Amelia Cynster is stunned to hear these words from Lucien Ashford—the enigmatic sixth Viscount Calverton and the man she has always loved—just before the handsome rogue passes out at her feet. Dawn is breaking and she's already risked scandal by lying in wait for him just outside his London home. And though torn between indignant affront and astonished relief, she's nevertheless thrilled that Luc has agreed to her outrageous marriage proposal. However, rather than submitting to a hasty wedding as Amelia had planned, the exasperating lord insists on wooing her properly…in public and in private. She longs for their time alone, when she can learn all about seduction from a master, yet frustratingly, they all too often find themselves beneath the stifling gaze of the ton. But there is method behind the viscount's madness—he has a secret reason for wooing Amelia. And like all desirable things, his passion has a price.
He has stolen Eleanor Fitt's heart, but who was Daniel Sheridan before he became a Spirit-Hunter? In this suspenseful 100-page digital-original romance novella from Something Strange and Deadly author Susan Dennard, Daniel's past—and his first love—will be exposed. With a checkered past like Daniel Sheridan's, landing an apprenticeship aboard the Sadie Queen was just the fresh start he was looking for. But that's the last thing it's been. Teeming with ghosts that plague the crew with horrific nightmares, this ship is more trouble than it's worth to Daniel. Except for Cass. . . . Gorgeous and stubborn to a fault, apprentice pilot Cassidy Cochran is the one thing keeping Daniel on board. Though they started as best friends, their relationship has grown into something more intense. Their stolen, sometimes steamy moments have Daniel feeling something he never thought possible: love. Enlisting the help of a short-tempered Chinese boy named Jie and a Creole gentleman named Joseph, the three attempt to rid the boat of the ghosts—for if they don't, the Sadie Queen will be put out of business. And with Cass's fatally-ill sister in need of expensive medical help, Daniel is more determined than ever to save the ship. But when he discovers that the ghosts are linked to a dangerous curse whose caster wants everyone on board dead, Daniel will come face-to-face with an evil so dark, so wicked, that it will change the course of his life forever. Epic Reads Impulse is a digital imprint with new releases each month.
The “Wicked Pavilion” of the title is the Café Julien, where everybody who is anybody goes to recover from failed love affairs and to pursue new ones, to cadge money, to hatch plots, and to puncture one another’s reputation. Dennis Orphen, the writer from Dawn Powell’s Turn, Magic Wheel, makes an appearance here, as does Andy Callingham, Powell’s thinly disguised Ernest Hemingway. The climax of this mercilessly funny novel comes with a party which, remarked Gore Vidal, “resembles Proust’s last roundup,” and where one of the partygoers observes, “There are some people here who have been dead twenty years.” "For decades Dawn Powell was always just on the verge of ceasing to be a cult and becoming a major religion." -- Gore Vidal
One of a series of stories that revolve around the babysitters club. Dawn and Mary Anne are now stepsisters, but perhaps sharing parents and a bedroom isn't such a good idea. Dawn thought she'd always wanted a sister, but she didn't count on Mary Anne - the wicked stepsister.
This scathing “comedy of manners” set in the 1940s “steers us through the lives of women who come to New York . . . for love, money, opportunity, and a good time” (New York Times). At the center of this 1942 novel are a wealthy, self-involved newspaper publisher and his scheming, novelist wife, Amanda Keeler—who ensnares Ohioan Vicky Haven in her social and romantic manipulations. Author Dawn Powell always denied Amanda Keeler was based upon the real-life Clare Boothe Luce until years later when she discovered a memo she’d written to herself in 1939 that said, “Why not do a novel on Clare Luce?” Which prompted Powell to write in her diary, “Who can I believe? Me or myself?” Set against an atmospheric backdrop of New York City in the months just before America’ s entry into World War II, A Time of Be Born is a scathing and hilarious study of cynical New Yorkers stalking each other for various selfish ends.
From Scarlett Dawn comes the stunning, sexy, sensual, surprising, spellbinding conclusion to the first saga in the bestselling Forever Evermore trilogy. Queen Shifter, Lily Ruckler, has found solace in brutal warfare. Her bloodied fists and bared fangs fill the holes left in her memory, the blank spaces that leave her soul aching and empty. Her only pleasure is in blood; her only salvation is the relationship she has with her infant child, the baby of unknown origins who brings her solace and stability. When Elder Harcourt summons Lily and her protector Antonio back to the United States, Lily thinks nothing unusual about the change of location. But a standard reconnaissance mission leaves her trapped inside King Zeller's private quarters, and at his mercy. Surprise attraction rapidly turns to a battle of wills and an intense power struggle that leaves no clear victor but plenty of resentment. They are not allowed to nurse their wounds. In order to win the war against the Commoners, the King Vampire and Queen Shifter must work together. It should be easy. The war is turning, the battle is deadly, and both Lily and Ezra love the cold cleanliness of combat. But their chance meeting has led to more than an unlikely alliance. Secrets have a way of surfacing, especially on a torn-up battlefield, and Lily and Ezra are about to re-learn all they cannot remember. If they can't control their emotions and responses, it will be to their own ruin and the destruction of everything around them.
