Fantasy - Romance Genre

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Summary: Morgorth is considered a villain by his own people and known as Dark Mage of the North. But now all he feels is light and love as he pursues a budding relationship with Aishe, a dialen of the Ravena tribe. Morgorth hardly believes his good fortune. He has allowed Aishe into his home, into his bed, into his heart. He laughs more, smiles more, and feels happier than he ever has before. He should have known such bliss never lasts. The Council of Mages, the ruling body over all mages on Karshian, knows he has Rambujek, a major stone of power—a stone won from an evil sorcerer. They also know his destiny—to become the Destroyer. Fearful, they send two emissaries to take the stone from Morgorth, using whatever means necessary. This includes tricks, threats to those under his protection, and the threat of war. A war Morgorth knows he would never survive. Conflict soon arises between him and Aishe. Their tenuous relationship is put into jeopardy, their very beliefs about themselves and their love is put into question. Morgorth doubts if he should keep Aishe in his life. He doesn’t know if he can protect Aishe from his enemies. Or from the monster he might become.

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Summary: An untrained sorcerer and a reclusive necromancer face a ghost-infested town. Darien is free of his dead invaders, and his eyes have opened to a new reality. In a world of sorcerers and necromancers, he's full of power and potential, but completely ignorant. Necromancer Silas, and Silas's cat familiar, Grim, are teaching him basic skills, but danger won't hold off, just because he's not ready. Silas never planned to share his life with anyone, but after a week of shared battles and shared nights, Darien has become a fixture in his home. Silas has never met anyone with more raw magical ability, or less idea what to do with it. When Silas is offered a job hunting ghosts, he's tempted to refill his depleted bank account, but reluctant to bring untrained Darien along. Darien's eager to help, though, and eventually Silas gives in. It's just a few ghosts. Nothing he hasn't handled before. What could go wrong?

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Summary: Three months after his run-in with the vampire Marcus Gråsson, Christopher’s ankle has healed but his life is anything but perfect. There are people watching the house. Flora’s worried about the scarecrow. And after an unexpected tragedy strikes, Christopher will need to figure out how to deal with the loss without tearing a rift between his brother and himself. When Victor accepts a job with Pretty, a prestigious private hospital, to work alongside the handsome Austen Poole, Christopher ends up with one more thing to worry about. While it might seem like a dream job, there’s something not quite right in paradise, and when Vic starts acting strangely, Christopher will stop at nothing to get his man back. When striving for perfection, you sometimes need to get your hands a little dirty.

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Summary: Staging a musical in Purgatory can be absolute hell. Lonnie Coleridge last saw the sun in 1968. Since then, he’s been consigned to Limbo, still wearing the same tie-dyed T-shirt and bell-bottomed jeans he had on when he left his life behind. He and others like him have one chance each year at redemption: produce a show for the Greek pantheon. Whoever pleases this very specific—and temperamental—fan group could earn the right to move on. But after a literal act of god (*cough* Hermes *cough*) destroys their sets, lights, and costumes, the company needs emergency help to rebuild. Without it, all of them could poof out of existence forever. Out-of-work theater technician TD Baylor has precisely three things on his cosmic wish list: a job, a place to stay, and a boyfriend who isn’t a total tool. He thinks he’s got the first two nailed when he gets a line on a two-week gig that includes room and board. So what if the job tip came from a guy who was leaning way too hard into the LOTR cosplay at a sketchy Halloween pop-up? At this point, TD doesn’t have anything more to lose, so he figures…what the hell. He didn’t realize hell was the operative word. When Lonnie greets him at the theater door, though...whoa. TD fantasizes that item number three could be within his reach. But then Lonnie gives him the bad news: This is Purgatory Playhouse, aka Theater of the Darned. In two weeks—if they’re lucky and can successfully mount a musical version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream—the company will return to Limbo after the curtain falls. If they’re not lucky? Remember that part about hell? Purgatory Playhouse is part of the multi-author Magic Emporium Series. Each book stands alone, but each one features an appearance by Marden’s Magic Emporium, a shop that can appear anywhere, but only once and only when someone’s in dire need. This book contains a theater techie who’s one couch surf away from homeless, a production assistant who’s sort of, um, not alive, Greek gods behaving very badly indeed, and a guaranteed HEA.

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Summary: “Now is the time to release the burdens you have been carrying.” The holiday season is traditionally one of reunions, homecomings, and family gatherings, but for the LGBTQIA+ community, it can be a time of anxiety and dread—a time we must hide our true selves in order to feel welcome. Too often, the holidays bring about loneliness and pain—a longing to be unequivocally accepted, seen, and loved for who we are. This season, we invite you to be Queer for the New Year! Enter nine fantastical worlds and witness rebirth and release as individuals let go of the past and welcome the new year with open arms and fearless hearts. In the final minutes to midnight, journey with us as we discover that acceptance can be found in the most unlikely of places, pain is not forever, and if nothing feels okay, then it is not the end. Move from the heartaches of old, make a fresh start with hope and renewal in your heart, and join us in being— queer for the new year.

