stories in and

Fever Dreams

Fever Dreams by Luther Kross

Have you ever wondered how urban legends began in your neck of the woods? Have you ever pondered the possibility that, perhaps, there is some element of truth to these horrifying tales? Perhaps you've treated someone harshly, only to have your actions come back and bite you in the rear. Maybe you've gone home with someone from the club, only to wake up with a mountain of regret the next morning. But, what if you hadn't? Lived to regret it, that is. Find the answers to these questions and more in this, the first volume of Fever Dreams.


The Great and the Small

The Great and the Small by A. T. Balsara

Indie Recs Indie

Deep below the market, in the dark tunnels no human knows exist, a war has begun. Led by the charismatic Beloved Chairman, a colony of rats plots to exterminate the ugly two-legs who have tortured them in labs, crushed them with boots, and looked at them with disgust for as long as anyone can remember. When the Chairman's nephew is injured and a young two-leg nurses him back to health, however, doubt about the war creeps in. Now the colony is split--obey the Chairman and infect the two-legs with the ancient sickness passed down from the Old Ones, or do the unthinkable...


Beneath the Shadow Dark

Beneath the Shadow Dark by Melissa Polk

Indie Recs Indie SPFBO8

Only in a land of darkness would they find their way. But it is no easy thing to serve a dark god. On a desert planet, the faithful inhabitants of the surface worship a goddess who grants them prosperity, as well as the unrelenting light of a sun that never sets. But beneath them, an eons old struggle for power rages between her banished siblings. When tragedy strikes Jos’ family, they are cast out of their home and deemed unworthy of the goddess’ light. Mad with grief, Jos invokes the long forgotten gods of the dark—and receives an answer. After bargaining their soul to restore their family’s honor, Jos is led into the subterranean world of the Shadow Dark by an emissary of the dark god, who is as mysterious as he is alluring. Among the wonders and curiosities of the dark underworld, Jos discovers many unexpected things: rebellion, friendship, purpose, and a love that struggles to survive a divine war. Jos becomes irrevocably tangled in the machinations of deities as their every choice could alter the tenuous balance of the entire planet.


Dio in the Dark

Dio in the Dark by Rizwan Asad

WriteHive Book Club

"Be young tonight, if you must. For tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow you will grow old, and the night will no longer be your lover." The powers of the pantheon have faded. The gods live amongst the mortals, grasping for what little of their divinity remains. When Zeus - King of the Gods - goes missing in modern-day Toronto, it is up to his estranged son, Dio, to find him. And with rumors of The Darkness coming, Dio will have to race to find his father, and uncover the truth before it's too late!


The Treeborn Prophecies

The Treeborn Prophecies by Samuel Hunter

Indie Recs Indie

The Great City is a beautiful treetop metropolis filled with twisted walkways, wooden huts and huge gnarled branches, and it is my home. Mine, along with the other ten thousand or so people that live on this world. No one knows why the trees are so massive. Perhaps it is some ancient magic. Maybe they're not trees at all. As long as they keep us far off the ground, safe from the things that lurk on the forest floor, most people don't care... ...until a dark force threatens our very lives here in the giant canopy. A force so powerful that it will take a group of people with very unique capabilities to save us.


These Violent Nights

These Violent Nights by Rebecca Crunden

SPFBO8

Once upon a time, inhabitants of another world tore a hole through the universe and came to Earth. They called themselves Suriias, and rivalled humans in knowledge and skill with one great exception: they had magic. War followed. Humanity lost. And three hundred years later, humans are on the brink of extinction. Orphans Thorn and Thistle live in hiding. They are the last of their families, the last of their friends. They scrape by, stealing to survive and living on the streets or hiding in sheds. But even under the brutal regime of the Suriias, there are places where humans can mingle in secret with magical sympathisers, and one night Thistle gets an unexpected offer of marriage from a Suriia with high standing and friends in all the right places. For Thistle, it’s a chance at safety and comfort; for Thorn, it’s a chance to find the ones who killed her parents. And so the pair move into the capital city of Courtenz. An urban monstrosity of magic and might, false friends and flying cars, drones and death tolls, the new city promises a fresh start – and new love – for both. But if there’s one thing Thorn knows for certain, it’s that dreams can swiftly turn into nightmares.


The Enixar: The Sorcerer's Conquest

The Enixar: The Sorcerer's Conquest by Mikkell Khan

WriteHive Book Club

A sorcerer king, his wise advisor, and a young sorceress hiding her growing powers race to find an ancient power once thought lost. Giving the wielder the power to control the universe... or to destroy it. Gudrunn, entrusted with one of three magical artifacts, amplifies his terrifying power and quickly elevates to become the sorcerer king of the planet Gramadon. He seeks a rarity still protected by its people, even from him: an unhatched Dragon egg just waiting for the next dragonrider. Meriaus, native to the planet Gramadon, believes he can guide the sorcerer king to make the universe a better place. Yet, the power of the Enixar soon twists his master’s mind. No one can stop him... no one except his trusted advisor. Amadalia loves her grandfather, the sorcerer king who believes in her and understands her true potential: the potential to inherit his throne. Training in secret proves to be her best weapon in the battles to come. The Enixar - The Sorcerer's Conquest is a dynamic introduction to an epic fantasy series you won’t be able to put down! Complete with a strong female protagonist, Sorcerer King, complex characters and political intrigue, this series dives into the core of Epic Fantasy and Science Fantasy that readers will love. If you are a fan of John Flanagan's The Ranger's Apprentice, Garth Nix's The Old Kingdom, or Kim Harrison's The Hollows, then this is for you.