No. 1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens has returned to another utterly irresistible branch on her beloved Cynster family tree The only thing more troublesome than a Cynster man is a Cynster lady who believes that love is not her destiny. Famously known in London Society as 'The Matchbreaker', Henrietta Cynster's uncanny skill lies in preventing ill-fated nuptials - not in falling victim to Cupid's alluring spell.However, when she disrupts one match too many, she feels honour-bound to assist the dashing James Glossup and find him a suitable bride for a marriage of convenience. Yet this is no easy task. Complicated by the growing and undeniable attraction that flares between them, Henrietta must convince not only James, but herself, that when it comes to love, she will never, ever fall.
Gas prices. Traffic. Your boss. Your former boss. Your coworkers. Your crush. Doctors. Customer service. Who can you call to get that monkey off your back? You can’t call anyone because they won’t return your calls. Isn’t it time to have a little ammo of your own? Find it here: fifty custom maledictions for situations you run into every day, and for people you know and wish you didn’t. The Little Book of Curses and Maledictions puts the power back in your hands with its user-friendly, step-by-step instructions. Learn how to place spells, incantations, hexes, and more. Authentic, ancient curses from around the world are tweaked for easy, contemporary use. The book covers the four essentials for practicing any kind of magic: what to do and say, what materials to use, what frame of mind to be in, and what limits to set. In some cases it even matters where you are when you set your curse, what time of day it is, and who’s around. Create the life you deserve using the power of the ages.
How does marriage work? If convention is set aside and is no longer there to guide…what then? #1 New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Laurens brings you THE ADVENTURERS QUARTET, a riveting blend of Regency-era high seas adventure, a mystery shrouded in the heat of tropical jungles, and the passionate romances of four couples and their unexpected journeys into love. The instant Captain Declan Frobisher laid eyes on Lady Edwina Delbraith, he knew she was the lady he wanted as his wife. The scion of a seafaring dynasty accustomed to success, he discovered that wooing Edwina was surprisingly straightforward—not least because she made it plain that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. Declan’s vision of marriage was of a gently-reared wife to grace his arm, to manage his household, and to bear his children. He assumed that household, children, and wife would remain safely in England while he continued his life as an explorer sailing the high seas. Declan got his wish—up to a point. He and Edwina were wed. As for the rest—his vision of marriage… Aunt of the young Duke of Ridgware and sister of the mysterious man known as Neville Roscoe, London’s gambling king, even before the knot was tied Edwina shattered the illusion that her character is as delicate, ethereal, and fragile as her appearance suggests. Far from adhering to orthodox mores, she and her ducal family are even more unconventional than the Frobishers. Beneath her fairy-princess exterior, Edwina possesses a spine of steel—one that might bend, but will never break. Born to the purple—born to rule—she’s determined to rule her life. With Declan’s ring on her finger, that means forging a marriage that meets her needs as well as his. But bare weeks into their honeymoon, Declan is required to sail to West Africa. Edwina decides she must accompany him. A secret mission with unknown villains flings unexpected dangers into their path as Declan and Edwina discover that meeting the challenge of making an unconventional marriage work requires something they both possess—bold and adventurous hearts. The first voyage is one of exploration, the second one of discovery. The third journey brings maturity, while the fourth is a voyage of second chances. Start the journey here and follow the adventure, the mystery, and the romances to the thrilling end. A historical novel of 85,000 words interweaving romance, high adventure, and intrigue.
Mrs. Claudine Grant married when she was eighteen and lost her husband less than six months later to the ravages of war. Her heart is too bruised for anymore foolish whims, and she's determined to never marry again. Hudson Lockley, the Earl of Wyndam has led a decadent life. He doesn't believe in love or marriage, but he does believe in pleasure. He lost both of his parents as a boy and was raised by his grandmother. He refuses to allow anything emotional into his life. One major devastation was enough to turn him cold—except in bed. Claudine befriends Hudson's grandmother. They cross paths often, and over time Claudine wonders what a night of true passion would be like. The earl would make a spectacular rogue for one night... Seduction takes them down an unexpected path and perhaps an all-consuming love neither had planned.