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Summary: After a terrible magical accident at Berkeley created unpredictable holes between realities, all manner of non-human creatures started popping into our world. These displacements, called Random Anomalous Reality Events or RARE, have taken magic out of fiction and relocated it firmly in reality, resulting in a great deal of chaos and confusion. Displaced elf Valerian works with AURA, the Agency of Unnatural Resettlement and Assimilation, to intercept these beings as they appear in the human world, helping the peaceful ones and subduing the violent, malevolent ones. It’s good, satisfying work, and Val would be happy if he wasn’t so lonely. Quinten is a young mage just trying to get by, but New York isn’t the easiest city to make a living in. If his methods are sometimes morally dubious, his heart is still in the right place. Of course, for Quinn, the right place means firmly locked away, protected at all costs. Living by his wits and sometimes magically induced luck, he works as a ‘freelance magic user’, or unregistered mage and small-time con, according to the authorities. The last thing Quinn wants is to draw the cops’ attention, but when an Event happens right on top of him, he’s forced to turn to AURA for help. Valerian isn’t at all what he’d expected in an AURA cop, and he certainly wasn’t expecting to join forces with the sexy elf, a snarky drow and a bitter incubus, when certain individuals in power try to stop the RARE by any means necessary. Things are not all what they seem at AURA headquarters, and a greater evil lurks at the top than anyone could have imagined.

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Summary: RISE (noun / verb) Eight definitions to inspire writers around the world, and an unlimited number of possible stories to tell: 1) An upward slope or movement 2) A beginning or origin 3) An increase in amount or number 4) An angry reaction 5) To take up arms 6) To return from death 7) To become heartened or elated 8) To exert oneself to meet a challenge Rise features 300-word speculative flash fiction stories from across the rainbow spectrum, from the minds of the writers of Queer Sci Fi.

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Summary: Dr. Eavan Delaney is frustrated. It is her destiny to reunite her people and work hard to protect the rivers and waters of the world, but she has no help whatsoever. So she has lived among humans for decades, undiscovered and in peace, but she knows this is wrong: she should be taking action. Then comes the fateful day she calls for support one last, desperate time -- and is heard. With the support of ‘The Council of Twelve’, Eavan continues to work for the safety of Nature. But no one has foreseen that the ‘Other Side’ has been sabotaging her efforts. The challenge before her is suddenly much greater, and the consequences of failure even more dire than she ever imagined. Will Eavan be strong enough to save the waters from the fire?

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Summary: The realm of Maldhonia was happy and prosperous, until strangers fell from the sky She’d given her life for power and a fresh start, but Calianthema had found a new trap—caught in a love spell with a dangerous nemesis. And this wasn’t the worst of her problems. RIVER’S ROAR is a standalone MAGE ERA prequel to the WOODPELL SERIES and one of the TALES OF ARDONNA. Content Advisory: Adult themes and situations

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Summary: Lord Morgorth is a dark mage on the planet Karishian. He’s considered a villain by his peers and relishes the title, having embraced the role early in his life. However, not all of his actions are necessarily villainous. Despite owning several of the Stones of Power—gemstones infused with powerful magick—he doesn’t use them, preferring to keep them hidden away and out of destructive, power-hungry hands. He hates them more than anything. So when a sorcerer gets a hold of a major stone, Morgorth has no choice but to go after him. But, to his irritation, he is not alone. Aishe is a dialen whose tribe was massacred by the sorcerer, and is now on a mission of vengeance. The attraction is instant between them, but Morgorth keeps his distance. Because of a traumatic childhood and a deadly destiny, he has no desire for emotional complications. But Aishe’s very presence challenges Morgorth's resolve. Not only does Morgorth admire Aishe’s strength and intelligence, but he begins to see Aishe as a friend. As their hunt continues and their time together lengthens, their bond deepens, as does Morgorth’s fear. If he becomes the monster that destiny claims he will be, will he hurt Aishe? Will he harm the one person who sees right through him? Who accepts him wholeheartedly? Determined to not let that happen, Morgorth keeps Aishe at a distance. But when Aishe is kidnapped by the sorcerer, what will Morgorth do to get him back?