The Whisper of Dragons

The Whisper of Dragons by Michelle Picard

Something is wrong with the Story of the world.... Stories are the bonds of connection between all matter, and their breakdown is causing earthquakes and social unrest to tear apart 21st century Earth. Kavi, a Story Whisperer, must solve the mystery of this chaos before a deeper threat leads to the death of humankind. Kavi has a secret. A dragon chose her as its heir when she was a child because she possessed strong magic to bend the Stories of matter. Kavi's dragon wants her to inherit its mantle, transform, and join the ranks of the Guardians who protect the world. But if the dragon's powerful Story magic cannot save her people, how will she? And will she have to give up her humanity to do so?


The Seventh Cadence

The Seventh Cadence by Jim Wilbourne

SPFBO8

An action-packed epic fantasy adventure perfect for fans of Brandon Sanderson, Brent Weeks, and Michael J. Sullivan After a supernatural and unforeseen calamity shatters the tentative alliance of the five realms, the Deseran Dominion has returned to take back their homeland and restore their oppressive regime. As the Dominion readies their troops for invasion, the fate of the entire world rests in the hands of a fugitive scientist, a powerful pacifist, and an unseasoned prince with little to guide them but their own ideals. With the freedom of a kingdom at risk, each must find their place in a world torn asunder. The Seventh Cadence is a sweeping high fantasy epic of war, found family, and reckoning with fate.


The Last Sorcerers: The Forbidden Scrolls Part 3

The Last Sorcerers: The Forbidden Scrolls Part 3 by Matthew Cesca

The exciting conclusion to The Forbidden Scrolls Trilogy is here! An army of the dead marches across Teren’vei with Frost Dirvent at its helm. Only one of the ancient forbidden scrolls remains between the necromancer and ultimate power as he cuts a swath of death across the continent. With each fresh kill, his army swells. Adrift in a sea of grief, Juliya must find herself once more. Frost has an expanding list of crimes to answer for with each passing day, and his strength continues to grow. What can a single thief do against such power? Will her quest for vengeance end with the ultimate sacrifice? Or worse yet, failure? Time is short for the chosen champions of the gods. They will need an army if they’re to stop Frost from returning Teren’vei to an age of darkness. And one of their own needs to learn how to unlock the magic in his blood if they are to have any hope of success.


Pretty Deadly

Pretty Deadly by Kelsey Josund

Cinna would quite literally kill for the throne. For years, Cinna has been forced to serve her wealthy cousins rather than attend society events alongside them. She has waited for the chance to prove herself and exact revenge. When a ball at the castle is announced, promising to bring many powerful people to town, she seizes the opportunity to strike. She bets her best friend, Johann, a small-time thief and con-man, that she can land a greater score the night of the ball than he can. They embark on parallel heists. But as their plots unfold, things begin to unravel: by the end of the night, the castle’s on lock down, a duchess is dead, a mansion has burnt to the ground – and Cinna hasn’t even stolen anything. Or has she captured something far more valuable than gold and jewels?


Blood and Snow

Blood and Snow by Abi Clarke

Indie Recs Indie

The world as we know it has ended… After a violent war leaves the country in ruin, humans are a dying breed. In their stead, vampires walk freely, crowned kings and queens of the New World. Sage Lively should know better than to challenge them. They’re impossibly strong, with senses fifty times sharper than her own. Yet that’s exactly what she finds herself doing. With a rare gene called the Tolerance, she’s wanted in order to continue the vampiric lineage, restoring them to full strength. But when she meets Silas, a centuries-old vampire with incurable apathy, Sage finds herself at the centre of a plot that threatens to tear down the New World. Silas knows what he wants, and it seems he’ll stop at nothing to get it. When old friends resurface, loyalties are tested, and Sage is forced to confront her own humanity in ways she could never anticipate. Will Sage survive the fall, or will she end up a victim?


Of Us and Them

Of Us and Them by T.L. Coughlin

Indie Recs Indie

A fated future burning with danger leads a young girl to uncover a sinister plot. HAVE YOUR LAST BREATH Seventeen-year-old Evren was born for one purpose: to serve as a vessel for the Leviathans, an alien species hidden in global dragon lore. She longs to join the secret society who concealed them in history—and as last of the twelve prophesied Paladins, she needs to. With the world in ruin, their unification will signal the Leviathans’ return to Earth to protect humans from their worst enemy: themselves. But Evren’s ambitions are dashed when a Paladin is found dead. The murder sets her world ablaze and now she must stop the saboteur, or risk destroying a celestial plan millennia in the making. However, finding the truth—and the killer—in a society built on deceit won’t be easy, especially with Evren’s fierce and guarded mother as its leader. Can Evren salvage what’s left of her fate? Or will dark discoveries make her the next victim?


