Showing results for "Hot" in Contemporary

Jude has tricked Cardan onto the throne, binding him to her for a year and a day. But the new High King does everything in his power to humiliate and undermine her, even as his fascination with her remains undimmed. Meanwhile, a traitor in the court is scheming against her. Jude must fight for her life and the lives of those she loves, all while battling her own complicated feelings for Cardan. Now a year and a day seems like no time at all....

Kellen is moments away from facing his first mage's duel and the start of four trials that will make him a spellcaster. As his sixteenth birthday approaches, Kellen falls back on his cunning in a bid to avoid total disgrace. But when a daring stranger arrives in town, she challenges Kellen to take a different path. Ferius Parfax is one of the mysterious Argosi - a traveller who lives by her wits and the three decks of cards she carries. She's difficult and unpredictable, but she may be Kellen's only hope.

For the first time, an Empress Redemptor sits on Aritsar's throne. To appease the sinister spirits of the dead, Tarisai must now anoint a council of her own, coming into her full power as a Raybearer. She must then descend into the Underworld, a sacrifice to end all future atrocities. Tarisai is determined to survive. Or at least, that's what she tells her increasingly distant circle of friends. Months into her shaky reign as empress, child spirits haunt her, demanding that she pay for past sins of the empire.

Vira is desperate to get out of her mother's shadow and establish her legacy as a revered queen of Ashoka. But with the country's only quarry running out of magic - a precious resource that has kept Ashoka safe from conflict - she can barely protect her citizens from the looming threat of war. And if her enemies discover this, they'll stop at nothing to seize the last of the magic.

Princess Alyrra has never enjoyed the security or power of her rank. Between her family's cruelty and the court's contempt, she has spent her life in the shadows. Forced to marry a powerful foreign prince, Alyrra embarks on a journey to meet her betrothed with little hope for a better future. But powerful men have powerful enemies - and now so does Alyrra. Betrayed during a magical attack, her identity is switched with another woman's, giving Alyrra the first choice she's ever had: to start a new life for herself or fight for a prince she's never met.

In the magic-soaked capital city of Oluwan, Small Sade needs a job - preferably as a maid, with employers who don't mind her unique appearance and unlucky foot. But before she can be hired, she accidentally binds herself to a powerful being known only as the Crocodile, a god rumoured to devour pretty girls. Small Sade entrances the Crocodile with her secret: she is a Curse Eater, gifted with the ability to alter people's fates by cleaning their houses.

Iraya Adair has spent her life in a cell. Heir of an overthrown and magically gifted dynasty, she was exiled from her home on the island nation of Aiyca when she was just a child. But every day brings her closer to freedom—and vengeance. Jazmyne Cariot grew up dressed in gold, with stolen magic at her fingertips. Daughter of the self-crowned doyenne, her existence is a threat to her mother's rule. But unlike her sister, Jazmyne has no intention of dying to strengthen her mother's power.

Kellen and Reichis are settling into their lives as protectors of the young queen. For the first time Kellen feels as if he's becoming the kind of man that his mentor Ferius had wanted him to be. Even Reichis has come to appreciate having a noble purpose - so long as no one minds him committing the occasional act of theft from the royal treasury.

Sare Silverbirch has already had her heart broken four times, and a fifth heartbreak will stop her heart forever. Such is the nature of the curse she was born under, which forces her to live a life without letting anyone get too close. Then her mother dies unexpectedly,and Sare begins to question the curse. Where did it come from? Why her? And rather than accept it, could there be a way to break it? Her questions lead her to Istanbul where she meets Leon, a seer who helps her track down the mysteries of her mother's past. But Sare's heart is a fragile thing.

While liberating a notorious thief from prison, Ferius Parfax encounters an inmate named Chedran, one of the last living members of her people, the Mahdek. Ferius agrees to help him and the Mahdek remnant reach a mystical island where they can live free from persecution. Chedran convinces the Mahdek elders that this refuge is their last chance to repopulate their civilisation so they can one day retake their homeland, and so the elders rule that all Mahdek must remain on the island to bear and raise children.

Long ago, a girl named Favre sacrificed her wings for love. Thana, the young goddess she so willingly gave them up for, sacrificed that same love for power. But everything has a cost. Favre never got over the loss of her wings. And Thana's choices led to a life of eternal night, and later, their destruction. Favre has bided her time ever since, waiting for the chance to resurrect the girl she loves who turned her into the creature she hates. Now, a thousand years later, Leyla, the crown princess of the malichora - a race that survives on human blood - must travel to the Island of the Dead.

Aster is on a mission for the Lady Ghosts, helping an escaped Good Luck Girl. Although grateful to be contributing to the cause, Aster chafes at the way the Lady Ghosts work, taking as few risks as possible. So Aster is delighted when Clem tells her that there has been support from dustbloods around the country for the welcome house arson, orchestrated by Aster.