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Summary: AURA’s offices have been quiet since the mage tower incident—as quiet as they can be for an agency dedicated to policing holes in reality—and the department heads have been free to turn their attention back to mundane matters. The return to quiet bureaucracy gives AURA’s Director of Research, Kai Hiltas, the time to turn his energy to a new issue—a young drow with unusual and dangerous powers named Ryld. Though his shadows always lurk at the edges of his vision, Ryld does his best to live peacefully and not let them hurt anyone. He has his work, his apartment and a succession of minders assigned by AURA who are, ostensibly, there to keep him safe in his new world and to prevent him from causing any scenes with his shadows. Most of the time, the arrangement works. But one disastrous incident causes Ryld’s minder to leave him unattended and lost—the precise thing he was hired to prevent. To replace the faithless minder, Kai suggests Hank, a half-goblin accountant recently in the middle of a string of terrible luck, while Kai works out how best to get Ryld the magical training he so desperately needs. For his part, Hank truly likes Ryld and insists he would be happier working as Ryld’s companion rather than as a controlling minder. As Hank and Ryld slowly come to terms with sharing space—and eventually more—Kai’s search for a teacher for Ryld takes them out west on the invitation of the Elvenhome’s aelfe queen and right into the lap of inter-elven feuds, ancient prejudice, conspiracies and trafficking rings. What should have been a pleasant visit soon turns into more than even forever-scheming Kai can handle.

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Summary: The time has come. The Dark Mage, Lord Morgorth, and Aishe of the Ravena Tribe, are to become bondmates. Morgorth is equal parts nervous and excited. He wants to unite with Aishe in the sacred dialen ceremony, to proclaim their devotion to the world, to show everyone that Aishe is his equal and deserving of respect. After all they’ve survived together, why shouldn’t they make the cosmic promise before friends and family? But duty must often come before pleasure. When Morgorth’s estranged mentor, Master Ulezander, comes to him with a time-sensitive mission involving a major stone of power, Morgorth has little choice but to acquiesce. Aishe knows his mate struggles with the revelation of his true destiny, after a lifetime of defining himself as the future Destroyer of Karishian. All he can do is reassure Morgorth that being the Savior is a far better fate for both of them. But as Morgorth and Aishe leap through worlds and dimensions in pursuit of a stone of power, more pieces to the puzzle of Morgorth’s destiny are revealed. And they form an image of sacrifice and tragedy. The dark cloud of an ancient enemy looms ever closer, and the path to becoming the Savior might prove more monstrous than that of the Destroyer.

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Summary: Fate and a dragon unite two men in a battle for love, magic, the march of time, and holiday joy. ___________ In a time of tall-masted ships and hand-made lives, a Guardian and a sailor find true love and their fates in each other. But romance, and a future together must wait, for duty calls. In a battle against dragons, can they seize victory in time to rescue the magic of Darknight and deliver holiday joy to a world that can no longer find its own way? ____________ All Reo Faramund plans for the evening is to take his son Pariso to the Festival of Lights in Sailor’s Cove, their home when they’re not out to sea on the tall-masted merchant ship, Mighty Hawk. Then, in less than a blink, the festival, the town, and the life he knows all vanish. When they find themselves high on a wintry mountain, Reo fears for their lives until an extraordinary stranger comes out of the night to offer help. First Guardian Jael Kohlinor patrols high up on Mount Lucia’s flank, his sole purpose to make sure no Flatlanders find out about Lucia, a tiny country hidden in a fold of time where a dragon named Nicholas presides over a bloom of dragon eggs that yields gems and riches every Darknight solstice. Without the Darknight cache, Nicholas can’t deliver holiday wonders across time, and time itself will suffer the consequences. When Jael finds Reo and Pariso shocked and shivering in the winter cold on the night before Darknight, he contemplates wiping their memories and getting them off the mountain, which is what the need for secrecy dictates. But invisible bonds pull Jael toward Reo like fate, and defying all rules he takes the strangers in out of the cold. Unknown to anyone on Mount Lucia, strange and greedy dragons are already winging toward Lucia with plans to steal Nicholas’s wealth. Jael and Reo might have a future, a family, a fated love, but only if they can first save Darknight.

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Summary: Sometimes, we get second chances -- at love, to make things right, to say good-bye the way it should have been said. Darian promised his dying husband Randy he would go through with the plan to teach summer school in Bath, England. Randy insisted; it was always Darian’s dream to live in England, go, do it. But once there, in Tintagel, on a street in Coverack, a small Cornish seaside village, Darian sees Randy. Grief can make us see things, right? So Darian tells himself, until the man whom he buried, whose ashes he carried with him to England, sits down beside him on a bench in front of Bath Abbey, with screaming seagulls nearby. It seems the dead can come back. But why and how? Has Randy come to take Darian with him? Or is something else going?