The Living Waters

The Living Waters by Dan Fitzgerald

SFFOasis SPFBO9

Wonder swirls beneath murky water. When two painted-faced nobles take a guided raft trip on a muddy river, they expect to rough it for a few weeks before returning to their life of sheltered ease. But when mysterious swirls start appearing in the water, even their seasoned guides get rattled. The mystery of the swirls lures them on to the mythical wetlands known as the Living Waters. They discover a world beyond their imagining, but stranger still are the worlds they find inside their own minds as they are drawn deep into the troubles of this hidden place. The Living Waters is a sword-free fantasy novel featuring an ethereal love story, meditation magic, and an ancient book with cryptic marginalia. It is the first book in the Weirdwater Confluence duology; the second book, The Isle of a Thousand Worlds, comes out January 15 2022.


Crown of Aster

Crown of Aster by Emmaline Strange

Indie Recs Indie

When Adair first catches Nathaniel’s scent in his forest, he’s curious and aroused. He’s never smelled anything like it, and though the faun has been avoiding entanglements with humans for decades, he thinks the time might be ripe to make an exception. When Nathaniel first sets eyes on Adair, he’s terrified--and, to be honest, a little aroused. Learning that the forest near his village is full of mysterious fae folk has Nathaniel’s head spinning, and finding out the handsome faun now intent on courting him is the heir to the fae kingdom is, quite frankly, a lot to handle. However, their attraction is mutual and undeniable, and Nathaniel finds himself falling hard for the mysterious forest dweller. As they grow closer, Nathaniel learns that the trees he’s lived beside his entire life are full of secrets, magic—and danger. A dark new presence in the woods threatens the fae folk and the humans alike, turning the gentle fae wild and violent, Adair among them. For Adair and Nathaniel to protect their shared world, they must discover who is behind this force of wild magic before Adair and his kin are too far gone to save.


The Man and the Crow

The Man and the Crow by Rebecca Crunden

Some witches curse, others are cursed. And sometimes, the cursed want revenge.


A Sea of Pearls & Leaves

A Sea of Pearls & Leaves by Rosalyn Briar

Indie Recs Indie

Princess Ingrid of Norella Isle does not want to get married. So, her priestess girlfriend, Lilura, devises a wicked plot to deter suitors with a nearly impossible marriage contract: should Ingrid die first, her husband must be buried at sea beside her. The plan backfires when all seven suitors agree, and the king announces a competition for Ingrid’s hand. Ingrid must keep her head above water as she deals with the suitors, a jealous girlfriend, and the news of two murdered priestesses. As the suitors are eliminated, one man stands out: the quirky and anxious Prince Soren who charms both Ingrid and Lilura. When Lilura goes missing, Ingrid and Soren must piece together who has murdered the priestesses and why before it’s too late. CW: This novel contains violence, sexual situations, and adult language.


The Fate of Stars

The Fate of Stars by S.D. Simper

Indie Recs Indie

A devout mermaid. A disgraced princess. A feud as ancient as the gods Worlds collide when Tallora is kidnapped from her ocean home and forced to be a pet to a tyrannical foreign empire. Her only hope for rescue lies with a sworn enemy--Princess Dauriel, infamous for her stone heart and conflicted past. But when Dauriel's kingdom comes to the cusp of war, could their uneasy alliance be the key to defeating a common foe? Or will their growing feelings for each other lead them to ruin? From the world of FALLEN GODS comes a tale of ancient magic and cutthroat politics--and finding redemption through love.


River Magic

River Magic by M.A. Phillips

Indie Recs Indie

Budding clairvoyant Lacey Moran seeks to understand her dreams and find her life’s purpose along the St. Lawrence River. If only her visions of silver arms and Cian O’Connor’s blue eyes were easier to understand! The pieces begin coming together when she encounters a mermaid in the river, joins a group of Druids, and opens herself to romance with an old friend. Can Lacey overcome her doubts, or is she in over her head?


The Lost King

The Lost King by T.M. Kohl

She’s trapped on another world. With a strange voice in her head. What will it take to get back to Earth? Lauren Strauss wanted a normal life, but fate had another idea in mind. Plagued by bizarre dreams and questions about her family’s past, Lauren hopes the day of her college graduation will lead to her getting answers... When she’s caught up in a violent attack that rocks downtown Chicago, her mother arms her with a mysterious amulet which she will soon realize has a mind of its own. Tearing her from Earth and dropping her in an alien place, it abandons Lauren and leaves her to navigate this new world by herself. She will do anything to return home. But can she?


