteriously transports them to the world of the beautiful and sensitive Samantha.
As the brothers try to explain the promise of the tapestry to a skeptical Samantha, the trio are suddenly transported back to Javara, where Samantha soon learns that the brothers are as deeply dedicated to the land as she is—and also dedicated to unleashing the power of their passion to bring her to sexual heights she’d never imagined. And as she’s confronted with a choice between returning to her home alone or forsaking it all for a chance at a loving life with Darian and Jace, they will stop at nothing to entice her with every glorious erotic pleasure and unquestioning devotion to win her heart and a lifetime of unending love.
PORTRAIT OF DEATH: UNFORGOTTEN by Isobel Wroth
Three years ago, I held her pink silk toe shoe in my hand, helplessly watching the cab drive away before I could give it back to her. The next morning when I stood in front of the portrait drying on my easel, I knew the beautiful ballerina would soon die. Her portrait is one of two hundred and twenty-seven. Each one of the subjects is the victim of murder, and I’ve painted them all. I’ve kept my morbid ability a secret for twenty years, terrified someday, someone would find out.
Someday has arrived, and the someone banging down my door today demanding answers is a gorgeous, irate homicide detective armed with a photo of one of my paintings right there on the front page of the most popular tabloid in the city. He peppers me with questions I can’t answer, and despite my worst fears being realized, all I can think about is painting this man, alive, and with far fewer clothes on.
Detective Callum Graham tells me the dead ballerina I painted is his sister, and she’s been missing for three years. Missing, he says firmly, as though any other conclusion is unacceptable. My inappropriate thoughts of seeing him naked, vanish. How do I explain to this man, this brother desperate to find his baby sister alive, that she’s been dead for two years, eleven months, and three weeks?
BEARLY A CHANCE (SOULMATE SHIFTERS IN MYSTERY ALASKA BOOK 4) by Krystal Shannan
VS note: Apparently a short novella.
Ava saw her mate. He saved her life from the wolves trying to kill the Tribe and take Tara away from her brother Owen. After the fight, he disappeared. Follow Ava on a journey that might steal everything away from her that she’s ever wanted.
THE LUCKY LADY (THE BOOK CLUB 13) by Keira K Barton
VS Note: Time travel
Her career is fulfilling, but after years of dating men who can’t handle her success, Helen Baker is ready to try something new in order to find love. She never thought that would mean traveling back in time, but thanks to a mysterious purple-haired woman in her book club who claims to be a godmother with magical powers, that’s exactly what Helen does. Giving up everything isn’t easy, but she has a plan to make it through the Great Depression and find the man of her dreams in the process.
Jack Brown is an heir to a fortune, but he’s the only one who knows that. He’s been rejected by his father ever since he can remember, and after his heart was broken years ago, he closed himself off to love as well. When he and Helen’s paths collide, it makes him wonder if he’s been missing out on the best part of life all along. Can Helen help him believe in love again? Or will his wounds prove too deep to heal?
THE BLUSHING BRIDE (THE BOOK CLUB 11) by Jaclyn Hardy
VS Note: Time Travel
Charlotte loves nothing more than a good mail order bride novel, so when Dr. Lachele says that she can send them to take part in any love story that they want, Charlotte knows exactly where and what time period she wants to go. She thinks the life she wants can be found in 1880 in Idaho Territory. Joshua has worked hard preparing his new homestead and now he just needs a wife to help take care of his home. The advertisement for Charlotte promises the perfect fit, and he is excited to meet his new wife. Life in this new time isn’t as easy as Charlotte expected, and each day brings a new challenge. Joshua is everything Charlotte could have ever imagined, but home sickness for the comforts of the twenty-first century is almost too much to bear. Will Charlotte give up and return to the home she loves? Or will Joshua show her that she has everything she needs right there?
VS Note re the Book Club Series – obviously there are more in the series but I only list the ones where the heroine goes back in time. In some of them the heroine seems to go into a modern category romance, which is still a fun trope but I’m not listing them here. A little too far removed from the genres I cover…
***********
MAGIC AND TIME (FATED MAGIC SERIES BOOK 1) by Ally Summers
Just because the world is ending, doesn’t mean I have to let him back in.
That’s the problem with exes. They think a crisis means someone needs to be rescued.
But I’m not that kind of magix. I have my own power and strength.
Enough to save my family, town and the people closest to me.
