Showing results by narrator "Cris Dukehart" in All Categories

Tested by the gods, Leda and her angelic mate Nero venture into the City of Ashes, a fallen fortress in the Western Wilderness where nightmarish monsters reign supreme and an ancient secret is buried. To survive the Gods' Trials, they will have to save the city - and they will have to do it without their magic. Their victory, however, comes at a heavy price. And the secret they uncover will upset the balance of power between Earth and heaven.

When true-crime writer Olivia Cruz disappears with no signs of foul play, her new boyfriend, Lincoln Sharp, suspects the worst. He knows she didn’t leave willingly and turns to attorney Morgan Dane and PI Lance Kruger to find her before it’s too late. As they dig through Olivia’s life, they are shocked to discover a connection between her current book research on two cold murder cases and the suicide of one of Morgan’s prospective clients.

Leda Pierce is working as a paranormal bounty hunter on the Frontier, the dividing line between human civilization and the plains of monsters. Life is simple until a vampire hunt goes wrong and her brother goes missing, captured by the dark angels of hell. With no magical powers of her own and no way to find him, Leda's only option is to go to New York and join the Legion of Angels. If she can survive long enough to make it up the ranks, she will gain the magic she needs to find her brother.

Clark thought he knew what grief was. Addie thought she understood the dangers of the Tempest Sea. They couldn't have been more wrong. When their only chance at survival lands them on opposite ends of an island that shouldn't exist, they will both be forced to contend with the consequences of their latest mistakes—and each other's. Will they be able to keep the promises they made one another, even as loss and circumstance morphs them into the very people they never thought they would be? Or will their relationship be the next casualty in this never-ending battle?

Miracle Springs is a place of healing. Strangers flock there hoping that the natural hot springs, five-star cuisine, and renowned spa can cure their ills. And, if none of that works, they often find their way to Miracle Books, where, over a fresh-baked scone from the Gingerbread House bakery, they exchange their stories with owner Nora Pennington in return for a carefully chosen book. That's Nora's special talent: prescribing the perfect novel to ease a person's deepest pain and lighten their heaviest burden.

The longer a man lives, the greater the chance his actions will cost him in the future. When that man is an immortal nephilim, the misdeeds can really pile up. Lucas has paid for the crimes of his past for centuries, resisting any close relationship that might make his life even more difficult. Until Melena. Only she could begin to melt the ice shielding his heart, but then he was captured by his greatest enemies - angels.

When Kim Fraser enters the lair of shifter Liam Morrissey to get answers for a client accused of murder, she is unprepared for her attraction to him. But her venture into Shiftertown uncovers too many secrets the shifters want kept secret. The unmated Liam is forced to protect Kim against the wrath of his clan leader and his own father. What Liam doesn't expect when he makes the mate claim for Kim's own protection is a powerful attraction to the courageous and warm-hearted human woman.

There is only one place throughout the entire Kingdom of Wrenly that no one dares explore: the Dream Portal. Hidden beyond the swamps of Bogburb, this strange and ancient circle of stones was built by wizards before time began. Stories of great danger surround the mysterious monument. But when their dragon friend, Ruskin, falls under the Dream Portal's spell, Lucas and Clara will risk the legendary peril to save their dragon friend.

Tanis and Sera have taken the I2 to Khardine, the new capital of the Transcend, and must now travel to the Inner Stars and meet with Scipian Empress, Diana - who they hope will be an ally to the Transcend. With the Trisilieds Kingdom, the Hegemony of Worlds, and the Nietzschean Empire all aligned with the Orion Guard - not to mention a civil war brewing in the Transcend - they will need all the help they can get to secure the Inner Stars. But Empress Diana has her own plans for the Inner Stars, and while they may dovetail with the Transcend's for now, they may not always do so....

The blood and violence never ends - it only stops long enough for Melena to relax her guard, to think she might actually survive. For the past year, she has worked hard to pick up the pieces of her life. The supernaturals in Fairbanks are tolerating her, the angels are shielding her from her enemies, and she's getting stronger as her body changes into . . . something else. If not for the man she loves being locked away in Purgatory, she might even believe she could be happy.