The Wayfinder's Apprentice

The Wayfinder's Apprentice by K Dezendorf

Indie Recs Indie

Rose knows the magical world of the Umbra exists. She’s been there before, and she longs to return to the land of fantasy and start a happier life. Stuck on Earth with only her trickster guardian and a displaced gang of elven siblings for company; Rose has a fateful run-in with a rogue wild elf and meets a Wayfinder, a gatekeeper of the portals between realms. However, Rose is horrified to discover the Umbra has changed since her first visit, finding herself caught up in unexpected conflicts, from warring god-like beings to dealings with demons. With many grueling choices ahead of her, Rose finds the dream she yearns for comes with a cost.


The Changeling Tree

The Changeling Tree by Frances Evelyn

Indie Recs Indie

A missing girl. A Faerie game. An abandoned baby. Tracy has been missing for months and her mum isn’t answering the door, but Mike refuses to forget his girlfriend. When Tracy’s mum disappears too, his last hope is gone. But in her garden he finds a pram, and in the pram is a baby. Will this be Mike’s happy ever after, or will they come for his daughter too?


Spirits of Vengeance

Spirits of Vengeance by Rob J. Hayes

SPFBO8

He'll die as many times as it takes. The Ipian Empire was once a land that welcomed dragons and spirits alike, but a century of war and bloodshed saw them all but vanish. Now, the lost things are returning and the Onryo have gathered. Five legendary spirits with mysterious powers, bent on freeing an ancient evil that would wreak havoc on humanity. Haruto swore his soul to the God of Death for the chance to hunt down the vengeful ghost of his wife. Now an onmyoji, he’s tasked by the Imperial Throne to hunt down monsters and malicious spirits. But he knows not all spirits are evil and not all deserve the peace of the sword. Kira is a student at Heiwa, an academy for children with dangerous techniques. But she has a secret, she’s not like the other students. When the school is attacked, she flees with one of the tutors, determined to hide both from those who would kill her, and those who would use her. As a plague of spirits sweeps across the land, the Onryo leave a bloody trail for Haruto to follow. But who’s hunting who? The Mortal Techniques novels are a series of stand-alone stories that can be read entirely independently, set in the award-winning Mortal Techniques universe.


Thief of Spring

Thief of Spring by Katherine Macdonald

The Greek Gods are real. But they aren’t gods. They’re faeries. When 17-year-old Persephone accidentally stumbles upon a revel, she’s chosen as a sacrifice, but is saved from this fate when the Lord of the Underworld tricks her into becoming his companion for seven months instead. Sephy is taken to his dark palace under the earth, but the Lord of Night isn’t exactly what she expected him to be… And neither is she.


Dark

Dark by Kat Kinney

Hayden Crowe fronts an all-girls band down in Austin, Texas. Between tending bar so her sister can stay in school and dealing with the fallout after their addict father skipped town, she hasn’t exactly had time to join the social media freak out over the recent outing of vampires and werewolves. Her world comes crashing down the night she’s attacked in an alley after a gig and bitten by a feral werewolf. Unable to return home for fear of hurting her sister, and with a message scrawled across her arm warning HOSPITALS NOT SAFE, Hayden is left with just one option… Him. Ethan Caldwell doesn’t do relationships. Adopted son of the pack Alpha, he lives a solitary life as a barista and artist. Things three years ago with Hayden Crowe… went too far. By pack law, she couldn’t be told what he was. Ending it was for her own protection. But when Hayden shows up on his doorstep, newly changed and in danger, Ethan defies his father’s orders to stay away. Someone in the paranormal community is hunting her, and hell if he’s going to fail her again. DARK is part of the Blood Moon, Texas Shifters series. Sizzling hot romance. Guaranteed HEA.


Crave

Crave by Kat Kinney

Lacey Blair had no idea about the existence of vampires and werewolves until a freak accident left her infected with lycanthropy. As a result of that night, Dallas Caldwell was banished from the pack and Lacey was left to fend for herself in a world of shapeshifters. Ten years later, she runs the best cupcake shop in the Texas Hill Country, hunts the undead by night, and searches tirelessly for a cure for the blackouts her mother now suffers after having her memory erased by the werewolf council. The one thing she doesn’t have time for? Untangling the feelings still simmering between her and a certain ex turned best friend. Dallas Caldwell already destroyed one life. When you’re the son of the pack Alpha, mistakes don’t just mean consequences. They mean exile. Back in Blood Moon at last, Dallas has resolved to stay away from Lacey Blair for her own good. But when Lacey is attacked by vampires and targeted with a slow-acting biologic agent that prevents her from shifting, she and Dallas will have to team up to find out what exactly she’s been infected with—and whether this new weapon developed by the undead could pose a threat to the entire pack. CRAVE is part of the Blood Moon, Texas Shifters series. Sizzling hot romance. Guaranteed HEA.


The Wolf and the Water

The Wolf and the Water by Josie Jaffrey

Some secrets are worth killing for The ancient city of Kepos sits in an isolated valley, cut off from the outside world by a towering wall. Behind it, the souls of the dead clamour for release. Or so the priesthood says. Kala has never had any reason to doubt their word - until her father dies in suspicious circumstances that implicate the city's high priest. She's determined to investigate, but she has a more immediate problem: the laws of the city require her mother to remarry straight away. Kala's new stepfather is a monster, but his son Leon is something altogether more dangerous: kind. With her family fractured and the investigation putting her life in danger, the last thing Kala needs is romance. She would rather ignore Leon entirely, however difficult he makes it. But when she learns the truth of what really clamours behind the wall at the end of the valley, she faces a choice: share what she knows and jeopardise her escape, or abandon him to his fate along with the rest of the city. If she doesn't move fast, then no one will make it out of the valley alive.