Keeping my magical secret has become harder than ever and the enemy threatens everyone I love. The only one who can help is the man who destroyed my world. My very hot, magical, shifter ex.
I know better than to trust him a second time, but the clock is working against me.
Time is running out, and I refuse to let evil win.
MAGIC AND SHADOWS (FATED MAGIC SERIES BOOK 2) by Ally Summers
They want to steal my magic?
As long as I’m breathing, that will never happen.
I don’t want to rely on Finn to protect my family in Sullen’s Grove, but with evil breathing down my neck, the choices aren’t as easy.
What do I do, but take my hot human boss with me to Vegas to track down the source of the magical power grab. Letting Jack in might be the only way to win this fight, no matter how terrified I am to open my heart. Even if it’s only a little.
MAGIC AND FIRE (FATED MAGIC BOOK 3) by Ally Summers
Heartbreak sucks.
The only way to get over losing Jack is to throw myself into my work.
The movie set in New Orleans should be the perfect distraction, especially when the lead actress disappears.
But’s never that easy, is it?
Finn shows up, wanting to flip everything upside down with those bedroom eyes and every magical trick in his fingertips.
There’s dark magic everywhere we turn, and putting us back together is the last thing on my mind. Doesn’t he know by now I can’t turn my back when someone needs help?
BEAR’S CAPTURE (BEAR LAKE PROTECTORS) by Maia Starr
My father sent one of his men to hunt me down.
Braden.
A bear shifter, just like I am.
Except that he’s known what he is for a long time.
I watched him transform when I was in danger.
The way he protects me makes me feel things that I’ve never felt before.
I want to let him hold me.
Claim me.
I want everything, except being captured.
He isn’t letting me go.
And perhaps, I don’t want to escape.
Braden is ruthless.
But I see love in his eyes.
Now, I’m pregnant with his baby.
And I demand to know his secrets.
I deserve to find out why I was brought here.
Was it because of love?
Or was it a charade just so I could give birth to the future heir of my father’s royal clan?
PATRON OF MERCY (LORDS OF THE UNDERWORLD BOOK 3) by Sam Burns and W M Fawkes
Lach has spent the last few thousand years counting only on himself. What he needed, he took. What he wanted, he won with charm. All except a god he turned his back on an age ago, when he had a different name and didn’t know what he was giving up.
Thanatos, god of merciful death, is one of the gentlest gods in the pantheon—easing the transition between life and death for billions of mortals. But he has faced eternity alone. After breaking his heart on the sharp words of a fisherman’s son, he hasn’t been able to connect with anyone.
Now, Lach is crashing back into Thanatos’s life, dragging him into an adventure that could save the world . . . or kill them both.
WET FOR THE ALPHA (THE RIDGE BROTHERS BEAR SHIFTERS BOOK 3) by Olivia T Turner
I grew up surrounded by shifters but nothing prepared me for Cash Ridge.
The wildly possessive grizzly bear shifter who comes storming onto my brother’s ranch to claim me.
He says I’m his territory.
He thinks he owns me.
My brother and his lion shifter friends think otherwise, but nothing seems to stop him.
This grizzly is obsessed with my curves and his obsession keeps growing…
And not a crew of angry lions, the law, or even my shouts of protest are going to stop him from taking what’s his.
He says I’m his mate.
He says I belong to him.
He says he’s going to stuff me full of his cubs…
…I think it’s time for me to shut up and start listening.
KISSED BY MIDNIGHT (THE CIMMERIAN CAGE BOOK 3) by Cate Corvin
Just when I thought I could be happy in the walls of the Cage with my four dark protectors, everything crumbled beneath my feet. Three of them have marked me. Two are bound to my soul. And one has been lying from the day we met.
With Locke’s grip on sanity slowly unraveling, the Frosts taken over by their fiercely territorial natures, and Dominic’s unrelenting thirst for revenge, it’s all I can do to hold us together.
Because it’s time to take the fight to the darkness and burn out the corruption with wildfire. And if we make it out alive… Cimmerian will be ours.
BEASTS OF BOTH WORLDS (PARANORMAL DATING AGENCY BOOK 22) by Milly Taiden
Fighting a lifetime of learned prejudice against shifters, Harlow Quinn left home to escape her family. Never in her wildest dreams did she expect to find Gerri Wilder of the Paranormal Dating Agency and two smokin’ hot mates. Just thinking of them made her hormones go up in flames.
