Showing results by narrator "Erin deWard" in All Categories

Valentine Beaumont is a beautician with a problem. Not only has she got a meddling mother, a wacky staff, and a dying business, but now she’s got a dead client who was strangled while awaiting her facial. With business the way it is, combing through this mystery may be the only way to save her salon. Until a second murder, an explosion, a kidnapping, death threats, and the hard-nosed Detective Romero complicate things. But Valentine will do anything to untangle the crime.

Valerie Kuriaken, a skilled witch assassin known as a SHVA, has always worked alone. When a routine mission brings her face-to-face with FBI agent Benjamin Carter, their paths become intertwined. Ben, a seasoned agent, is thrown into a world of magic and shadows as he joins forces with Valerie to uncover the Ascendants' sinister plot that threatens both the human and magical realms. Valerie and Ben navigate a treacherous landscape filled with dark artifacts, powerful enemies, and hidden agendas.

Timothy Zahn shows an unparalleled mastership of science fiction in the fifteen tales gathered here. "The Price of Survival" features an alien ship that arrives in our solar system without hostile intentions but with a desperate need whose fulfillment could destroy humanity. "The Giftie Gie Us" tells the story of two lonely survivors who find love among the ruins of a post-apocalyptic United States. And in "Pawn's Gambit," a human and his alien opponent face off over a game that will decide which one of them will return home.

Our world and our minds can be pretty dark places, and you're not alone if you're struggling or feeling stuck. But what if you could stop that spiral of depression and reverse it? You may not be able to change the world around you, but you can change how you respond to it. Written by a clinical psychologist specializing in adolescent mental health, this engaging guide offers an array of activities you can use to jumpstart your motivation and turn destructive thoughts and behaviors into positive outlooks and actions that lead to a more promising future.

Parker describes the discovery of tetrahydocannbinol (THC), the main psychoactive component of cannabis, and the further discovery of cannabinoid receptors in the brain. She explains that the brain produces chemicals similar to THC, which act on the same receptors as THC, and shows that the endocannabinoid system is involved in all aspects of brain functioning.  

The scholarly book proposal may be academia's most mysterious genre. You have to write one to get published, but most scholars receive no training on how to do so - and you may have never even seen a proposal before you're expected to produce your own. The Book Proposal Book cuts through the mystery and guides prospective authors step by step through the process of crafting a compelling proposal and pitching it to university presses and other academic publishers.

Veronica Blackstone has been hired to write an end-of-life book for a woman whose wedding vows she completed only a year earlier. Saddened by the task and confused by the seemingly callous reactions of family members, Veronica sets forth to create the booklet the woman’s mother desires. But not everything is as it seems, and the more Veronica digs the more she comes to realize that maybe the young woman’s death wasn’t the accident her wealthy family keeps insisting it was.

When 15-year-old Grace Branduff finds an old man dying on her doorstep, she can’t understand his last words and is mystified by the beautiful gift he leaves behind. When his death sets off a chain of events that drastically changes the course of Grace’s life, she must rely on her instincts and intuition to discover whom she can trust and where she belongs. Haunted by the time-worn love letter the old man carried across an ocean, Police Chief Scott Gordon is determined to unravel the man’s mysterious past and find out why he came to Rose Hill.

Garage sale reseller and amateur sleuth, Macy Garson, has had a rough patch. When her late husband's classic truck breaks down, she seriously wonders if she can survive without him. A feud with her next-door neighbor over a misunderstanding grows even frostier when he invites her to a barbecue, and she politely declines. Just when Macy thinks that things can't get much worse, a body is discovered near the pond behind Happy Paws, the dog shelter where she volunteers.

Burdened by her love of two men and her newfound supernatural life, Linden looks to Cyril to help ease her transition from human to other-earthly badass. He arranges Linden's reacquaintance with Overton, but his plan is foiled when the two are attacked by Vidius, the mastermind behind the legions of magical shapeshifters. Vidius's actions have lasting consequences that lead Linden to a startling discovery that will change her world yet again.

Zoe Lake and Aric Winters are ready to say "I do". They've fought sphinxes, witches, and monster hunters - and all they want now is peace. Unfortunately, that's not so easy to find. When the wedding planners - and warring mothers - descend on their happy home, Aric and Zoe are plunged into a world they never expected.

Every night, blazing-hot dreams of the men bound to Cyril, a literal sex-god, torment Linden, giving her a taste of the forbidden. Rhys, the sexy, hot warrior who's a master at swordplay and foreplay, is determined to make a fighter out of the woman he not-so-secretly desires.

In this sequel to Black Rose, reunite with the captains of the Immortal Guard and witness Mara and Edward at the beginning of their epic love story, which spans more than a millennium of heartache, pain, and undying devotion. When Edward is sent on a mysterious quest by the ruthless queen, 19-year-old Mara - the youngest sub-captain to ever serve the Royal Guard - vowed to await his return, never anticipating decades would pass without word of his fate.

Trapped somewhere between life and death, demigod Cyril has lost the ability to communicate with his love. But not before giving her valuable lessons in magic, as well as his blessing to move on without him. Coming to terms with Cyril's absence isn't easy, but Linden is doing her best to honor his wishes. Until she receives an unusual request from Moreaux, an estranged member of Cyril's family.

Cyril is weary from weeks of traveling the Scottish moors, but his luck takes a turn when he rescues a battered and broken child. To express his gratitude, the boy's father offers Cyril a night of carnal indulgence with his eldest daughter. Cyril graciously accepts, looking forward to a night of sexual release to ease the loneliness of his travels.

Fundraiser Linden Hill has a knack for reading people. She always knows which conversations will put a prospect at ease, which drink will loosen a patron's lips - or his wallet - and how cleavage will make a donor sweeten the deal. She's even foreseen her dateless weekends 464 times in a row. But 10 years after watching life drain from her former mentor's and first love's eyes, her skills for divining the predictable are lost.

When offered a one-way trip to the past, Isabel sacrifices everything for a chance to change the rapidly deteriorating present - and see her murdered lover one last time. When she arrives 20 years in the past, buck naked and mortally wounded, she has 24 hours to convince a stunned but enraptured 19-year-old to change their future. Definitely easier said than done, as success means losing him to a brainy, smart-mouthed bombshell (her younger self), and that's a heart breaker, save the world or not.

Lydia awakes, bound and blind, to the whispered urgings of a man who has his hands on her. His words confuse her at first, but she soon understands they are both in the middle of a performance that will determine whether she remains in captivity or dies.

The only survivor of Denver’s notorious “Reaper” serial murders, FBI Special Agent Kendall Beck grapples with the ghosts of her past by seeking justice for victims of abuse. She’s neck-deep in a particularly ugly case when her investigation is derailed - her best friend and roommate, Gwen Tavich, turns up dead, floating in a nearby lake. Devastated by the news of Gwen’s death, Kendall teams up with Denver Detective Adam Taylor to find the killer. The Reaper has returned to Denver - and he’s not stopping at just one victim.

Summer, 1989. Reeling from a catastrophic divorce, Francine Haddix flees San Francisco for a two-week stay at her sister’s house in Hawthorn Woods, Illinois. The quaint neighborhood of shady trees and friendly neighbors seems like the perfect place for her to sort through her pain and move on with her life.