(Not) In This Lifetime

(Not) In This Lifetime by Rebecca Ouellette

Time Travel! 1980s! Rock 'n' Roll! Charlie North doesn't want to be a rock star, that was his overbearing father's dream. It is only out of a sense of parental loyalty that Charlie drags himself into seedy clubs and dive bars night after night, when he would rather be anywhere else. For years, he does this without hesitation, until a devastating nightclub fire forces him to question everything he thought he knew about his father, and himself. In the days following the fire, Charlie begins to dream about another band, long ago, and the tragic death of a beautiful girl he’s never met. Soon, they are all he can think about. He struggles to grasp onto any kind of logical explanation as he spirals out of control, consumed by feelings and memories not his own. It isn’t until he awakens one morning, in another time, 21 years in the past, that everything finally makes sense.


Reality Dreamers

Reality Dreamers by K.M. Frost

Indie Recs Indie

Dreams or Reality... Which would you choose? "There's another horrible scream, a lot closer this time, and then I can feel the ice cold fingers brushing the back of my neck, just like in my nightmare... I know there's no way to escape the Entities, but we keep running. What else can we do?" Fifteen-year-old Jonas Hartley shouldn’t be having nightmares anymore, but that doesn’t stop them from coming. Every night, the dreams get worse—until he meets the Reality Dreamers. Normally, Jonas would avoid this strange trio of teenagers, but when he realizes one of them is a mysterious girl he’s seen in reality, he decides to stick around for a while, curious about what they’re doing in his dreams. But curiosity isn’t always harmless. The Reality Dreamers are hunted by dark beings called Entities, products of a dark world with many secrets. Too late, Jonas realizes he may have gotten himself into something much larger and much darker than he ever could have imagined...


Remember the Dawn

Remember the Dawn by A. M. Macdonald

Indie Recs Indie

Starlight. Steel. Ahryn and Ezai must unite. Ten years ago, the Starsingers--tyrannical magicians who draw their power from the stars--suffered a brutal defeat at the hands of an ancient order of magic-resistant peacekeepers. Their rebellion quelled, their magic controlled, the five families of starlight magicians have been forced to live in a fragile truce with the starless commoners...until now. When an assassin begins killing Starsingers, the defiant peacekeepers are blamed, for who else could slay a magician? EZAI is a storied peacekeeper. He has been tasked with finding the true killer, and he must do so before the balance of power is disrupted. But the Starsingers plot against him. AHRYN is the eldest child of an Astral House, and she alone survives the murder of her family. She seeks justice, but the other families wish to use her fury, and her family's legacy. As another war approaches, Ezai and Ahryn form an unlikely alliance. Together, they must unlock a secret of the past and find the assassin before it's too late, for a greater evil looms.


Sin Eater

Sin Eater by Amanda Denham

Two years ago, Jayde Holloway discovered that she had the power to erase memories in the worst way possible: by accidentally wiping her best friend Jenny’s at the end of their senior year. Now, shut off from the world, Jayde exists solely for her role as the Sin Eater, an entity who can take away a person’s every bad memory if they so wish… for a price. Jayde hates the lonely life that she’s dealt, especially under her strict boss Jak, who consistently keeps her under his watchful eye through blackmail: a constant reminder of all of her mistakes. When she must travel back to her hometown, Jayde secretly befriends two siblings with a haunted past of their own. As her own painful memories begin to overwhelm, Jayde must make a choice: remain chained to a familiar but hurtful past, or reveal all of her darkest secrets for what could be a better future.


Lorden Awakening

Lorden Awakening by Krislee Ellsworth

Indie Recs Indie

Magic has not existed for three centuries, and the world is dying because of it. Anaver has never seen the sun through the foggy dome that surrounds the island of Tamrose. She's heard tales of other lands and magic, but no one can prove that such things ever existed. When fate pulls her from her home and places her in a land of sun and starlight, she discovers that she harbors a power that can awaken the earth's dormant magic. Rothrin has watched as the world around him fades away. The elements have long lost their state of Lorden, or harmony, which has caused a decades-long famine to sweep over the continent. All seems lost until he meets Anaver, and the elements begin to awaken. They set out on a quest in a land on the brink of collapse and starvation to unleash the earth's power before time runs out.


The Forest Witch

The Forest Witch by Britt Laux

Indie Recs Indie

A warrior, her witch, and the spark that ignites a war. Lanira na Caliri never expected to find a human in the North Forest of Unara, let alone a witch. When she discovers Siobhan unconscious by the portal that leads to her world, she soon learns of a prophecy that foretold her coming. A warning that a daughter of Unara will bring destruction upon the realm. The reign of blood will come again unless Lanira can stop it. With the little witch by her side, Lanira embarks on a journey across the clans of Unara to unite the people and save her realm from the Dark Karika’s return at all costs. Even if she must risk losing herself to the mysterious Minra na Goran in the process.