Lux Luther, wolf alpha, and his tiger beta, Osian Drive knew they would someday find the woman to complete their triad. They didn’t think she’d be so sassy and sexy. From the first glance, they had to fight the dirty thoughts about Harlow and her gorgeous lips. But not for long.
Targeted by a heinous group of anti-shifters, this unlikely threesome must place the fate of their world in their unwavering love and trust in one another or lose more than just their happily ever after. Some horrors are worse than anything ever imagined, and for Lux, Harlow, and Osian it’s a fight for their very existence.
THE ORPHANS OF RASPAY: A PENRIC AND DESDEMONA NOVELLA IN THE WORLD OF THE FIVE GODS (PENRIC AND DESDEMONA BOOK 7) by Lois McMaster Bujold
VS Note: A release of note…
When the ship in which they are traveling is captured by Carpagamon island raiders, Temple sorcerer Penric and his resident demon Desdemona find their life complicated by two young orphans, Lencia and Seuka Corva, far from home and searching for their missing father. Pen and Des will need all their combined talents of mind and magic to unravel the mysteries of the sisters and escape from the pirate stronghold.
HEART OF CINDER (FIRECATS BOOK 4) by P Jameson
She was a broken girl.
He tried to put her back together.
But it would take a tiny miracle to fix them both.
Her name was Janet, but the psycho who had owned her called her Twenty. She’d do anything to forget about her time as an evil man’s Doll. Even trust another bad man with her darkest secrets. The damaged Alley Cat shifter shows her glimpses of the normal life she desperately longs for. But he might be just as broken as she is. And even if he’s not, girls like her don’t get happy endings.
Samuel “Smokes” Mendoza was content to live his life incomplete. Until a picture changed everything. One look at the woman known as Twenty, and his entire life purpose changed. Use, take, harm became save, heal, protect in a single heartbeat. Easier said than done when his werecat clan is falling apart before his eyes and his inner beast is clawing its way to the surface.
With a surprise he never saw coming, his broken girl is in danger once again. This time will be different. Smokes knows he’s not good enough for her, but maybe he’s good enough to keep her safe.
HOUR OF THE WOLF (MAGGIE’S GROVE) by Dana Marie Bell
Not much worries Noah Wulfenbach, one of the most powerful shifters in North America, but questions about Iva Yamauchi’s recovery had made him anxious. He was vigilant in his caring for his mate, sitting beside her tree, talking to it—to her. Now that she’s back, Noah’s relief is matched only by his desire to drag the feisty dryad to his house to complete their mating bond.
Iva is ready to make up for lost time, especially with the delicious Alpha Prime of the werewolves, her fated mate. She and Noah had only just recognized their connection when she was injured and broken, forced to retreat to her tree. She’s curious and excited to find out just how firmly she’s tied to Mr. Tall, Dark and Growly.
Before Iva and Noah can explore the depth of their connection, supernatural hunters threaten the population of Maggie’s Grove. Together with the other town rulers, the fated pair must slay the demon-possessed leader of the hunters. Iva and Noah just found each other; they’re not ready to say goodbye…but they may not have a choice.
HUNGRY LIKE A WOLF (CLAWS CLAUSE BOOK 1) by Jessica Lynch
I remember—Three years ago, Maddox Wolfe lost his mate. Since there’s nothing more dangerous than a bonded shifter on his own, Ordinance 7304 gave him three choices: voluntary incarceration until he’s no longer deemed a threat; a lobotomy-like procedure performed by government-employed witches that would dissolve his bond; or, most final, a state-sanctioned execution so that he could be with his mate again. And while death held a certain appeal in the hazy days following the tragedy, Maddox had his family and his pack to live for. So, refusing to give up his memories of his sweet Evangeline, he chose to spend the rest of his days in the Cage.
I forget—There’s a hole in Evangeline Lewis’s memory. The doctors tell her that it’s normal, that she’ll recover fully in time. After all, it’s only been three years since the accident that nearly killed her. They never thought she’d wake up; a nagging, annoying sensation that something’s wrong is the least of her worries. Especially since she has so much going on: a new apartment, a new job, her mother’s well-meaning attempts at match-making… but tell that to her wayward psyche. By day, she can’t shake the feeling that something’s missing. And, by night, she can’t escape the dreams of a shadow man with glowing golden eyes…(more blurb on ebook seller page)
ANHAGA by Lisa Henry
Aramin Decourcey—Min to his few friends—might be the best thief in Amberwich, and he might have a secret that helps him survive the cutthroat world of aristocratic families and their powerful magic users, but he does have one weakness: his affection for his adopted nephew, Harry.
