Darlings of Paranormal Romance (Anthology)
DARLINGS OF PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Copyright © All Authors Named in This Book.
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No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without express written permission of the author. This eBook is licensed for your enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people.
The stories in this book are the property of their authors, in all media both physical and digital. No one, except the owners of this property, may reproduce, copy or publish in any medium any individual story or part of this anthology without the expressed permission of the authors of these works.
Some stories have been previously published. Some stories are novellas and some are full length.
12 thrilling novels in one volume (The first 7 are adult, and the last 5 are young adult)
12 sexy heroes.
12 strong heroines.
This is twelve works of fiction from some of today's most exciting authors.
A star-studded anthology of thrilling, action-packed and totally swoon-worthy first books by your favorite women authors.
**Click On The Title To Start Reading**
Book 1 – Isobelle Cate
Blurb: Does Fate intervene between life and death? Does love hold back the soul from its eternal journey?
Juliana had loved and lost before losing her way, seemingly dead amongst the living. Simon lost his soul in a forgotten war, in a forgotten century, and lost his zest for life until he tempted Fate. Now he was living nowhere amongst the living.
When the two meet by chance in a secret mystical place hidden in plain sight, neither could unlock the puzzle of their existence.
Or had they?
Book 2 – WARRIORS OF THE ATLANTEAN EMPIRE By C.L. Pardington
Blurb: The war between Atlantis and Oceania has raged for decades, but it wasn’t always so…
Lifelong friends and allies, Crehon Ariskan, Emperor of Atlantis, and Atargatis, future Mer King of Oceania, face a devastating threat from abroad. They agree to do whatever it takes to protect their worlds, but the toll of battle becomes higher than they ever imagined and in an instant friends turn to foes.
Secrets, love, sex, betrayal, and tragedy await.
The war is about to begin in this prelude to the Warriors of the Atlantean Empire Series. * Due to sexual content, this book is recommended for 18+
Book 3 – ETERNAL VOWS BY Chrissy Peebles (A full length book at 63,000 words. It’s a combination of paranormal romance and fantasy adventure.)
BOOK TRAILER: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n_w-eZwPJbA
Blurb: Never marry a stranger...even if he is a drop-dead gorgeous immortal king.
Never pretend to be a princess.
And most importantly...never slip on an ancient wedding ring you know nothing about.
Sarah Larker returns to a cave where her sister disappeared ten years earlier. She walks through a portal and is mistaken for a runaway princess on the run by a dangerous immortal king in medieval times. Her plan is bold as well as daring—become this princess, wed the king, and slip on an ancient wedding ring that will unlock the portal back home. Then find her sister and run as fast as she can out of Dodge. But taking on the identity of Princess Gloria comes along with dangerous consequences; and slipping on the ruby ring comes with an even higher price.
Fantasy Romance Series
Book 4 – WAKING UP DEAD by Catherine Wolffe
Blurb: The Western Werewolf Legend series continues
The truth, Sonja Brooks understands is relevant. She's a werewolf with a special 'gift' and faces danger at every turn. Now, the bloodsuckers stalk her family and the man she loves.
He vowed to protect his men despite the cost. Tyler Loflin must save them and Sonja from the threat of Yankee vampires. Seeking help from one of them will test his faith in the human he once knew and his own strength as a newly born werewolf.
Escaping to a better place, Ty and Sonja set out for Texas, but will the freedom and safety they seek elude them?
Book 5 – A GRAVE EXCHANGE by Tara Rose
Blurb: A Grave Exchange will leave you breathless, shaking from head to toe, glowing, turned on and giddy with excitement over such a rare find.
Ivy Steele is the character all women today find in themselves, someone strong, independent, but who has a horrid past to overcome.
Lucius Valentine is a leader amongst his men who swore to uphold his kingdom but tragedies set in and his fate is sealed, until he meets the beautiful Ivy.
Can they together dare to dream of true love, can they together survive what fate has thrown their way or will their relationship end in doom?
Book 6 – TUESDAY’S CHILD by Dale Mayer
Blurb: What she doesn't want...is exactly what he needs.
Shunned and ridiculed all her life for something she can't control, Samantha Blair hides her psychic abilities and lives on the fringes of society. Against her will, however, she's tapped into a killer--or rather, his victims. Each woman's murder, blow-by-blow, ravages her mind until their death releases her back to her body. Sam knows she must go to the authorities, but will the rugged, no-nonsense detective in charge of tracking down the killer believe her?