A Twist in the Rift (Rift Runners #1)

A Twist in the Rift (Rift Runners #1) by Meg Radiant

If you could travel to different worlds, would you ever come back to this one? Lyrica is the usual final year university student, except that she has the ability to see Rifts – portals to other worlds in this Universe. When her acquaintance Basil, a time-travelling archaeologist from the future shows up and needs her help, well, why would she resist the call of adventure? But what of these new aliens that have joined their group – will they draw Lyrica out of her self-justified, self-imposed loneliness? What will happen when the adventure turns more dangerous than anticipated? In this first story of the Rift Runners Saga, find out what life is like when you can travel almost anywhere, and almost anything can happen!


The Century Blade

The Century Blade by Rob J. Hayes

Orochi, the king of the dragons, has ordered his brothers and sisters to destroy humanity. It falls to a young hero to assemble a team and stop the dragons' rampage. It falls to the Century Blade. This is a short story set in the world of the award-winning Mortal Techniques. It is designed to be read as a standalone story, completely independent from the full length novels set in the same world.


Eternal Huntress: Shadows of Otherside Book 5

Eternal Huntress: Shadows of Otherside Book 5 by Whitney Hill

The gods are ready to ride. As Arden Finch races to fulfill the prophecy that will enable her to stop the Wild Hunt, a new clue leads her down a desperate path. Her search for answers takes her somewhere no mortal should go: the gods’ plane, where more than one danger awaits. With treacherous gods on one side and rioting mundanes on the other, there’s plenty to deal with already. But old enemies and new have plans that will test the fragile alliance, and this time it’s not just Arden in their sights. It’s Troy and the Wild Hunt too. As her options narrow by the day and time runs out, Arden must make the ultimate choice about what she’s willing to do to save the world. Don't miss the conclusion of the Shadows of Otherside series!


Ebon Rebellion: Shadows of Otherside Book 4

Ebon Rebellion: Shadows of Otherside Book 4 by Whitney Hill

Power always has a price. Arden Finch has claimed her place in North Carolina's Otherside community, but not everyone is happy about it. The elves can't allow an elemental to rule as Arbiter and they'll stop at nothing to take Arden down. To make matters worse, an old flame is back in town with big ambitions and bigger demands. The mundane police departments are reviewing unusual cases in light of the Reveal, adding even more problems. And with the Darkwatch after her as well, Arden must make tough choices about who—and what—she is now. Survival will have her pushing her powers and relationships to the brink, with the gods watching for any weakness ahead of the Wild Hunt. Success will carry a price Arden never reckoned on.


A Wizard’s Sacrifice

A Wizard’s Sacrifice by A.M. Justice

Victoria of Ourtown believes that destiny is nonsense—and that wandering star people think is a god, she knows it's nothing but an old, abandoned spacecraft. She used to scoff at stories of magic too, until she acquired the power to move things with her mind. Once a warrior, now a secret wizard, she just wants to live an ordinary life and atone for the suffering she caused. Ashel of Narath knows the wandering star is the god who watches over humanity, but Vic's heretical views aren't keeping them apart. Instead, a thousand miles and a tragic loss stand between them. Lornk Korng needs Vic and Ashel to execute his plans for conquest. The fact both want him dead is but a trifling snag in his schemes. A bigger problem are the world’s indigenous aliens and an ancient enemy whose victory could wipe out humankind. As plots and counterplots clash across time, Vic and Ashel must choose their allies carefully, or risk losing not only each other but everything they know. A gripping tale of wizardry, warfare, and moral dilemmas unspools in a breathtaking blend of fantasy and science fiction.


The Changeling's Fortune (Winter's Blight Book 1)

The Changeling's Fortune (Winter's Blight Book 1) by M.C. Aquila & K.C. Lannon

When her destructive faery magic is unlocked, Deirdre fights for control of her power and for her life. Seventeen-year-old orphan Deirdre moves to Neo-London, a city created after an attack by Unseelie faeries, and becomes caught in the tension between the city faeries and the human military. Deirdre develops uncontrollable magical abilities after having her fortune told—making her the target of Alan Callaghan, an extreme anti-faery general. His sons, Iain and James, cross paths with Deirdre and are pushed towards the opposite sides of the conflict between humans and Fae. Iain is a rookie soldier in the Iron Guard trying to atone for past mistakes and keep his family together. James is a fourteen-year-old aspiring scholar fascinated by faeries and eager to leave his life in the city behind. As Alan conspires to control the city, Deirdre and James plot to leave, seeking answers about her magic and James’s disappeared mother. However, when Deirdre is framed for a treasonous crime, their quest for answers becomes a desperate quest for freedom. The Changeling’s Fortune is the first installment in a seven-book series.