When the formidable Sabadine family curses Harry, Min must accept a suicide mission to save his life: retrieve Kazimir Stone, a low-level Sabadine hedgewitch who refuses to come home after completing his apprenticeship… and who is in Anhaga, a seaside village under the control of the terrifying Hidden Lord of the fae. If that wasn’t enough, Kaz is far from the simple hedgewitch he seems.
With the Sabadines on one side and the fae on the other, Min doesn’t have time to deal with a crisis of conscience—or the growing attraction between him and Kaz. He needs to get Kaz back to Amberwich and get Harry’s curse lifted before it kills him. Saving Harry means handing Kaz over to his ruthless family. Saving Kaz means letting Harry die. Min might pride himself on his cleverness, but he can’t see his way out of this one.
The Hidden Lord might see that he never gets the choice.
THE KING: A WICKED NOVELLA by Jennifer L Armentrout
As Caden and Brighton’s attraction grows despite the odds stacked against a happily ever after, they must work together to stop an Ancient fae from releasing the Queen, who wants nothing more than to see Caden become the evil Prince once feared by fae and mortals alike.
LIAM’S SECRET: SMOKEY MOUNTAIN DRAGONS by Jadyn Chase
The most bewitching girl I ever laid eyes on rises out of the fishing hole like a goddess born out of Nature itself.
I can’t believe what I’m seeing.
She is definitely not from around here.
If she was, she would know what kind of danger she’s in right now.
There are many secrets around Smokey Mountain, dark secrets.
I should probably go and introduce myself before any of the less than savory locals, decide to add her to the menu.
ROYAL VILLAINS (SAVAGE MAGIC ACADEMY EPISODE 2) by Avery Free
I survived my night with the shifter alpha, but I’m not out of the woods yet. I need to find my brother without getting caught, survive my bullies, and pass my classes.
Easy, right?
Wrong.
I also have to be prepared. My night with the shifter might’ve ended differently than I ever imagined, but now I’m being given to the vampire alpha. And this time, I might not be so lucky.
Four men own me. To do with what they wish…(more blurb on ebook seller page…)
JOSIAH: MCCRAY BRUIN BEAR SHIFTER ROMANCE by Kathi S Barton
Meadow Springs had been locked away in a hospital for several years. At sixteen she was a victim and sole survivor of the mass murder of her family. The ordeal had left her semi-comatose for a long time. Since she was the only survivor and couldn’t talk, the police tried to pen the murders on her, but it didn’t stick.
Josiah McCray was there the day that Meadow was brought to their home to go into hiding. The beautiful blonde in the wheelchair was a shadow of the woman she should be. All Josiah saw was his mate, and he loved her no matter what.
The killer was still out there, and Meadow had his identity locked inside her mind and the killer knew it. Everyone previously in charge of her care were now dead. There was no way that was a coincidence.
Meadow was a loose end, the one that got away. There was no way the killer could let her live.
TAMIKO AND THE TWO JANITORS (AMARANTHINE SAGA BOOK 3) by Forthright
Conspiracy theories, werewolf scares, and protest rallies have hampered the peace process in America, where social and political unrest keep most Amaranthine from declaring themselves. Those not in seclusion rely heavily on illusion to mask their true nature.
As the newly appointed principal of a small elementary school, Tamiko Reaverson is doing her part for world peace. She rallies her community’s support and applies for Hisoka Twineshaft’s school revitalization project, which will bring Amaranthine to her hometown. Little does Tami realize that Fletching was founded by one of the oldest and largest urban enclaves in the United States. And two of her staunchest supporters—janitors at her school—share a secret neither wants exposed.
DESCENDING INTO MADNESS (WINTERLAND TALE BOOK 1) by Stacey Marie Brown
What if Alice Liddell’s story didn’t happen the way you think? What if it wasn’t Wonderland she fell into, but Winterland.
This mad tale is dark, twisted, sexy, and nothing like the legend you know.
After losing her job and finding her boyfriend/boss cheating on her with her replacement, twenty-five-year-old Alice Liddell has moved back home to save money and regroup.
She doesn’t think things can get worse until her younger, more responsible sister, Dinah, gets her a job—as a Christmas elf.
Dressed in a slutty costume with fathers peeking down her top and kids vomiting on her, she wants nothing more than to escape the reality of her life.
