magpies-library

[magpies-library]

House of Dragons by Jessica Cluess

Five royal houses will hear the call to compete in the Trial for the dragon throne. A liar, a soldier, a servant, a thief, and a murderer will answer it. Who will win? When the Emperor dies, the five royal houses of Etrusia attend the Call, where one of their own will be selected to compete for the throne. It is always the oldest child, the one who has been preparing for years to compete in the Trial. But this year is different. This year, these five outcasts will answer the call.... THE LIAR: Emilia must hide her dark magic or be put to death. THE SOLDIER: Lucian is a warrior who has sworn to never lift a sword again. THE SERVANT: Vespir is a dragon trainer whose skills alone will keep her in the game. THE THIEF: Ajax knows that nothing is free--he must take what he wants. THE MURDERER: Hyperia was born to rule and will stop at nothing to take her throne.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Fire Bringer by David Clement-Davis

Young buck Rannoch was born on the night his father was murdered and into a herd of deer where hunger for power has gradually whittled away at all that is true and good. He knows he must escape to survive. Chased by stags, with their fearsome antlers sharpened for the kill, he begins a treacherous journey into the unknown, and ahead of him lies a shocking and formidable search for truth and goodwill in the shadow of the Great Mountain. One day he will have to return to his home and face his destiny among the deer to fulfill the prophecy that has persistently given them hope: that one day a fawn will be born with the mark of an oak leaf on his forehead and that fawn's courage will lead all the deer to freedom. Filled with passion and a darkness that gradually, through Rannoch's courage in the face of adversity, lifts to reveal an overwhelming feeling of light, Fire Bringer is a tremendous, spirited story that takes the reader deep into the hearts and minds of its characters as they fight for their right to live in peace.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Spookily Yours by Jennifer Chipman

My cat is a demon. No, that's not a joke. An actual, real life demon. And he needs my help to break a curse. But what happens when that turns into more? It can never be forever, and yet... I'm falling in love with him anyway. Spookily Yours is a spicy, open-door Halloween themed novel, featuring a witch and the demon who falls in love with her. This book is a complete standalone with a HEA guaranteed.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Avalon High by Meg Cabot

Having moved to Annapolis, Maryland, with her medievalist parents, high school junior Ellie enrolls at Avalon High School where several students may or may not be reincarnations of King Arthur and his court.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Lovely War by Julie Berry

It's 1917, and World War I is at its zenith when Hazel and James first catch sight of each other at a London party. She's a shy and talented pianist; he's a newly minted soldier with dreams of becoming an architect. When they fall in love, it's immediate and deep--and cut short when James is shipped off to the killing fields. Aubrey Edwards is also headed toward the trenches. A gifted musician who's played Carnegie Hall, he's a member of the 15th New York Infantry, an all-African-American regiment being sent to Europe to help end the Great War. Love is the last thing on his mind. But that's before he meets Colette Fournier, a Belgian chanteuse who's already survived unspeakable tragedy at the hands of the Germans. Thirty years after these four lovers' fates collide, the Greek goddess Aphrodite tells their stories to her husband, Hephaestus, and her lover, Ares, in a luxe Manhattan hotel room at the height of World War II. She seeks to answer the age-old question: Why are Love and War eternally drawn to one another? But her quest for a conclusion that will satisfy her jealous husband uncovers a multi-threaded tale of prejudice, trauma, and music and reveals that War is no match for the power of Love. A sweeping, multi-layered romance with a divine twist, by the Printz Honor-winning author of The Passion of Dolssa, set in the perilous days of World Wars I and II.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Beastly & Bookish by Catrina Bell

This beauty didn’t ask for a beastly bookworm for Christmas, but maybe she should have . . . All Noelle wants is to save the Winter Bliss library. She has a plan, too—a New Year’s Eve fundraiser during the annual fire-magic festival. The last thing she needs is a distracting romance with the sexy, binge-reading demon she hasn’t seen in over a decade. Too bad fate (and Mount Winter Bliss) has other plans. Rom only returned to his small hometown to open Perkatory, his family's newest coffee shop. Seeing Noelle again is a welcome surprise, but there’s no way the beautiful librarian could ever fall for a scarred-up monster like him, right? When an avalanche leaves Noelle and Rom snowed in together, the forced proximity might be their second chance at first love. But will their happily ever after come at the expense of saving Noelle’s beloved library? Beastly & Bookish is a cozy, contemporary, holiday romance featuring a roller skating librarian and book-loving demon's emotional journey from friends to lovers. Horned up for the Holidays is a series of three steamy, same-world, stand-alone novellas. Download today and escape to Winter Bliss.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

This Poison Heart by Kalynn Bayron

Darkness blooms in bestselling author Kalynn Bayron's new contemporary fantasy about a girl with a unique and deadly power. Briseis has a gift: she can grow plants from tiny seeds to rich blooms with a single touch. When Briseis's aunt dies and wills her a dilapidated estate in rural New York, Bri and her parents decide to leave Brooklyn behind for the summer. Hopefully there, surrounded by plants and flowers, Bri will finally learn to control her gift. But their new home is sinister in ways they could never have imagined--it comes with a specific set of instructions, an old-school apothecary, and a walled garden filled with the deadliest botanicals in the world that can only be entered by those who share Bri's unique family lineage. When strangers begin to arrive on their doorstep, asking for tinctures and elixirs, Bri learns she has a surprising talent for creating them. One of the visitors is Marie, a mysterious young woman who Bri befriends, only to find that Marie is keeping dark secrets about the history of the estate and its surrounding community. There is more to Bri's sudden inheritance than she could have imagined, and she is determined to uncover it . . . until a nefarious group comes after her in search of a rare and dangerous immortality elixir. Up against a centuries-old curse and the deadliest plant on earth, Bri must harness her gift to protect herself and her family. From the bestselling author of Cinderella Is Dead comes another inspiring and deeply compelling story about a young woman with the power to conquer the dark forces descending around her.

Goodreads

[magpies-library]

Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.

The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.

If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.

But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

Goodreads