Melena Sanders has managed to avoid all things inhuman for most of her life, but after coming to Fairbanks, Alaska, to rescue her best friend from supernaturals, she hasn't been allowed to leave. That is, until her long-time nemesis comes to collect a favor she owes him. Lucas might be half angel, but he's all bad as far as she's concerned. Paying him back might get her out of town for a while, but her new destination will be anything but enjoyable.

Leda Pierce's latest mission brings her back to her hometown at the edge of the Frontier. But things have taken a turn for the worse in the six months since she left home to join the Legion of Angels in New York City. Crime lords now rule over the town, and the beasts' numbers are exploding just beyond the great magic wall that separates humanity from the plains of monsters. Together, with the fiercely seductive angel Nero, Leda guides a group of pilgrims across the monster-infested expanse to the ruins of the final battle between gods and demons.

Melena Sanders is locked away in purgatory - which is no vacation - but she'll soon be returning to Alaska, where troubles are mounting once again. Suspicious fires are breaking out, supernaturals are being attacked, and there's an enemy lurking out there waiting for his chance to strike. Her lover, Lucas, is managing to hold their home together during her absence, but he's more than ready for her to return.

Leda's quest to gain the magic she needs to save her brother leads her to the castle of the Dragons, home of four soldiers in the Legion of Angels with extraordinary powers over the elements. If she makes it through their training, she might just survive her next sip of the gods' Nectar and level up her magic. But the gods' gifts of magic come at a price. Leda can already feel the Nectar changing her, making her less human - and so is her budding romance with the angel Nero. Sip by sip, kiss by kiss, the change is taking hold of her.

When Melissa Francis was eight years old, she won the role of lifetime: playing Cassandra Cooper Ingalls, the little girl who was adopted with her brother (played by young Jason Bateman) by the Ingalls family on the world’s most famous prime-time soap opera, Little House on the Prairie. But behind the scenes, her success was fueled by the pride, pressure, and sometimes grinding cruelty of her stage mother.

The enigmatic, seductive, and irresistible vampire Valerian seems to have it all. Known as the master of illusion, he dazzles international audiences in modern-day Las Vegas. In spite of his fame and success, Valerian is at his core a tormented man. He surrendered his soul in the dark days of the 14th century after losing his true love, Brenna.

Dire wolves are among the rarest creatures in the Kingdom of Wrenly. They travel under the cloak of darkness, sleep during the day, and hunt in the deepest silence. The only proof that these beasts exist is what they leave behind: giant paw prints and haunting howls that echo on the wind. So, when Prince Lucas and Sir Clara find a lost dire wolf pup alone in the woods, they must use all of their skills to find the hidden den of wolves.

Between her service in the U.S. Army and her new life living with supernaturals in Alaska, Melena Sanders has had her loyalty and duty tested in every possible way. Or so she thought. Tensions among supernatural factions in Fairbanks are growing after the city's recent attacks, and she must pick a side. Her nephilim lover Lucas needs her help to search for his missing brother - whose disappearance may not be all it seems.

A dragon, a fae, and a pixie walk into a bookstore… Sounds like a joke, right? For me, it's just an ordinary day on the job. At least, it has been ever since my aunt disappeared and left me with her store, her cat, and a whole lot of unanswered questions. My whole life, I've been told to stay hidden. Pretend I'm human. Sell books, drink tea, and never betray the truth of what I am. But it turns out my aunt had secrets, and a lot of those secrets seem to involve me ending up dead. To survive, I'm going to have to reckon with my past, even if it means placing my trust in a total stranger.

What makes stepmothering so hard? And why are we, as people and a culture, so hard on stepmothers? How can we make it easier? Stepmonster is a truly unique and groundbreaking book for women with stepchildren, men with kids who repartner, adult stepchildren, and anyone who cares about them. It is a comprehensive, cross-cultural, research-based reconsideration of stepfamily dynamics - from the perspective of the stepmother.