When she sees a sexy, shirtless man, carrying a glowing red light, and bearing antlers, her curiosity gets the better of her. But following him might be the biggest mistake she ever made.
Falling into another realm, Alice finds herself in the world of holiday legends and fairytales. But she is not prepared her for the dark madness of this place. Nothing is what is seems and no one is what they are in the fairytales.
Even the mysterious, sexy Scrooge.
Welcome to Winterland, where the good guys from the North Pole have gone bad, and the only way to survive is to descend into its madness.
COURT OF DESTINY (FORBIDDEN QUEEN BOOK 4) by Dyan Chick
Queen’s Trial just got more dangerous.
Someone on the inside is trying to eliminate the candidates. They aren’t just after Cassia, they’re trying to end the trials all together.
With Tiana dead, they have no leads on who could be sabotaging the trials. If they don’t figure it out quickly, there might not be anyone left to compete for Queen.
On top of trying to survive the Trials, Cassia has to navigate the addition of a new prince to her mates. One that none of the other princes are happy to have joining their ranks.
THE SPARK OF THE DRAGON’S HEART (HAREM OF FIRE BOOK 1) by Willa Hart
It’s been five years since my great-aunt and her husband rescued me from foster care — and since I discovered dragons exist.
For reals.
Yeah, I had a hard time believing it too, but now I’m learning what it means to be a dragon keeper — a human with special powers who acts as a sort of liaison between dragons and the unsuspecting human world.
When Uncle Max leaves town and entrusts me with my first case, I’m forced to enlist the help of the last five PIs on earth he’d want me to ask — his nephews. As much as I want to hate them for betraying Max, when we all finally meet face to face, the earth shakes with the instant connection between us.
And those powers I’m supposed to have? They seem to grow stronger the more time I spend with the devastatingly sexy dragon shifters.
But the confusing attraction I have for all five men will have to wait until we solve this mystery. That’s if we don’t stumble upon an even bigger one along the way.
Spoiler: We do!
HUNTING JUSTICE (SHATTERED MINDS SERIES BOOK 3) by Kate Allenton
VS Note: Paranormal elements evidently.
Lucy Bray doesn’t deny her checkered past. She’s tracked enough killers to know that saving innocent lives sometimes means doing whatever it takes. Working with the secret FBI supernatural task force has taught her to hone her hunting skills and be prepared for anything.
So, when a mock hostage training exercise goes sideways, and Lucy comes face to face with a new killer, there’s no question—the rules of this game have changed.
It’s going to take more than her wits if she wants to stay alive.
Lucy is the new innocent who needs saving, and this killer isn’t playing pretend. This is one game of winner takes all that she refuses to lose.
BITE ME: A VAMPIRE ANTHOLOGY by Various
I have a confession to whisper at your ear. That shadow caressing your body in the dark, that tingle which draws you to arch your spine… it tempts me to ruin. You’re beautiful when you sleep.
Everything I long for.
All I ask is a sip, a taste of the life coursing through those delicate veins.
Just one little bite.
And I’ll make you mine… forever.
KING OF THE FAE by Ava Mason
She is the human destined to destroy his world.
He is the Fae king sent to kill her.
He wasn’t supposed to fall in love with her.
She wasn’t supposed to be his Fated Mate.
Everyone’s twenty-first birthday is supposed to be something to remember. A milestone, a step into real adulthood.
My birthday was when everything changed.
That’s the day the men showed up.
Everywhere I went, they watched me, creeping closer, trying to find a second when I was alone.
They all wanted the same thing; to capture me and bring me back to their world.
One was different. Dark, mysterious, and sexy, he stood out from the rest. He had come for my blood.
GIFT OF SHADOWS: BARRIER WITCH BOOK ONE by Amir Lane
A corpse with no eyes bursts into flames before Toronto’s Special Crimes Detective Fairuz Arshad can investigate. Her superiors are ordering her to close the case before it’s even been opened, and it isn’t the only one. She tracks down a siren and a faerie, both missing organs and brushed off by the police. Fairuz and her dryad partner, Rowan, suspect there’s more to this mystery than it appears. The evidence points to a string of parahuman murders, with all the victims missing organs.
The police are covering up the crimes, and Fairuz realizes the killer may be one of their own. As Rowan joins the ranks of those keeping secrets from her, the list of people Fairuz trusts grows smaller. More bodies are uncovered, and she fears something
far more sinister is at work than a simple serial killer.