Detective Brandt Sutherland only trusts hard evidence, yet Sam's visions offer clues he needs to catch a killer. The more he learns about her incredible abilities, however, the clearer it becomes that Sam's visions have put her in the killer's line of fire. Now Brandt must save her from something he cannot see or understand...and risk losing his heart in the process.
As danger and desire collide, passion raises the stakes in a game Sam and Brandt don't dare lose.
Book 7 – VIRGIN MOON by Ally Thomas
Blurb: A forbidden romance with a vampire unlocks a virgin werewolf's passions
Vincent, the rebel vampire son of the dark lord Alichino, receives Emily, a virgin werewolf as a playmate. He wants no part of his father's latest toy until he looks into the virgin's eyes and feels his heart flutter. Vincent realizes he must escape with the werewolf beauty who has awakened his heart before she's found or dies at the hands of his evil father. (approximately 30,000 words)
In the spirit of a serial series, Virgin Moon is the first episode in this werewolf/vampire romance between the rebel vampire, Vincent and the virgin werewolf, Emily. More episodes are possibly planned to be written.
For mature readers 18+
The Young Adult Section
Book 8 – ZOMBIFIED by LYRA MCKEN
Blurb: Cassie is a typical teenager. She's crushing on a boy and trying to make it through high school. It's a typical day when all hell breaks loose. Forced to run and hide, the situation just keeps getting worse. She makes a mistake and soon becomes infected. She meets others like her and together they set out to find a cure. Is their fate already sealed? Can they find a cure before it's too late? See what happens through the eyes of the infected when Cassie tells you how Zombies are people too.
Book 9 – CRUSH by Chrissy Peebles
Blurb: His precious touch could prove deadly…
&nb
sp; When Taylor Sparks moves from New York City to Big Bear Lake, California, her life is forever changed when she meets a hot guy with winter-blue eyes named Jesse. Their attraction is instant, the chemistry undeniable. But sadly, things aren't adding up. Taylor wonders what her 'crush' is hiding. When her new friend, Fred tells her his suspicions about Jesse being a paranormal creature, Taylor laughs. But when Fred turns up dead, she believes every warning he ever told her.
Taylor is shocked to learn that Big Bear Lake isn't just glittering lakes, towering pines, and breathtaking mountains...there's more...way more than meets the eye. Will Taylor dive into a paranormal world she knows nothing about? To be with the one her heart can’t live without?
Book 10 – VAMPIRE IN DENIAL by Dale Mayer
Blurb: Blood doesn't just make her who she is...it also makes her what she is.
Like being a sixteen-year-old vampire isn't hard enough, Tessa's throwback human genes make her an outcast among her relatives. But try as she might, she can't get a handle on the vampire lifestyle and all the...blood.
Turning her back on the vamp world, she embraces the human teenage lifestyle--high school, peer pressure and finding a boyfriend. Jared manages to stir something in her blood. He's smart and fun and oh, so cute. But Tessa's dream of a having the perfect boyfriend turns into a nightmare when vampires attack the movie theatre and kidnap her date.
Once again, Tessa finds herself torn between the human world and the vampire one. Will blood own out? Can she make peace with who she is as well as what?
Warning: This book ends with a cliffhanger! Book 2 picks up where this book ends.
Book 11 – SEVENTH MARK (Part 1) by W.J. May
Blurb: If you discovered something about yourself that was less than pleasant, would you search for the answers or would you be too afraid of what you might find?
Like most teenagers, Rouge is trying to figure out who she is and what she wants to be. With little knowledge about her past, she has questions but has never tried to find the answers. Everything changes when she befriends a strangely intoxicating family. Siblings Grace and Michael, appear to have secrets which seem connected to Rouge. Her hunch is confirmed when a horrible incident occurs at an outdoor party. Rouge may be the only one who can find the answer.
An ancient journal, a Siorghra necklace and a special mark force life-altering decisions for a girl who grew up unprepared to fight for her life or others.
All secrets have a cost and Rouge’s determination to find the truth can only lead to trouble…or something even more sinister.
Book 12 – KEEPER by Tiffany Evans
Blurb: As a Drea, Taylee Pierce, is a walking energy bong—or that’s how the gift stealing Rygons see her. Her ability to control minds in their hands could mean the destruction of the Kember and Drea race. Laced with speed, strength, and a physical ability, each Kember holds the key to not only defeat the Rygons, but to protect one Drea until death.
But what happens when one who’s born to protect, hunts instead?
During a heated battle with a rogue Kember, Taylee’s forced to run and let her own Kember—the man who raised her—face him alone. With the announcement of her protector’s death, Taylee’s anger and obsession regarding the mysterious murderer take over. She’s hell-bent on bringing her guardian justice, even if it means walking into the enemy’s trap.