On the Edge of Salt

On the Edge of Salt by Dixon Reuel

On the Edge of Salt covers the early onslaught of the zombie apocalypse, when firebombs are first used to take out whole cities that are brute–infested. With a hidden home and smallholding shielded from the world, Rise is confident that his coven is safe behind the red brick walls of Owl Court. But as the night sky burns, a stranger with a terrible secret approaches his walls…


They Mostly Come Out At Night

They Mostly Come Out At Night by Benedict Patrick

Semi finalist in Mark Lawrence’s SPFBO (2017) Are you scared of the dark? The villagers of the forest seal themselves in their cellars at night, whispering folktales to each other about the monsters that prey on them in the dark. Only the Magpie King, their shadowy, unseen protector, can keep them safe. However, when an outcast called Lonan begins to dream of the Magpie King’s defeat at the hands of inhuman invaders, this young man must do what he can to protect his village. He is the only person who can keep his loved ones from being stolen away after dark, and to do so he will have to convince them to trust him again. They Mostly Come Out At Night is the first novel from Benedict Patrick’s Yarnsworld series. Straddling the line between fantasy and folklore, this book is perfect for fans of the darker Brothers Grimm stories.


The Oracle Stone

The Oracle Stone by Talli L. Morgan

SOME LEGENDS NEVER DIE. Jekku Aj’ere can see everything from the start of time to the end, and it’s an agonizing curse. His only chance to bargain for freedom is to find the Oracle Stone, a magic artifact that was split into four pieces and hidden centuries ago. Lilya Noor wants to forget her past and be immortal, so she agrees to a blood oath that will grant her eternal life if she delivers the Oracle Stone to her Master of Magic. Failure is not an option, but what if the stone offers a better deal than simple immortality? Vaeltaja Ievisin has one chance for redemption: the Second Savior. Presenting the Savior and the lost Oracle Stone to his gods will end his banishment, but the Savior isn’t at all what Taja expected, and neither is the stone. And how much is forgiveness worth, anyway, when the gods are never satisfied? There are higher powers at play, and Jekku, Lilya, and Taja must pull themselves together or risk losing their magic and their lives to the vengeful spirits trapped in the stone. But it’s hard to prevent a magical catastrophe when you can’t trust anyone, including yourself, and certainly not the gods.


METANOIA The Fifth Yanai: Book One

METANOIA The Fifth Yanai: Book One by Juniper Lake Fitzgerald

SPFBO8

The Fifth Yanai is a story of the value of free will, the triumph of love, and the fight to live life on one's own terms. Metanoia is the first installment. In a world ravaged by famine, kindhearted Cultist Ohkai lives in the wilderness serving his Gods, when he is sent from his Sect on a Calling of divine origin. He travels into the heart of a society that opposes the very existence of his kind. But what he expected to be a simple test of his devotion will bring him face to face with his greatest rival - a Temple assassin. When the life of a friend is in danger, Ohkai must risk not only discovery, but his life, to save his friend and fulfill his Calling. Velyr is a ruthless Temple assassin trained for one thing - to fulfill the will of the Gods. Sent to eliminate a target in the township of Obeaon, he encounters an unexpected obstacle in the form of a Cultist who claims to serve his same Gods - blasphemy on the lips of his enemy. When he nearly loses his life only to be saved by the embodiment of what he hates most, Velyr begins to question everything he's been taught to believe. An unlikely connection forms between cultist and assassin, and little do they know their meeting was fated, meant to be something more than they - or even their all-knowing Gods - could have ever foreseen.


Skelly’s Square

Skelly’s Square by Stephen Black

Indie Recs Indie

They want him to save the world. But, first, he must save himself. Kirkwood Scott is having a bad day. Languishing in a dead end job and recently dumped by his girlfriend he struggles with a crippling form of OCD which manifests itself in the form of Colonel Augustus Skelly, a phantom voice from Kirkwood’s childhood who controls his every waking moment via a series of tortuous routines, ‘The 49’. Kirkwood has little to look forward to, bar a weekend of drunken oblivion in Belfast with his equally deadbeat friends. All that changes when he meets Meredith Starc, a young homeless woman struggling to survive on the streets and come to terms with her own troubled past. Kirkwood realises Meredith may hold the answer to him finally being free of his mental demons. But what if Skelly is more than just a voice? Kirkwood and Meredith join forces to unearth a supernatural battle raging on the city’s back streets between ancient forces of good or evil, the outcome of which will decide the fate of the planet. Between them, they hold the key to saving mankind from a new Dark Age but can they survive long enough to do so as Skelly unleashes a legion of vicious ghost soldiers upon the unsuspecting city? ‘The Kirkwood Scott Chronicles: Skelly’s Square’ is a fast paced and darkly humorous supernatural fantasy guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish.


The Traveller's Stone

The Traveller's Stone by S.J. Howland

Indie Recs Indie

Xander King does not believe in fairytales. He prefers rational explanations, keeping his head down and trying to avoid the inevitable comparisons with his genius mother. The last thing he expects is to have his life turned upside down by terrifying shadows and an encounter with a mysterious stone tablet, challenging his entire view of reality and catapulting him into the parallel world of Haven. Faced with extraordinary creatures, ancient secrets and a heritage he does not understand, Xander is drawn into the struggle to protect the border between his own reality and Haven, and prevent disaster overcoming them both. But, as darkness spreads, he must confront new questions. Where does he belong, and is anything in Haven really as it seems? Discover the mesmerising world of Haven and the truths long-hidden in the ancient stories in this gripping fantasy adventure.