With her own team turning against her, can Fairuz catch the killer before he strikes again?
GODS OF JADE AND SHADOW by Silvia Moren-Garcia
VS Note: A release of note; apparently there is some romance or romantic elements but it’s not the main focus.
The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own.
Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.
In the company of the strangely alluring god and armed with her wits, Casiopea begins an adventure that will take her on a cross-country odyssey from the jungles of Yucatán to the bright lights of Mexico City—and deep into the darkness of the Mayan underworld.
AMERICAN BEAR (CAT SHIFTERS BOOK 4) by Severine Wolfe
Ony Chernavin knew the moment he scented cinnamon and honey that his mate was near. When he saw her protecting herself and walking away the winner, he knew she was the woman for him. His mate. But then, she is attacked, and it looks like she will be blamed for her own attack. He doesn’t the only thing a Tiger can, he runs off with her to protect her.
Kada Fischer has spent her life trying to find her place in the world. She’s accepted as an Animal Husbandry expert and has some respect in her clan in Alaska, but it’s not satisfying. She heads to Montana to speak to other shifters about increasing the odds for their fertility and populations to find the Bears in the lower forty-eight, just as prejudiced as the ones in Alaska. When one Bear tries to attack her, she’s sickened, stunned and numb. When she wakes up in an airplane high about the Pacific, she doesn’t know what to say or do.
What would you do if the person you’re drawn to sees the most horrific moment of your life, the most embarrassing thing to happen, and then the world decides you’re to blame? Ony shows her what he would do.
CALL OF NIGHT (THORNE HILL BOOK 3) by Emily Goodwin
True love never dies.
Not even when those around me are trying to kill it. With vampire bounty hunters still out for me, having the Grand Coven accuse me of treason against witches is the last thing I need. No one should tell me who I can and cannot love.
Determined not to let anyone or anything get in our way, Lucas and I decide to lay low for a while and let everything blow over with my coven while Lucas hunts for the vampires who tried to kidnap me. But things, of course, don’t go according to plan, and when I stumble upon an ancient evil force hiding out in the underground of Chicago, we realize our forbidden romance is the least of our worries.
As we search for a way to defeat unbeatable odds, I start to discover that things aren’t what they seem…including my very existence.
THE SEEKERS (KREWE OF HUNTERS BOOK 28) by Heather Graham
Keri Wolf has joined the crew of The Seekers, a show that searches for paranormal phenomena, as they explore a supposedly haunted old inn on the road between Philadelphia and Harrisburg. The place is famous for its warm welcome—and infamous for being the site of an ax murder rampage in the 1920s. They’ve barely begun when a very real dead body is discovered in the basement. As a nonfiction author, Keri is supposed to be the rational one, but she can’t explain a terrifying apparition that seems to be both a threat and a warning.
Former detective Joe Dunhill knows what she’s going through—the strange gift of being able to see and talk to the dead is a struggle he shares. A new member of the FBI’s Krewe of Hunters, he’s on the team investigating the disturbing death. The town is steeped in old-fashioned superstition, and the deeper Joe and Keri plunge into the dark secrets of the inn, the closer they get to a devastating truth. Will a bloody history be repeated? Or can the spirits of the past reach out to stop a killer?
FAILED FUTURE (AIR AWAKENS: VORTEX CHRONICLES BOOK 3) by Elise Kova
Having forsaken her crown for a chance to save her family, and the world, Vi Solaris washes up on the shores of Meru. She’s wounded and barely alive. But Vi’s fight for survival is only just beginning.
As a princess in a foreign land, everyone is after her.
The pirate queen Adela wants to sell her to the evil elfin’ra. The Twilight King wants to use her to settle an old score. And, perhaps most dangerous, is the scheming Lord of the Faithful who sees her as an opportunity to further consolidate his power.
The only path for Vi is forward. But she doesn’t yet know if she’s running toward salvation… or a brutal end to everything she loves.
FLEDGLING (SOCIETY AND SORCERY BOOK 2) by Molly Harper
Days away from completing her first year at Miss Castwell’s Institute for the Magical Instruction of Young Ladies, Changeling-born Sarah Smith might just get away with posing as an upper-class Guardian girl named Cassandra Reed.
