Showing results by narrator "Renee Chambliss" in All Categories

I'm a master at hiding my true feelings for Aria Bristol. Well, except for that one time. That one kiss. She almost figured me out then, and I vowed to never let it happen again. The fact that we were separated by thousands of miles helped a lot. But now that I'm back, all I can think about is re-creating that kiss from high school. And that's bad, because if I know anything, I know she deserves so much better than me. But she's fierce. Feisty. And she knows me better than anyone. I don't know how much longer I can keep up this act. And the scariest part of all? I'm not sure I want to.

In this new anthology offered by Blunder Woman Productions, you’ll take a trip down twisty roads into forests, back alleys, and even across the border between life and death. Together these tales are funny, creepy, weird, contemplative, traditional, and speculative. The characters in these stories might take a wrong turn, but it’s the right move for any fan of thrillers and mysteries.

Brent Masterson has been my enemy ever since "the debacle." In a moment of weakness, because I can't seem to land a job in my degreed profession, I agreed to be his assistant. What was I thinking? It's easy to resist his usual Resting Grump Face, which apparently is his default mode around me. But sometimes when I least expect it, he gives me a knee-weakening smile or a flirty look, and my resistance to him completely crumbles.

Poppy Fields has a movie-star mother, 84 million Instagram followers, paparazzi following her every move, and a problem. Her Mexican vacation just went sideways (abducted-by-a-drug-lord sideways). Suddenly her life resembles one of her mother's movies, except the bullets are real, people are dying, and there's no guarantee of a happy ending. Surrounded by trained killers and unsure who she can trust, only one thing is certain - if Poppy doesn't escape, this vacation will be her last.

He's a casual T-shirt and flip-flops chef. She's a serious buttoned-down corporate leader. How's their relationship ever going to work?

"I'm darkness, Maddie. Stay away from men like me. You'll only get hurt." At one time my life was simple. Easy. But that was before the war. Now I was no longer an average college student. I was a survivor. A woman living in a ravaged world. My future was not bright and my life was far from perfect. The war had taken so much from me . . . but it wasn't finished yet. It wanted more. It wanted my heart. My soul. The one person I couldn't live without.

We were best friends, inseparable since childhood despite our differences. I knew the real man hiding behind the tattoos and bad attitude. He knew all my secrets and dreams. But he didn't know there was one thing I wanted and couldn't have - him. But sometimes Fate has a way of intervening. Soon our world collapsed. War erupted. Darkness prevailed. Alone and on the run, our only goal was to survive and to ignore the feelings we had for each other. But love is powerful - and so is the darkness.

Driven by hope and vengeance, Carina Maria DiGratia leaves her idyllic home in Sonoma, California, for a new life in the mining town of Crystal, Colorado. Though the town has a rough element, Carina is determined that it will be the place where her dreams come true. Early on, two men vie for her trust - but neither is what he seems. Will Carina discern the truth in time to prevent tragedy?

Helper12 works as a Baby Helper in Pre Ward, the place where babies spend their first six months of life before they're tracked for vocations and sent to training. One day, the Sloanes, Society members who enjoy all the privileges - a private dwelling, access to good food and good schools - come to "adopt" one of the Pre Ward babies. The Director makes a deal and the Sloanes walk out with a brand new child. They also walk out owning Helper12 - the Director sells her to them, and there's nothing she can do but go.

Yes. Yes, I do have a crush on Isaac, my YouTube-famous boss. Do I ever talk to him? Absolutely not. Crippling social anxiety can do that. But I'm nothing if not tenacious. Since straight up talking to him is way too hard, I've devised a plan. Online, I have social skills I'd never dream of having in person. I'm possibly even cool. When Isaac responds to my anonymous DM, I message him right back but keep my identity a secret. If he can get to know me this way first, maybe he’ll overlook how awkward I am in person.

This is the story of Quinn - born Prudence Quinn O'Malley - a confused young Manhattan attorney who loses her father on that tragic September morning that changed everything. Now, at an existential crossroads in her life, Quinn must confront impossible questions about commitment and career, love and loss. Her idealistic beau desperately wants a wedding, and whisks her away to Paris just to propose. But then Quinn has a dream featuring judges and handcuffs and Nietzsche and Britney...and far too many grooms.

If Rain weren’t a girl, she would be respected as a Neshu combat master. Instead, her gender dooms her to a colorless future. When an army of nomads invades her kingdom, and a draft forces every household to send one man to fight, Rain takes her chance to seize the life she wants. Knowing she’ll be killed if she’s discovered, Rain purchases powder made from dragon magic that enables her to disguise herself as a boy.

TBC

Becca's life is turned upside down when she finds Jenn dead in the bathtub. Soon she begins to unspool the secrets Jenn kept in life, including a troubled marriage to Rick and two dead wives in his past. The more Becca learns, the more determined she becomes to get justice for Jenn, even if the clues surrounding her death aren't quite adding up . . . Over a year before her death, Jenn begins to notice her husband acting strangely. Using her skills as a librarian, she digs into Rick's past—and falls down a rabbit hole far deeper and darker than she bargained for.

I'm basically a golden retriever puppy. I love everyone and want everyone to love me. But Cameron is the singular exception to my "love everyone" rule, and the hatred goes both ways. First of all, he's one of THOSE guys. The kind that looks like he belongs on the cover of Yacht Club Weekly. Second of all, he's way too good at his job. The man is a walking Wikipedia. His walking tours of historic downtown Charleston stay booked weeks in advance. Did I mention I run tours along the same route?

When I meet Tyler Marino at a wedding, romance is the last thing on my mind. Yes, he's gorgeous. Yes, we have instant chemistry. But this summer is all about convincing my skeptical parents I'm ready to run our family farm. I can't afford to give Tyler's smoldering smile a passing glance. Fine. I glance. And possibly . . . kiss. But then I go home all the way to a different state. Crisis averted. Until Tyler shows up in North Carolina looking for a job. Of course, I give him one. We've already established I'm terrible at resisting his charm.

Aching from the recent loss of a constant companion, Carina DiGratia Shephard longs to return to the shelter of her close-knit family. Her husband, Quillan, is bent on proving his devotion, and they begin the arduous journey to the home of her youth nestled in the vineyards of Sonoma, California. But their arrival at the DiGratia estate is not the joyous occasion they expected.

Newly married Carina DiGratia Shephard longs to make a home for herself and her husband, Quillan, in the rugged mining town of Crystal, Colorado. Quillan, however, has turned away to confront the haunting pain of his troubled childhood. Out of her loneliness, Carina opens a restaurant and through its success soon attains the independence and identity she has long sought. When Carina is attacked in retaliation for her kindness to the destitute families of miners, everything changes.

Teenager Miranda Candle finds a mysterious necklace and is suddenly transported to The Nex, the bizarre city at the center of all possible universes, where she falls in with a pair of would-be revolutionaries - the skinshifter Howlaa and the bodiless Wisp - fighting the oppressive regime of the city-state's Regent and his army of steam colossi, cynical cyborgs, and the depraved royal orphans.

Thea Galehouse has always known how to take care of herself. With a flighty club-owner mom and a standoffish, recovering-alcoholic dad, Thea has made her own way in her hometown of New York, attending the prestigious and competitive Stuyvesant High School. But one chat with Will, a handsome and witty senior, and she's a goner - completely hooked on him and unable to concentrate on anything else. Always worried that she loves Will more than he loves her, Thea is pleasantly surprised when their romance weathers his move to college and Will goes out of his way to involve her in his life. But then, Thea misses a period.