Oil and Dust

Oil and Dust by Jami Fairleigh

SPFBO8

Politics, Money, Power, Religion, and Greed. These are the things we never again need. Artist Matthew Sugiyama can alter the physical world with his art. As the top student graduating from the prestigious Popham Abbey, Matthew Sugiyama’s future is secure… until he bucks convention and begins a journey to find answers about his birth family. The trouble is, he doesn’t know who or where they are. Determined to find answers, but without a clear destination, Matthew sets out on horseback across a post-technology world, guided only by random flashes of a vision or long-buried memory. Using his skills as an artist to barter for hospitality and supplies, Matthew soon learns his sheltered upbringing has left him wholly unprepared to face the obstacles on the road or his unexpected yearning to join the communities he encounters. When he uncovers a mysterious adversary’s plan to harm the people he’s come to care for, Matthew must decide what’s more important; the adopted family he has created, or his need for answers about his past.


Finding Fae Artifacts

Finding Fae Artifacts by Isa Medina

Indie Recs Indie SFINCS

Tricky Fae magic. Bloodthirsty creatures. One scrappy Artifact Hunter to-be. Joining the Magical Artifacts Institute as an artifact hunter has always been my dream job. Problem is, they keep rejecting my applications. So when I find a dangerous Fae artifact stashed in my temp job’s basement, I know I’m about to prove them wrong. Unfortunately, the arrogant stranger who interrupts my find doesn’t agree with my good fortune. Aidan belongs to the Institute and insists on following procedure and confiscating my artifact. He’s welcome to try, but there’s one small problem. Oops, make that two: he’s triggered a binding spell that won’t allow more than a few feet between us, and someone has unleashed a nightmarish Fae hound that’s trying to turn us into lunch. Now I must break the bond, escape the hound, convince Aidan that I’d be the best Institute worker ever, and figure out who’s willing to kill to get to my artifact. Sounds hard? That’s okay—I might be only one-sixteenth Fae, but I’ve got plenty of tricks up my sleeve.


The 13th Zodiac

The 13th Zodiac by L. Krauch

SPFBO8

The 13th Zodiac is a High Fantasy, slow-burn romance with a hint of Anime. Originally, L. Krauch wrote it as a comic book in High school. Now, 20 years, and three kids later, she sat down and wrote a novel. So, grab some tea, slice up an apple, and enjoy this mulit-PoV journey 20 years in the making. Running from his past finally catches up to Jase Raion, an ex-member of the Ashen Guard and the Crown Prince of Chall. After settling on the island of Aria, he receives an unexpected contract: The lost princess of Aria was discovered living in the port town of Brighton, on the outskirts of the island Kingdom. A trip to the markets in Brighton ends abruptly as Liya Fairaway stumbles into Jase. She vanishes in the busy marketplace when Jase realizes who she is, the lost princess of Aria and the bearer of the 13th Zodiac: Eternity. And his target. Something ancient pulls them together, a bond that neither can deny. Reluctantly at first, Jase joins Liya and the other Zodiac to end the threat of Soren Raion, the King of Chall. Time is not on their side, and Fate has other plans. Content warning Dear readers, the content within this novel will include detailed descriptions of violence (including guns, axes, and even some by hand), death, and mental illness (there is a character who has an unhealthy infatuation with another), as well as attempted sexual assault, use of alcohol, and foul language which might be harmful to some readers.


Tamberlane Chapter 1: Lost Flowers

Tamberlane Chapter 1: Lost Flowers by Caytlin Vilbrandt

Indie Recs Indie

The animal citizens of Treehollow have discovered a small, strange creature wandering alone in the forest: a human child! And they have no idea what it is. Clearly much too young to be on her own, it’s anyone’s guess how this mysterious being, named Tamberlane, ended up in their town of Treehollow. Fostered by Belfry, the accident-prone bat, and guided by a colorful cast of animal characters, Tamberlane’s mysteries continue to unfold. But questions burn in everyone’s minds: who, and what, is she? And could she have something to do with the far-off and unspeakable taboo, Abroad?


Pigeon

Pigeon by Olga Werby

SPFBO8

Pigeon is eleven, homeless, and now an orphan. Alone and scared, he seeks to find a new family. But the past he barely remembers comes back to haunt him, endangering his newly-found friends, the Kikkert Family. Fortunately, the Kikkerts want to adopt Pigeon even if he is wanted by strange para-military DNA warriors. As they race through San Francisco to save each other, the true nature of Pigeon's birth is revealed as well as the secret identity of Madam Toad—the matriarch of the Kikkert Family. What does is mean to be human? What does it take to be a family? Pigeon is willing to risk his life to learn and to love.


© 2026 Hakea Media | Terms | Privacy