But strange visions of a Lightbourne destroyed by Miss Morton’s revenant army keep Sarah from enjoying her achievement. Plus, the Mother Book, Sarah’s one secret advantage and the ultimate entrée in Guardian society, suddenly stops revealing itself to her…putting her in a precarious position with the Guild. On top of all that, her former lady’s maid left Miss Castwell’s, and the new hire is, well, taking some getting used to.
If it weren’t for her two best friends, Alicia McCray and Ivy Cowel, who will do anything to protect her secret, Sarah doesn’t know if she’ll make it another year. When the three girls take summer holiday with Alicia’s family (chaperoned by an exacting and very disapproving Mrs. McCray), a relaxing vacation in Scotland is the last thing they’ll find.
Mrs. Winter is thrilled that Sarah is spending time with the influential McCray family, but Sarah can’t help but feel that her real purpose is to find other Changeling children like her, and free them to realize their own magic. Can she find genuine satisfaction in her accomplishments when she knows there are others like her out there who need her help? Will the three girls uncover the deeply-held secrets they’re looking for in the mysterious mountains of Scotland? Will the Mother Book finally start talking to her again? And will Sarah come to understand the importance of her connection with Ivy and Alicia, and the true nature of her own power…before it’s too late?
HOW TO RUN WITH THE WOLVES (HOWL AT THE MOON BOOK5) by Eli Easton
Zeus loves his job on the Mad Creek Search & Rescue team, and his inner Saint Bernard is finally being used to his full potential. When he sees a mysterious and wild-looking quickened—a dog shifter—at an earthquake site in Alaska, Zeus is compelled to investigate. Zeus falls hard for the primal beauty of Timo and of Alaska itself. Both call to his deep canine soul. But the Qimmig pack’s laws are as harsh as the Alaskan winters, and Timo is out of his reach.Timo’s pack of dog shifters left their Inuit village generations ago and have lived wild ever since. Not trusting the “one-skinned,” and with their numbers dwindling, the Qimmig are on the verge of extinction. Timo is shocked to discover a whole group of “two-skinned” working as a rescue team, and he is particularly fascinated by Zeus, a gentle giant. He senses what Zeus feels for him… but it’s forbidden.Can Mad Creek save this lost quickened clan? Perhaps—if they can learn how to run with the wolves.
*************************************************************
VS: The SFR Station website is adding my TWO AGAINST THE STARS from my backlist this week, so I thought I’d highlight it here:
The third in my stories of alien empathic priestesses… can be read as a standalone, or in sequence with STAR CRUISE: STOWAWAY and then DANGER IN THE STARS.
Empathic priestess Carialle has escaped the evil Amarotu Combine, but she’s hardly out of danger. Not when she risks everything to rescue a drugged man from a crooked veterans’ clinic. By lulling the clinic staff to sleep, she reveals her powers. And once again, criminals are after her and her rescuer.
Marcus Valerian, a wounded Special Forces veteran, never expected to have his life threatened by the clinic that’s supposed to help ex-soldiers like him. But when he wakes from a drugged state to find a lovely woman urging him to run–he does. In his family’s remote fishing cabin, he suffers the agony of withdrawal, soothed only by her powers.
In their idyllic hideaway, the two also discover a nova-hot attraction flaring. But can they stay alive long enough for it to become more? Not if the Combine has anything to say–they are not giving up until Marcus is dead and Carialle is their weapon
Buy Links:
Amazon iBooks Barnes & Noble Kobo Google
*****************************************************************
LINKS TO RECENT NEW RELEASES POSTS from Veronica:
The term “new” is generally plus or minus a week or two. I try to catch up on ones I missed in recent months. And I may mention ‘special items’.
I do NOT cover every single new release in SFR/FantasyR/PNR. I never have. That would be an impossible task for any human! I assemble my list every week based on various informal inputs, and I do curate the list to some extent…
I check and verify all the buy links at the time I create the post but after that I’m not responsible.
Love this and love that you sprinkle books of interest and note! Thank you!
Thanks! That’s part of the fun in doing this for me, that I can add in other new books – not srictly romance perhaps – I think I might enjoy and therefore hope the readers who visit the post might at least want to take a look at. I love ‘curating’ what I include (and don’t include LOL) every week. This is all personal to me as a voracious reader who loves the genres and books in general, not ‘just’ as an author. And I get books and suggestions from all kinds of places… Some weeks I really have to restrain myself from venturing too far afield into other genres entirely to mention some book I’m intrigued by! The joy of curating what I list here is a big part of the attraction for me. (And seeing all the gorgeous covers too of course.) HUGS!