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Summary: Does the need for knowledge balance its burden? Donovan would prefer to die in his bed, but circumstances might force him to do otherwise. When Donovan is tasked with Retrieving a young child thought to be a magus — the most powerful magic user in any generation — he is thrown headfirst into a world of intrigue and deception where any move he makes could be the one that shifts his people into a position of bloodshed and failure. There is a war brewing, centuries old. The Hunters, blood mages and child-snatchers fight the born mages, people of the Order, the school of magic and scholarly pursuit. Donovan must learn who and what to trust and how to endure suffering as he finds more and more about the nature of this endless war and what he can do to stop it.

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Summary: Zack thought he had a strange job before---Marine medic in a secret government base was odd, but personal assistant to a sidhe prince is downright bizarre and damn dangerous. Zack thought he had a strange job before. Working as a Marine medic in a secret government installation was odd, but working as a human liaison to the /fae/ and as the personal assistant to a sidhe prince is downright bizarre. Throw in the fact that he's pretty damn sure he's fallen in love with his boss, and things are close to unmanageable. Of course, around the fae, one never says 'things can't possibly get any worse.' Unexplained events plague the human world. Strange sightings, spontaneous magical explosions, and odd bends in reality crop up. When Finn falls ill and a monstrous creature attacks Zack, things quickly slide into disaster. Lycanthropy, loose-cannon mages, and Lugh conspire to make a hellish mess of things---but the real peril begins when Diego loses an important piece of his mind.

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Summary: Joss Evans thought joining the Hypatia Coven would give her answers about her mysterious abilities. Instead, it's only raised more questions. Plagued by blackouts and terrifying visions, Joss struggles to control powers that even the most experienced witches can't comprehend. Her past—particularly the blood on her hands—has made her an outsider among those who should be her sisters. Only witches River and Indigo stand firmly by her side. When evidence suggests a demon is hunting Joss for her unique psychic gifts, the fractured coven reluctantly seeks help from Claire, a demon hunter with her own complicated history with the Hypatia Coven. As tensions rise and loyalties blur, Joss finds unexpected solace in her growing connection with Abigail, a powerful witch who sees beyond her broken edges. With dark forces closing in, Joss must decide: Will she surrender this new imperfect life, or fight for her place in a world that both fears and needs her power? Some sacrifices leave scars. Others leave nothing at all.

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Summary: In this second instalment of the Damien the Devil series, we see Damien has found a new, more permanent home outside the foster system with Pat, Damien's Renfield and caseworker, and his twin brother Matt. He is also enjoying a budding romantic relationship with Brian, another boy from the foster home. But after the two of them are caught kissing, Damien is kicked out on the streets in the middle of the night-only to find himself in a very dangerous situation with a vampire. Brian, feeling guilty about the whole situation, goes looking for Damien the next evening, only to fall victim to the vampire's trap himself. Damien and Pat save Brian, but he's unable to remember what happened that night-until he starts to be plagued with nightmares. Meanwhile, Damien is too afraid to reveal to Brian that he is a vampeal: a half-vampire and half-human. Will they both be able to handle the truth of what each other is hiding?

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Summary: Master of his destiny, terror of the Caribbean, the pirate known as the Black Angel is also elegant, charming, and seductive. En route to Jamaica to bring her brother news of their father's death, Lady Rosalind Hanshaw is captured by the Black Angel, a legendary French pirate who targets English shipping. TOrn between her loyalty to her homeland and her growing attraction to the one man she should hate above all others, Rosalind must decide whether the Black Angel is nothing more than a despicable pirate or if he holds the key to both her heart and her future.

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Summary: Attracted by passion, repelled by war. Can two shieldmaidens navigate battlegrounds of the sword and the heart? Sigrid the Valiant is legendary throughout the kingdoms of Norvegr for her heroic deeds, but her love has yet to find a home. Now, racing on the heels of her father’s murder, a neighboring kingdom’s raids signal an all-out conflict. Elyn is a young shieldmaiden with a score to settle, fighting her own insecurities along with enemies who threaten her homeland. However, she suspects a more menacing danger lurks in the shadows. When the two clash on opposite sides of their shield walls, sparks fly from both their swords and passions. But when they talk, the fierce women discover an antagonist’s plot has pitted their kingdoms against each other. Can Sigrid and Elyn move past their suspicions and differences to forge a binding love and foil the villain’s scheme, or will the enemy’s assassins end their search for the truth? Action, adventure, and intrigue ride together with romance in this enemies-to-lovers saga from the pre-Viking land of Norvegr. Award-winning, best-selling author Edale Lane brings history to life in this fast-paced sapphic novel. Grab your ax and rönd and join the quest!