Book 1 – Isobelle Cate
Paranormal Romance
In Dusk’s Embrace
Copyright © 2013 Isobelle Cate
First E-book Publication: January 2014
Cover design by Ally Thomas
No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without express written permission of the author. This eBook is licensed for your enjoyment only. It may not be re-sold or given away to other people.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
In Dusk’s Embrace
Isobelle Cate
In the rush of Autumn
Of passions unquenched
In Dusk’s Embrace will I find you
‘Til we are finally spent….
Chapter One
Manchester 2013
“I think it’s time you got out of the house.”
Juliana continued to scrub the kitchen sink. “Why would I want to do that?”
“You’ve become a hermit, Jules.” Joanna shook her head. She leaned against the counter nursing a mug of jasmine tea.
Juliana sighed glancing at her. “I know what you’re doing, Jo. And if it weren’t for the fact that you’re my best friend, I’d have thrown you out of our house.”
“Your house, not our house.” Joanna replied in a gentle tone. “It’s been your house for the last five years.”
“Please don’t say anymore.” Juliana let go of the scrub and rinsed her hands under the tap. “You don’t know what it feels like to lose the man you love in a war that we shouldn’t be fighting in the first place.”
She walked out of the kitchen to putter around the living room that had already been cleaned. Joanna followed her.
“Jules —”
“Stop being a pain in the backside, Jo. I’m sick to death of it.”
“And I can’t let you wallow in the land of the dead when you’re still in the land of the living.”
Juliana rolled her eyes in irritation and disbelief. “Why can’t you let it go?” Her voice rose showing her agitation. “Brody was my life. Would have been my life. When he died, I died with him!”
“I know he was your life.” Joanna’s voice matched hers. “I introduced you to him, remember? But I don’t think he would have wanted you to waste away like this. Would he have wanted you to pine away for him until you smelled like the earth?”
“Joanna!”
“It’s true,” her friend insisted. “Brody knew what being a soldier was. He knew how it could possibly end. He chose you because you were the strength he needed. You were his life. His backbone. His reason to be the best he could ever be.”
Juliana trembled in anguish and anger. “Stop it. I mean it.”
“Fine,” Joanna said. “Throw me out if you have to, but you will listen to what I have to say. The best way you can celebrate Brody’s life is to live and not entomb yourself in this house where only your memories keep you company.”
Joanna placed her mug down on the table and headed toward the door.
“You’re such a pain in the arse.” Juliana mumbled.
Joanna opened the door before turning to her. “How would you know what pain is when you have left yourself for dead?”
Juliana winced at her best friend’s words. She jerked at the sound of the door being closed. The click was just a whisper but to Juliana it sounded like a gunshot that echoed in the house.
Her house did sound like a tomb.
Chapter Two
Manchester 1901
“Hurry, Simon! I can’t be late for my appointment.” Dottie tugged at her brother’s arm as they jostled their way along Deansgate. She turned around and stomped her satin clad foot. “Come on!”
“I can’t understand why I have to put up with you,” he muttered. “I can’t understand why you have to listen to all that nonsense!”
Simon didn’t want his sister to know that by pulling him she was contributing to the pain that raced up and down his left leg.
“My dear Simon, this isn’t nonsense.” Dottie raised her delicate brow in mock surprise. “You’re no fun anymore since you’ve come back from fighting the Boers.”
Simon sighed. “Try soldiering sometime, Dottie. You’d be surprised at how you won’t need to preen
and go to every fortune teller in Manchester. Your fate stares you right in the face every day.”
“I will do no such thing! Women in battle? That’s scandalous.” Dottie huffed. “Mother will be mortified if you told her that. War is only for men. And you my dear brother are an old man of thirty-five to my eighteen.”
“Oh get on with it, Dottie,” he scowled. “Let’s get this over and done with.”
Simon couldn’t stop glowering. It was an unusually warm October day for Manchester where rain was often the norm. He was uncomfortable. He hated the stares he got from passers-by - a man sometimes leaning heavily on his cane. He felt old, ancient even. And the pain in his leg was rising in degrees.
The horse-drawn trams weaved their way in and out of the streets while people avoided them as they crossed. Simon wrinkled his nose at the smell of horse manure and urine and bent down to make sure that he didn’t step on anything unmentionable even though they were on the pavement. He allowed his sister to move several feet ahead of him. A head taller than most of the people around him, he could easily spot his sister’s blond hair and elegantly cut day suit.